Would you like to inspect the original subtitles? These are the user uploaded subtitles that are being translated:
1
00:00:01,033 --> 00:00:04,004
September 1944. Holland.
2
00:00:05,088 --> 00:00:10,038
Allied forces defend a tenuous position
in a German occupied city.
3
00:00:11,005 --> 00:00:14,013
British airborne troops
try to hold off an enemy tank attack
4
00:00:14,072 --> 00:00:17,097
armed only with a handheld
weapon called a PIAT.
5
00:00:24,048 --> 00:00:27,011
After six rounds, the weapon fails.
6
00:00:27,019 --> 00:00:30,053
The PIAT bomb explodes prematurely,
7
00:00:30,061 --> 00:00:32,065
inside the trough of the weapon.
8
00:00:32,074 --> 00:00:34,065
It's extremely close to his face.
9
00:00:34,074 --> 00:00:36,045
We're talking about a distance like this.
10
00:00:37,020 --> 00:00:40,041
As more German tanks arrive,
it seems more likely
11
00:00:40,049 --> 00:00:43,029
the whole operation has backfired.
12
00:00:45,071 --> 00:00:48,021
On June 6th, 1944,
13
00:00:48,029 --> 00:00:51,050
Allied forces finally
land troops in Normandy
14
00:00:51,059 --> 00:00:53,072
to open the western front.
15
00:00:59,026 --> 00:01:04,014
But Nazi fanatics and diehards
continue to fight ruthlessly for survival.
16
00:01:08,019 --> 00:01:09,094
D-Day was a battle.
17
00:01:11,040 --> 00:01:14,044
The Allies still need to win the war.
18
00:01:23,070 --> 00:01:26,071
September 19th, 1944.
19
00:01:27,054 --> 00:01:29,008
Arnhem, Holland.
20
00:01:30,038 --> 00:01:31,075
Clear!
21
00:01:36,084 --> 00:01:39,055
Major Robert Cain
and his elite unit
22
00:01:39,064 --> 00:01:43,064
of British airborne troops
are 60 miles behind enemy lines.
23
00:01:47,073 --> 00:01:49,098
Dropped into occupied Holland by glider,
24
00:01:50,036 --> 00:01:53,015
they are lightly equipped
but highly trained.
25
00:01:56,074 --> 00:01:58,082
They close in on the town of Arnhem,
26
00:01:58,091 --> 00:02:01,087
which has been under Nazi occupation
for four years.
27
00:02:09,029 --> 00:02:12,038
They are not the first British soldiers
to pass through here.
28
00:02:14,017 --> 00:02:17,030
The rest of Cain's regiment
the South Staffordshires
29
00:02:17,038 --> 00:02:18,088
are somewhere ahead.
30
00:02:20,014 --> 00:02:22,014
Cain has orders to join them in an attack
31
00:02:22,022 --> 00:02:25,018
on German defenses,
on the other side of town.
32
00:02:26,018 --> 00:02:28,094
But it's getting light,
and he needs to find them,
33
00:02:29,002 --> 00:02:30,094
before the Germans find him.
34
00:02:32,011 --> 00:02:33,086
Cain can take no chances.
35
00:02:34,052 --> 00:02:38,019
He is part of a risky and ambitious
operation to help end the war.
36
00:02:41,049 --> 00:02:43,024
In the three months since D-Day,
37
00:02:43,032 --> 00:02:47,000
the Allies had advanced
rapidly through France and Belgium.
38
00:02:51,033 --> 00:02:53,038
In the early days of September
39
00:02:53,046 --> 00:02:57,038
there was this astonishing advance
all the way from the River Seine
40
00:02:57,046 --> 00:03:01,022
right to, into Belgium,
into even the edge of ah Germany
41
00:03:01,030 --> 00:03:02,080
in a matter of days.
42
00:03:02,089 --> 00:03:06,068
It was one of the fastest advances
in the whole of the Second World War.
43
00:03:09,077 --> 00:03:13,086
Allied leadership wants to
capitalize on the chaotic German retreat
44
00:03:13,094 --> 00:03:16,065
and deal a death blow to the Nazi regime.
45
00:03:18,007 --> 00:03:20,003
British general, Bernard Montgomery,
46
00:03:20,011 --> 00:03:22,016
believes he has the best plan.
47
00:03:22,078 --> 00:03:25,037
The main objective
for Operation Market Garden
48
00:03:25,045 --> 00:03:29,029
was to get across the Rhine
at Arnhem, in Holland
49
00:03:29,037 --> 00:03:33,008
and then be able to encircle the Ruhr
from the north.
50
00:03:33,017 --> 00:03:36,054
Operation Market Garden
has two distinct parts.
51
00:03:36,092 --> 00:03:41,009
The "Market" plan calls for nearly
20,000 Allied airborne troops
52
00:03:41,059 --> 00:03:43,034
to be dropped behind enemy lines
53
00:03:43,072 --> 00:03:47,081
to capture and hold a series
of critical bridges in central Holland.
54
00:03:47,089 --> 00:03:52,023
Operation Garden has the British
30th corps on a tank charge
55
00:03:52,031 --> 00:03:54,094
along a Dutch highway
corridor from Belgium.
56
00:03:56,015 --> 00:03:58,036
With bridges secured
by Operation Market,
57
00:03:58,044 --> 00:04:02,061
Operation Garden would split
German defenses to cross the Rhine,
58
00:04:02,070 --> 00:04:05,049
and enter Germany
north of the Siegfried Line.
59
00:04:07,041 --> 00:04:10,070
Montgomery also had
a secret plan in a way
60
00:04:10,079 --> 00:04:14,054
to head straight for Berlin,
thinking that this would give him
61
00:04:14,062 --> 00:04:17,063
command over all
of the Allied ground forces.
62
00:04:18,004 --> 00:04:21,034
If successful,
the war could end by Christmas.
63
00:04:24,080 --> 00:04:28,014
Market Garden
will be the biggest airborne operation
64
00:04:28,022 --> 00:04:29,031
in the whole of history.
65
00:04:29,039 --> 00:04:31,035
Far bigger than the German invasion
of Crete
66
00:04:31,043 --> 00:04:35,014
or any of the other operations
in Sicily or elsewhere.
67
00:04:36,031 --> 00:04:37,090
There are so many troops,
68
00:04:37,098 --> 00:04:41,099
they have to be dropped over multiple
days, by both parachute and glider.
69
00:04:47,057 --> 00:04:52,037
Among the first to land on September 17th
is the Second Parachute Battalion...
70
00:04:53,091 --> 00:04:56,058
...led by Lieutenant Colonel John Frost.
71
00:04:57,058 --> 00:05:00,046
Born in India during his father's service,
72
00:05:00,055 --> 00:05:03,042
Frost joins the military
and serves in the Middle East,
73
00:05:03,088 --> 00:05:06,047
and returns to Britain
after the war begins.
74
00:05:08,005 --> 00:05:11,010
Frost must make his way
75
00:05:11,018 --> 00:05:14,010
the road bridge over the Rhine at Arnhem.
76
00:05:14,060 --> 00:05:16,044
Colonel Frost
with his second battalion
77
00:05:16,052 --> 00:05:18,094
of the parachute regiment
wasted no time at all.
78
00:05:19,002 --> 00:05:21,061
He set off straight away
and that was the main reason
79
00:05:21,069 --> 00:05:23,032
why they got through.
