Liberation Route Marker 041: Hotel Dreyeroord

Hotel Dreyeroord
The Battle of The White House was fought at the Dreyeroord Hotel in Oosterbeek during Operation Market Garden. English veteran John Crosson, a sniper in the King’s Own Scottish Borderers, was there. At 87 years of age, he looks back on those difficult times. Mr. Crosson was one of the few to survive.

John Crosson’s story starts on 17th September 1944 as the gliders land near Arnhem.
John is a sniper in No. 6 Platoon B Company of the 7th Battalion The King’s Own Scottish Borderers who have been given the job of protecting the landing zones. On 18th and 19th September, they join the 4th Parachute Brigade and make their way to the Dreyeroord Hotel, “The White House”, in Oosterbeek. They arrive on 20th September 1944 and patrols are dispatched to the railway line and the surrounding houses during the night.

The German attack is unrelenting and the enemy forces its way deep into the hotel’s grounds. On 21st September, Lieutenant-Colonel Payton-Reid leads a bayonet charge that is only partially successful and the King’s Own Scottish Borderers fail to hold their position at the hotel. The British are forced to pull back to positions to the south of the hotel, ending the Battle of The White House.

The British suffer severe losses during the battle and bury their dead in the hotel’s gardens wherever they can. After the war, they are moved to the Airborne Cemetery in Oosterbeek.

Audiospot - Hotel Dreyeroord

Liberation Route Europe is a certified Cultural Route of the Council of Europe. With hundreds of sites and stories in nine European countries, the route links the main regions along the advance of the Allied Forces in 1943-1945.
The entire route consists of themed routes that can be travelled by by hiking, walking, cycling and car. These routes pass numerous historical and interesting sites and tell stories from a multitude of perspectives that were important in the final phase of World War II.
Many routes feature listening spots, offering the opportunity to listen to a historical story at a location. In addition, many ‘Vectors of Memory’ have been placed, indicating that the passer-by is on one of the Liberation Routes.
The routes can be found on the Liberation Route Europe website or in the app through which many stories can also be listened to.

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Source

• Text: TracesOfWar & Liberation Route Europe
• Photos: Arjan Vrieze