RealTimeH 蒙哥馬利的豪賭；二戰盟軍強渡萊茵河1945（戰利品行動）

1945年初,聯合軍和蘇聯軍隊站在東部和西部的德國聯合國邊境 對於英美軍隊來說,最主要的戰略問題要解決 在他們能夠進入德國的中心之前,就是河濱河的交界 河濱河是美國、加拿大和美國軍隊面臨的最後一大自然障礙 然而,雖然維爾瑪德軍隊的力量很弱,而空中武器卻是它以前的屍體 任務並不容易 德國領導人宣佈強烈抵抗,但聯合軍計劃對河濱河進行激烈的攻擊 包括整場戰爭中最大一天的空中襲擊 1945年2月,西方聯合軍正在遭受物流困擾 英國基地和荷蘭和德國前線的供應線有數百公里長 而且更加複雜,因為大多數的河濱河都在河濱河 他們的軍隊,尤其是軍隊,在夏天和冬天發生了艱難的戰鬥 而英國和加拿大軍隊仍然在1944年遭受補充阻礙 這意味著,儘管他們的數量優勢,重型武器和實際的空中統治 但聯合軍並不認為他們有足夠的資源對抗整個河濱河的大型襲擊 經過艱難的和有些苦澀的談判 聯合軍總部長奧布萊德·艾森豪決定 德國的主要措施是由布萊德·蒙加利總統的21st Army Group 在北部的Rhineland建立的 那裡的土地很寬敞,在北部的德國海岸上充滿了手機戰鬥力 美國總部長布萊德·帕頓和布萊德·布萊德·帕頓都很勇敢 但目前,他們的優先位置在其他地方 聯合軍21st Army Group在8月8日1945年到達Rhineland 這支軍隊包括了第二次英國軍隊 第一次加拿大軍隊,主要是英國軍隊 和美國的第九次軍隊 計劃的破崩,以掌握Vasel的堅實橋段 從來沒有發生過,第一次加拿大軍隊 經歷了長時間的激烈戰鬥,慢慢地推翻了德國 當河流淹沒,第九次英國軍隊加入了他們 聯合軍把德國軍隊推翻了河流,在3月10日 但是,德國軍隊卻逃脫了,破壞了最後的橋段 Field Marshal Montgomery決定等待 在河流淹沒之前,做好詳細的準備 蒙特利爾式的總部建設 是基於在任何攻擊前,要有慎重的計劃 尤其是由於他指揮的英國和加拿大軍隊 無法負擔重大損失 他被現代人和歷史學家 譴責他們太慎重,太慢 最終,他們並沒有完全利用機會 來展現自己 有人建議,他想避免再次的失敗 例如在安南的市場花園行動中的失敗 在4月1944年 美國第九次英國軍隊指揮官 總部長比爾·森森 想繼續增加勢力,穿越河流 儘管德國軍隊仍在嘗試 從河流淹沒的敗局中復活 但蒙特利爾說不 同時,21st Army Group的南部 被迫接受制裁的英國總部長 無論如何都採取了行動 7月7日 第一次英國軍隊 驚訝德國軍隊 穿越雷馬頓河流 並在行動狀況下捕捉了 2月22日 總部長喬治·帕頓 開始帶領他的軍隊 穿越奧本海河流 並很高興地 擊敗了他的對手蒙特利爾 這些美國軍隊 已經穿越奧本海河流 但東北部的沙漠 和北部的德國支援 暫時限制了他們的進步 蒙特利爾的主要行動 計劃是雙重的 3月23日 Operation Plunder 會看到地面軍隊 穿越一場巨大的炸彈炸彈 跟隨24日早上的 Operation Varsity 16,000艦隊和 Gliderborne軍隊 穿越一場巨大炸彈炸彈 在整場戰爭的一天之內 巡邏軍隊 會立即在地面軍隊前面 他們正在穿越河流 當兩艘軍隊聯繫起來 敵人就可以 穿越地面軍隊 穿越沙漠 穿越德國工業區域 甚至穿越柏林 在蒙特利爾的話裡 他們的目的是 穿越德國沙漠 穿越沙漠 穿越柏林 19歲的Sophie Becker 向她的日記寫下了她的擔憂 我們沒有被擊敗 德國仍然擁有柏林 它一直保護著我們 我向神祈禱 它現在保護著我們 在我們需要的時刻 也許 美國人會失敗 Operation Plunder 在3月23日晚上 1945年開始 Winston Churchill General Eisenhower 和Field Marshal Allen Brook 都集合在附近的山頂 看著歷史時刻 發生在人身上 聯邦軍隊 明顯地擔心 所以一名英國官員 用這句話 向他的士兵保證 如果你聽到 幾發雷彈 別以為 他們是為了你 這,先生們 是一種自私 隨著空母炸彈 英國、加拿大和美國的武器 在德國的位置 發射了四小時 以破壞 最多的防禦位置 讓弱勢軍隊 能夠穿過 驚訝的 德國軍隊官員 Oberst von Peller 和Ehrenburg 正在進行行動 我們坐在 一瓶康納 那是唯一的東西 可以稍微放鬆我們的緊張 突然 發生了爆炸 然後所有的地獄都爆裂了 沒有說任何話 我們都知道 時機來了 不可思議地 大火 在小鎮上爆發 雖然我們要躺下 因為不放棄敵人的炸彈 我們開始向銀行 發射 這次成功 讓我們得到了 更多的敵人炸彈 在我的位置 很快 電池們 報告了 他們的第一次損失 51st Highland Division 跨越了 銀行的城鎮 15th Scottish 就在那邊 1st British Commando Brigade 就在Vasel的北部 轉向南 去取消 被炸毀的城鎮 US 79th 和30th Division 在南端的線路 在Vasel和Dinslaken之間 這個最初的波動 是由一支加拿大軍隊 包括我祖父母的部隊 更多的英國和美國軍隊 以及最重要的 Armoured Divisions 對抗聯邦軍隊的 兩支德國軍隊 和兩支Fallschirmjäger 都被毀滅 而剩下的15th Panzer Grenadier 和116th Panzer Division 都在附近 雖然德國軍隊 Age Commander General Johannes Blazkowicz 很早就發動戰爭 但聯邦軍隊 很快就擺平了 他們的橋頭 英國軍隊 在3月24日結束後 取得了Reyes 但他們的司令長 Tom Rennie 被殺害 在破壞了 鐵路橋附近 仍然可以看到 今天 Commando部隊 擺平了Vasel的垃圾地 Vasel的戰爭 非常苦痛 造成了 德國總統 Alfred Deutsch的死亡 德國的死亡 是由 British Commando Philip Pritchard 發生的 在戰爭中 通過Vasel 我們發現 Lance Corporal Digging a grave in a garden 這看起來很奇怪 我們問他 為什麼要這樣做 他說 他的部隊 在他們被 德國司令 Lance Corporal 馬上說 Hands up 但德國人回答 I am General Deutsch and will only surrender to an officer of equal rank Lance Corporal was fed up with all this and said well this will equalize you and fired his tommy gun at the General with fatal results Brigadier Mills Roberts was furious and as a punishment he ordered the Lance Corporal to bury the General The two US divisions faced little serious opposition partly due to German weakness but also to the 1,000 shells per minute that they lobbed onto German positions in the hour before the crossing The Americans only took 30 casualties on the 24th including the unfortunate men who died of hypothermia when their boat overturned and plunged them into the frigid Rhine. By the afternoon, the 30th Division was no longer facing organized resistance in its sector. The Rhine defenses had been breached first by the Americans at Remagen, but now the Allies were across in force. Engineers worked feverishly to throw across more and more bridges, and soon Allied tanks, trucks and artillery began to roll across the Rhine to support the infantry and break through remaining German defenses. By the end of March 24th, the Allied bridgehead was 40 kilometers long and 10 kilometers deep. Operation Plunder was going according to plan, and soon Allied armor, supplies and infantry reinforcements were