80
00:05:23,040 --> 00:05:25,045
The Nazis
do not expect an attack
81
00:05:25,053 --> 00:05:27,024
so far behind the front line.
82
00:05:31,053 --> 00:05:33,041
The defense is disorganized.
83
00:05:33,049 --> 00:05:36,000
They do not realize
the Allies target the bridges.
84
00:05:36,008 --> 00:05:37,067
Shoot those Krauts!
85
00:05:44,021 --> 00:05:46,055
Frost managed
to get to the north end of the bridge
86
00:05:46,063 --> 00:05:50,035
by night fall and then concealed
his men as German troops
87
00:05:50,043 --> 00:05:53,035
still crossed over the bridge without
realizing the British had reached it.
88
00:05:53,077 --> 00:05:56,002
But even
with the north end secure,
89
00:05:56,010 --> 00:05:58,069
British attempts to capture
the south end fail.
90
00:06:01,048 --> 00:06:02,098
The Germans respond.
91
00:06:03,032 --> 00:06:05,011
They reinforce the bridge overnight
92
00:06:05,019 --> 00:06:07,015
and encircle the north end.
93
00:06:09,066 --> 00:06:12,091
Frost and his men
are now cut off and surrounded.
94
00:06:12,099 --> 00:06:14,083
The original plan was
95
00:06:14,091 --> 00:06:19,025
for the different parachute battalions
to take up positions really encircling
96
00:06:19,033 --> 00:06:20,058
the whole of the town of Arnhem.
97
00:06:21,013 --> 00:06:24,009
Once Frost had got to the bridge
and they realized
98
00:06:24,017 --> 00:06:27,051
that they were under heavy pressure
with German counterattacks.
99
00:06:27,059 --> 00:06:29,072
The other two battalions
felt they had to get to the bridge
100
00:06:29,080 --> 00:06:31,047
themselves and support him.
101
00:06:31,055 --> 00:06:34,056
So this is why the whole
of the original plan
102
00:06:34,064 --> 00:06:37,039
was more or less forgotten
on that first evening or afternoon
103
00:06:37,048 --> 00:06:39,048
of the 17th of September.
104
00:06:42,023 --> 00:06:44,077
Cain's own regiment
was originally tasked
105
00:06:44,086 --> 00:06:48,011
with protecting the drop zones,
eight miles from Arnhem.
106
00:06:48,090 --> 00:06:51,011
But when Cain and B Company land,
107
00:06:51,020 --> 00:06:52,095
they learn of the change of plan.
108
00:06:54,053 --> 00:06:56,008
They felt that they had to send
109
00:06:56,016 --> 00:06:58,058
every available unit
at that particular moment
110
00:06:58,066 --> 00:07:01,054
to reinforce Frost at the bridge.
111
00:07:01,062 --> 00:07:04,038
Because if the bridge wasn't held
then obviously
112
00:07:04,046 --> 00:07:08,005
the whole of Market Garden would lose
its whole point and collapse.
113
00:07:08,084 --> 00:07:11,013
B Company urgently
needs to locate
114
00:07:11,022 --> 00:07:13,026
the rest of its regiment, and join them.
115
00:07:14,085 --> 00:07:17,014
You're talking from the center
of the landing zones
116
00:07:17,022 --> 00:07:19,010
to Arnhem nearly 12 kilometers.
117
00:07:20,052 --> 00:07:24,073
And Airborne soldiers
need surprise on their side.
118
00:07:25,094 --> 00:07:28,019
When they move
through the outskirts of the city,
119
00:07:28,053 --> 00:07:31,053
Cain hears heavy gunfire
on the heights behind the hospital.
120
00:07:33,087 --> 00:07:36,083
The Germans have had time
to mobilize a response.
121
00:07:38,083 --> 00:07:40,062
As he nears the battleground,
122
00:07:40,096 --> 00:07:43,062
Cain starts seeing German
and British casualties.
123
00:07:43,096 --> 00:07:47,000
He recognizes uniforms
from other regiments among the dead
124
00:07:47,067 --> 00:07:49,046
and continues to press forward.
125
00:07:51,013 --> 00:07:55,030
The Allied planners
had assumed that the German troops
126
00:07:55,039 --> 00:07:58,035
in the area of Arnhem were very weak.
127
00:07:58,043 --> 00:08:01,052
That they'd talked about you know,
old men and, uh, boys.
128
00:08:01,089 --> 00:08:06,040
They knew though
that these two SS Panzer divisions
129
00:08:06,048 --> 00:08:08,027
were deployed somewhere in the area.
130
00:08:08,036 --> 00:08:11,040
But they had been beaten up
in the end of the fighting in Normandy.
131
00:08:11,049 --> 00:08:14,095
That they assumed they weren't going
to represent a major threat.
132
00:08:15,036 --> 00:08:19,020
And the Germans always punished, uh,
shall we say such assumptions.
133
00:08:21,066 --> 00:08:24,004
One Panzer division
contains a battalion
134
00:08:24,012 --> 00:08:28,009
commanded by SS Captain
Hauptstrumfuher Hans Moeller.
135
00:08:28,017 --> 00:08:30,038
Hans Moeller is a Waffen SS veteran
136
00:08:30,046 --> 00:08:33,097
who had already joined the forces
in the 1930s.
137
00:08:34,005 --> 00:08:36,097
He served in the first
SS engineer regiment
138
00:08:37,005 --> 00:08:39,060
that was raised up in 1934.
139
00:08:40,001 --> 00:08:43,094
He initially was an NCO
and in 1940 he was commissioned.
140
00:08:45,031 --> 00:08:47,090
Moeller had escaped
the Falaise Gap in Normandy,
141
00:08:47,098 --> 00:08:50,090
only to lose hundreds
of men in the retreat.
142
00:08:52,003 --> 00:08:54,007
He is no stranger to Arnhem.
143
00:08:55,015 --> 00:08:57,062
Moeller is familiar
with the terrain and with the region,
144
00:08:57,070 --> 00:09:00,028
because he had fought there in 1940,
145
00:09:00,037 --> 00:09:05,021
and now he finds himself
four years later at exactly the same spot.
146
00:09:08,063 --> 00:09:11,050
After arriving back
in Arnhem, the Panzer division
147
00:09:11,059 --> 00:09:14,092
organizes its remaining troops
into alarm units,
148
00:09:15,001 --> 00:09:17,039
Ninety men strong, as a precaution.
149
00:09:17,097 --> 00:09:20,026
Alarmeinheiten translates into alarm units
150
00:09:20,035 --> 00:09:24,093
that are set up specifically
for the task of reacting
151
00:09:25,002 --> 00:09:27,010
and counter attacking
as quickly as possible
152
00:09:27,019 --> 00:09:29,065
in the case of an Allied
airborne operation.
153
00:09:31,057 --> 00:09:36,036
Moeller and the other Panzer
units form Sperrlinie or blocking lines.
154
00:09:36,045 --> 00:09:41,037
A Sperrlinie is a line of defense
that the enemy must not pass.
155
00:09:41,045 --> 00:09:45,087
It's quite often reinforced
with obstacles or mine fields
156
00:09:45,096 --> 00:09:49,096
in order to funnel the enemy attack
and create kill zones.
157
00:09:50,054 --> 00:09:53,042
The blocking lines run
across the west end of Arnhem
158
00:09:53,050 --> 00:09:55,046
from the highroad down to the river.
