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Canada in the Second World War

Liberation of the Netherlands and Capitulation of Germany

The Winter by the Maas, November 8th, 1944- February 7th,

1945

After the Battle of the Scheidt the First Canadian Army prepared to

winter. For three months, between November 8th, 1944, and

February 8th , 1945, Canadians were not involved in any large-scale

operation. Rest was more than welcome. The 3rd Infantry Division

and the 2nd Armoured Brigade had been fighting since early June,

other units since July.

Members of "B" Troop, 5th Field Regiment, firing 25-pounder near

Malden, Holland, 1 February 1945. From left to right: Sergeant Jack

Brown, Bdr. Joe Wilson, Gunners Lyle Ludwig, Bill Budd, George

Spence, and Bill Stewart.

hoto by Michael M. Dean. Department of National Defence I

National Archives of Canada, PA-146868.

Those five months of action had a major impact on all First Army

battalions. Men were killed in action or evacuated after being

wounded; others suffering from battle exhaustion collapsed under

the constant stress of ever-present death , facing mortars, shells

and bullets every day. Others were made prisoners by the enemy,

to be interrogated then transferred to a stalag in German territory.

In Northwest Europe, as in Italy, Canadian units were under

strength, with no trained men to fill the voids left by heavy

casualties. By October 1944, this had become a critical issue and

Canadian Defence Minister Colonel ,LJ,.§Y.lon Ralston inspected

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Canadian troops overseas to take the measure of the problem.

Convinced of the necessity of supplying the Army with fresh troops,

Ralston tried to garner the support of the Canadian government for

compulsory overseas mil itary service . Fearing this would lead to an

even larger crisis with the Canadian population , Prime

Minister King refused to backtrack on his promise that Canadians

would never be sent to serve overseas against their will. Ralston

resigned and General And)' McNaughton replaced him as Defence

Minister. He entertained the hope that territorial defence draftees

would agree to be sent to the front; this solution did not work out

and the problem remained unsolved.

Photo by Barney J . Gloster. Department of National Defence/


Photo by Barney J. Gloster. Department of National Defence I


On the other hand, after five months of campaign, Canadian

soldiers were now experienced warriors, but the wintering by the

Maas, near Nijmegen in the Netherlands was no party. They had to

defend a bridgehead that would be used as a starting point for

crossing the Rhine. They also had to keep the Germans on their

toes. They were not far, on the other side of the Maas. While US

and British armies launched an attack further south, the Canadians

had to give the enemy the impression that an assault was imminent

to force it to leave troops in that area. Donning white uniforms as

camouflage in a snowy landscape, Canadian soldiers patrolled in

an "active and aggressive" way, making good of every opportunity

to gain some ground or make a prisoner.

An unexpected development was to postpone the planned assault

by several weeks. Between December 16th and 26th , 1944, Hitler

tried to dislodge US troops from the Ardennes in order to recapture

Antwerp. The Americans were able to stop the German advance

but the operation resulted in a delay of several weeks to the Rhine

offensive.

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The Battle of the Rhineland, February 8th - March 11th, 1945

For Operation Veritable, the First Canadian Army had to leave the

Nijmegen area and move towards the southeast to take over the

Rhineland, a narrow strip of land between the Maas and Rhine

rivers. The Dutch-German border followed the Maas in that sector.

For the first time, fighting was to take place on German soil and a

fierce opposition was expected. Three defence lines protected the

area: the first one was a series of outposts, then the Siegfried Line

that ran through the Reichswald Forest, and finally the series of

fortifications through the Hochwald Forest. To slow down the Allies'

progress, the Germans destroyed dykes and flooded the area.

February's milder weather and thaw softened the muddy ground,

hindering the advance of armoured vehicles and artillery.

Infantry of the Chaudiere Regiment going along dyke during the

clearing of the flooded area near Cleve, Germany, February 10th,

1945.

