Key Facts
- Operation start date
- 12 April 1945
- Duration of city battle
- 4 days
- Lead division
- 49th British Infantry Division
- German surrender in Netherlands
- 5 May 1945
- Previous failed attempt
- Operation Market Garden, September 1944
Strategic Narrative Overview
Operation Anger commenced on 12 April 1945, led by the 49th British Infantry Division with armoured support from the 5th Canadian Armoured Division, RAF air strikes, and Royal Navy boats. Three infantry brigades leapfrogged through Arnhem in a methodical advance. Within four days the city was entirely under Allied control, allowing Canadian forces to press further north and west into the remaining German-held areas of the Netherlands.
01 / The Origins
Arnhem had resisted Allied capture since September 1944, when Operation Market Garden failed due to poor planning, unexpected German armoured units, and a delayed ground advance. The British 1st Airborne Division was defeated and a front stabilised south of the city. As 1945 began, the Canadian First Army sought ways to link its advancing units across the Netherlands, making Arnhem a renewed strategic objective for clearing German forces from the country.
03 / The Outcome
Arnhem's liberation on 16 April 1945 opened the way for a broader Canadian advance into the Netherlands. Less than two weeks later, a general truce halted major combat operations in the country. On 5 May, the German commander in chief in the Netherlands surrendered to the Canadian Army. Three days later, Germany's unconditional surrender ended the war in Europe, completing the liberation of the Netherlands.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Side B
1 belligerent
Kinetic Engagement Axis
Scroll horizontally to view full axis. Events plotted relatively.