159
00:09:56,030 --> 00:09:58,063
They should trap Allied airborne troops
160
00:10:00,043 --> 00:10:04,027
and keep them from reaching Arnhem bridge
to reinforce Frost and his men.
161
00:10:09,040 --> 00:10:11,019
Go, go, go!
162
00:10:11,061 --> 00:10:13,065
It is at the far end
of the kill zone
163
00:10:13,073 --> 00:10:18,011
where Major Cain finally locates
his regimental commanding officer,
164
00:10:19,078 --> 00:10:21,087
Lieutenant Colonel Derek McCardie.
165
00:10:22,070 --> 00:10:28,062
By the night of the second day,
the 18th of September.
166
00:10:28,071 --> 00:10:32,054
It is very clear to Derek McCardie
167
00:10:32,063 --> 00:10:36,021
and all of the officers
down near the bridge,
168
00:10:36,030 --> 00:10:39,072
that it was getting extremely difficult
to get to the bridge.
169
00:10:40,084 --> 00:10:43,043
But there was a determination
on the part of them all,
170
00:10:43,051 --> 00:10:45,093
they had to get to the bridge
to Johnny Frost
171
00:10:46,002 --> 00:10:49,006
and relieve those paratroopers
who were holding on.
172
00:10:49,069 --> 00:10:52,077
McCardie expects support
from a unit to the north,
173
00:10:53,019 --> 00:10:55,019
to help them push through the kill zone.
174
00:10:55,098 --> 00:10:59,032
The South Staffs
have already suffered heavy losses.
175
00:11:04,070 --> 00:11:06,074
Cain's timing could not be better
176
00:11:06,083 --> 00:11:10,058
as the Second Staffordshires
prepare to fend off yet another attack.
177
00:11:19,030 --> 00:11:21,063
British Major Robert Cain
178
00:11:21,072 --> 00:11:25,026
is part of a daring airborne operation
to seize the bridges
179
00:11:25,035 --> 00:11:27,035
that cross the lower Rhine River
in Holland.
180
00:11:29,089 --> 00:11:33,094
But Nazi resistance
proves stronger than anticipated.
181
00:11:34,002 --> 00:11:37,061
As highly mobile airborne troops,
they have been dropped in by glider,
182
00:11:38,036 --> 00:11:41,003
the South Staffordshires
are armed with what they can carry.
183
00:11:43,086 --> 00:11:48,054
They have no big anti-tank guns here,
in what the South Staffs call the dell...
184
00:11:53,042 --> 00:11:55,050
...but they do have PIATs.
185
00:12:00,005 --> 00:12:03,063
PIAT stands for projector
infantry anti-tank.
186
00:12:05,072 --> 00:12:09,014
The PIAT was a very cumbersome weapon
to put it mildly.
187
00:12:09,022 --> 00:12:11,018
It was basically spring loaded.
188
00:12:11,027 --> 00:12:12,085
You need to be incredibly strong,
189
00:12:12,094 --> 00:12:16,048
and also it was a very difficult weapon
to fire standing up.
190
00:12:16,056 --> 00:12:17,061
Fire!
191
00:12:19,011 --> 00:12:22,036
Depending on the sort
of vehicle you were trying to destroy
192
00:12:22,045 --> 00:12:24,066
you really needed to be within 60 meters.
193
00:12:24,074 --> 00:12:29,020
Now that is incredibly close,
especially when if it was a tank
194
00:12:29,029 --> 00:12:32,033
or an armored personnel carrier
and they have machine guns
195
00:12:32,041 --> 00:12:34,083
you were going to be very, very exposed.
196
00:12:36,000 --> 00:12:39,096
So, it required not just strength.
It required bravery, too.
197
00:12:43,034 --> 00:12:44,059
Go, go, go.
198
00:12:49,043 --> 00:12:53,068
Cain draws enemy fire
and fetches ammunition
199
00:12:53,077 --> 00:12:56,010
while a Lieutenant targets the tanks.
200
00:13:03,036 --> 00:13:05,086
As the tanks close to about 100 yards,
201
00:13:06,070 --> 00:13:09,003
they are too far for the PIAT to destroy.
202
00:13:16,025 --> 00:13:18,017
But the South Staffs hold them at bay
203
00:13:18,025 --> 00:13:20,096
for several hours
before running out of bombs.
204
00:13:24,022 --> 00:13:27,051
They are buying time,
hoping for reinforcement.
205
00:13:30,022 --> 00:13:32,047
But German counter attacks
throughout the city
206
00:13:32,056 --> 00:13:34,064
keep Allied troops tied up.
207
00:13:38,077 --> 00:13:42,015
So Cain and the others do their best
to hold the dell.
208
00:13:43,036 --> 00:13:47,028
One stage he sees a German NCO
209
00:13:47,036 --> 00:13:51,095
and some German soldiers
coming up closely towards them.
210
00:13:52,003 --> 00:13:56,016
Clearly not particularly aware
of the positions of the South Staffords
211
00:13:56,025 --> 00:13:58,071
and he orders a Bren Gun to open fire.
212
00:14:01,092 --> 00:14:06,092
He fires on the Germans,
but misses.
213
00:14:07,059 --> 00:14:09,034
Cain proves impatient.
214
00:14:09,072 --> 00:14:11,093
And now you can
tell his frustration.
215
00:14:12,001 --> 00:14:14,039
He grabs the Bren Gun.
216
00:14:15,006 --> 00:14:17,031
Cain opens with deadly fire.
217
00:14:23,073 --> 00:14:26,003
When one of the Germans tries to rise,
218
00:14:26,011 --> 00:14:28,090
Cain loads another magazine,
and empties it.
219
00:14:37,037 --> 00:14:39,037
He kills all of those Germans,
220
00:14:39,071 --> 00:14:43,084
just dispatches them almost,
uh, out of hand.
221
00:14:44,038 --> 00:14:48,034
It is becoming clear,
that no matter how many they kill...
222
00:14:51,022 --> 00:14:53,060
...more arrive to take their place.
223
00:14:53,068 --> 00:14:56,014
Moving closer to the German border,
224
00:14:56,022 --> 00:14:59,085
also means for the Germans, it's easier
to bring in their reinforcements.
225
00:14:59,094 --> 00:15:01,090
To bring in their supplies.
226
00:15:02,027 --> 00:15:05,032
The Germans must wipe out
the Allied forces in Holland.
227
00:15:06,086 --> 00:15:08,036
We're getting to the Rhine.
228
00:15:08,044 --> 00:15:10,053
It's the last defense line for the Germans
229
00:15:10,061 --> 00:15:13,062
before the Allies
come into the home territory.
230
00:15:14,095 --> 00:15:17,054
SS Captain
Hans Moeller and his men
231
00:15:17,062 --> 00:15:19,083
put up some of the stiffest opposition.
232
00:15:19,091 --> 00:15:22,004
In addition to attacks
from a self-propelled gun
233
00:15:22,012 --> 00:15:23,038
and half-track vehicles...
234
00:15:26,000 --> 00:15:28,059
...Moeller's men
pummel the South Staffordshires
235
00:15:28,067 --> 00:15:31,005
with Panzerfaust projectiles
and flame throwers.
236
00:15:37,047 --> 00:15:39,068
The Germans are well supplied
with ammunition.
237
00:15:40,039 --> 00:15:43,069
Wave after wave of
Allied soldier is shot down.
