Visit to Oosterbeek / 17th September 2012

[KenchiSulla]

Last monday I visited Oosterbeek, visited the Airborne Museum in hotel Hartenstein (recently renovated and adjusted. It is now fully accessible for people with a handicap and the by now very old veterans of the battle who still visit!) , did the perimiter walk (lower Oosterbeek) and visited the Cemetery about a mile east of the station (northern end of the perimiter).

First picture, the monument north of Hartenstein:

[KenchiSulla]

The inscription near this monument:

[KenchiSulla]

People still fly the Pegasus flag in the september month! Not an isolated case, about 50% of the houses in Oosterbeek have one..

[KenchiSulla]

A text (presented by the veterans to the people of Oosterbeek in 1994) that moved me..

[KenchiSulla]

The old church from where the Lonsdale force (remnants of 1st Para brigade) made sure there was still contact with the Rhine river - souteastern part of the Perimiter.

Next to this church Kate ter Horst took care of many allied wounded and dying..

[KenchiSulla]

What I believe to be the church tower of Driel, viewed from the southern end of the perim. just before the "uiterwaarde (polder)" starts..

[KenchiSulla]

The rebuild RR bridge, viewed from the eastern part of the perim.

[KenchiSulla]

In the distance you can see a red traffic light. That light marks the "Utrechtseweg / stationsweg" crossing. It was the eastern end of the Perim. On both sides of the Utrechtseweg there were two aid stations (hotel Schoonoord and hotel ...)

Position I took the picture from is near the Hartenstein hotel. It shows how narrow the pocket really was...

[KenchiSulla]

Shows my position relative to Hartenstein when taking the previous picture..

[KenchiSulla]

Next pictures don't need any explanation. Not all casualties are buried here. About 130 1st division members were never found...

[KenchiSulla]

Two

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Three

[KenchiSulla]

That is all I have. You can imagine it must have been hell from 21st of september till the 25th (night of the escape across the rhine). The germans did not assault but just lobbed shells into the pocket. Snipers infiltrated and there is
one account I do not want to keep from you (translated from dutch from a copy of "Arnhem by Martin Middlebrook".

Pvt Joe Roberts

"I was hiding in my trench waiting for the shelling to stop when I got the fright of my life. Above me was a German sniper. He looked down at me but his arm was hanging and he was bleeding terribly. I took my rifle and aimed but he looked at me in such a way that I couldn't pull the trigger.

He pointed at his shoulder as if he was looking for aid. I pointed in to the direction of the aid station with my rifle en he continued to walk in that direction. He was hit by one of his own shells while hiding in a tree..."

[Phoenix100]

Thanks Cannonfodder. Great pictures. I must visit again, the entire battlefield. It's not far up the road from here, but never get the time. Thanks again for posting.

[Arjuna]

Thanks for the picture. Brought back memories of my 2008 visit to the area. I gug up this snap of the memorial at the sight of the 82nd Div crossing of the Waal R. What really impressed me was the fact that we arrived there in October and these were obviously fresh flowers put there that day.