Hundreds of parachutists on Saturday dropped down on a heath near the Dutch town of Ede, following in the footsteps of 2,000 Allied soldiers 80 years ago.
Involving British, Polish and American soldiers, the jump marked the penultimate day of the 80th anniversary of Operation Market Garden, with Dutch King Willem-Alexander attending a commemoration ceremony.
Ultimately ending in failure, the infamous operation saw the loss of almost 15,000 Allied soldiers, while 6,600 others were captured in the ill-fated plan to seize bridges in the Netherlands in September 1944.
Allied commanders had hoped the operation would give them a quick way of ending the war in Europe, opening up an invasion route to Berlin.
Instead, thousands of parachutists were repelled by strong German opposition in Arnhem and surrounding towns including Ede, which were almost totally gutted in the fighting.
“Today we celebrate our collective freedom and remember the enormous… effort to achieve it,” Dutch Defence Minister Ruben Breukelmans told thousands of onlookers including the Dutch king, military dignitaries and a handful of surviving World War II veterans.
“It gives us all an opportunity to say thank you for your service.”
“Thank you for what you have done for our country,” King Willem-Alexander was overheard telling one of the veterans after the wreath-laying ceremony.
Devised as a plan to have airborne forces seize key Dutch bridges, the operation instead turned into one of World War II’s greatest Allied debacles.
Thousands of British, US and Polish paratroopers were dropped above the Netherlands in the largest airborne and glider operation in history, to occupy bridges and waterways from Belgium to the Dutch city of Arnhem and open the way for Allied tanks.
But the Allies, driving up a single road towards the final bridge across the lower Rhine at Arnhem, failed to link up with the airborne assault troops, who were forced to surrender.
The Nazis then exacted cruel punishment on the Dutch, cutting off food supplies which sparked thousands of deaths by starvation.
The battle was immortalised by the 1977 Hollywood war epic “A Bridge Too Far” directed by Richard Attenborough and starring Sean Connery, James Caan, Gene Hackman and Robert Redford.
The bridge at Arnhem is now named after British Lieutenant Colonel John Frost who together with 600 men held it for four days before being overrun.
The Netherlands was finally liberated in May 1945 and in September that same year, the first commemoration of Arnhem was held in Oosterbeek as it has been every year since.
The 80th anniversary of Operation Market Garden culminated this week with a series of commemorative events.
This included the solemn reburial of two Allied soldiers who died at the time, and whose remains were only discovered and identified a few years ago.
On Sunday, British Princess Anne and other dignitaries will attend a commemoration service at the Oosterbeek cemetery.
British military historian James Holland said despite the hardships the Dutch had to endure during and after Operation Market Garden, he was struck by the gratitude people continued to show even 80 years after the global conflict.
“I’ve never seen anything like it. I mean it’s incredible to go to Arnhem and see every other house with the Airborne flag, the maroon, with the blue Pegasus horse,” he told AFP, referring to the standard of the British 1st Airborne Division.
“It’s just absolutely remarkable,” Holland said.