238
00:15:46,048 --> 00:15:49,028
We mustn't forget
that in the entire war,
239
00:15:49,036 --> 00:15:53,041
the biggest output of the German war
industry is August 1944.
240
00:15:53,049 --> 00:15:56,058
So all the new kit that had been produced
just a month earlier,
241
00:15:56,066 --> 00:15:59,029
can be brought quickly to the front line,
242
00:15:59,037 --> 00:16:01,025
and is also one of the factors
why the Germans
243
00:16:01,033 --> 00:16:04,071
are able to stabilize the front
in September.
244
00:16:07,004 --> 00:16:10,059
Cain's commanding officer,
Lieutenant Colonel Derek McCardie
245
00:16:10,067 --> 00:16:13,076
faces a desperate decision in his sector.
246
00:16:14,064 --> 00:16:17,014
The rumors certainly
were coming through
247
00:16:17,022 --> 00:16:20,089
that Arnhem Bridge had fallen
and was back in German hands
248
00:16:20,098 --> 00:16:24,040
and therefore any further
attempt might be futile.
249
00:16:28,036 --> 00:16:31,028
McCardie has to consider
the larger operation.
250
00:16:32,057 --> 00:16:34,086
If they cannot get
to the Arnhem road bridge,
251
00:16:34,095 --> 00:16:38,008
maybe they can protect
another potential bridgehead.
252
00:16:38,078 --> 00:16:42,025
The whole point of this
operation is for a link up
253
00:16:42,033 --> 00:16:45,029
with 30 Corps and to get a crossing
over the Rhine
254
00:16:45,071 --> 00:16:49,029
and therefore the establishment
of the perimeter west of Arnhem
255
00:16:49,038 --> 00:16:54,080
at Oosterbeek is a chance
to, ah, still achieve that objective.
256
00:16:56,076 --> 00:16:58,055
McCardie orders his men to withdraw
257
00:16:58,064 --> 00:17:00,031
from their position in the dell.
Go!
258
00:17:04,006 --> 00:17:05,060
Hurry, hurry!
259
00:17:05,069 --> 00:17:08,019
Cain sets a rear guard
to protect their retreat.
260
00:17:22,045 --> 00:17:25,050
The South Staffs bring their wounded
to what they call the monastery...
261
00:17:26,058 --> 00:17:27,067
and prepare to pull back.
262
00:17:39,014 --> 00:17:40,060
As they seek shelter,
263
00:17:43,093 --> 00:17:46,052
a German tank blows up
the house next to them.
264
00:17:46,085 --> 00:17:48,065
Get down!
Go, go!
265
00:17:48,073 --> 00:17:51,027
Still determined to fight,
Cain and three others
266
00:17:51,036 --> 00:17:53,057
take cover in a trench and wait.
267
00:17:59,095 --> 00:18:02,070
September 19th, 1944...
268
00:18:04,070 --> 00:18:08,067
British Major Robert Cain
and three others occupy a trench
269
00:18:08,075 --> 00:18:12,038
which provides some protection
as they retreat from Arnhem, Holland.
270
00:18:13,092 --> 00:18:16,026
A German tank approaches their position,
271
00:18:16,034 --> 00:18:18,038
not knowing that they are there.
272
00:18:21,039 --> 00:18:24,077
This tank gets really close
and Robert Cain can see
273
00:18:24,085 --> 00:18:28,010
the tank commander out of his turret
with his field glass
274
00:18:28,019 --> 00:18:30,065
and his black gloves
and this extraordinary detail
275
00:18:30,073 --> 00:18:33,065
and there isn't much they can do about it.
276
00:18:34,015 --> 00:18:35,090
The tank is too close.
277
00:18:35,098 --> 00:18:38,036
Firing at this distance is too risky.
278
00:18:39,036 --> 00:18:42,045
Cain sees the tank commander
scanning for targets.
279
00:18:43,041 --> 00:18:45,066
Hoping the tank will pass by,
280
00:18:45,099 --> 00:18:48,021
Cain urges the men to stay down.
281
00:18:50,000 --> 00:18:52,038
But one cannot resist.
282
00:18:53,038 --> 00:18:55,030
He takes a shot at the tank commander,
283
00:18:56,005 --> 00:18:58,022
and betrays their position.
284
00:18:59,055 --> 00:19:03,089
As he says, some bloody fool
opens fire on the tank
285
00:19:03,097 --> 00:19:07,056
to absolutely no effect,
so the tank is going to retaliate.
286
00:19:09,014 --> 00:19:11,065
Before the German commander
even lets off a round,
287
00:19:13,015 --> 00:19:15,044
the other men bolt from the trench.
Go, go!
288
00:19:19,061 --> 00:19:21,053
They are immediately gunned down.
289
00:19:23,032 --> 00:19:25,041
The tank advance continues.
290
00:19:26,066 --> 00:19:28,091
Clearly Robert Cain
is not at the end of his tether,
291
00:19:29,000 --> 00:19:34,092
but he's armed with his pistol thinking,
what on earth can I do with a pistol?
292
00:19:42,022 --> 00:19:44,072
He crawls to the top
of the trench and out
293
00:19:44,080 --> 00:19:48,014
carefully below the line of sight
of the tank commander and his guns.
294
00:19:50,010 --> 00:19:53,081
Cain rolls over and over,
off a ledge and drops 20 feet
295
00:19:53,090 --> 00:19:58,069
into the relative safety
of the hospital yard and passes out.
296
00:20:04,066 --> 00:20:09,058
Some minutes, not very long
where I'm guessing he lay there
297
00:20:09,066 --> 00:20:12,012
thinking I-- what am I--
this is going nowhere.
298
00:20:12,021 --> 00:20:15,008
But of course gathers his senses,
the man that he is,
299
00:20:15,017 --> 00:20:17,096
and manages
to extricate himself and head west
300
00:20:18,005 --> 00:20:19,046
with the rest of his soldiers.
301
00:20:25,093 --> 00:20:28,018
What remains
of the South Staffordshire regiment
302
00:20:28,026 --> 00:20:29,077
joins 11th Battalion
303
00:20:30,018 --> 00:20:33,035
having heard the rest of their unit
was gathering at Den Brink.
304
00:20:34,014 --> 00:20:35,073
Stay low, stay low!
305
00:20:38,057 --> 00:20:40,036
But before commanding officer
306
00:20:40,044 --> 00:20:43,028
Lieutenant Colonel Derek McCardie
can also escape...
307
00:20:46,024 --> 00:20:48,095
...he too is struck and taken prisoner.
308
00:20:56,054 --> 00:21:00,063
Major Cain is now the most senior active
officer in his battalion.
309
00:21:06,093 --> 00:21:10,043
As Operation Market Garden
enters its third day,
310
00:21:10,051 --> 00:21:13,018
SS Captain Moeller
has gone on the offensive,
311
00:21:13,027 --> 00:21:15,064
determined to eliminate
the Allied airborne threat
312
00:21:15,073 --> 00:21:18,052
in the Dutch city once and for all.
313
00:21:18,094 --> 00:21:20,015
Halt!
314
00:21:21,015 --> 00:21:24,049
At Arnhem, there's a last bridge
of the river Rhine.
315
00:21:24,057 --> 00:21:28,074
So, Moeller knows,
and his men, we must defend,
316
00:21:28,082 --> 00:21:31,024
this is our last line of defense.
