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The British paratroopers soon found themselves surrounded as the SS had encircled them. The lightly armed British soldiers fought bravely, but they could not hold out for long. An elite British unit, the Irish Guards, was fighting its way forward to help the airborne troops. However, because of the terrain, they had to fight their way up to Arnhem on a single road, and they were constantly attacked. This road came to be known as the Highway to Hell. The Guards' tanks could not leave the narrow road as the ground was very marshy and much of it was bogland. As the Irish Guards made their way to Arnhem, they were easily picked off by the Germans, who attacked them from the woodland cover. Eventually, such was the ferocity of the German resistance that the British came to a halt. The paratroopers at Arnhem were isolated and cut-off and were forced to surrender. Operation Market Garden had achieved all of its objectives, except the most important one, the capture of the Bridge at Arnhem.<ref>Hastings, p. 135</ref>

Even before the start of the operation, many feared that Montgomery’s plan was too optimistic. The Polish airborne unit commander declared that the plan was flawed and famously stated that the prime objective of the offensive the Arnhem Bridge was ‘a bridge too far.’<ref> Ryan, p 89</ref> He meant that Montgomery’s aims were simply too ambitious and that he was asking too much of his men. Montgomery also assumed that the paratroop unit could retain their landing zones and the bridges for a given period of time. Paratroops were only lightly armed, and without support from ground troops and tanks, they could not hold out for long. The British General was wrong to believe that airborne troops could resist assault from ground troops supported by armor for several days.