Moerbrugge. September 1944.

Discussion in 'NW Europe' started by Owen, Sep 4, 2006.

  1. Paul Reed

    Paul Reed Ubique

    Really interesting stuff Owen - what did you did you think of Ypres after all these years?
     
  2. Kieran Bridge

    Kieran Bridge Junior Member

    Name: JENKINSON, CHRISTOPHER
    Initials: C
    Nationality: Canadian
    Rank: Private
    Regiment/Service: Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada (Princess Louise's), R.C.I.C.
    Age: 35
    Date of Death: 10/09/1944
    Service No: B/45650
    Additional information: Son of Dennis and Bridget Jenkinson; husband of Monica Jenkinson, of Toronto, Ontario.
    Casualty Type: Commonwealth War Dead
    Grave/Memorial Reference: IX. A. 12.
    Cemetery: ADEGEM CANADIAN WAR CEMETERY
    Hi Owen,

    This is the man whose son, Walter, I tried to contact after seeing his message from 2004. Have you ever corresponded with him?

    Kieran
     
  3. Owen

    Owen -- --- -.. MOD

    Hi Owen,

    This is the man whose son, Walter, I tried to contact after seeing his message from 2004. Have you ever corresponded with him?

    Kieran
    No sorry Kieran I haven't.
    Let's hope Walter Jenkinson picks up his name on a Google search now.
     
  4. Kieran Bridge

    Kieran Bridge Junior Member

    Art's friend who was killed.

    Hi Owen,

    Did my dad tell you the rest of the story about Lionel Morgan? Their platoon was in a house on the south side of the Ghent Canal. The Lieutenant said, "One of you Bren gunners come with me," to get a German machine gunner on the north side of the canal, and my dad starting getting up when Lionel said, "You stay, I'll go." The thumbnail you quoted tells the rest.

    Some years later, my dad owned a trucking and delivery business. He was dropping off a delivery at a house when he saw a photo of Lionel. His first words were, "My god, I helped bury him." It was Lionel's mother's home. Apparently she had never accepted that her son had died until then.

    Both of my parents knew Lionel, and my mother spoke fondly of him. They visited his grave in 1980, and later she said how emotional it was for them. That was their first trip back to the continent. They made great friends in Moerbrugge, including the family that owned the house where "C" Company was holed up and trying to hang on until reinforcements arrived. My dad still corresponds with them.

    Kieran
     
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  5. Slipdigit

    Slipdigit Old Hickory Recon

    Wow Kieran, great story.
     
  6. Owen

    Owen -- --- -.. MOD

    "You stay, I'll go." The thumbnail you quoted tells the rest.


    No, I didn't know that Kieran, like you said before, it's a wonder you are here.
    I've just printed that extra info off and will put it in my file .
    Glad I was able to get there and stop at his grave.
     
  7. Kieran Bridge

    Kieran Bridge Junior Member

    The Canadian National Defence site has still not posted the Moerbrugge article, so here it is:

