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However, in truth , the Allied successes had brought its own problems. In truth , the Allies supply lines were overstretched and that this was slowing down the Americans and British in particular, the shortage of oil meant that Patton’s armored divisions had to halt their advance. This was to prove crucial and it allowed the Germans to regroup in the west, when it appeared that they would disintegrate, leading to the end of the war<ref> Burgett, Donald. The Road to Arnhem: A Screaming Eagle in Holland. Dell Publishing, NY, 2001), p. 9</ref>.

By the Autumn of 1944, it was apparent to the Allied High Command that the Germans had managed to retrieve the situation and would offer stiff resistance to any future Allied offensive. In the Autumn of 1944, a British assault failed to take the deep water port of Antwerp and had allowed some 80,000 German troops from Scheldt Estuary. This became known as the ‘Great Mistake’ and was perhaps one of the biggest in the entire war <ref> Burgett, p. 37</ref>. The Allied high command was reluctant to attack the Germans from eastern France, as the Nazi government had constructed a massive line of defense, consisting of fortresses, on their border with Germany, this was known as the Siegfried Line. The British and the Americans had to go through the Low Countries to invade Germany and to end the war<ref> Ryan, Cornelius, A Bridge Too Far (Wordsworth Editions, London, 1999), p. 78</ref>. The Allies believed that they would need an innovative plan to break the German frontline in the Low Countries and in Alsace -Lorraine. General Eisenhower and other leaders turned their attention to the Low Countries. It offered them ports which could be used to re-supply the Allied divisions, who still were reliant on the Normandy ports for their supplies. The more forward thinking of the allied strategists became concerned about the Rhine<ref> Ryan, p. 46</ref>. This would form a formidable natural barrier to any Allied advance and the Low Countries could allow the Allies bridges that would allow them to cross the Rhine and in turn enable them to cross into Northern Germany and then onto Berlin. The American and the British governments became increasingly eager to end the War in Europe and they wanted to turn their attention to the Pacific War. Then the western allies believed that they were in a race to Berlin with the Soviet Army. Many wanted to secure as much territory in Europe to prevent them from falling into Communist hands who would presumably set up puppet governments in these areas.

The allies needed to break the Germans and cross the Rhine in the Low Countries. General Bernard Montgomery, the hero of the British victory at EL Alamein, proposed a daring plan. Field Marshal Montgomery’s goal, as recounted in his memoirs was to invade Germany by securing the bridges over the Lower Rhine in the Netherlands<ref> Montgomery, Bernard Law. Normandy to the Baltic ( Hutchinson & Co. London, 1947), p. 157</ref>. This had several advantages such as by-passing the Siegfried Line. Montgomery wanted an airborne assault in the Netherlands to secure key bridges over the Lower Rhine. This would allow the Allies to enter into the Northern German plains, where there were no natural barriers, to their advance to Berlin <ref>Burgett, p. 117</ref>. Montgomery’s plan was initially more ambitious but he scaled back his plans in response to Eisenhower’s criticism. Montgomery proposed the following that airborne units would be dropped behind the German lines to secure the bridges over the Meuse and the two tributaries of the Rhine. The airborne units would hold the bridges until the British army reached the bridges. Montgomery believed that not only would this airborne operation succeed in securing bridges over the Rhine, but result in the retreat of German Divisions into Germany. The Allied High Command agreed to the plan. Montgomery staked his reputation on the strategy and was backed by Churchill. The offensive was to be called Market Garden. The Market part of the plan involved the airborne aspect of the operation <ref>Montgomery, p. 113</ref>. The operation would involve four airborne divisions. The paratroopers would land in the area by gliders or they would parachute into the target zones. Some 50,000 troops were involved and they would also be supplied with some light artillery. They were American, British and Polish units involved. The ‘Garden’ part of the plan would involve several British Armored Divisions moving into the Netherlands to link up with the paratroopers and to secure the bridges from any German counterattack. According to Montgomery, for the strategy to have worked it was dependent on two things, the quick capture of all the bridges by the Allies and the ground forces linking with the paratroopers, within days<ref>Montgomery, p. 118</ref>.

Operation Market Garden, began on the 17th of September 1944. It was a coordinated action by American, British a Polish Airborne and mainly British forces. The operation began with heavy air raids, in order to weaken any resistance. The paratroopers began landing at 13.00hrs around targets in the Netherlands, chiefly Eindhoven, Arnhem and Nijmegen<ref> Devlin, Gerard M.. Paratrooper: The Saga Of Parachute And Glider Combat Troops During World War II. Robson Books, NY, 1979), p. 117. The paratroopers had the advantage of surprise and they achieved their objectives. The Germans had been taken completely by surprise. The initial phase of the operation was a total success. It had been feared that the Germans would blow up the bridges and this would mean that the plan would have to be aborted. The rapid capture of the bridges meant that the ground forces would be able to reach the landing zones, and support the paratroopers <ref>Devlin, p. 119</ref>. The British ground forces fought their way to Nijmegen and captured the city, after some fierce fighting. One after another the bridges were captured by the British Ground forces. The plan appeared to be going to plan despite heavier than anticipated German resistance. The most important bridge was Arnhem, this was the most strategically significant bridge and it had to be seized by the ground forces if Market Garden was to succeed in its objectives. The British paratroopers had captured the bridge but they soon came under fierce attack from units of the crack 9th and 10th SS Panzer Divisions<ref> Hastings, Max, Armageddon: The Battle for Germany 1944–45 (London: Pan Books, 2004), p.123</ref>. The SS had armor and tanks they pounded the British paratroopers mercilessly. 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 road and they were constantly attacked. This road came to be known as the Highway to Hell. The tanks of the Guards could not leave the ground as the ground was very marshy and much of it was bog land. As the Irish Guards made their way to Arnhem they were easily picked off by the Germans, who attacked them from the cover of woodland, and they suffered heavy casualties. Eventually, such was the ferocity of the resistance that they came to a halt. The paratroopers at Arnhem were isolated and cut-off, were forced to surrender. Operation Market Garden had achieved all of its objectives, but the most important one, the capture of the Bridge at Arnhem<ref>Hastings, p. 135</ref>.