17

Kapelsche Veer

The battle for Kapelsche Veer was the last major operation in which 47 Royal Marine Commando got involved. It was thought that the Wehrmacht would make another attempt to break through and recapture the port of Antwerp, after their failure in the Belgian Ardennes.

A small peninsula in the middle of the Maas and Old Maas rivers was to be thought the point where the German troops would attempt to break through. It was considered essential to capture this peninsula before any such attempt could be made.

Late 1944, a German support operation for the Ardennes Offensive took place, to support the main German attack through the Belgium Ardennes. This support operation was known as ‘Fall Braun’. For this the Germans gathered a large force, north of the river Maas in the Netherlands. When the operation started, German troops advanced through the south of the Netherlands towards Antwerp. There was only one small problem for the Germans; the river Maas acted as a natural barrier between the Germans on the north—and the Allied forces on the southbanks of the river. The Germans had three small bridgeheads at the river Maas. One of these bridgeheads was the island of ‘Kapelsche Veer’, named after a small ferry, that crossed the river near that point. The bridgehead was heavily defended, mainly by German paratroopers of the 6th Parachute Division.

At the end of 1944, the preparations of ‘Fall Braun’ were in hand, but when the Battle of the Bulge commenced Hitler pulled the forces away to support the Ardennes offensive.

Lt-Col. C. F. Phillips:

On 22 December at very short notice, the Commando moved to Breda to come under command of Brig. E. T. Boylan CCRA, and to form part of ‘Paddy Force’, the 1 Corps Mobile Reserve.

Two days later the Commando moved again, to Oosterhout where they took on patrol and defensive duties on the Maas and came under command 1 Pol Armd Div. Under command or in support were (C) Sqdn 18 Cdn Armd Regt, two Coys 1 Belg Fus, one troop 247 A/Tk Bty RA, one det Polish Engineers, one Pl Pol RASC and 90 Field Regt RA.

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Cpl. H. Corlett and the Dutch family he was billeted with watching a liberation parade in Breda 1945. (Photo courtesy of Eric Corlett)

Capt. Gerry Brent, A-Troop:

My first job and introduction to the section of marines under my command was a standing patrol guarding a small part of the beaches of Brabant facing the island of Shouwen, still in German hands. Such an attack was unlikely but it did give us a chance to get to know each other and to become a closely knit fighting group.

We were on a two hours on, four hours off routine for fourteen days with lots of false alarms, sleepless nights, and endless rain. Our main purpose was to watch for German stragglers cut off during their hasty retreat and we actually apprehended two Other Ranks who had been hiding in apple baskets on a truck.

After being relieved from these activities, I was pleasantly surprised to find that I had been billeted with one of the local farmers who sported the luxury of luxuries, a bathtub. Needless to say, my batman, Tom, who had a nose for the better things in life managed the billet arrangements when advised that there was no room for us at the officers mess.

The family who ran the farm were the cream of this earth! They had nothing left themselves but whatever they could scrape up on the farm, and there is always the odd potato or the hidden hen, they would share with us! “Their liberators” as they called us! So it looked like we would spend Christmas in these lovely, peaceful and so comfortable surroundings. In their endeavors of extending their hospitality, my hosts offered the use of their own big brass bed which after long protestation I had no chance of declining. At this stage, I had not slept in a bed since arriving in Holland! Into all this bliss, quite unexpectedly, I was called to HQ with the greatest apprehension!?

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47 RM Commando’s Medical Staff in Oosterhout 1945.

Cpl Ernie ‘Taffy’ Staphnill, A-Troop:

From here we moved to Bergen op Zoom, doing a lot of training as we were now being reinforced with new personnel whilst others went on leave. Afterwards we moved to Breda, where we came under the Canadian Reserve, and then on to Oosterhout to patrol the River Maas with the Polish Division. We had all sorts of army personnel with us; Canadians, Belgian Fusiliers and a Field Regiment Battery of R.A.

Lt-Col. C. F. Phillips:

Then ensued a period of intensive preparation. The Commando was on the main approach from North Holland to Antwerp, and the Intelligence was very certain that some attack was coming, to coincide with the Ardennes offensive. (It is worth noting that this intelligence proved correct from documents captured later). The Commando were the only troops between the enemy and HQ 1 Corps, and troops everywhere were thin on the ground.

