With Recce at Arnhem
With Recce at Arnhem

Author: Mike Gallagher

Publisher: Pen and Sword

Published: 2015-09-30

Total Pages: 127

ISBN-13: 1473869161

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Determined to 'do his bit' Des Evans absconded from a reserved occupation and joined the newly formed Reconnaissance Corps. He saw action in North Africa and Italy before being evacuated back to England with pneumonia in early 1944. Fully recovered he volunteered as a wireless operator with 1st Airborne Reconnaissance Squadron and after parachute training joined C Troop before the ill-fated but glorious attempt to seize the Rhine Bridge at Arnhem.Des vividly describes the intense action that followed the drop. Ambushed twice and badly wounded he was made a POW and eventually succeeded in escaping.Fresh first-hand accounts of the bitter fighting at Arnhem are rare indeed and this one is brutally honest, at times shockingly so. Des Evans was born in Liverpool in 1923. Despite being in a Reserve Occupation he finally succeeded in joining the Army. This book covers his wartime service in North Africa, Italy and at Arnhem. Post war he served in Italy, Palestine, Germany and the Suez Canal Zone. Cuckolded by his first wife he was convicted of the manslaughter of her lover. On release from prison he met Betty and they enjoyed nearly 40 years together until dementia necessitated residential care. Betty died in March 2010 and Des followed her three months later.

Surgeon at Arms
Surgeon at Arms

Author: Lipmann Kessel

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Published: 2011-12-13

Total Pages: 223

ISBN-13: 1783830506

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Surgeon at Arms is without doubt one of the most interesting and dramatic personal memoirs to come out of the Second World War. The author, a surgeon, was parachuted into Arnhem with the First Airborne Division. His professional skill was at once tested to the limit and the modest detachment with which he describes serious operations performed under appalling conditions would alone be enough to merit the reissue of the book. But of equal significance is the authors account of his unceasing efforts to stop the Germans evacuating the hospital, a struggle which must inevitably be seen against his Jewish background. Add to this the authors hair-raising escape and the heroism of the Dutch Resistance and you have all the ingredients of a truly remarkable book.The flame of Arnhem has lately been rekindled by Cornelius Ryans book and the thirtieth anniversary ceremonies. But Ryan was an historian; Kessel was a participant; and it is only through the eyes of the participants that the reader can honestly assess the validity of the historians viewpoint. Lipmann Kessels book has lost nothing of its freshness or its drama in the thirty years since the events it describes took place. Now republished after being unavailable for many years, it warmly deserves to find a new generation of readers.

The British Reconnaissance Corps in World War II
The British Reconnaissance Corps in World War II

Author: Richard Doherty

Publisher: Osprey Publishing

Published: 2007-03-27

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781846031229

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Osprey's study of Britain's Reconnaisance Corps of World War II (1939-1945). Either creeping through the landscape or mounted in armored cars and Bren carriers, Reconnaissance Regiments became a vital addition to all British infantry divisions. After the disastrous defeat in France in 1940, at the hands of German forces with strong recce units mounted in light armored vehicles, the Bartholomew Committee called for the formation of a British equivalent. This was achieved by forming the new elite Reconnaissance Corps.Their spearhead role meant that they were consistently at the forefront of all dramatic action, and most famously served with the 1st and 6th Airborne at Arnhem and with the Chindits in Burma.Within every theater of war, ranging from the jungles to the deserts, the Reconnaissance Corps made a critical contribution to the Allied war effort. However, with the disbandment of the Corps at the end of the war, their record has been unjustly forgotten.With a selection of rare and unpublished frontline photographs taken from private collections, this fascinating new insight into a forgotten elite unit of the British Army recounts the experiences of those soldiers who operated ahead of the army throughout the course of the war.

Arnhem 1944
Arnhem 1944

Author: Martin Middlebrook

Publisher: Stackpole Books

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 546

ISBN-13: 0811708268

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* Exciting overview of the World War II battle made famous by the classic movie and book A Bridge Too Far * Boots-on-the-ground story of British paratroopers fighting off Germans in Holland during Operation Market Garden * Masterly analysis of why the operation failed * Draws from the personal experiences of more than 500 participants * Written by an accomplished military historianMartin Middlebrook has written numerous works of military history, including the classic The First Day on the Somme (978-1-84415-465-4). He lives in England

