HM will receive HRH The Duke of Edinburgh on september 20th in Nijmegen as both attend the official remembrance of the liberation of Nijmegen 65 years ago to the day.
HM will accompany The Duke inspecting the Guard of Honour and after the ceremonies they will meet the veterans.
The city of Nijmegen has organised the "Nijmegen '44,Forever Free" program,Remembrance and Celebration,in which both veterans as well as schoolchildren are at the centrepoint of attention.After the Liberation Nijmegen functioned as a front city where allies on leave would come to pass their time.
HM and The Duke will inspect the Guards of Honour and lay wreaths at the Resistance Monument at the Traianus Square.
There will be speechess by the dutch Minister of Defence:Middelkoop,Mayor de Graaf of Nijmegen,Lord Carrington on behalve
of the British Guards Armoured Division,and Major Moffitt Burris on behalve of the 82nd Airborn Division.
Major Moffitt Burris was one of the commanders in 1944 who took part in the crossing of the river Waal in rubber dingy´s in
order to free the bridgehead to the north.
The Commemoration will be concluded with a parade of historical vehicles after which Her Majesty and The Duke
will meet with the Veterans at the Townhall of Nijmegen.
Het Koninklijk Huis
Market Garden.Monty´s biggest and most arrogant of mistakes when thousands and thousands of allied troops died totally unnescary as Monty didn´t wish to listen and just plain ignored fellow officers with more brains and far less pompous of whatever allie,not just British,but Canadians and most,the troops of Poland consisting of men who were abroad when war broke out in Poland in september 1939,or fled the country afterwards and all gathered in the UK where they formed Batallions.
In his reminecenses the late Prince Bernhard recalls how he disliked Monty,in fact the two couldn´t stand eachother at all,Bernhard was more on the American side in decision making during the war.He always said,and with great sadness,how arrogant British top brass is and how they will never admit a mistake and if it would eat them up.As is still the case today.
But you would have to go deeper into the history of this tragedy to fully understand.
Surely,many who will witness this day in Nijmegen,will also remember that what happened soon after,the awfull disastrous Operation Market Garden.
Only three years ago HM Queen Beatrix bestowed the highest Military Order of Willem to the troops of Poland and it´s wartime commander,Sosabowski,as a recognition of their actions and losses during that infamous operation.
Something the British haven´t done till this day.That´s the other side of the medal.One can not change history,it is written as it was.
ANP Beeldbank
courtesy Royalimages.