| It was essential to clear this estuary to enable the recently liberated port of Antwerp to be used for large merchant ships to bring in ammunition and other stores to support the Allied advance across the Rhine into the heartland of Germany. The first convoy of ships arrived in Antwerp on 28 November 1944 after 219 out of the 242 berths had been cleared of mines. |
| Hotel Britannia, Flushing |
| No. 4 Commando, 4th and 5th KOSB went across ahead of the 7th/9th RS. I went over some hours ahead of the battalion as an advance party to reconnoitre where the companies would go when they landed and to guide them into their positions. I sank up to my waist as I jumped out of the assault craft and was covered in mud but thankfully clear of enemy fire which was busy elsewhere. My task along with a major was to reconnoitre positions for the companies and then select a site for Battalion HQ and to do this in time to meet the rest of the battalion as they 'beached' from their landing craft in the pitch darkness. |
| The C.O. with myself in attendance were soon called to Brigade HQ where he received orders to undertake a night attack and capture the heavily fortified German Command Post in the area of the Hotel Britannia on the sea front. The assault would be made through sea water flooding much of the island from the breach made in the sea-wall by the RAF. At high tide it could be up to our waist and at times could be chest-high! Normally the C.O. would reconnoitre the approach to the objective and determine the best forming-up place to launch the attack, but this could not be done because of the flood conditions and had to make use of aerial photographs and information provided by the Dutch Resistance. |
| Wearing lifejackets and holding our weapons and wireless sets out of the water we advanced in single-file in the eerie moonlight through the deep flood water towards the German Command Post in the Hotel Britannia which had a network of 14-foot concrete positions surrounded by a steep bank. As we made our way through the muddy sea water we came under heavy artillery fire and this proved to be shellfire from our medium guns firing from the area of Breskins and shots were falling short of the objective and landing on us. Our wireless sets were all shut down because of the flood water, and despite the efforts of the Royal Signallers attached to Battalion HQ they could not be made to work and were unable to get through to Brigade HQ to stop the medium guns. We sustained casualties but fortunately our wounded were kept afloat by their lifebelts and tended by our stretcher-bearers. |
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