317
00:21:31,079 --> 00:21:34,045
Otherwise the gate to Germany is open.
318
00:21:37,033 --> 00:21:40,004
NARRATOR He advances west
from Arnhem, slowly clearing
319
00:21:40,013 --> 00:21:42,063
the airborne troops
out of houses and trenches.
320
00:21:45,042 --> 00:21:47,068
Each house has to be taken individually,
321
00:21:47,076 --> 00:21:50,018
often with fierce hand-to-hand combat.
322
00:21:59,015 --> 00:22:03,015
Entire platoons from both sides
disappear into the urban battlefield.
323
00:22:07,024 --> 00:22:10,003
Because Allied forces
have failed to get reinforcements
324
00:22:10,012 --> 00:22:13,054
to Arnhem bridge to relieve
Lieutenant Colonel John Frost...
325
00:22:15,062 --> 00:22:18,050
they now hope to set up a new position
west of Arnhem,
326
00:22:18,058 --> 00:22:19,096
in Oosterbeek.
327
00:22:20,063 --> 00:22:23,050
Perhaps if they hold
on there then 30 Corps
328
00:22:23,059 --> 00:22:26,021
and the rest of the Second British
Army will come up
329
00:22:26,030 --> 00:22:29,063
and will be able to bridge the Rhine there
330
00:22:29,072 --> 00:22:31,093
and continue
and hold that particular bridgehead.
331
00:22:33,097 --> 00:22:37,031
To give airborne troops time
to withdraw to Oosterbeek...
332
00:22:39,052 --> 00:22:43,073
Robert Cain is given orders
to take the high ground
333
00:22:43,082 --> 00:22:47,019
overlooking the withdrawal route
known as Den Brink.
334
00:22:47,028 --> 00:22:49,078
It's not particularly high,
but it's high enough
335
00:22:49,086 --> 00:22:51,049
to be a significant feature.
336
00:22:51,057 --> 00:22:53,074
- Understood?
- Yes, sir.
337
00:22:53,083 --> 00:22:55,083
Cain organizes
the remaining 100 men
338
00:22:55,091 --> 00:22:59,037
of his regiment into five small platoons.
339
00:23:00,062 --> 00:23:04,009
He selects two,
to stage an assault on Den Brink.
340
00:23:17,077 --> 00:23:21,056
When they reach the top,
the Germans open with heavy mortar fire.
341
00:23:29,019 --> 00:23:31,057
Cain's men need to dig in to take cover
342
00:23:31,066 --> 00:23:33,032
or face certain death.
343
00:23:39,000 --> 00:23:40,096
They get to work with what they have.
344
00:23:41,092 --> 00:23:44,063
And they find it extremely
difficult to dig in on Den Brink.
345
00:23:44,071 --> 00:23:47,000
They don't have proper
digging tools with them,
346
00:23:47,009 --> 00:23:48,084
just their entrenching tools.
347
00:23:48,092 --> 00:23:52,022
And I suspect a number of men
would've discarded those too,
348
00:23:52,055 --> 00:23:54,039
on their way into Arnhem
349
00:23:54,047 --> 00:23:57,018
and during the fighting
that's taking place that day.
350
00:24:00,064 --> 00:24:02,056
Cain is exposed on the hill,
351
00:24:02,064 --> 00:24:04,060
with no supporting artillery fire.
352
00:24:12,011 --> 00:24:14,045
His platoons suffer many casualties
353
00:24:15,066 --> 00:24:17,033
as shells rain down around them.
354
00:24:24,037 --> 00:24:26,046
After 90 minutes, Cain pulls out.
355
00:24:26,054 --> 00:24:27,088
Come on, move!
356
00:24:27,096 --> 00:24:29,084
To stay would be suicide.
357
00:24:37,097 --> 00:24:41,010
Operation Market Garden is unraveling.
358
00:24:48,098 --> 00:24:52,074
The next day,
news filters through both sides.
359
00:25:04,054 --> 00:25:07,063
After defying German counter attacks
without reinforcement,
360
00:25:08,034 --> 00:25:12,067
Lieutenant Colonel John Frost and more
than 100 others are taken prisoner.
361
00:25:13,063 --> 00:25:18,014
Frost has to surrender
purely because they are out of ammunition,
362
00:25:18,022 --> 00:25:20,026
ah, they're out of food and water,
363
00:25:20,035 --> 00:25:23,077
ah, there are so many wounded
that his doctors
364
00:25:23,085 --> 00:25:26,048
simply can't look after them anymore.
365
00:25:27,060 --> 00:25:30,023
Frost himself was also badly wounded
in the legs
366
00:25:30,032 --> 00:25:33,028
when a mortar bomb explodes very nearby
367
00:25:33,036 --> 00:25:35,024
and is incapable of carrying on.
368
00:25:36,053 --> 00:25:38,028
It is a turning point.
369
00:25:38,082 --> 00:25:40,095
Retaking the Arnhem
Bridge is a major victory
370
00:25:41,003 --> 00:25:42,041
for the Germans.
371
00:25:42,049 --> 00:25:46,067
They have got these important Rhine
crossings again in their hands.
372
00:25:46,075 --> 00:25:51,000
And besides,
capturing a Battalion Commander
373
00:25:51,009 --> 00:25:54,042
is something that the Germans
don't achieve very often
374
00:25:54,051 --> 00:25:56,005
at this stage of the war.
375
00:25:57,038 --> 00:25:59,064
By Thursday September 21st,
376
00:25:59,072 --> 00:26:02,093
Operation Market Garden
is officially a failure.
377
00:26:04,027 --> 00:26:06,069
For Major Cain
and the thousands of remaining
378
00:26:06,077 --> 00:26:10,052
Allied airborne troops,
60 miles behind enemy lines,
379
00:26:11,052 --> 00:26:13,086
their best hope
of getting out of Holland alive
380
00:26:13,094 --> 00:26:17,045
remains the arrival of Allied tanks
and troops from the south.
381
00:26:18,053 --> 00:26:20,078
But they are still days away.
382
00:26:27,071 --> 00:26:30,017
September 21st, 1944.
383
00:26:32,071 --> 00:26:35,055
Nazi soldiers encircle
thousands of Allied troops,
384
00:26:35,063 --> 00:26:37,009
near Arnhem, Holland.
385
00:26:37,076 --> 00:26:40,076
After a failed operation
to capture and secure bridges
386
00:26:40,084 --> 00:26:42,080
crossing the lower Rhine River.
387
00:26:44,097 --> 00:26:47,064
What remains
of the First British Airborne Division
388
00:26:47,073 --> 00:26:51,023
has fallen back
to Oosterbeek, west of Arnhem.
389
00:26:51,065 --> 00:26:53,057
The defense of Oosterbeek,
390
00:26:53,065 --> 00:26:56,099
ah, during the latter part
of Operation Market Garden
391
00:26:57,007 --> 00:27:00,061
was purely a-- a defensive measure.
It was no more than that.
392
00:27:00,070 --> 00:27:03,016
They hope by holding on to the bridgehead
393
00:27:03,024 --> 00:27:06,083
that maybe in the coming days
if 30 Corps came through.
394
00:27:07,025 --> 00:27:09,096
But basically, they could do
no more than just hold on.
395
00:27:11,029 --> 00:27:13,067
30 corps was a force
of British armor
396
00:27:13,075 --> 00:27:17,001
expected to race 64 miles
through occupied Holland.