Three troops of 48 Commando came under command 28 December for a fortnight. On 30 December Lt-Col. C. F. Phillips DSO RM, relinquished command to form 116 Inf Brigade RM., and Maj. Donnell was promoted Lt-Col. to assume command. Maj. Martin Price DSO joined on 7 January as Second in Command.

There was continuous patrol activity on the South side of the Maas, and on 1 and 2 January patrols crossed to the North side, contacting the enemy on the latter day.

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47 RM Commando RAP in Kortgene 1945.

Cpl Ernie ‘Taffy’ Staphnill, A-Troop:

When we came off the Island we reformed further along the road out of range of the Germans, and I had to pick up Maj. Wood. His hands were visibly shaking so I asked him if he wanted to wait a few moments to pull himself together. He took my advice but I had to drive off as they had got our range and began to shell us. I zigzagged down the road to avoid being hit. Maj. Wood as leader of the attack also had to be the last one to leave. Because we where thin on the ground and because we were the only force between HQ 1st Corps and the German Paratroopers on the other side of the Maas, our troops had to keep the Germans from getting their troops and tanks across. As it happened they ran out of steam as their supplies never got through to them.

Capt. Gerry Brent, A-Troop:

Christmas Eve is the major celebration for the Festive Season in Europe. The cake, courtesy of my family in Sydney was in the oven being baked and everybody was getting ready for the occasion. Then it came! Out of the blue! An urgent message from “A” troop H.Q. “Unit will assemble in three hours to move up into the new front line, south bank of the River Maas.”

So our Christmas Eve was spent trying to dig slit trenches into the frozen ground in and around a little town called Oosterhout.

We were therefore very actively engaged to show the Germans on the Northern bank of the river that “our territory”, approximately five miles of southern river bank, was heavily defended and patrolled night and day. We also made a few excursions across the river to show our strength and take prisoners.

The New Year of 1945 came with bitterly cold weather, strong winds and news from the Ardennes that the German attack had succeeded in breaking through the American lines and threatened the approaches to Antwerp. If successful, this meant that we in southern Holland would be cut off.

In the meantime PoW Mne Fred Batt wrote in his diary:

January 1:

Big football match today England vs Scotland. Brass band to play England as to pilit and bagpipes for Scotland. (pipes played by Bobbie Stewart, Kilunarrod and supplied by G. H. Lawrie Ltd, 38 Renfield Street!) Scotland lost (once more!) 4 goals to 7.

Capt. Gerry Brent, A-Troop:

The nights crystal clear with heavy frost would carry noise a long way. Also smells like tobacco smoke would carry some distance. Above all, however, were the German hobnailed boots that crunched on the hard frozen ground making an easily recognizable sound. In contrast, our boots heavily vulcanized were practically noiseless compared to the German footwear.

So we made our way cautiously to our normal patrol “headquarters”. This was a little transformer hut just about 100 meters from the River Maas. As this hut was the only protection from the wind and the cold,

I am sure we shared our “headquarters” with Germans on alternate nights. That evening I thought we might investigate a small disused shipyard situated further upstream which was surrounded by four or five dilapidated houses. We approached with utter caution! This was a new spot for us where we had never been before!

Just as well!

All of a sudden we heard German voices very close – in fact, too close for comfort. We were out in the open, there was no cover and I didn’t fancy our chances in a shootout in utter darkness with a German fighting patrol obviously well-established in the surrounding houses.

A few yards away to our right stood one dilapidated building. As my major concern was to get some cover I was prepared, if necessary, to fight our way into the place or out of the area, if possible. As it turned out, we were lucky – there was nobody in the building, but the Germans had no intention of moving on.

We must have strayed right into a German fighting patrol of about section strength, who were well acquainted with this particular area and had used one or the other of the small houses as shelter before.

We spent the rest of the night listening to the Germans chattering away, huddled in one room on the ground floor, ready for any intrusion.

Lt-Col. C. F. Phillips:

Four days later an enemy patrol crossed to the South side of the Maas, and ambushed our patrol killing 2nd Lt Gardener, and two days later, a little to the East they ambushed a patrol of Y-Troop, 48 Commando (u/c) wounding Capt. Hoskin.