streaming across the river on freshly laid bridges. Just ahead of them, German troops already had their hands full with the largest airborne drop of any day in the entire war. Operation Varsity began on March 24th at 10am. A fleet of British and American aircraft roared over the Rhine carrying 16,000 British, American and Canadian troops, 1,700 transport planes, 1,348 gliders, and an escort of 900 fighters to make sure they reached their destination. What the fighters offered little protection from was flak. German anti-aircraft fire poured shells into the air, and the relatively slow-moving transports and gliders suffered very heavy losses in the air. To servicemen sitting in the slow-moving aircraft, like US serviceman Jack Areola, it seemed like they were completely defenseless. The anti-aircraft fire was so thick, I believe we could have got out and walked on it. Bullets and flak were coming through the glider, and every time one hit the bottom of the glider and went out through the top, it sounded like the crack of a whip, only ten times louder, very demoralizing. German Lieutenant Otto Leitner was in command of a 20mm anti-aircraft battery below. With so many aircraft, it was difficult not to hit something. I ordered my men to keep firing in the hope that by filling the sky with metal, some of it would do some damage. Now before we move on to the action on the ground, if you want to learn more about the aerial component of Operation Varsity, you should check out the Military Aviation History channel where Chris explores the airborne aspects of the operation in much greater detail. We can't recommend his videos enough, and if you're even remotely interested in military aviation, definitely check out his channel. Anyway, back to Operation Varsity. The men of the 6th British and 17th US Airborne Divisions dropped or glided onto ten landing zones to capture the high ground along the River Isle before linking up with the ground troops advancing from the Rhine. Many of the gliders crash-landed, causing further losses before the men could fire a shot in anger. One of them was 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion Commander Lieutenant Colonel Jeff Nicklin, whose body was later found hanging from a tree. A major stepped into his place, and the Canadians fought on not knowing Nicklin's fate. Some units, like the US 507th Parachute Regiment near Deersport Forest, dropped in the wrong place and had to first orient themselves before they were able to move on their objectives. The fighting around the village of Hammington and the nearby Deersport Forest was intense, but once the Allied troops managed to get organized, they overwhelmed the outnumbered German defenders. They didn't have as many heavy weapons as regular ground troops, but the gliders did bring all sorts of heavier kit. Jeeps, trucks, bulldozers, universal carriers, mortars, anti-tank guns, and even the M22 Locust light tank. Hammington soon fell to the British, but the Ox and Bucks regiment ran into trouble trying to hold a bridge over the River Isle. General Blazkowicz sent in the 116th Panzer Division from the reserve, but it was a division in name only. Still, the few tanks the Germans had caused trouble to the more lightly armed Brits. They had to abandon the bridge and blow it up to prevent further German progress. The Canadians also had a tough fight on their hands. Medical orderly Corporal Frederick Topham saw two other medics killed as they tried to treat a wounded man lying in the open. Topham ran out and began to treat the casualty when he himself was shot through the nose. In spite of severe bleeding and intense pain, he never faltered in his task. Having completed immediate first aid, he carried the wounded man steadily and slowly back through continuous fire to the shelter of a wood. During the next two hours, Corporal Topham worked to bring in wounded showing complete disregard for the heavy and accurate enemy fire. On