397
00:27:17,009 --> 00:27:20,018
And consolidate the bridges
in two and a half days.
398
00:27:22,093 --> 00:27:26,047
Entering the fifth day,
resistance to the Allied operation
399
00:27:26,056 --> 00:27:30,006
has proved far greater than expected,
on all fronts.
400
00:27:32,073 --> 00:27:36,057
Now 6,000 German infantry backed by tanks,
401
00:27:36,065 --> 00:27:40,024
surround and close in on the remainder
of the airborne division.
402
00:27:40,086 --> 00:27:43,091
When an enemy
is trapped and encircled,
403
00:27:43,099 --> 00:27:47,054
the Germans call it, it's a kessel.
So it's a cauldron.
404
00:27:47,062 --> 00:27:50,037
So, this is very much a German tactic,
405
00:27:50,046 --> 00:27:53,033
and also on the operational level,
during the Second World War,
406
00:27:53,042 --> 00:27:56,050
to encircle the enemy, to eneinselkessen,
407
00:27:56,059 --> 00:27:59,034
so to encircle him,
to put him into a cauldron.
408
00:28:01,026 --> 00:28:04,001
SS Capt. Hans
Moeller and the Panzer troops
409
00:28:04,009 --> 00:28:07,043
plan to squeeze the airborne division
to death, or surrender.
410
00:28:14,073 --> 00:28:18,032
And at Arnhem, the fighting
as it is particularly ferocious,
411
00:28:18,040 --> 00:28:22,045
the cauldron is called
a witch's cauldron, " en hexen kessel".
412
00:28:23,041 --> 00:28:27,033
A very strong word
for saying something is very, uh, chaotic
413
00:28:27,041 --> 00:28:28,095
and brutal at the same time.
414
00:28:30,025 --> 00:28:34,004
Moeller later describes
occupying the ground floor of a house,
415
00:28:35,013 --> 00:28:37,021
with British airborne troops upstairs.
416
00:28:44,051 --> 00:28:48,056
As the day wears on,
a whiskey bottle appears from above.
417
00:28:56,027 --> 00:28:58,077
The Germans
send up some chocolate in return.
418
00:29:00,040 --> 00:29:03,028
It shows you
that even in this ferocious fighting
419
00:29:03,036 --> 00:29:06,049
there are always moments of ja, humanity,
420
00:29:06,057 --> 00:29:08,095
of sharing the hardships of the war,
421
00:29:09,003 --> 00:29:12,070
and in the next moment
they shoot against each other again.
422
00:29:16,067 --> 00:29:18,092
British Major Robert Cain
and his 40 men
423
00:29:19,000 --> 00:29:21,067
must defend the southeastern sector
of the horseshoe defense,
424
00:29:21,076 --> 00:29:23,030
near a church.
425
00:29:24,030 --> 00:29:27,080
It guards one of the roads
into the perimeter
426
00:29:27,089 --> 00:29:30,043
and also it is next to the River Rhine
427
00:29:30,051 --> 00:29:33,056
and this is extremely important
to hold onto
428
00:29:33,064 --> 00:29:36,090
because they're still hoping
for a link up with 30 Corps
429
00:29:36,098 --> 00:29:38,052
and they had to protect the crossing.
430
00:29:39,044 --> 00:29:41,065
As Major Cain
holds this position,
431
00:29:42,003 --> 00:29:45,070
he spots Panzer troops setting fire
to the laundry house.
432
00:29:50,053 --> 00:29:53,045
It is a scorched earth policy
to punish the Dutch
433
00:29:53,054 --> 00:29:55,041
and flush out Allied troops.
434
00:29:56,037 --> 00:29:59,046
Robert Cain throws a hand grenade,
435
00:29:59,054 --> 00:30:05,009
but he throws it upwards and it hits
a rafter and bounces back towards him.
436
00:30:10,060 --> 00:30:13,077
He threw himself into the burning embers
of the laundry
437
00:30:13,085 --> 00:30:17,081
as a safer place to be than
where his hand grenade was going to land,
438
00:30:17,089 --> 00:30:21,069
and he emerged scorched
but otherwise untouched.
439
00:30:22,069 --> 00:30:24,082
So far behind enemy lines,
440
00:30:24,090 --> 00:30:27,028
airborne troops
rely on relief and resupply.
441
00:30:29,020 --> 00:30:31,032
Operation Market Garden
was planned
442
00:30:31,041 --> 00:30:32,099
to last only three or four days,
443
00:30:33,008 --> 00:30:35,062
by getting on well beyond four days,
444
00:30:35,070 --> 00:30:38,012
and the fighting more or less
24 hours a day,
445
00:30:38,021 --> 00:30:40,092
ah, means
that they were all totally exhausted.
446
00:30:41,000 --> 00:30:44,088
And also, one sees the way
that the rates of battle shock
447
00:30:44,096 --> 00:30:48,059
or of psychological collapse, ah,
start to increase pretty rapidly.
448
00:30:51,043 --> 00:30:54,081
Surrounded by the enemy
and unable to defend their drop zones,
449
00:30:54,089 --> 00:30:56,098
Allied supplies fall out of reach.
450
00:30:57,077 --> 00:31:01,002
The Germans are able to seize
the British airdrop zones.
451
00:31:01,010 --> 00:31:03,048
As a consequence, all the supplies
452
00:31:03,057 --> 00:31:06,082
or 90% of the supplies,
comes into German hands.
453
00:31:07,053 --> 00:31:10,078
And this is of course for the Nazis,
great propaganda material.
454
00:31:10,086 --> 00:31:14,024
So you have got Germans
now with British food,
455
00:31:14,033 --> 00:31:16,012
with British cigarettes.
456
00:31:17,041 --> 00:31:19,033
Within the Oosterbeek perimeter,
457
00:31:19,066 --> 00:31:22,038
things get worse for the civilians
and airborne troops,
458
00:31:23,008 --> 00:31:25,000
as the Germans cut off the water.
459
00:31:25,088 --> 00:31:28,009
Food and ammunition also run out.
460
00:31:30,084 --> 00:31:32,064
Starving and exhausted,
461
00:31:32,072 --> 00:31:35,035
the airborne troops
cannot hold out for much longer.
462
00:31:39,035 --> 00:31:41,073
More equipment arrives on the German side.
463
00:31:42,090 --> 00:31:45,036
The arrival of new tanks
for the Germans
464
00:31:45,044 --> 00:31:49,044
means that they can split now
the Witch's Cauldron into two parts
465
00:31:49,082 --> 00:31:53,020
and the British forces face
now annihilation.
466
00:31:54,066 --> 00:31:57,012
Panzer troops
are ordered to attack Oosterbeek
467
00:31:57,049 --> 00:32:01,071
to finish off the trapped airborne
division holding out in the cauldron.
468
00:32:11,030 --> 00:32:15,018
Once again, Major Robert Cain
finds himself defending their sector
469
00:32:15,026 --> 00:32:17,026
with little more than a PIAT.
470
00:32:21,077 --> 00:32:23,019
All right!
471
00:32:34,024 --> 00:32:36,003
September 1944.
472
00:32:38,045 --> 00:32:41,087
Now into their fifth day
of Operation Market Garden,
473
00:32:41,096 --> 00:32:44,004
the First British Airborne Division
has been trapped
474
00:32:44,012 --> 00:32:47,004
and surrounded
by two German Panzer divisions
475
00:32:47,013 --> 00:32:48,071
at Oosterbeek, Holland.
