Liberation Route Marker 157: The battle of Mark Canal

The battle of Mark Canal
With the advance of the Allies, the Germans fall back to a line, which among other places, runs along this canal. At the beginning?of November 1944, Polish soldiers of the 1st Polish Armoured Division make frantic efforts to cross the canal and breach the line.

German troops had built a defensive line on the north side of the Mark Canal. Overnight, on the 3rd of November 1944, Polish troops from the 1st Polish Armoured Division first began a feint toward Terheijden. Then, at Ter Aalst, another unit crossed the canal in inflatable boats and surprised the German troops in their foxholes. After some fighting, the Poles managed to establish a bridgehead.

At the same time, at the Marksluis near Oosterhout, the Poles tried to cross the Mark Canal. That was a lot less successful, as they came under heavy German fire. Eventually, with the support of artillery and fighter aircraft, they still managed to reach the other side. Polish sappers immediately started constructing a Bailey bridge. This was a turning point in the action, the Poles broke through and the bridge was named the Success Bridge.

Audiospot - The battle of Mark Canal

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