Capt. M. G. Y. Dobson rejoined on the 9 January and was involved four days later in an accident when a Jeep skidded off a road into a dyke. Capt. James and Capt. O’Connell were partially drowned and evacuated to hospital.

On 9 January the Commando relinquished its patrol duties to return to training at Bergen op Zoom, but were kept on long enough to attack the German positions at Kapelsche Veer.

This was a position of great natural strength which the enemy had crossed the Maas to occupy on Christmas Eve. It was a small island between the Maas and the Oudemaas. On the North was a broad dyke 25 feet high which broadened out, at the defended point, to form quite a reasonable plateau. Here the enemy were well dug in. There was only one small cottage in the area, and all supplies etc. had to be brought across the river.

The defending troops came mostly from Para Divs and were young and fanatical. They possessed a few LMGs but nothing larger, but there were a few batteries on the North side to support them.

Most of the low ground was flooded and, following snow, it had been freezing hard for some days.

Capt. Gerry Brent, A-Troop:

Then came a sniff of smoke of a log fire and suddenly the challenge “Halt! Who goes there!” – “Hell” – I thought – what happens now! The password I knew was yesterday’s and today’s sentry would have no idea what yesterday’s password was. If we had a nasty sentry, he would shoot first and ask questions later! But our luck held – he was a friendly fellow and understood our dilemma!

The next night Lt. Gardener took over my patrolling stint with a somewhat stronger patrol of 15 marines. He got killed in an ambush.

Lt-Col. C. F. Phillips:

Forces of 1 Pol Armd Div. had twice attempted to move the enemy, first by a platoon recce, and then with a whole company, but in vain. The Commando attacked on the night of 13/14 January.

On the night of 13 January 1945, Q-Troop of 47 Royal Marine Commando, together with attached No. 5 Troop (Norwegian) 10 IA Commando under Second in Command, launched an assault on the island of Kapelsche Veer attacking the right flank supported by armour and artillery from the mainland, while a main force of A-, B-, X- and Y-Troops of the Royal Marine commandos attacked on the left flank. The only possible means of approach to the enemy position was along the base of the dyke from the East or West. A Polish company was to secure the bridgehead, while 47 Royal Marine Commando and No. 5 Troop IA Commando provided a diversionary attack.

The first phase—crossing the Oude Maas, was accomplished with difficulty. The heavy ice flow made it very difficult to get boats across, but eventually the Polish Engrs got the bridge fixed.

On the way to the forming up position A-Troop who were leading ran into a small enemy outpost which was wiped out. By 0047 hrs both parties were in position and the code-word was given for the barrage which fired from 0055—0100 hrs—all the 1 Corps artillery.

Attacks went in simultaneously from both flanks, and Q-Troop got onto the defended plateau to the neighborhood of one house.

However, the enemy were determined to hold out and brought down a withering fire. Confident that their troops were safe underground, they brought extremely heavy mortar fire down on their own positions causing heavy casualties among the Royal Marines. By 0500 hrs, after 8–10 hours of bitter fighting, it was obvious that the place could not be taken by a lightly armed elite force so small in a night attack, and so all were withdrawn. 47 Royal Marine Commando casualties numbered 49 including Capt. B. J. Stickings who was killed in the enemy position to which he had most gallantly advanced. The place was eventually taken by 10 Commando Inf. Brigade with support from tanks and ‘wasps’ and after they had sustained approx 350 casualties.

Capt. Gerry Brent, A-Troop:

The main attack was to come along the dike from the west executed by A, B, X and Y-Troops plus some 48 Cdo Troops seconded to us. At this stage it all looked so peaceful. A wintry landscape covered in snow, a little world on its own separated by the dikes from the river and the rest of the war-torn country. There was no indication that this peaceful scene would give way to an inferno that was to kill and wound hundreds in the next few hours.

So, the scene was set for an eventful time. A-Troop led the night approach through snow to the starting point 200 metres from where the Germans were dug in. We met little resistance. One outlying foxhole was quickly taken and shortly after reaching our starting point the bombardment began!

Then, as suddenly as it had begun, the shells stopped coming and it was our turn to walk into the position and accept the German surrender! At least that was what we were told should happen.

