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Walcheren Causeway. the Battle for the Scheldt Was a Military Operation in the North of Belgium and the Southwest of the Netherlands at the End of World War II

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Walcheren Causeway. the Battle for the Scheldt Was a Military Operation in the North of Belgium and the Southwest of the Netherlands at the End of World War II Walcheren Causeway. The Battle for the Scheldt was a military operation in the north of Belgium and the southwest of the Netherlands at the end of World War II. This battle was the largest operation on Dutch territory in WW II. Although much has been written about these battles, it turned out to be a relatively unknown action for many. In particular the great importance of the Canadian troops in these crucial battles, aimed at making the port of Antwerp accessible again. In this column we take a closer look at one specific operation. The commemoration is annually on the agenda of the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 005, the Liberation of the Netherlands. The Walcheren Causeway. A Battle Honour granted to the participating Canadians units. In other words: the "senseless slaughter on that damn dam", as this action is called in the book "Canadians in action" by Hen Bollen and Paul Vroemen. Why am I re-naming this phase of the liberation? I came across this in my search for Canadians who had been awarded the Military Order of William. In the last edition of 2020, I paid attention to a posthumous award of it, but there were also soldiers who survived the war and received the highest Dutch military decoration. One of them: Lieutenant John Ch. B. Forbes of the Régiment de Maisonneuve. He had documented his personal experiences in an article "Le pont maudit". When I entered his name in Google, I came across the "Historical Yearbook 1986" of the Local History Foundation De Bevelanden. It referred to a translation of "the personal experiences" of Lieutenant Forbes which had been translated from French by B.P. Burkunk. (Burkunk himself has been awarded the Bronze Lion-hs) Reading Forbes' story and attending commemorations, I realized that there is a story behind every tombstone, but also every survivor of WWII has a history too. The background story for the 2020-12 edition was the column of Joseph William Campbell, composed from data collected by third parties. John Ch. B. Forbes 1985 Lieutenant Forbes however, has personally recorded his experiences, giving us a "glimpse into the hell of the war" at first hand. Reading his report I thought: THIS SHOULD NEVER BE FORGOTTEN. General situation. While the conquest of North Beveland was almost complete, units of the 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade advanced through South Beveland towards the Walcheren Causeway. (Dutch: Sloedam-hs). The only connection between Walcheren and the "mainland". The east side of the Causeway was cleared of German forces quite quickly by the Royal Regiment of Canada, supported by heavy mortars and artillery. 153 POW’s were taken. This completed the task of the 4th Brigade and the 5th Infantry Brigade was deployed to storm the Causeway. This last unit had been promised leave of absence in the vicinity of Antwerp, to which the men were eagerly looking forward. But first, however, the Causeway had to be conquered quick, Brigadier W.J. Megill, commander of the 5th Canadian Infantry Brigade, outlined the operation beforehand. W.J. Megill 1 The Germans had built up a powerful defence system on the Walcheren side of the Causeway. They had artillery, mortars and automatic weapons. Including the infamous Flakvierling 2.0 cm. On the western tip of the Causeway were concrete fortifications armed with heavy machine guns. A little further back a Tiger tank was dug in, equipped with the dreaded 88 mm cannon. With an antitank gun in the vicinity of the same caliber, this weapon ensured that an attack with armoured units over the Causeway, battered by enormous craters, was doomed to failure in advance. Interesting detail: on the maps of October 23, 1944, which had been provided by the Canadian Intelligence Service, the German fortifications on the east side were shown in detail, but no information Flakvierling whatsoever about the German positions on the Walcheren side. The trees, which adorned the Causeway before the war and which should have provided some much- needed cover, were no more than a few pathetic stumps. The German pioneers had thoroughly blown up the railway: the twisted rails stood out erratically against the gray sky. Also, the entire operating field had been thoroughly undermined. There were even explosives hidden under the stones. Everywhere the site was full of large holes and bomb funnels caused by recent air raids. Walcheren Causeway with German troops, 1940 The British Air Force had repeatedly bombed the Causeway. About half the Causeway was almost destroyed over its full width. The tides of the seawater had free access into the huge crater and reached chest height. Furthermore, the German pioneers had completed