Publications 1945
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17th Airborne Division Historical Report of Operation Varsity, July 1945
This report by the American 17th Airborne Division was completed in July 1945. This document is arguably the most comprehensive official account available and was drafted shortly after the events. The report describes the plans for conducting the operation and precisely details their implementation. It also presents extensive statistical data, supplemented by maps.
"Varsity - The Airborne Assault Across the Rhine," 1956
This chapter from the 1956 book "Airborne Operations in WWII: The European Theater" is an accurate description of Operation Varsity. The study was published by the U.S. Air Force Historical Research Studies Institute/Air University in Maxwell, Alabama. Author John C. Warren draws on the extensive sources, reports, and statistics compiled by the U.S. Armed Forces during World War II. Thus, his book is considered a reliable standard work.
"Rhineland Rendezvous," article in the US magazine "Air Force," 1945
The author, Captain Eric Friedlander, was a war correspondent aboard a C-46 transport plane that was to drop US paratroopers near Hamminkeln. After being hit, the plane caught fire and crashed. Friedlander and two crew members parachuted to safety, while co-pilot Second Lieutenant Albert L. Strohm and pilot Lieutenant Robert B. Reeder died in the crash. Their aircraft was one of 20 C-46 Commandos that crashed or were destroyed in emergency landings during Operation Varsity. The exact crash site of their aircraft, serial number 44-77518, is hitherto unknown, but it is presumed to be in the vicinity of Hamminkeln. Eric Friedlander's article begins on page 4 of the "Air Force" magazine and continues on pages 28 and 58.
On April 9th, 1945, "Life" magazine
reported on Operation Varsity, featuring a series of photos taken by war photographer Robert Capa on p. 27-37. Capa had landed by parachute east of the Rhine near Hamminkeln on March 24th, 1945, and accompanied US 513th Parachute Infantry Regiment as it advanced towards its objectives.
The War Diary of the "North Nova Scotia Highlanders" for March 1945
describes the actions of this Canadian battalion on the western bank of the Rhine in early March and east of the river at Bienen from March 25th onwards. War diaries were kept in most armies in World War Two - usually from the battalion level upwards. After crossing the Rhine, the "North Nova Scotia Highlanders" were involved in the fighting at Bienen and suffered heavy casualties. The war diary lists the events day by day, from p. 131 it also contains detailed accounts of the battle from the perspective of the four companies involved. The battalion was part of 9th Infantry Brigade of Canadian 3rd Infantry Division.
(Source: Library and Archive of Canada)
"The Talon Crosses the Rhine" - Publication of US 17th Airborne Division
This publication describes the advance of US 17th Airborne Division from the Rhine crossing until VE-Day in May 1945. The booklet was published in 1945 and printed in Paris. It was intended as a memento for the division's soldiers. "The Talon" means "The Talon" and refers to the division's insignia, a bird of prey's talon.
Report of the US Engineer Corps on the Rhine Crossing
In this book, the engineer units of Ninth US Army report on their activities during the Rhine crossing in the Lower Rhine region. The work provides precise technical details and contains numerous photographs and sketches. Published in June 1945.
British magazine "The Picture Post", April 1945
The magazine reported on the Rhine crossing and the airborne operation near Wesel on April 14, 1945.
Report of XVIII Airborne Corps on "Operation Varsity"
British 6th Airborne Division and US 17th Airborne Division were part of XVIII Airborne Corps. The official report dated April 25th, 1945, briefly describes the airborne operation near Wesel and Hamminkeln. The report is supplemented by numerous maps at the end.