Blood and Steel 2
Blood and Steel 2

Author: Donald E. Graves

Publisher: Frontline Books

Published: 2015-06-30

Total Pages: 242

ISBN-13: 1848328516

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Overwhelmed by the strength of the Allied air and ground forces, following the D-Day landings and subsequent bitter fighting in Normandy, the Germans were compelled to abandon their efforts to hold France and much of the Low Countries and retreat to the Rhine.??The Wehrmacht Archive helps reveal the experience of German soldiers and armed forces personnel as they withdrew through a remarkable collection of translated original orders, diaries, letters, after-action reports and other documentation. ??The book also draws upon Allied technical evaluations of weapons, vehicles and equipment, as well as transcripts of prisoner of war interrogations. The reader will learn from official documents about the Germans' efforts to cope with Allied air and artillery superiority, create new tactical methods for all arms and maintain discipline in the face of superior numbers.

1st Airborne
1st Airborne

Author: Simon Forty

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Published: 2017-08-19

Total Pages: 184

ISBN-13: 1612005411

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“An interesting introductory read . . . [on] this infamous ‘bridge too far’ division” in the series that brings World War II battles to life (Classic Military Vehicle). After being held in reserve during the battle of Normandy and spending three months waiting for action, 1st Airborne played a leading role in Operation Market—the air component of Operation Market Garden, an audacious attempt by the Allies to bypass the Siegfried Line and advance into the Ruhr in September 1944. It was to be 1st Airborne’s last action of the war. Encountering more resistance than expected, including II SS Panzer Corps, the division landed too far from Arnhem bridge, and fought bravely but in vain. Held up en route, particularly at Nijmegen, XXX Corps’ advance to Arnhem stuttered and ran late. After nine days of fighting, 1st Airborne had lost 8,000 men around Arnhem when the survivors retreated across the Lower Rhine to safety. During those nine days, however, they had created a legend: first as the small unit under Lt-Col John Frost held the “bridge too far” and then as the Oosterbeek perimeter came under sustained attack waiting for XXX Corps to arrive. The Past & Present Series reconstructs historical battles by using photography, juxtaposing modern views with those of the past together with concise explanatory text. It shows how much infrastructure has remained and how much such as outfits, uniforms, and ephemera has changed, providing a coherent link between now and then.

Arnhem
Arnhem

Author: Robert Jackson

Publisher: Airlife Publishing

Published: 2003

Total Pages: 196

ISBN-13:

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On September 17th, 1944, three Allied airborne divisions - two American, one British, totaling 30,000 men - landed at Eindhoven, Nijmegen and Arnhem in Holland. Their task was to lay an 'airborne carpet' across Holland to the Rhine, seizing vital bridges and opening up a route for an advance into northern Germany by the British Second Army. This book covers all aspects of that massive operation, which was code-named "Market Garden" and deals with the German side as well as the British and American. Above all, it tells of the epic and heroic stand of the British 1st Airborne Division at Arnhem, where the paratroops fought against increasingly hopeless odds for nine days. They were supposed to have held on for only two, until the ground offensive reached them. It never did.

Bolt Action: Campaign: Market Garden
Bolt Action: Campaign: Market Garden

Author: Warlord Games

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2018-02-22

Total Pages: 116

ISBN-13: 1472828690

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Market Garden was a bold plan, designed to capture the Rhine crossings along the Dutch–German border and establish a foothold for an advance into Germany. A massive combined arms operation involving airborne landings and an armoured thrust, it was one of the most dramatic and controversial operations of the war. This new Campaign Book for Bolt Action allows players to command the forces facing each other across the Rhine, fighting key battles and attempting to change the course of history. New, linked scenarios, rules, troop types and Theatre Selectors provide plenty of options for novice and veteran players alike.

Tony's war
Tony's war

Author: Britta von Zweigbergk

Publisher: Pegasus Elliot Mackenzie Pu

Published: 2007

Total Pages: 272

ISBN-13: 9781843862918

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These 'British Isles' of ours are populated by people who originate from throughout the world; from North, South, East and West. Individually, or as family groups, they will have come to start a new life; to escape from persecution, hunger or despair. It is our strength because somehow we learn to adapt ourselves to meet our own, and other's needs, no matter how daunting they may be. Tony and Nita Zweigbergk learned to do just that during their, very different, childhood and teenage years. Then they met and fell in love. Then along came World War II. We are privileged to share these experiences, plus by reading between the lines we are able to share the boredom, depression, comradeship, fun, fear and sorrow that became the life of those who lived 'on the edge of life and death' to ensure our precious freedom.