    The Battle of Moerbrugge<o></o>>
    <o>
    </o>
    by Arthur Bridge<o></o>
    "C" Company, Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders of Canada<o></o>
    <o></o>
    <o></o>
    Moerbrugge is a small community located a few miles south of the city of Bruges, in north-western Belgium. Since World War II it has been incorporated into the nearby town of Oostkamp. Moerbrugge is situated on the Ghent-Bruges Canal, a busy waterway serving that part of Belgium with barge traffic. It is deep and about 50 feet wide.<o></o>
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    In early September, 1944, following the defeat of the German armies in Normandy and the rapid advances being made by Allied forces, most of us who were involved were of the opinion that the war would soon be over. Brussels and Antwerp had been seized by British forces; both places were far in advance of the Canadian forces which were designated to clean up the Channel Ports. Dieppe had fallen to the Second Canadian Division. The Third Canadian Division was heading towards Boulogne and Calais and recce forces were near Dunkirk and Ostend.<o></o>
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    The Fourth Canadian Armoured Division, following the Seine River crossing, had reached the Somme River near Abbeville on September 3 and spent two days reorganizing.<o></o>
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    The Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders of Canada, part of the 10th Infantry Brigade of Fourth Division, moved out and on the 6th of September were in the vicinity of St. Omer, encountering flying bomb sites that had recently been evacuated by the enemy but no resistance. The next day, the Battalion crossed the French-Belgian border at Oostcappel.<o></o>
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    These were the days of liberation and the people in Belgium had been waiting expectantly for our arrival. Their reception and hospitality were terrific. There had been no opposition to our advance, although there were numerous stragglers from the German army who had been left behind and were quite happy to surrender.<o></o>
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    “C” Company was directed to occupy some houses to cover the left flank of the Battalion. The civilians were still there and they made us very welcome. A citizen of the town invited several of us into his home and proceeded to pour us drinks of Benedictine. It was my first experience with this particular nectar and I found it to be quite enjoyable. Our host soon ran out of the stuff and sent out for more, and before long we were all feeling pretty good, as we shared with our host the joy of liberation.<o></o>
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    When it became my turn for “two hours on and four hours off” guard duty, against a possible enemy counter attack, I was not in very good condition. Before I knew it, I had passed out in the trench we had prepared and didn't recover for six hours. Fortunately for all of us, there was no enemy action that night, so my misdeed went unnoticed, except by the man I was supposed to wake up to relieve me. He didn't complain.<o></o>
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    Very early the next morning, the Battalion left Oostcappel by TCV (troop carrying vehicle) and drove uninterrupted by enemy action, arriving in the area of Oostkamp just in time to hear the explosion and see the smoke rising from what was the bridge across the canal at Moerbrugge, which the enemy had blown up.<o></o>
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    Our Company was commanded by Major Bob Paterson, and our platoon officer was Lieutenant Henry Watson. Company Sargeant-Major was George Mitchell, and our platoon Sargeant was Phil Lawson. Due to the heavy casualties that had been suffered during the preceding month and the lack of sufficient reinforcements, all platoons were under strength. The names of other comrades are lost to me unfortunately.<o></o>
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    We disembarked from our transport and began advancing toward the canal, which we were advised was our next objective. Since we had been moving forward for several days without meeting any serious resistance, we did not expect much of a problem, thinking that the war was almost finished. We were soon to be made aware of the reality of the situation! Our platoon was just to the south of the built up area of Oostkamp, and we moved across country, crossing first what appeared to be the embankment of a highway which had not been completed, then we found our way forward to Station Straat, encountering many civilians. They informed us that the enemy was on the other side of the canal, but we were still not concerned. I especially recall that we passed a bakery on this street, and the baker kindly gave me a loaf, which was very good and most welcome. One of the people we met who lived on the street told us that his children were in Oostkamp, where it was safe. We proceeded to the canal, to where the bridge had been blown, and here we encountered the first direct enemy action, as shellfire was directed at us. Our platoon was ordered to clear all the houses on our side of the canal, to the north of the blown bridge, while others cleared the south part. We didn’t find any of the enemy on our side of the canal, but the shellfire was increasing and we were suffering casualties. As our platoon neared the last house on the canal bank, an enemy 20 millimetre machine gun on the other side of the canal began firing