Operation Pegasus II

With the invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944, the liberation of Europe began. After fierce fighting in the summer, most of France and Belgium were liberated at lightning speed in early September. On Sunday, September 17, 1944, the Allies attempted to bring a quick end to the war from Belgium with an advance through the Netherlands, Operation Market Garden. As part of this grand plan, the bridges over the Rhine near Arnhem were to be captured by British airborne units. This part of the operation has become known as "the Battle of Arnhem.

The plan fails. The Allies get no further than the Betuwe. Between Arnhem and Rhenen, the Rhine becomes the front line. To the south are the Allies, on the north bank the German troops.

Already during the fighting and also in the period after, British Airborne soldiers in the area of Arnhem and Oosterbeek get cut off from their own troops. Some were mistakenly dropped, such as a large group that ended up in the Mossel area. Others got lost or were unable to reach their own troops due to the fighting. There are also British soldiers, wounded or not, who managed to escape from captivity. All these men roam the Veluwe. With the help of the resistance they are hidden. In and around Ede a few hundred British soldiers were in hiding.

In consultation with the Allied headquarters in Nijmegen it was decided to bring them back to their own troops in liberated area, south of the Rhine. A major escape operation was set up. During the night of October 22-23, 1944, 138 men managed to escape: Operation Pegasus I.

Because not all of the Allied soldiers in hiding could join Operation Pegasus I, a second escape operation is planned in November 1944: Pegasus II.

On Thursday 16 November 1944, 84 allied soldiers (including British Airborne soldiers and air force personnel) and Dutch civilians gathered in the chicken barns of the Wolfswinkel family near Lunteren. It was raining and cold. On the night of 16 to 17 November they set out. They reached the Wekeromse Zand early in the morning where the day was spent. Here six people were added to the group. The next night, from Friday 17 to Saturday 18 November, the group (now 90 people) continued towards Westerrode farm on the Ede-Otterlo road. Upon arrival the group was behind schedule. At Westerrode three more persons joined. But another group of 23 people still had not arrived. It was decided not to wait for them and continue.

Via the Mosselse Veld the group headed for Planken Wambuis. On the way the British commander, Major Maguire, chose a shorter route, despite protests from the guides of the Dutch resistance. As a result, the group ended up at the Hindekamp between German artillery positions. After a German 'halt' part of the group hid in the bushes. The signal to move on did not reach everyone.

Arriving at the Heidebloemallee only the vanguard of 40 men was present. When the stragglers went in the direction of the vanguard, they were fired upon. They were wounded and made prisoners of war. The leader of the rearguard, Major Coke, in the confusion ended up at the German command post and was killed there.

The vanguard with Major Maguire heard this firefight as they were heading for the old State Highway 24 (now N224). As they crossed the road, the group came under fire from machine guns. With only a few light weapons, the British could do nothing in return. The men fled and hid in the woods.

Of the vanguard, seventeen men were still assembled, including Major Maguire. They passed the under construction State Highway 12 (now A12) and stopped along the railroad tracks. There they were captured in the early morning of November 18, 1944.

Only small groups manage to reach the Rhine. In the end, of the 116 participants, only seven men arrive safely on the southern bank of the Rhine with the American troops in liberated territory.

The sad balance sheet is that during the operation two participants and one American rescuer are killed. One Dutch guide dies of his injuries a few days later. One man goes missing and is never found again. Of the 48 captured participants, twelve are wounded and three are unmasked by the Germans as resistance fighters. These resistance fighters are executed at the Woeste Hoeve on 8 March 1945. The other 64 participants manage to escape and go into hiding again.