Liberation Route Marker 155: Night Attack on the Ginneken

Night Attack on the Ginneken
On the 28th of October 1944, Polish soldiers drive unsuspectingly into an ambush as they approach this intersection. It is the first battle for the liberation of Breda. The Germans are in hiding and have concealed a motorised anti-tank weapon in the alley.

On the 28th of October 1944, Allied artillery bombarded the main road intersections in the Ginneken. They did it to impede the Germans from building their defences. Then on the night of the 28th of October, Polish troops from the 1st Polish Armoured Division went on the offensive.

There were several battles in the Ginneken. At the crossroads of the Raadhuisstraat-Bavelselaan, a Polish unit drove into an ambush. German troops including a mobile tracked gun, a Sturmgeschütz, fired on them.

The Poles had to retreat. There then followed an artillery bombardment by the British, Canadians and Poles. This also resulted in many civilian casualties. Another Polish unit liberated the Ginneken the next day.

Audiospot - Night Attack on the Ginneken

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: Arie van Wijngaarden