on us. Lieutenant Watson called for our Bren gunner to go with him and another man to occupy the last house, which was a large brown brick house as I remember, so that they could be in a better position to fire on the enemy 20 millimetre. The three of them rushed across an open space to reach the house, while the rest of us provided covering fire. Unfortunately, the enemy gunner spotted them as they reached the side of the house, and before they could bring the Bren gun to bear, they were all hit. Lionel Morgan, our Bren gunner, was killed, as was the other man. Lt. Watson was wounded in the head, but managed to get back to where we were still trying to knock out the 20 millimetre. We were not able to do so before receiving orders to return to the bridge site to prepare for a boat ride in an old wooden row boat that had been found in the vicinity, to cross the canal and clear all the houses on the left side of the main street. “D” Company had already crossed over and they were to clear the houses on the right side. We were then to clear the area to the left of the church, and hold it while the engineers built a bridge to allow the tanks to cross and advance further.<o></o>
    <o></o>
    By this time it was almost dark, but we were able to progress forward in the rear of the houses, through the gardens and back yards, suffering a few casualties from small arms fire and taking a few prisoners in the process. By the time we reached the high wall which surrounded the church on the corner, it was quite dark. Resistance stiffened there with the enemy tossing grenades over the wall into the garden we had reached. We of course responded by doing the same, but in the dark and strange surroundings it was very difficult to cope with the situation, so Major Paterson ordered us back to the next house (toward the canal), and then ordered our section of six men to go left through a field in which there were some hay-stacks, bypassing the church, in order to seize the houses on the other street.<o></o>
    <o></o>
    We set out from the garden and dashed to the first hay-stack, where we paused to get our bearings. At this moment, an enemy machine gunner started firing in our direction using incendiary ammunition, which set fire to one of the hay-stacks behind us. The resulting fire illuminated the area like daytime, making it very dangerous to expose ourselves in order to advance further across the open field, so we waited a few minutes trying to decide what to do. Meanwhile, the enemy continued firing and the next thing we knew, our hay-stack was also afire. This of course made our situation impossible, so we had no choice but to return in haste to rejoin the rest of the company in the house and garden, second from the church. There we stayed for the rest of the night, preparing to advance early in the next morning, when we would be able to see where we were going and where the enemy was. “D” Company was in a similar situation on the other side of the street, and we had been in contact with them during the night, which did not pass quietly!<o></o>
    <o></o>
    At daylight, as we prepared to advance, we discovered that the entire area was now crawling with enemy troops, who seemed to be everywhere and were most aggressive, again making it impossible for us to move forward. In fact, we had to take defensive positions, because the enemy began to counter-attack our positions, both on the street and from the fields to our left. Sargeant Lawson attempted to set up a Bren gun in the driveway beside the house we occupied, in order to cover the main street, but as soon as he took position, an enemy soldier with a Schmeizer machine pistol charged toward him and severely wounded him. Several others from our platoon were also wounded, both by enemy small arms fire and mortar or artillery fire, which was now becoming very heavy, both on us and on the site where the engineers were trying to build a Bailey bridge across the canal.<o></o>
    <o></o>
    We succeeded in beating back all attacks on our position, but some enemy were able to infiltrate between us and the bridge site, which made our position very uncomfortable. “D” Company were experiencing the same sort of trouble on the other side of the street, and eventually we lost contact with them. Our wireless set quit working at this time, so we could not communicate with headquarters on the opposite side of the canal. I had taken signals training while in England, and understood some of the workings of the set, so I was assigned to assist Mac Sam, who was the official company signaller, to try to revive the wireless. We were then in the back garden of the house, near the lane which runs between the gardens and the field of burned hay-stacks, where we had been defending against the enemy counter attacks. There were numerous enemy wounded and dead in the field as a result of our fire. While we were working on the wireless (which we never did restore to working condition) several enemy stretcher bearers approached our position under a white flag, and Major Paterson allowed them to remove their wounded comrades without interference.<o></o>
    <o></o>
    The house which was our headquarters contained civilians, and they were very helpful in attending to our wounded, whose number continued to rise. There were probably five or six of our men on the kitchen floor, which was stained by their blood.<o></o>
    <o></o>
    I was ordered to the upper floor, where there was window facing the field offered a good view of the enemy, both in the fields and in the houses on the other street. Corporal Lorne Webb joined me there, and with our Bren gun, we were able to break up several enemy efforts to overrun us. While we were there, an enemy 20 mm machine gunner spotted us and began firing. Some of the bullets came through the opening we were using, but neither of us was hit.<o></o>
