Does anyone know what kind of vechiles where used to attack the arnhem bridge where the British Paras where holding it at, and does anyone know what the buildings look like that the British Paras where using to defend the Bridge.
The British 1st Airborne Paratroopers used mostly Airborne Jeeps, 25LB AT guns, and M8 Pack Howitzers. The British XXX Armoured Corps relief column never reached the bridge at Arnhem. The relief column had Sherman Fireflies, Comets, and Churchill tanks, along with supporting armored cars, artillery, supply trucks, etc. in it. Check here for more info on Operation Market Garden.
What where the Germans using to attack the bridge while the British paras held it?
The German defenders were the 9th and 10th SS Panzer Divisions. Gotta do some research of your own to see what vehicles they had in SEP '44 at Arnhem. By the way, the British 1st Airborne Division never held the bridge itself, hence, it was called “A Bridge Too Far.”
Just to correct this, the airborne took in 6 pounder anti-tank guns, the 25 pdr is a field gun. It was with a 6 pdr the Lance Sgt JD Baskeyfield won the Victoria Cross. The only british Anti-tank guns used by the british army during WW2 were the 2,6 and 17 pdrs although the 25 pdr did engage tanks in the desert.
XXX corp was not a “relief” column, Market Garden was a two phase plan of attack, “Market” the airborne phase and “Garden” was the ground (XXX Corp) phase.
Major John Frost did capture the northern end of Arnhem bridge with 2 Para.
The vehicles used by the british at Arnhem were various modifications of the Jeep, i.e. the heavily armed jeeps of the 1st Airborne Recce Squadron. Resicast make a lot of conversions http://www.resicast.com/
This may help http://www.pegasusarchive.org/arnhem/frames.htm and a good reference from the german perspective is “It never snows in September” by Robert Kershaw.
O.K., 6LBs not 25. I know XXX Corps was the ground part, or Garden, but they were technically a relief column. The ABN was to hold till the armour could come up and secure the bridges against the German armor. I still consider it a relief column. It is true that the British did hold one side of the brdge, but their mission was to seize the bridge and secure a crossing site. They did not seize the whole bridge.
Either way, great web sites and good luck at buiding it.
HeavyArt - You forgot about the British wonder weapon, the PIAT! The British 1st Airborne did have these AT weapons with them.
Mike T.
Concord Publishing’s; German Armored Units at Arnhem, describes the German units and vehicles in detail, including color plates, for all of $15. Worth the investment for the photos alone.
Those would be from the reconaissance battalion of the 9th SS under a Captain Grabner. According to Cornelius Ryan’s “A Bridge Too Far” his 22 vehicle force was made up of “…half-tracks, more armored cars, personnel carriers, and even a few truckloads of infantry, firing from from behind heavy sacks of grain…”
This has a listing of destroyed vehicles with their dates and unit:
http://www.defendingarnhem.com/vehicledatabase.htm
It has 22 from Aufklarungs Abteilung 9 that bought it on the 18th of September so that must be them.
Can’t wait to see the Dutch rubbish truck you’re going to make. [:)]
There is a photo taken by RAF air recon sometime shortly after the Sept 18 clash. It is available from many sources and shows many of the knocked out vehicles as well as buildings immediately adjacent to the bridge at Arnhem. Based on the destroyed vehicle list and these pics if you find them, you may want to try your hand at some photo interpretation/analysis if you are planning a diorama or build of this. good luck a,d I hope to see your results here.
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Gift-Wrap this item for $4.95
Would these kits work if you were to do a dio for the Bridge at arnhem. I’m still doing my research but this is what I’ve found that would look close to any thing that the Germans would use.
Is this the pictures you where talking about Stikpusher?
Great website! Germans even had Ford trucks and the Dodge.
In a book I recently read on Arnhem, it said that in the morining, German lorries drove across the bridge loaded with Grenadiers. The British ambushed these and there were very few German survivors. later 16 German vehicles, armored cars and some halftracks came across the bridge. THese vehicles were hit by all British small arms and PIATs and even mortars. THus, if you were doing a scene where the armored cars and halftracks were coming across, you would have the dead Germans and bullet holed lorries already there. Hope this helps.
David
Would the SS be using the Sd.Kfz 232 6 Rad in Arnhem or was it a little bit to out dated.
http://forums.civfanatics.com/archive/index.php/t-118969-p-3.html
about a quarter of the way down the page.
Does anyone have any other suggestions on what other types of vechiles where there. I’ve been looking at alot of armored cars and truck models to use if I could build this diorama.
Tankluver,
Yes that is one of them. I think there are one or two more that are from slightly different angles that are availble. My suggestions for vehicles used by the recon element would be some Kfz 250/9, 250/1, 234/1, 234/2, 234/3 as your combat, troop carrier, and support elements, and some form of radio carrier in either wheeled or half track. See if you can find out what the unit’s TO&E (table of orginization and equipment) should be and then take it from there.
I think this will be my last question for arnhem. I’ve been studying some of the maps. The one thing that gets me is where did the 6 pound guns be. It looks like they where in a park but does anyone know if they where on the bridge.
HQ 1st Airlanding Anti-Tank Battery Royal Artillery got 4 x 6 pdr’s to the bridge. 1 was placed slightly north and east of the pedestrian steps on the bridge ramp, 1 was placed covering the eastern approach from the town and 2 were at the jeep park.
The german armoured forces attacking the bridge 18-21 sept were:
From the East;
Kampfgruppe Brinkmann 10SS
A platoon of Tiger I and Tiger II Kingtigers
Pz III and IV of Training and replacement Regiment VI “Bielefeld” Company Mielke
Bridge Security of the Stadtkommandant “Arnheim”
From the North;
Kampfgruppe Knaust
Training and replacment battalion “Bocholt”
Remainder of PanzerGrenadier Regiment 21 10SS
88mm and 20mm Flak detachments
Kampfgruppe Euling
Various “March” units made up of Reicharbeitsdienst (RAD) and Personnel on leave. Units attached to either Brinkmann or Knaust
From the West
3 Kompanie Panzer Grenadier Regiment 21 10SS
From the South
Kampfgruppe Graebner 9th SS Recce Batallion with 22 Armed vehicles incuding “Half-tracks armed with 75mm Anti-Tank Guns” … “the large Puma Vehicle swept over the summit of the bridge” … “Graebner …directing operations from a converted british Humber” …“Graebner was driving a british armoured recce vehicle to distinguish himself to his men”