Photo by Colin C. McDougall. Department of National Defence I


Under command of General Crerar and the First Canadian Army

were the divisions of II Canadian Corps, as well as nine British

divisions, some Belgian, Dutch, Polish and US units. It was the

largest military force under Canadian command ever.

The operation was launched on February 8th with aerial bombings

and powerful artillery offensive. Fighting under the First Canadian

Army, XXX British Corps marched towards the Reichswald Forest.

On its left flank, the 3rd Canadian Division , nicknamed "the Water

Rats", had to clear the flooded region north of the Nijmegen-Calcar

road. For that purpose, the Canadian infantry used Buffalo

amphibious vehicles, but could not count on any artillery or tank

support.

"Breaches in the dykes blown by the enemy caused extensive

flooding during the night. A road built by RCE to D coy area was

washed out and the coy HQ surrounded by water. Some of our

outpost positions had to be abandoned as the water continued to

rise at the rate of 2 to 3 inches per hour during the day."

Highland Light Infantry of Canada War Diary, 6 February 1945

The Germans, for their part, could rely on excellent defence

installations - antitank ditches, networks of trenches, fortified

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positions - as well as an apparently inexhaustible supply of

weapons and ammunition. They were now fighting for their

homeland and that thought increased their determination. In

addition , it rained most of the time; the humidity and the cold

created uncomfortable combat conditions. In spite of all this , the

operation was off to a good start with the advanced positions falling

on the first day and the Siegfried Line broken as early as February

10th.

On February 16th, the 7th Brigade met with unexpected opposition

near the Mayland Wood, towards Calcar. The infantrymen

encountered machine-gun, mortar and shell fire . After a few days of

violent combat and high casualties for the Royal Winnipeg Rifles

and the Canadian Scottish, the 7th Brigade organized a systematic

assault to clear the forest of the remaining enemy. On February

21st, the wood was captured but the six days of fighting cost the

division 485 men, killed, wounded or captured.

Coy and C Coy are encountering considerable opposition for

enemy is in the Moy/and Wood. Seem to be large numbers of

enemy there despite fact that posts of enemy had been previously

cleared by British units ...

- Regina Rifle Regiment, War Diary, 16-18 Februar)' 1945

Sherman tanks of the 4th Armoured Division ready to advance near

Sonsbeck, Germany, March 9th, 1945.

Photo by Jack H. Smith. Department of National Defence I National

Archives of Canada, PA-113682.

In the mean time, the 4th Brigade was involved in bloody action

along the Goch-Calcar road: the tanks and Kangaroo troop carriers

were halted by the mud in which they got bogged down and by fire

from hidden 88-mm guns along the road . On the 19th and 20th,

violent attacks and counter-attacks followed one another. Driven

back, the 4th Brigade managed to regain some ground but it had

lost some 400 men, including several captured by the enemy.

Dear Mother and Dad,

Just a note to let you know I'm well and a Prisoner of War in

Germany Please don 't wor,y about my condition or health-you

know me, and I'm the same as ever. Your prayers have been with

me, I know, and through my experiences I have been conscious of

them and of you. I was captured late in the afternoon of Feb. 19. It

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was rather a rough time and I ended up on the wrong side of the

line when the attack was over and things were more settled. I can

receive all mail sent to me and the address is on the outside of this

sheet. Hope war is over before I hear from you.

Your army son-Bob

LUCpl Robert Sanderson, POW at Stalag XI B, to his parents, 1 O

March 1945, from Letters from a Soldier : The Wartime Experience

of a Canadian Infantryman, 1993

After the slow advance of the last few days, Lieutenant-

General Guy Simonds believed a concentrated attack could capture

Xanten and the Hochwald. This was operation Blockbuster and it

started on February 25th. II Canadian Corps made good

progression and seized Keppeln, Odem and the Calcar Ridge. The

struggle for the Hochwald Forest, bitterly disputed to the First

German Army, lasted from February 27th to March 3rd. The

Canadians captured Xanten , east of the Hochwald Forest, on

March 10th.

"On one occasion after a tank had fired three rounds of rapid HE

through the window of a building , a German soldier stuck his head

out of a window and thumbed his nose at the oncoming infantry.