    <o></o>
    We were running short of ammunition by this time, and Major Paterson ordered that all ammunition available be provided to the Bren gunners, so we scurried around and retrieved all that was on hand, filled the Bren magazines and passed them on to the two or three Bren gunners who were still in action. Enemy pressure continued very strong for the rest of the day, with the situation looking grim for us. We hadn’t eaten a meal for over twenty four hours, had little or no sleep, were almost out of ammunition and had many casualties in need of medical attention. Toward the end of the day, Sargeant Major Mitchell, together with Corporal Jim Holmes, made their way back to the bridge site and were able to return through the enemy with much needed food, ammunition and medical supplies. As well they brought the Medical Officer of the Lincoln & Welland Regiment, Capt. MacKenzie, who looked after the wounded.<o></o>
    <o></o>
    We hung on to our precarious toe-hold, receiving ever increasing artillery and mortar fire, along with the persistent counter-attacks, as night once again came upon us. We actually held out little hope for relief from our difficult situation, and were prepared for the worst. Apparently, though, the enemy was in worse condition than we were, and were unable to continue their attacks. Although the artillery fire continued throughout the night, the enemy infantry held back, to lick their wounds no doubt, and the night passed noisily but reasonably peacefully.<o></o>
    <o></o>
    The engineers were at last able to work on the bridge during the night, but I will never fully understand how they managed to do it with so much shell fire aimed at them. We were tired, hungry, and out of cigarettes, but we survived the night on the alert.<o></o>
    <o></o>
    The bridge was finished and at first light we were delighted to hear the noise of the Sherman tanks of our old friends, the South Alberta Regiment, driving up the main street with their guns blazing. They passed us by and kept on going, turning left at the cross road, shooting everything in sight. I remember asking the first tankman I saw for a cigarette, and he threw me a package of tobacco and papers, so I was able to enjoy a much needed smoke.<o></o>
    <o></o>
    In 1984, I returned to Moerbrugge and took a picture of the back of the house that we had been in during the battle, and the bullet marks were still clearly visible by the window.<o></o>
    <o></o>
    The tanks continued forward, meeting and overcoming much enemy resistance, and “C” Company (what was left of it) moved forward and occupied houses at the corner of the first street to the left of the church.<o></o>
    <o></o>
    Our platoon was in a house which had been severely damaged by shell fire with most of the roof tiles missing. There was a nice double bed all made up in one of the upstairs rooms, with several large shrapnel holes in the blankets. I was allocated to cover the field to the left with the Bren gun from an upstairs window, which provided a good field of fire. It was not very warm at this time, so I took one of the damaged blankets from the bed and wrapped it around myself to keep warm as I took my position. Once again, overcome with fatigue, in a few short moments I was sound asleep. Fortunately, the enemy had vacated the area and launched no further attacks on our position, so my misdemeanour went unnoticed.<o></o>
    <o></o>
    We were relieved by troops of the Algonquin Regiment, who accompanied the South Albertas clearing the enemy from the roads and fields to the east, while we were allowed to have a short rest after our ordeal, get some food and catch up on some sleep, passing a peaceful night.<o></o>
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    The following day we had the sad duty of collecting our dead, under the direction of the Chaplain, Hon/Capt. Charlie Maclean, and preparing them for burial at a small field near the cross-road.<o></o>
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    After that, we moved forward over the ground the tankers had fought for, to the vicinity of Sysseele. Much damage had been done to the homes in the area and the dead bodies of the enemy were everywhere, as were knocked out tanks. The farm house which we occupied had thick stone walls, and a tank shell had gone straight through it - in one side and out the other, leaving its path of destruction. The lady whose house it was returned while we were there, and I will never forget her grief at the sight.<o></o>
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    We discovered a large wooden crate full of bottles of French wine in one of the out-buildings, and needless to say, we didn’t ask to whom it belonged! The wine flowed freely that day.<o></o>
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    Reinforcements reached us also on this day, and we were almost back to full strength. You often don’t get to know your new comrades as they all too frequently became casualties themselves within a few days. That was the end of the battle for Moerbrugge for the Argylls. We were next ordered to prepare to follow the Algonquin Regiment who were to seize a bridgehead over the double canal at Moerkerke. But the Algonquins were not able to hold the ground they had gained, so we were not called upon to cross.<o></o>
    <o></o>
    But that is another story.<o></o>
     
