Key Facts
- Duration
- 8 February – 11 March 1945 (31 days)
- Army Group
- Anglo-Canadian 21st Army Group
- Primary formation
- First Canadian Army and British XXX Corps
- German flooding delay
- Roer River deliberately flooded by German forces
- Link-up date
- 4 March 1945 near Geldern with U.S. Ninth Army
Strategic Narrative Overview
XXX Corps launched the northern advance on 8 February through the Reichswald while Canadian forces cleared flooded Rhine plain positions. Progress was slower and costlier than planned after German forces under Alfred Schlemm deliberately flooded the Roer, delaying Operation Grenade and allowing German troops to concentrate against the Commonwealth advance. The renamed Operation Blockbuster renewed momentum after 22 February, capturing Kleve and Goch.
01 / The Origins
By early 1945, Allied forces had reached Germany's western frontier and sought to cross the Rhine River. A two-pronged pincer strategy was devised: a northern thrust (Operation Veritable) by the Anglo-Canadian 21st Army Group through the Reichswald forest, and a southern thrust (Operation Grenade) by the U.S. Ninth Army across the Roer River, designed together to destroy German forces west of the Rhine.
03 / The Outcome
On 4 March 1945, the northern and southern pincers linked up near Geldern after Operation Grenade finally crossed the Roer. German forces fought a rearguard action to maintain a bridgehead at Wesel on the Rhine's west bank, evacuating troops and equipment. On 10 March the German withdrawal concluded and the last Rhine bridges at Wesel were destroyed, leaving the Allies in full control of the west bank.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
2 belligerents
Bernard Montgomery, Harry Crerar, Brian Horrocks.
Side B
1 belligerent
Alfred Schlemm.
Kinetic Engagement Axis
Scroll horizontally to view full axis. Events plotted relatively.