Resistance was fanatical and a very smal l number of prisoners

were taken ... "

__A!gonguin Regiment, War DiarY., 7-10 March 1945

Canadian infantrymen passing German refugees near Xanten,

Germany, March 9th, 1945.

Photo by Ken Bell. Department of National Defence I National


Meanwhile , the Ninth US Army moved from the south towards

Wesel. To avoid getting trapped between the two Allied armies, the

Germans retreated in good order to the opposite bank of the Rhine.

On March 11th, the 21st Army Group occupied the Rhine's left

bank: the Battle for the Rhineland was over.

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The purpose of this note is to express to you personally my

admiration for the way you conducted the attack, by your Army,

beginning February 8 and, ending when the enemy had evacuated

his last bridgehead at Wesel. Probably no assault in this war has

been conducted under more appalling conditions of terrain than

was that one. It speaks volumes for your skill and determination

and the valour of your soldiers, that you carried it through to a

successful conclusion.

Dwight D. Eisenhower to H.D.G. Crerar, March 26th, 1943

Crossing the Rhine, March 23rd, 1945

On the evening of March 23rd , Marshal Montgomery gave the

signal to operation Plunder, the crossing of the Rhine near Wesel

and Rees. A set-piece attack, with prior aerial and artillery

bombings . In flat-bottom landing crafts and amphibious vehicles,

four British and US divisions, together with a commando brigade

crossed the 500 metres to the river's opposite bank. The 9th

Canadian Infantry Brigade took part in the operation, crossing the

river north of Rees and later capturing Millingen.

Loading carriers into Buffaloes, and Buffaloes moving towards ljssel

River near Westervoort, The Netherlands, April 13th, 1945.

Photo by Jack H. Smith. Department of National Defence I National


The British and Canadian troops which fought in the Rhineland

suffered tremendous losses from the German artillery. This is why

Montgomery decided that it should be silenced by a large-scale

airborne operation, codenamed Varsity. While the infantry was

crossing the Rhine, 1,589 aircraft flew over the area in successive

waves. In full daylight and despite intense counter-attacks, the

parachute battalions were dropped behind the German lines and

got to work as soon as they touched the ground. Some 1,337

gliders then landed in the drop zone with vehicles and equipment

for the airborne troops. The 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion was

involved in that operation and landed in a wooded area along the

Wesel-Emmerich road . It was immediately met with heavy machine

gun and sniper fire; this did not halt the Canadian paratroopers who

reached and cleaned up their targets.

At the end of the afternoon , land and airborne troops made their

junction and solidified the bridgehead on the Rhine's east bank.

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The Battle was over and the Allies had succeeded in crossing one

of the last natural defences of the German Reich . A speedy end to

the war now became a definite possibility.

As March drew to an end , Canadian units moved northwards to

take Emmerich on the right bank, while General Crerar transferred

the First Army's HQ to that same side of the Rh ine. On April 1st,

1945, I Canadian Corps under Major-General Charles Foulkes was

placed under the First Canadian Army in replacement of I British

Corps of Major-General Crocker, which had been under Crerar's

orders since the campaign of Normandy and was now passed

under the Second British Army.

First Canadian Army_ at the end of WWII

After the crossing of the Rhine , the First Canadian Army was given

two tasks: to liberate western Netherlands and to march through

northeastern Netherlands and northern Germany up to the Weser

River.

The Liberation of Western Netherlands, April 2nd - 25th, 1945

In the west I Canadian Corps had been tasked with taking control of

Arnhem. The objective was to open the Arnhem-Zutphen road to

the convoys supplying the troops moving to the North-East. RAF

Spitfire and Typhoon fighters attacked German defences in Arnhem

on April 12th and in the evening artillery pounded the city. On the

14th , Arnhem was totally cleared. Apeldoorn was liberated from

April 15th to 17th.