  8. Owen

    Owen -- --- -.. MOD

  9. rankhorn

    rankhorn rankhorn

    hello my name is matthais i live in oostkamp belgium that 1mile from moerbrugge my grandmother lives in waardamme on a smaal farm in the woods ans during ww2 there where canadian soldiers shooting from here farm to moerbrugge with a big mortor gun of some sort the soldiers that where posted there near waardamme (kampveld) where the first to free waardamme before moerbrugge if somebody wants some spesific pictures from the area let me now and if somebody can give me some more information about the battle of moerbrugge,oostkamp?beernem or waardamme please let me now . Thank you ans srry for my bad englisch
     
  10. Kieran Bridge

    Kieran Bridge Junior Member

    Hello all,

    I've put together a compendium of my father's writings and oral stories about the Battle of Moerbrugge. I hope you can open the attachment. If not, I'll post a link.

    Kieran
     

    Attached Files:

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  11. Kieran Bridge

    Kieran Bridge Junior Member

  12. Owen

    Owen -- --- -.. MOD

    Nice to see you on here again Kieran.
    Apologies to other members as alot of the headstone photos are on the wrong posts , that's due to the forum move to new software.
     
  13. lauriemorgan

    lauriemorgan New Member

    Thank you so much for sharing these stories. Lionel Morgan was my grandfathers brother. I knew nothing about him as my grandfather died 26 years when I was only 12 years old. My grandfather Harry Morgan died the same day as his brother Lionel. September 8th.
    Thank you.
    Laurie Morgan
     
  14. Owen

    Owen -- --- -.. MOD

    Welcome to the forum Laurie.
    Glad you found this thread of interest.

    Just found disc, I'll put correct headstone photos back in correct posts.
     
  15. montague

    montague New Member

    Hi Laurie,

    Strange situation, but let me introduce myself- our families are linked. My Father (Lt. Henry Watson) was the man who was with your Grandfather's brother when he was killed.
     
  16. canuck

    canuck Closed Account

    September 1944 is remembered as the month of Arnhem, the “bridge too far”, or by Canadians as the time of the battles for the Channel ports. But for the veterans of 4th Canadian Armoured Division, memories are of the rapid advance north, the liberation of western Belgium and the brief bloody struggles at the Gent and Leopold canals.

    On Sept. 6, the division was organized into two battle groups: Stewart Force and Moncel Force. The division was ordered to pursue the enemy to the area around the town of Eeklo, northwest of Gent. The corps armoured car regiment, the 12th Manitoba Dragoons, was to feel out the situation on the coast while the Polish Armd. Div. dealt with the eastern flank.

    The mood at divisional and corps headquarters was optimistic, even cocky. Antwerp had fallen to the British and what was left of the vaunted 15th German Army seemed to be caught with no way of escape. Army intelligence gleefully reported: “We have three divisions in the bag for sure and plus stragglers the total is now probably 50,000.” The war, many thought, could not last much longer.