This time A-Troop was in reserve with B and Y in the attack reinforced by a unit from 48 RM Cdo. There was a lot of noise, some shooting but to little effect. It was not long before I was ordered to “assist” the attack with my section. To my amazement, the assault had not got over the dike where the Germans were dug in.

One of A-Troop’s marines was issued with a flame-thrower which he used generously on our side of the dike. Normally devastating weapons, on this occasion they were a nuisance, burning up sticks and stalks on the ground and illuminating our men against the black of the night. The flame-throwing marine kept screaming and cursing the “yellow bastards” who would not venture over the dike to take the German machine-gun nest. This was my first experience of action, and I certainly would not be called a yellow bastard by anybody. Though against my better judgment, I made my way to the top of the dike, still brilliantly lit.

Tommy gun at the ready, safety catch off, before I could even look over the top of the dike, there it was! The machine-gun nest right in front of me. I fired a burst and hit whoever was in the slit trench right in the chest but, strangely, there were no screams. On further examination, I found a second occupant in the trench. Both were stone dead, probably killed by blast from our bombardment. I returned to our side of the dike and told the “flame-thrower” that the machine-gun nest was liquidated!

Moving further along I found the remnants of B, Y and the 48 troop still on the south side of the dike.

By now we had got close to Captain Stickings and Q-Troop’s diversionary assault position. True to character, he and Lt Ian Adam had penetrated the German position exactly where planned. We heard repeated small arms fire coming from that direction accompanied by shouts and screams from the wounded.

With the Germans temporarily diverted by this attack, now was the time to cross the dike and help to draw the German fire away from them. However, looking around, where was our attacking force? Out of the three troops there were about 10 of us left! But there was no time to hesitate or find more troops. Q-Troop was hurting with shouts of the wounded and dying clearly audible. So we went.

The officer ran off screaming “they got me!” Corporal Dyke lay dead. The remaining marines and myself rolled over the top back onto our side of the dike dragging with us the other Corporal who had been shot in the head. Frustration, anger and fury with our abortive and useless efforts finally gave away to the warming thought that we were still alive. However, the corporal was bleeding profusely, his head cradled in my lap. Murmurs from the head sounded like “they shot me with an elephant gun” which at least meant he was alive.

There were the four of us, two marines, the corporal and myself. Was that all that remained of the attack? Also, we faced what we thought was an inevitable German counter attack. We had between us quite a number of Tommy guns and could have given a good account of ourselves. But nobody ventured over the top onto our side of the dike.

Mne Fred Wildman, Heavy Weapons:

We rested up on several Dutch islands and the only other battle of note that I was involved came after Christmas of that year.

This concerned an island in the Maas River, this had to be completed in the hours of darkness because snow was thick on the ground and any movement quickly spotted. My skills were not needed as a mortar man, so I became a stretcher bearer. This became a very tough and daunting task which we obviously were undertaking and so we began retreating with our wounded.

Lt-Col. C. F. Phillips:

The move from Oosterhout back to our old hunting ground of Bergen op Zoom took place on Thursday 16 Jan and on the next day the Ede Cdr addressed the Commando.

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Men of 47 RM Commando with one of their jeeps in Holland.

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Mne. R. F. ‘Bob’ Godfrey (right) in Holland 1945.

Our stay in Bergen was short lived indeed, for on the same Friday the advance parties moved to an even more renowned locality that we knew well—the island of Walcheren.

After the Brigade Comd’s talk the advance parties moved off to Middelburg, the island’s capital. There they prepared the way for taking over the island’s defences from 41 Commando.

On the 18th (Thursday) the main party started moving, consisting of 3 Troops moving by Motor Transport to Middelburg to be followed by the remainder of the Commando on the Friday and on this day, about five hundred men were spread over an area of some 70 square miles in order to defend it from the attack of the enemy.

Training exercises known as Exercise ‘POKER’ took place periodically in order to practise us at our tasks.

The outlying troops were changed round in order to avoid staleness and on the 26th Q-Troop relieved Y-Troop at Zoutelande.

The troop at Zoutelande had, and took advantage of the opportunity of tending the Graves of those who had fallen during the action of Nov 1—Nov 8 when we first invested the island. Troops on the island besides ourselves consisted of Royal Engineers who manned the LVT (Buffaloes), some LCOCU whose main job was the under-water clearance of the roads, and the ‘PRINCESS IRENE’ Brigade under Col. Van Stevenick: then there were the Dutch Resistance Organisations who were in the throes of organising themselves into proper and fit bodies of troops on more regular lines; these last two shared the defence of Middelburg in particular and Walcheren generally.