Dutch civilians loading a Canadian-supplied truck with food,

following agreement amongst Germans, Dutch and Allies about the

distribution of food to the Dutch population. Near Wageningen ,

Netherlands, 3 May 1945.

Photo by Alexander M. Stirton. Department of National Defence I


As they moved forward , I Canadian Corps troops observed

increasing signs of malnutrition in the civilian population ; there was

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indeed a major risk of famine in western Netherlands. German

troops in the area were surrounded and likely to flood the region if

attacked. To avoid a humanitarian crisis , I Corps halted on April

22nd and started negotiating with local German authorities for a

truce that would allow food supplies to be delivered by trucks and

aircraft. Starting May 3rd, thousands of tonnes of food were

distributed.

The Northern Front, March 23rd -April 25th, 1945

For its part, II Canadian Corps progressed rapidly on the northern

front as German resistance got weaker. In many locations,

however, the enemy still put up a good fight. In Zutphen and along

the Twente Canal, the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division was halted by

the determination of the 361st Infantry Division reinforced by an

airborne training battalion mostly made up of teenagers. They

finally yielded on April 8th , and Zutphen was taken . Near Zutphen,

Canadians soldiers came across a heartrending sight, Stalag VI C,

a camp for prisoners captured on the Russian front.

Solid opposition was also encountered in Deventer on the ljssel

River; the 3rd Division took the city in a single day, April 10th, and

rapidly cleared it with the support of Dutch resistance fighters. The

3rd Division moved on further north but met only disorganized and

easily subdued opposition. On April 15th, ii reached Leeuwarden,

some 15 kilometres from the North Sea.

Infantry of the South Saskatchewan Regiment lying down and firing

through a hedge near Dutch farmhouse, Oranje Canal , the

Netherlands, April 12th, 1945.

Photo by Daniel Guravich. Department of National Defence I


In the meantime, the 2nd Infantry Division was moving rapidly along

the 3rd Division's right flank. Supported by airborne detachments it

reached Groningen on April 13th. Snipers on the roofs and

machine-guns hidden in cellars were some of the difficulties

encountered. SS soldiers in civilian clothing fired at Canadian

soldiers who were told to shoot on sight. Fighting went on until April

16th.

The 1st Polish Armoured Division under Major-

General Maczek joined once again II Canadian Corps on April 8th .

It moved rapidly along the Dutch-German border. The 4th Canadian

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Armoured Division for its part followed a more southerly route ,

through Meppen in Germany on April 6th, finally to reach the

Kosten Canal on the 14th.

The following weeks saw the easy cleaning up of the whole sector

under control of II Corps. Troops were able to move on quite fast,

liberating the remainder of the Dutch territory and occupying the

plains of northern Germany up to the Weser. The might of

the Wehrmacht was by then broken, and as the Allies closed in on

Berlin , Hitler committed suicide.

t 1900 hrs we heard over the BBC that the German Army in ITALY

had unconditionally surrendered and later on that BERLIN had

fallen. The general feeling is that it can 't last much longer now ...

ROY.al Winni~g Rifles , War Diary, 1-7 MaY. 1945

German soldiers being disarmed by troops of I Canadian Corps at a

small arms dump in the Netherlands, May 11th, 1945.

Photo by Alexander M. Stirton. Department of National Defence I


Throughout the Dutch countryside, a cheering population greeted

its Canadian liberators with shouts and kisses; the noise of machine

guns was a fading memory. On the evening of May 4th , Canadian

soldiers heard on BBC airwaves a long-awaited announcement:

Germany had surrendered. A few hours later, orders arrived from

HQ that all hostilities were to stop on May 5th at 0800.

War was over in Europe.

Suggested Reading:

• Terry Copp and Robert Vogel , Maple Leaf Route: Victory, 1988

• C.P. Stacey, The Victory Campaign, Volume 3 of the Official History

of The Canadian Army in the Second World War, 1960.

• W. Denis Whitaker and Shelagh Whitaker, Rhineland: The Battle to

End The War, 2000

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Liberation of the Netherlands and Capitulation of Germany