    The apparent rout of the German armies in the aftermath of Normandy was bound to encourage this kind of optimism, but intelligence officers ought to have known better. At 1st Cdn. Army Headquarters, the mysterious group of air force and army officers known as the Signals Liaison Unit had received the Ultra decrypt of Hitler’s radio message ordering General Gustav von Zangen’s 15th Army to garrison the area north of the Leopold Canal, designated Scheldt Fortress South, and Walcheren Island, Scheldt Fortress North, to prevent the Allies from making use of the port of Antwerp. If the mouth of the Scheldt estuary was closed, Antwerp–60 miles inland–was of no value. Von Zangen was also ordered to withdraw the balance of his forces across the Scheldt estuary and bring them into action north of Antwerp.

    Lieutenant-Colonel Peter Wright, Canada’s senior intelligence officer, and a handful of others cleared to receive material from Bletchley Park’s code-breakers, discussed the situation with Gen. Harry Crerar. They agreed to warn commanders that there was evidence of strengthened German defences, but the rapid progress of the Manitoba Dragoons, who liberated Nieuport and Ostend and probed north to Zeebrugge, seems to have convinced them that despite Ultra the enemy was too disorganized to resist effectively.

    Reckless optimism was certainly the mood at Major-General Harry Foster’s divisional headquarters when orders were issued to seize a crossing of the Gent Canal at Moerbrugge. At the time, artillery was only available on call due to an ammunition shortage. It is also worth noting that there was no time for reconnaissance and that no assault boats were available. With Brigadier J.C. Jefferson in hospital, suffering from a recurrence of malaria, Lt.-Col. Dave Stewart of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada was in command and he selected his own battalion to make the crossing.

    The Argylls, one of the most consistently effective battalions in the Normandy battles, was busy enjoying Belgium where “people crowded the streets pressing bottles of champagne, cognac or best of all for the Canadians, Belgian beer upon the troops.” At the canal, two heavy, leaky boats, missing their oars were scrounged and Pete Mackenzie’s D Company went across in relays. They created a small bridgehead occupying several houses, but were held by the volume of fire and the first of what would prove to be many counterattacks. Charlie Company reinforced the position, but were soon cut off.

    The full story of this battle was finally told in Robert L. Fraser’s 1996 book, Black Yesterdays: The Argylls’ War. Major Bob Patterson of C Company recalled it this way: “I had 30 men and they were all there. You didn’t have to give any orders. They were all going to fight…. The most important person in the whole company was Company Sergeant Major George Mitchell…he was the most wonderful man I ever served with.” Mitchell’s “coolness and courage under fire” earned him the Distinguished Conduct Medal at Moerbrugge. His comrades thought it should have been the Victoria Cross.

    The struggle for Moerbrugge continued for three days, drawing in the Lincoln and Welland Regiment who put all four rifle companies across the canal to support the Argylls. Supplies were the real problem and the men carried double loads of ammunition into battle.

    On the morning of Sept. 10, the engineers completed a bridge. The tanks of the South Alberta Regiment joined the infantry and began flushing the enemy from houses and haystacks. The Germans quickly retreated, abandoning what they could not carry. Their task had been to delay the Canadians until the last units of the 15th Army got across the Leopold Canal.

    While Stewart Force fought its costly engagement at Moerbrugge, Moncel Force, made up of 4th Armd. Brigade and the Algonquin Regt., reached the outskirts of Brugge, one of the most beautiful cities in Europe with its treasures of Flemish history. The Lake Superior Regt. probed the defences, but the roads were mined and covered by anti-tank guns. The city’s mayor pleaded with both sides to avoid a battle and Moncel decided to bypass Brugge, funnelling his force through the Moerbrugge bridgehead. The Manitoba Dragoons were left as a covering force and it reported on Sept. 12 that the town was clear. The next day, Moncel was ordered to do an immediate crossing of the Leopold Canal “to keep the Germans on the move.”

    The battles for Moerbrugge and the resolute defence of the Channel ports ought to have warned corps and army that the situation was changing. The enemy, which had fled north in disarray in early September, was now fighting well-organized delay actions and preparing to defend a series of “fortress” positions. No one at the sharp end could doubt this, but senior intelligence officers and commanders were still convinced that the enemy was beaten and could not survive a determined attack either at Arnhem or the Leopold Canal.