the defense with barbed wire barriers equipped with booby traps. Germans inspecting crater after bombardment Explosives had also been used on the Walcheren-side of the Causeway. The embankment was completely destroyed and the road surface as well. Walcheren was practically "separated from the mainland". Apart from the available anti-tank weapons, this bizarre landscape would have been totally unsuitable for an attack with armoured units. The seawater in the ditches next to the Causeway never reached high enough to allow an amphibious operation. Attempts to cross the Sloe on foot would be smothered in the mud; the infantrymen would be shot as "sitting ducks". The Germans knew: the Canadians had no choice and they were prepared thoroughly for it. Anyone who managed to get through to the western end of the Causeway in spite of all this, would be confronted with a two hundred strong rearguard of true elite soldiers: paratroopers, including a great number snipers from the famous Freiherr Von der Heydte battle group. 2 During the bitter fighting in the Southwest corner of Brabant, the Canadians had got to know these fighting machines all too well. Moreover, every German on Walcheren had received direct orders from Hitler to fight to ‘’the last man standing” if necessary, under punitive measures against their family at home. That damn dam: about 1,200 meters long and about 40 meters wide on top. For the men of the Royal Highland Regiment (Black Watch) of Canada, the Calgary Highlanders and the Régiment de Maisonneuve it would become “a hell on earth". Report and Analysis of Lieutenant Forbes, RMWO4. Platoon commander of the 18th platoon of the Régiment de Maisonneuve. The Allied strategists had decided to attack the island in three places simultaneously: in the southwest near Vlissingen, in the northwest near Westkapelle and in the east at the Walcheren Causeway. The 5th Brigade of the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division was ordered to force a passage along the Causeway and form a bridgehead for the British 52nd Lowland Mountain Division, which then was to take Middelburg. Brigadier W. J. Megill, Commander of the 5th Canadian Infantry Brigade, launched the three battalions, one after the other. First up was The Black Watch of Canada from Montreal P.Q. Their assignment was to conduct reconnaissance at battalion strength to test the positions and strength of the enemy. On Tuesday, October 31, early afternoon, their C-Company set out, followed by Companies A, B and D. Their advance was preceded by the usual heavy artillery bombardment. Despite this, heavy German fire fell on the Canadians. The sound of detonating grenades joined the hellish whistling of bullets from machineguns and rifles. The vanguard suffered serious losses and made slow progress. The enemy was virtually invulnerable in its concrete positions. Around 3.30 pm The Black Watch had approached the Walcherense wall to within 70 meters. Here the enemy fire, through the intervention of Von der Heydte's "firefighters", became so intense and deadly accurate that the scouts had to remain immobile under cover. They were literally transfixed. Artillery support was desperately requested. Armored units from Fort Garry Horse were ready to intervene, but their action was canceled because of the unwieldy Sherman’s would be irrevocably stuck in the huge craters. The Germans continued to bombard the men of The Black Watch and even using flamethrowers. Around 7:30 pm, the Canadians were able to retreat to the starting positions under cover of darkness. Lieutenant J.P. Jodoin, with four men of his platoon, two of them were wounded themselves, would try to retrieve the seriously injured. They were just below the Walcheren rampart and it was impossible to reach the wounded. That is why they requested close support from the artillery. Due to coordination errors, this barrage fell short: on top of the wounded and their rescuers. Thus, the last hours of this terrible Halloween day slowly past. After the inferno came the pitch-black night, the unnatural silence, and the steady, supercooled rain that covered the weapons with a layer of ice. Because this operation turned out to be anything but favorable, we saw our departure for a well- deserved rest period in Lier near Antwerp go further and further into the wrong. At Brigade HQ, faces grew longer and longer because of these unexpected delays and the ever-increasing pressure from the top of the commanders to hurry. 3 They had thought to “bounce” the Causeway – take it in a lightning move and simply overrun the confused ‘’Krauts’ (nickname for Germans-hs) and be on the way to Antwerp within an hour! Showing shameful carelessness, I would even say criminal incapacity, Brigadier Megill then put together a plan of attack of such childish silliness that was beyond any imagination! He ordered The Calgary Highlanders to initiate the second stage of operations at 00:00 on that first November with the aim of establishing a bridgehead on the Walcheren rampart on the right of the Causeway.
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