Post by steve on Oct 7, 2014 15:40:24 GMT -5
Hey all, yet again I find myself apologising for being absent for a few weeks. My work life is pretty hectic and it does rather affect my time on line. But I have recently had a very interesting short break so I'll tell you about it:
A friend of mine, Gerry, is lucky to have have his father still alive and well aged 92. Well his father was in the Parachute Regiment in the British army and was a pathfinder. He was dropped into Holland and participated in Operation Market Garden. He was 22 years old at the time and 60 miles behind enemy lines. Well it was the 70th anniversary in September and Gerry, his wife and his father were going to Holland to participate in the anniversary commemorations and they asked me along too..knowing me to be keen on history. The thing is, we were part of the Association for veterans and their families and as a consequence, I met up with a bunch of veterans and helped get them around to the various events that were being held. As you might imagine, some of these gentlemen are a little frail. This did mean that we were at the centre of many of the events which was incredible.
Obviously I got to hear first hand accounts of what it was like for them back in the day. Gerry's Dad was captured at Oosterbeek after just over a week of hard fighting with little food/water and dwindling ammunition. I heard tales of incredible bravery and compassion. I saw elderly Dutch people come up and shake the hands of these gallant men and on more than a few occasions I heard them say things like "thank you for my freedom". It was very moving. I made friends with a guy who was just 18 when he dropped into Oosterbeek. He talked of fighting in the streets, house to house and of his eventual evacuation from the scene( he was one of the lucky ones). He told me he got away ( across the River Rhine) "on a boat". That is all he said. He copmpletely missed out the bit about it being during the night, in very heavy rain, surrounded by enemy across a fast flowing River under constant machine gun and mortar fire whilst the Germans fired flares to illuminate the scene and that the boats were manned by incredibly brave Canadian Engineers who had fought through German lines to get there to enable the remnants to get away.
History records Operation Market Garden as a failure but in reality it achieved some of the objectives but that may be one thing, the most important thing for me though was the men who took part and the Dutch civilians who helped them in spite of the penalties that they faced, the starvation and the destruction of their town. They'd be forgiven for being a little bitter about the privation they endured thanks to the operation but instead there is a striong bond of gratitude that goes both ways. All in all a humbling experience.
A friend of mine, Gerry, is lucky to have have his father still alive and well aged 92. Well his father was in the Parachute Regiment in the British army and was a pathfinder. He was dropped into Holland and participated in Operation Market Garden. He was 22 years old at the time and 60 miles behind enemy lines. Well it was the 70th anniversary in September and Gerry, his wife and his father were going to Holland to participate in the anniversary commemorations and they asked me along too..knowing me to be keen on history. The thing is, we were part of the Association for veterans and their families and as a consequence, I met up with a bunch of veterans and helped get them around to the various events that were being held. As you might imagine, some of these gentlemen are a little frail. This did mean that we were at the centre of many of the events which was incredible.
Obviously I got to hear first hand accounts of what it was like for them back in the day. Gerry's Dad was captured at Oosterbeek after just over a week of hard fighting with little food/water and dwindling ammunition. I heard tales of incredible bravery and compassion. I saw elderly Dutch people come up and shake the hands of these gallant men and on more than a few occasions I heard them say things like "thank you for my freedom". It was very moving. I made friends with a guy who was just 18 when he dropped into Oosterbeek. He talked of fighting in the streets, house to house and of his eventual evacuation from the scene( he was one of the lucky ones). He told me he got away ( across the River Rhine) "on a boat". That is all he said. He copmpletely missed out the bit about it being during the night, in very heavy rain, surrounded by enemy across a fast flowing River under constant machine gun and mortar fire whilst the Germans fired flares to illuminate the scene and that the boats were manned by incredibly brave Canadian Engineers who had fought through German lines to get there to enable the remnants to get away.
History records Operation Market Garden as a failure but in reality it achieved some of the objectives but that may be one thing, the most important thing for me though was the men who took part and the Dutch civilians who helped them in spite of the penalties that they faced, the starvation and the destruction of their town. They'd be forgiven for being a little bitter about the privation they endured thanks to the operation but instead there is a striong bond of gratitude that goes both ways. All in all a humbling experience.