    When Captain Ernie Sirluck, 4th Div.’s intelligence officer, reported that the enemy was holding the north bank of the canal in strength, he was ignored as was the detailed information from Ultra. Sirluck and the Argylls’ intelligence officer, Claude Bissell, would both have distinguished postwar careers as scholars and university presidents, but in 1944, reports from front-line intelligence officers carried little weight with operational commanders who were convinced the war was all but won.

    Moncel Force, or more exactly its infantry battalion the Algonquin Regt., was now required to attack across a double canal line near Moerkerke, Belgium. Here, the Leopold and Lys canals run side by side separated by a 60-foot-wide dike. Today, the road beside the canals carries the name Algonquinstraat. In 1944, this quiet country lane was the start-line for a battle that was to reveal just how committed the enemy was to the defence of the approaches to Antwerp. Shortly before midnight on Sept. 13, all four Algonquin rifle companies were ferried across the two canals despite heavy harassing fire. Able Company occupied the hamlet of Molentje, but increasing direct and indirect fire prevented the other companies from linking up. The Algonquins, with less than 250 men, were too thin on the ground and were forced on the defensive in three isolated pockets.

    The divisional engineers, 8th and 9th field squadrons, had to stop building a bridge when they came under small arms fire. At first light, the situation looked desperate. Artillery and mortar fire, which appeared to be directed from within Moerkerke, struck the engineers, battalion headquarters and the regimental aid post. The shelling became so intense and accurate that it was impossible to get ammunition to the rife companies across the canal. Lt.-Col. R.A. Bradburn, who feared his whole battalion might be lost, requested air support and an air supply drop, but nothing was available. At 1200 hours on Sept. 14, Moncel ordered a withdrawal. With the aid of a smokescreen and a divisional artillery shoot, which used up the remaining ammunition, the regiment withdrew by fighting its way through enemy troops who had infiltrated as far as the dike between the two canals.

    With most of the boats destroyed by shellfire, many of the men swam to the south bank. The Algonquins had 28 killed, 40 wounded and 66 taken prisoner.

    The German view of this encounter is worth recording. “The Canadians succeeded in forcing a bridgehead at Moerkerke which if it had been allowed to develop would have not only cut short our evacuation through Breskens, but would have secured the vital ground south of the Scheldt which commanded the estuary which at this stage the Germans were determined not to give up.”

    The German counterattack employed all available resources, but the Algonquins held. Their withdrawal took the Germans by surprise. They thought the curtain of fire brought down by the Canadian artillery was the prelude to a renewed assault. Neither side understood the position their opponent was in. 4th Div., with three badly understrength infantry battalions, could not sustain an advance against such odds. The Germans, already geared up for a major battle, would have 16 days to get ready because no Canadian infantry division was available. Montgomery’s focus was on Arnhem and so the south shore of the Scheldt would have to wait until 3rd Cdn. Infantry Div. had captured Boulogne and Calais.

    The immediate tasks of 4th Div. were to patrol the Leopold Canal and liberate the rest of western Flanders. The Canadian Grenadier Guards with the Lincoln and Welland Regt. on board led the way to Maldegem on the morning of Sept. 15. The enemy was gone and they continued east past open fields where one day the Commonwealth War Graves Commission would establish the Canadian military cemetery at Adagem.

    With bridges down, the Lincoln and Welland Regt. took over the advance, reaching the edge of Eeklo. Historian Geoff Hayes, who wrote a history of the Lincoln and Welland Regt., notes that the battalion reached Belgium with half its authorized combat strength and after Moerbrugge, B Company had just 19 riflemen. When eager Belgian resistance fighters urged an immediate attack on the departing enemy, Lt.-Col. Bill Cromb, who knew how tired the battalion was, replied: “That’s excellent. If we stop here and have breakfast, they will all be gone by the time we get in.” So the town Eeklo was liberated without a single casualty, soldier or civilian!

