Arnhem

Operation Market Garden, launched in September 1944, was the largest Allied airborne operation of the Second World War to date - one the Allies hoped would liberate the Netherlands, hasten the final advance towards Berlin and end the war in Europe by Christmas 1944. The plan centred on dropping three airborne divisions  into German-occupied Netherlands to seize bridges at Eindhoven, Nijmegen and Arnhem. Ground troops advancing from Belgium to Arnhem, close to the border with Germany were to support them. If captured, Arnhem would provide a gateway to advance into the industrial heartland of Germany (the Ruhr) and be the key to crippling the Nazi war machine.

By examining the actions that won medals such as the Victoria Cross, the teacher can set the experience of war not only into the context of the individual winner but also of the times and conflicts before and since. For example, this lesson can fit into work carried out elsewhere on Canada and the Second World War or the Holocaust. Furthermore, the theme of courage under fire is a universal one that can be analysed regardless of race, gender or creed. It offers an opportunity to look at war from an intensely personal perspective and from a viewpoint that remembers the men who fought rather than the men who issued orders.

4 May is Remembrance Day in the Netherlands. At eight o’clock in the evening, communities gather by local memorials and hold a two minute silence. A ceremony attended by the monarch and important politicians is also held at the National War Monument at Dam Square in Amsterdam. Both civilian and military victims of conflict and persecution are remembered as wreaths are laid.

This enquiry is designed to expose students to the people who took part in actions, regardless of the operation’s success or failure. If taught in conjunction with the accompanying Arnhem themed materials (Victoria Cross and the Dutch occupation experience), then a fuller picture of the war and its impact upon everyday people will emerge. In particular, students will begin to comprehend war from a human and individual level.