476
00:32:51,005 --> 00:32:54,047
Major Robert Cain's position
is under attack by tanks.
477
00:32:55,034 --> 00:32:57,076
With only a handheld weapon called a PIAT,
478
00:32:58,043 --> 00:33:00,064
he takes aim at a tank 100 yards away.
479
00:33:06,023 --> 00:33:07,065
As the smoke clears,
480
00:33:07,073 --> 00:33:09,082
he sees that he has damaged the tracks...
481
00:33:11,048 --> 00:33:14,028
but he has also alerted
the tank to his position.
482
00:33:21,012 --> 00:33:23,096
Cain fights with the supporting fire
of Bren gunners.
483
00:33:28,021 --> 00:33:30,055
The Bren gunners keep
the German's heads down...
484
00:33:31,071 --> 00:33:33,092
and certainly the commanders of the tanks
485
00:33:34,001 --> 00:33:36,084
who like to stick their heads up
because it was much better observation,
486
00:33:36,093 --> 00:33:38,080
kept them inside their turrets.
487
00:33:41,097 --> 00:33:44,081
With Cain's next shot,
the tank is disabled,
488
00:33:44,089 --> 00:33:46,052
and the crew bails out.
489
00:33:48,035 --> 00:33:50,015
Cain approaches the tank,
490
00:33:50,023 --> 00:33:53,011
shouting for the Bren guns
to continue firing.
491
00:34:02,008 --> 00:34:04,000
The German crew is eliminated.
492
00:34:07,096 --> 00:34:11,004
As more tanks approach,
Cain holds his ground.
493
00:34:15,001 --> 00:34:18,084
Robert Cain hits on the idea of firing it.
494
00:34:19,034 --> 00:34:22,081
Firing the PIAT
in almost vertical position.
495
00:34:22,089 --> 00:34:26,093
Not anything to do with range,
but to try and drop
496
00:34:27,056 --> 00:34:31,073
the PIAT bombs on top of the German armor,
497
00:34:31,081 --> 00:34:34,011
where the thickness of their armor
is weakest.
498
00:34:39,074 --> 00:34:43,074
But after six rounds,
Cain's PIAT gun misfires.
499
00:34:43,083 --> 00:34:47,012
The PIAT bomb explodes prematurely,
500
00:34:47,058 --> 00:34:49,067
inside the trough of the weapon,
501
00:34:49,075 --> 00:34:51,079
uh, it's extremely close to his face,
502
00:34:51,088 --> 00:34:54,080
when I say extremely close, we're talking
about a distance like this...
503
00:34:55,021 --> 00:34:58,051
semi blinds him certainly gives him
a couple of black eyes.
504
00:34:59,076 --> 00:35:02,001
Cain has to be dragged
from the trench
505
00:35:02,010 --> 00:35:03,055
to the regimental aid post.
506
00:35:05,052 --> 00:35:08,085
We know that his fury boiled over.
507
00:35:08,094 --> 00:35:11,040
He issued a stream of obscenities.
508
00:35:11,048 --> 00:35:14,036
I suspect towards the soldiers
who were trying to escort him
509
00:35:14,044 --> 00:35:16,044
out of further danger.
510
00:35:19,082 --> 00:35:21,024
Reload!
511
00:35:21,032 --> 00:35:23,070
As the battle resumes,
Major Cain
512
00:35:23,078 --> 00:35:26,091
brushes off his PIAT bomb injuries
and leaves the aid post,
513
00:35:26,099 --> 00:35:28,066
to return to his trench.
514
00:35:29,058 --> 00:35:33,042
So determined is this man
to be an example
515
00:35:33,050 --> 00:35:38,067
to his soldiers that in about
half an hour, he is back with them.
516
00:35:40,017 --> 00:35:42,039
The battle of attrition
takes its toll.
517
00:35:43,034 --> 00:35:48,047
Robert Cain says this thing
about you call for someone
518
00:35:48,081 --> 00:35:54,044
and they don't answer,
or the answer comes he's had it.
519
00:35:54,052 --> 00:35:57,061
He was killed yesterday or he's wounded.
520
00:35:57,069 --> 00:35:59,028
Or he's a prisoner.
521
00:35:59,036 --> 00:36:02,095
Too often by these last days,
522
00:36:03,003 --> 00:36:06,024
he's calling for men
who are no-- no longer there.
523
00:36:06,033 --> 00:36:08,004
No longer answering the call.
524
00:36:09,095 --> 00:36:11,058
And by the next day...
525
00:36:15,004 --> 00:36:17,017
...Major Cain has fired so many rounds
526
00:36:17,025 --> 00:36:18,075
that his eardrum bursts.
527
00:36:20,026 --> 00:36:23,059
He stuffs field dressing into his ears,
and continues to fight.
528
00:36:27,060 --> 00:36:31,006
They hold off the Germans
trying to gain ground near the river.
529
00:36:32,056 --> 00:36:36,019
With limited supplies
and under constant counter attack,
530
00:36:36,027 --> 00:36:39,069
it becomes increasingly difficult
for the British to care for their wounded.
531
00:36:40,019 --> 00:36:42,003
A cease fire is negotiated.
532
00:36:43,003 --> 00:36:45,066
It was arranged
for the Germans to take them
533
00:36:45,074 --> 00:36:50,008
and basically to transport them
in most cases back to Appeldorn
534
00:36:50,016 --> 00:36:52,041
rather than in the immediate area.
535
00:36:52,091 --> 00:36:57,000
The wounded were then put on stretchers
and taken away.
536
00:36:57,084 --> 00:37:02,080
During a two hour cease fire,
1,200 wounded Allied soldiers
537
00:37:02,088 --> 00:37:05,005
are taken into German captivity.
538
00:37:07,014 --> 00:37:10,022
For those left behind,
pressure continues to build.
539
00:37:10,056 --> 00:37:13,056
Fifteen new Tiger tanks appear
on the battlefield,
540
00:37:14,064 --> 00:37:17,086
having arrived from Germany
the night of September 23rd.
541
00:37:19,040 --> 00:37:23,028
With the arrival of the Royal Tiger Tanks
their fate was sealed.
542
00:37:27,062 --> 00:37:30,070
Desperation sets in
for the remaining airborne division.
543
00:37:33,016 --> 00:37:36,037
The next day, Cain no longer
has even a PIAT
544
00:37:36,046 --> 00:37:38,096
to defend his men or their position.
545
00:37:40,017 --> 00:37:42,059
He uses whatever he can find.
546
00:37:44,022 --> 00:37:46,013
He locates a two-inch mortar.
547
00:37:51,001 --> 00:37:54,052
Not a handheld weapon,
it is usually fired from the ground.
548
00:37:55,073 --> 00:37:58,048
It's not even meant
to be used against tanks.
549
00:38:04,053 --> 00:38:09,028
He's firing the two-inch mortar
at very short range
550
00:38:10,074 --> 00:38:14,029
to try and get these rounds
onto the German armor...
551
00:38:16,054 --> 00:38:19,000
and certainly in amongst German infantry.
552
00:38:21,029 --> 00:38:24,030
Anything to thwart
the enemy attacks on their perimeter.
553
00:38:35,068 --> 00:38:38,044
Despite the heroics
of Major Cain and many others...