    The Germans were not yet ready to surrender the area north of Gent since they still needed the Port of Terneuzen to evacuate men across the Scheldt. The Polish Armd. Div., with even fewer infantry than the Canadians, were closing in on the port, but 4th Div. still had to clear its sector.

    The short, sharp battles for Beokhoute, Assende, Sas-van-Gent and other villages have gone largely unrecorded, but the war diaries and casualty lists tell of brief costly engagements. What veterans remember best are the people of Flanders, especially the young women. The Argylls relate the story of three young ladies who “swam across the canal with bouquets of flowers in their hands, while the Germans up the canal were shooting at them.” The Algonquins report meeting a local resistance leader who turned out to be a “trim 21-year-old blonde, complete with tunic, Sam Brown and two pistols, one on each hip. To the Wolf Patrol at battalion headquarters it became clear she meant business and purely military business…. For once the sanctity of womenhood was most strictly upheld.”

    Of the many war stories that remain untold, none is more important than the work of the Belgian resistance–the White Brigade–in assisting the Allies. Denis and Shelagh Whitaker have paid tribute to Eugene Colson and his men who secured the dock area in Antwerp and helped 4th Inf. Bde. hold the city, but in September and October 1944 almost every Canadian unit worked closely with Belgian patriots. During the advance north into Holland, these volunteers fought alongside the Canadians in some of the most difficult battles of the war. It is long past time we paid tribute to them.

    Indeed, Canadians who visit the Vimy Memorial would do well to turn their eyes north, not just to the World War I battlefields of Ypres and Passchendaele, but to the World War II battlefields, memorials and museums. If you were to start such a pilgrimage in Brugge, find your way to Canada Bridge where two magnificent bronze bisons, the symbol of the Manitoba Dragoons, commemorate the “memory of the Canadian forces who liberated the city.” You may also want to drive to Moerbrugge where the community unveiled an abstract sculpture made out of sections of a Sherman tank on the 50th anniversary of the battle. At Molentje, the small memorial plaque is barely noticeable, but each September a small grove of wooden crosses appears in memory of the individuals who lost their lives here.

    The Adegem Canadian War Cemetery is just a few miles away. It has the graves of 848 Canadian and 298 Polish and British soldiers. The town of Adegem features the superb Canada Museum, created by Gilbert van Landschoot who introduces visitors to the role Canadians had in the liberation of Belgium. He built the museum as a gift to the people of Canada because the rapid advance of the Canadians saved his father from arrest by the Gestapo. The displays relate the history of defeat, occupation and liberation of Belgium so that visitors may fully understand what men fought and died for.

    Perhaps the most impressive of all the memorials isn’t a monument or a museum but an annual event. Every Nov. 1, a Belgian-Dutch organizing committee plans an extraordinary Liberation March. Over the years, veterans, serving members of the Canadian Forces stationed in Europe and thousands of ordinary Dutch and Belgian citizens and schoolchildren have participated. They walk with their national flags flying proudly beside the Canadian flag and learn the story of the liberation of their region. A story we need to tell to Canadians.

    The Liberation Of Belgium: Army, Part 33 | Legion Magazine
     
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  17. canuck

    canuck Closed Account

    "The most important person in the whole company was Company Sergeant Major George Mitchell…he was the most wonderful man I ever served with.” Mitchell’s “coolness and courage under fire” earned him the Distinguished Conduct Medal at Moerbrugge. His comrades thought it should have been the Victoria Cross."

    Some may recall that CSM George Mitchell was also present in St. Lambert sur Dives when Currie won his VC.

    Seen here, holding an Enfield, accepting the surrender of Hauptmann Siegfried Rauch , 2nd.PzDiv.

    st. lambert.png
     
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