On the first of Feb Lt-Col. Donnell resumed command from Maj. Martin Price DSO who had been commanding in the former’s absence.

The CO’s return from leave was celebrated by a ‘dawn’ turnout for one of the periodic Exercise ‘POKER’.

February was truly a dead month and until the 28th February nothing else took place bar an inspection by the Brigade Comd and the routine change over of troops.

Normal training had been carried on during this period, some 90–100 reinforcements, always welcome, turned up and the Commando shook down once more into a fighting organisation, and about this time a ‘buzz’ arrived about our impending move to North Beveland. This entailed the more offensive attitude of mind being developed and so training was altered to meet it and to re-inculcate a fighting spirit into the unit, Nothing is more dampening to one’s aggressive tendencies than sitting down on one’s back side waiting for that which may never happen; and so Ex ‘SWIPE’ soon to become Operation ‘SWIPE’ had its first inception.

This little exercise entailed a single troop landing from LCA lent to us by our old friends of FORCE ‘T’ under Capt. Pugsley, CB, DSO, Royal Navy. Setting up a small bridgehead, trying to capture a prisoner and come back again.

Each troop in turn was put through Ex ‘SWIPE’.

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Officers of 47 RM Commando in Aalten 1945. Notice the different type of boots of the men lying.

On the 12 March the gradual swop over to North Beveland and relief of 4 Commando began. This whole move took until 16 March to complete.

North Beveland was about an eighth the size of Walcheren, it was bone dry, its roads were good, the communications were also good on the island. Its only drawback—but also at the same time a great asset—was the ferry service worked by the Dutch. We were virtually cut off from the mainland.

This was a ‘front line’ position; the enemy was just across the water on the island of Schouwen and so alertness was an absolute essential all around our island’s coastline.

Coastal Ops day and night with communicating patrols at night was our system of defence. Under command was the ever changing ‘Tom Group’.

Ever changing because it was made up from varying units with variously calibered guns from BOFORS to 5.5 Mediums. At times ‘Tom Group’ were down to equivalent of troop strength and then up to almost regimental strength—and above all had a private air OP.

‘Tom Group’ harried the Hun all along his coastline, shot up his Observation Posts and strong points, even fired at isolated horse drawn carts along the dyke roads, supported our raids, shot up midget submarines and even stooped to shooting rowing boats and other suspicious objects. ‘Tom Group’ was invaluable.

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47 RM Commando keeping an eye on the German lines, Holland 1945.

Such then, was the set-up of 47 Royal Marine Commando Group; several extraneous units of varying nationalities molded and working as an entity, having Force ‘T’ as a willing co-operator.

On March 15, Maj. Martin Price DSO left us to command 48 RM Commando and his place was taken by Maj. M. G. Y. Dobson, late Cdr of A-Troop.

16 March saw our first offensive action in the form of a patrol designed exactly on the lines of Ex ‘SWIPE’. It was called Operation ‘SWIPE’ and was carried out by sections of B-Troop under command of Lt Lloyd.

March 19, 20 and 21 were days which caused excitement and no little tensions.

It had been decided to put a party ashore on Schouwen, leave it there during the day and pick it up the following night. On the night 19/20 March Lt Biagi (S. Lancs) and party of three were put ashore successfully and communication was maintained; however, the picking up of the patrol was not possible owing to adverse weather conditions, contact by W/T was lost and not regained until late on the night 21/22 March which luckily enabled us to warn Lt Biagi that his party was to act as it should have done 24 hrs previously and all went well. The Operation was called ‘CUCKOO’.

During these intermittent Ops, the Int. Services of the Commando were gathering all they could, they watched the Germans by day, they studied his flares at night and flew in the Op to spy out his land, the information was excellent.

Training was still going on and A-Troop was sent to Loon op Zand to do Tank training.

April was much the same as March, two more ‘CUCKOO’ parties were arranged on the 8 and 9 and they were both successful.

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47 RM Commando on Schouwen island 1945.

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47 RM Commando attacking attacking a German position in a farm house, Holland 1945.

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