554
00:38:39,040 --> 00:38:41,081
General Urquhart the
commander of the First Airborne
555
00:38:41,090 --> 00:38:44,090
got the message across to General Browning
556
00:38:44,098 --> 00:38:47,053
in Nijmegen, they were out of ammunition.
557
00:38:47,061 --> 00:38:49,011
They could not hold on any longer.
558
00:38:49,074 --> 00:38:52,058
After five days
holding out at Oosterbeek
559
00:38:52,066 --> 00:38:55,054
and eight days from the start
of Operation Market Garden
560
00:38:55,087 --> 00:38:59,096
the order comes for the airborne troops
to abandon their posts.
561
00:39:07,084 --> 00:39:09,047
Oosterbeek, Holland.
562
00:39:09,084 --> 00:39:12,039
In the aftermath
of Operation Market Garden,
563
00:39:12,047 --> 00:39:15,093
Allied airborne troops
can no longer hold a potential bridgehead,
564
00:39:16,002 --> 00:39:17,089
north of the lower Rhine River.
565
00:39:19,035 --> 00:39:23,011
Perhaps the most difficult part
of this operation is about to come...
566
00:39:24,065 --> 00:39:28,040
to hold this perimeter,
and to continue to hold it convincingly,
567
00:39:28,049 --> 00:39:32,057
so that the Germans think that
it continues to be a solid perimeter
568
00:39:32,091 --> 00:39:37,095
while as many men as possible
are withdrawn across the Rhine.
569
00:39:38,095 --> 00:39:41,029
The First Airborne
Division is to be evacuated,
570
00:39:41,037 --> 00:39:43,050
across the river, by night.
571
00:39:48,055 --> 00:39:53,055
In preparation, Major Robert Cain
shaves for the first time in a week.
572
00:40:00,073 --> 00:40:04,048
Later, his efforts attract
the notice of Brigadier Philip Hicks,
573
00:40:04,081 --> 00:40:08,007
who notes, there's one officer
at least who's shaved.
574
00:40:11,070 --> 00:40:14,062
But before, Cain remains
on the north side,
575
00:40:14,070 --> 00:40:16,070
to ensure all his men board the vessels,
576
00:40:18,008 --> 00:40:20,033
but when he is ready to evacuate,
577
00:40:20,041 --> 00:40:22,096
there are no boats left
to take him across.
578
00:40:26,063 --> 00:40:30,055
So, Cain and the other stragglers,
locate a damaged assault craft,
579
00:40:30,063 --> 00:40:33,005
and use their rifle butts as paddles.
580
00:40:38,026 --> 00:40:40,014
Their boat leaks badly,
581
00:40:40,098 --> 00:40:43,081
but they make it to the other side,
to safety.
582
00:40:52,095 --> 00:40:57,083
The First Airborne Division
goes in some 12,000 strong,
583
00:40:57,091 --> 00:41:01,004
ah, with the reinforcements,
which arrive later.
584
00:41:01,012 --> 00:41:03,008
By the time the end of the battle comes,
585
00:41:03,016 --> 00:41:06,029
less than 3,000 are evacuated.
586
00:41:07,000 --> 00:41:10,075
Thousands are taken prisoner,
missing, or killed in action.
587
00:41:14,059 --> 00:41:18,039
Market Garden
did not just constitute a massive loss
588
00:41:18,047 --> 00:41:24,023
in terms of Airborne troops
and certain degree, 30 Corps as well.
589
00:41:24,031 --> 00:41:26,069
It was above all the suffering
of the civilians,
590
00:41:27,086 --> 00:41:32,044
having helped the airborne troops
so bravely, so generously.
591
00:41:33,011 --> 00:41:35,003
Thousands of Dutch civilians
are killed
592
00:41:35,049 --> 00:41:37,045
and many more injured in the fighting.
593
00:41:37,099 --> 00:41:42,012
Almost immediately, the Dutch then faced
retribution from the Germans.
594
00:41:43,012 --> 00:41:46,071
They took their revenge
basically by cutting off food
595
00:41:46,079 --> 00:41:49,079
from the major cities
and this led to the Hunger Winter
596
00:41:49,088 --> 00:41:54,001
where at least another 20,000
died from starvation.
597
00:41:58,022 --> 00:42:00,014
After being captured
at the bridge,
598
00:42:00,022 --> 00:42:04,035
Lieutenant Colonel John Frost
spends the rest of the war as a POW.
599
00:42:06,081 --> 00:42:10,023
He is later awarded a bar
to his distinguished service order
600
00:42:10,031 --> 00:42:11,077
for his leadership at Arnhem.
601
00:42:14,069 --> 00:42:18,091
Major Cain earns the Victoria Cross
for his actions throughout the operation.
602
00:42:19,037 --> 00:42:22,016
It is the highest honor for valor
in the British Empire.
603
00:42:25,012 --> 00:42:27,058
He is the only man
to receive the medal at Arnhem,
604
00:42:27,067 --> 00:42:29,029
and live to tell the tale.
605
00:42:30,033 --> 00:42:33,038
His citation reads,
"His coolness and courage
606
00:42:33,046 --> 00:42:36,030
under incessant fire
could not be surpassed".
607
00:42:40,047 --> 00:42:42,039
Nazi propaganda portrays Arnhem
608
00:42:42,047 --> 00:42:46,056
to be a major German victory,
it's actually only partly a victory.
609
00:42:48,014 --> 00:42:50,060
Further south
in Holland, at Nijmegen
610
00:42:50,069 --> 00:42:54,040
the Germans cannot throw back
all the liberating Allied forces.
611
00:42:55,086 --> 00:42:58,024
But for Arnhem,
and this is the crucial bridge,
612
00:42:58,057 --> 00:43:00,091
the Germans achieve a major victory.
613
00:43:00,099 --> 00:43:04,079
And it's the only time in '44, '45
that the Germans destroy
614
00:43:04,087 --> 00:43:07,008
an entire Allied Division.
615
00:43:08,075 --> 00:43:11,013
Montgomery's version
has its own spin.
616
00:43:12,004 --> 00:43:16,046
General Montgomery tried to claim
that Market Garden was a 90% success.
617
00:43:16,055 --> 00:43:19,017
I think that Prince Bernhardt,
the Dutch Commander in Chief,
618
00:43:19,026 --> 00:43:23,014
said, uh, "My country cannot afford
another Montgomery victory, in that case."
619
00:43:23,093 --> 00:43:27,002
Even more scathing
was Air Chief Marshall Tedder
620
00:43:27,010 --> 00:43:28,093
who was Eisenhower's deputy.
621
00:43:29,002 --> 00:43:32,002
Tedder said, "One has even more success
jumping off a cliff
622
00:43:32,010 --> 00:43:33,065
until the last few inches."
623
00:43:35,002 --> 00:43:37,053
After the retreat
from Arnhem and Oosterbeek,
624
00:43:38,003 --> 00:43:41,066
the Allies establish a new front
further south around Nijmegen,
625
00:43:42,087 --> 00:43:45,074
to launch their next offensives
to the German border.
626
00:43:50,004 --> 00:43:53,013
Arnhem itself will only be liberated
by Canadian troops
627
00:43:53,021 --> 00:43:55,013
in April 1945...
628
00:43:59,051 --> 00:44:03,097
as the war in Europe rages on
for another seven and a half months.
629
00:44:10,006 --> 00:44:12,006
Captioned by
Visual Data Media Services.
54553
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get subtitles in any language from opensubtitles.com, and translate them here.