Who liberated Enschede, Holland ? Coldstream Guards

Discussion in 'The Brigade of Guards' started by patrick1974, Sep 10, 2008.

  1. Bob Hindry

    Bob Hindry New Member

    We visited Enschede in 2014 but no one appeared interested in the action.We enquired as to whether celebrations were taking place in 2015 for the 70th anniversary but nothing had been planned. Will there be any celebrations for 75th liberation?
     
  2. I am the great nephew of 2665175 Guardsman Horace Thomas Bradbury 1st Bn. Coldstream Guards, He was my Granddad's youngest brother, and he was killed in the attack on the bridge over the Twente Canal on April 1st 1945. He was in Robert Boscawen's tank when it was blown up by German artillery. Horace is buried in Enschede and I plan to visit his grave. If anyone on here knows of any anniversary commemorations for next April could you please post them here.
     
    Frank Roossink and canuck like this.
  3. Bob Hindry

    Bob Hindry New Member

    Hi my Uncle Tom Twite was on the bridge that day 1st April 1945. he witnessed Robert Boscawens tank being blown up. He was a friend of Boscawen until his death. My Uncle and I visited Enschede 5 years ago and paid our respects to the fallen. He is now 97 and will do the trip again next year if something was being planned. But I am not aware of any celebrations. Read Boscawen's book the Armoured Guardsman.
     
    Buteman, John L Pritchard and canuck like this.
  4. Bob Hindry

    Bob Hindry New Member

    Picture of grave taken 2014 I believe the one on the right is your great uncle Thomas Bradbury
     

    Attached Files:

  5. Thanks for these posts Bob. I was planning to go to Enschede last year but I had to cancel due to illness. I've read "Armoured Guardsman", extraordinary that there should be an account from that particular campaign when you think how many Sherman's were in Western Europe at that time. The book contains a slight typo in that Horace Thomas is listed as N.T.Bradbury. There may well be something on next year as one of my cousins was contacted by an Enschede local looking for a photograph of him. One exists but we can't locate it at the moment, I think my mother may have it. No one from the family has been to his grave, his name is on the War Memorial in Stone, Staffs and the Bradbury family went to a Service at Westminster Abbey just after the War. My youngest sister Alison was born on April 1st, 1965, exactly 20 years to the day. Regards to your Uncle Tom too.
     
  6. Bob, I've now heard from the organising committee in Enschede and there are several events on April 1st and May 4th and 5th celebrating the liberation. Also, extraordinarily, the Eridivisie match at Twente on April 5th v. Fortuna Sittard will also be commemorative event, with the players wearing special shirts. Hope you can make it, I'll be in Enschede for the first week of April, Best regards John
     
    dbf and JimHerriot like this.
  7. secondworldwar-nl

    secondworldwar-nl Junior Member

    John L Pritchard and dbf like this.
  8. Thank you for this, small scale but wonderfully well done. KLM still have my airfare, as soon as we are back to normal I will be over to visit Enschede and Horace, Best regards John and stay safe.
    Special thanks to the young ladies, the one wearing the Twente scarf, and the one playing the violin :)
     
    dbf likes this.
  9. stolpi

    stolpi Well-Known Member

    Found this map instructive as to who liberated Enschede:

    Uitbraak Rees.jpg
    Map courtesy of: Bevrijding van Oost- en Noord-Nederland - TracesOfWar.nl

    The 43rd Wessex Div sidestepped through the western part of Enschede to enter Hengelo from the east.



    On a side note the Polish 1st Armoured Division was brought up later from a reserve position in southwest Holland; the Poles assembled at Coevorden and started operations in NE Holland from 10 April onwards (see also: Operation Amherst: French SAS in Holland, April 1945).
     
    Last edited: Apr 4, 2020
    ecalpald and John L Pritchard like this.
  10. Frank Roossink

    Frank Roossink New Member

    I took this photo 2 weeks ago when I visited the cemetery.
     

    Attached Files:

  11. Frank Roossink

    Frank Roossink New Member

    I recently discovered a high-resolution copy of the original (without sound or comments) and uploaded it. The original video contains information per time-code, though I noticed that the information is incorrect. So I during my search for documents and reliable resources to correct the information, I came across this thread and decided to join the conversation.



    I also found some high-quality images of the liberation of Enschede in our city-archive and can share them if you want.

    The sherman tank and motorcycle in image named: NL-HaNA_2.24.01.03_0_900-2403.jpg are also on the video I mentioned at time 02:29. NL-HaNA_2.24.01.03_0_900-2403.jpg NL-HaNA_2.24.01.03_0_900-2373 (1).jpg
     
    dbf and stolpi like this.
  12. Frank Roossink

    Frank Roossink New Member

    Due to the coronavirus the planned commemorations were performed in a minimalist setting. However, there traditionally a commemoration ceremony organised every year. in addition to the ceremony in April, there’s also a ceremony on Christmas Eve when candles are placed at each grave.

    upload_2021-5-14_22-42-4.jpeg
     
    ecalpald and stolpi like this.
  13. Thank you for all of these. Another year ticks by with the Planet in absolute turmoil. I hope to make it over soon, be safe and stay safe, Best regards John
     
    Frank Roossink likes this.

Share This Page