his way back to his company, he came across a carrier which had received a direct hit. Enemy mortar bombs were still dropping around, the carrier itself was burning fiercely, and its own mortar ammunition was exploding. Corporal Topham, however, immediately went out alone and rescued the three occupants of the carrier. Although one died almost immediately afterwards, he arranged for the evacuation of the other two, who undoubtedly owe their lives to him. Topham received the Victoria Cross, and he was not the only Allied soldier to win his country's highest decoration that day, as two US servicemen were awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions in Operation Varsity. In the days following the drop, the Allies pushed east. British and American troops linked up with the paratroopers on March 25th, the same day that Winston Churchill insisted on crossing the Rhine himself, even though it was still within range of German guns, who dropped a few shells in the area. As Churchill's visit was recorded for newsreels around the world, a German artillery observer in nearby Emmerich made a brief note in his diary. From yesterday evening until this morning again, heavy barrage. In our area, artillery attacks. Also particularly heavy fighter-bomber activity and aerial observation. Untroubled by man's futile efforts, nature graced this Sunday with glorious spring sunshine. Operation Plunder and Varsity had achieved their objectives of securing a major Rhine crossing for the Allies, but they've been the subject of controversy. Critics have claimed that Varsity was too costly, and the same goals could have been met by the ground forces advancing from the river with fewer losses against the weakened Germans. The drop had taken place in daylight, many of the American pilots had never towed gliders before, and the new C-46 transport planes lacked self-sealing fuel tanks, which resulted in them catching fire more easily when they were hit. Others, including General Eisenhower, defended Varsity, noting that the troops were successful, the drops more accurate than previous airborne operations, and German artillery and rear positions were taken out more quickly. In any case, by March 28th, German resistance on the east bank of the river facing 21st Army Group was limited to isolated pockets, and Allied soldiers had liberated the notorious forced labor camp at Rees. Further south, the Americans had widened their other bridgeheads, and the remnants of the once-mighty Wehrmacht were on the run all along the western front. The Rhine had been crossed, Allied armor was racing to surround the Ruhr and strike into central Germany, although from now on, the main Allied effort would be led by the American armies pushing into central Germany. Churchill remarked at dinner that quote, the German is whipped. Fighting would go on for another painful and bloody month, but the final set-piece battle of WWII in the west was over. We hope you liked this overview of one of the most important battles of late WWII, which we thought deserved to be covered on our channel since it often gets overlooked. Actually, we made a 5-episode, 3.5-hour documentary series about the Rhineland campaign called Rhineland 45, including operations Veritable, Grenade, and Plunder Varsity in far more detail than what we can show you here on YouTube. We even visited the battlefields and interviewed a German veteran, plus we collaborated with experts like David Willey from the Tank Museum and Christopher Bertz from Military Aviation History. We didn't pull any punches and showed the war in a way that's not possible on YouTube, so if you want to see Rhineland 45, you can watch it on Nebula. Nebula is a streaming service that we built with other creators where we don't have to worry about hard-hitting content getting demonetized. I'm Jesse Alexander and this is Real Time History, the only YouTube history channel that will only surrender to a channel of equal rank.