by Tim Saunders
Reichswald Forest Cemetery
This cemetery is sited within the Reichswald Forest on the road between Kleve in Germany and Gennep in Holland, on the German side of the border. It is the largest CWGC cemetery, in terms of area, and contains 7,654 graves. One hundred and sixty-two of the burials are unknown. There are also 79 graves of other nationalities, most of them Poles who fought with the Polish Armoured Division, as a part of the First Canadian Army.
After the War, thousands of graves of soldiers and airmen were concentrated from burial places across western Germany. Most of the soldiers were killed in the Battle of the Rhineland, some dying fighting in the forest itself in February 1945. A significant number also died during the early stages of Operation PLUNDER, among them are members of the Highland and Scottish Divisions, along with men of 6th British Airborne Division, whose bodies were moved from Hamminkeln. The Army graves are on the right, as one enters the cemetery.
Amongst the dead buried here is Major General Thomas Rennie (plot LXI, row D, grave 1) who lies amongst his beloved Jocks.
Nearly 4,000 airmen are buried in the cemetery. Some lost their lives in supporting the advance into Germany but the majority died during the bomber campaign against targets in Germany, and were brought to the Reichswald from cemeteries in the neighbouring area. Graves were concentrated here from cemeteries in Dusseldorf, Krefeld, Mönchen-Gladbach, Essen, Cologne, Aachen, Dortmund and many other places in the area. Some were first buried in isolated graves where their aircraft crashed; by a roadside, a riverbank, in a garden or a forest.
Rheinberg War Cemetery
Rheinberg is a small town to the west of the Rhine, three miles from the River and nine miles south of Wesel. The Cemetery is about two miles southwest of the town on the Kamp-Lintfort road. Most of the 3,335 burials were airmen who died in bombing attacks on Germany. Their graves were concentrated here from cemeteries and isolated, wayside graves near where their aircraft crashed. From Cologne alone, over 450 Air Force dead who had been buried by the Germans were re-interred here.
There are also over 400 soldiers buried in the cemetery, many of whom were killed in the Battle of the Rhineland, Operation PLUNDER and the advance to the Elbe. Among them are West Countrymen and Scots who died in the battle for Goch in February 1945 and others who fell in the stubborn fighting for Lingen, which was cleared by the 3rd Division on 6 April.
The German Cemeteries
In common with German practice, many of the German dead were subsequently reburied in cemeteries near their next of kin. However, if not visited as a part of the TURNSCREW Tour, there is a small German cemetery at Bislich and a larger one in the Dierfordtenwald on the L480 Bislich to Hamminkeln road just south of the junction with the B8.
Major General Rennie’s grave at Reichswald Forest Cemetery. German cemetery at Bislich with the distinctive heavy cross headstone.
Allied Airborne Army
, 26
ASTER, Operation
Argyle Farm
Ardennes
Antwerp
Bank Control Group
Barber, Maj Gen
Battle of the Bulge, see Ardennes
Bellamy, Brig
Bergerfurth (Bridge A)
Bienen
Bislich
BLOCKBUSTER, Operation
Blumentritt, General
Bols, Maj Gen Eric
Bommer Command
Bradley, General Omar
Buffalo, See LVT
British Army
Argyle and Sutherland
Highlanders
Argyle and Sutherland
Highlandersh
Army, Second British
Plans
Army Groupt
Black Watcht
Black Watchh
Black Watchh
BrigadeCommando
BrigadeAirlanding
BrigadePara
BrigadePara
Brigadeh Lowland
BrigadeHighland
Brigade
Brigade
BrigadeHighland
Cheshiret
Cameronian 5th
Commando, No.
Commando, No.
CommandoRM
CommandoRM
Corps, XII,
Corps, XXX,
Devonh Airborne
Division, 3rd Infantry
Divisionh Airborne
Divisionh Scottish
Division, 43rd Wessex
Divisiont Highland
Division
Divisionh Armoured,
54
Dorseth
Dragoon Guardsh/7th
East Riding Yeomanry
Glasgow Highlanders
Gordon Highlanderst
Gordon Highlanders
Gordon Highlandersh/7th
Highland Light Infantryh
King’s Own Scottish Border t
King’s Own Scottish Border h
King’s Own Scottish Border h
Middlesext
Mountain Regt RA, 3rd
Mountain Battery, 453rd
Northamptonshire Yeomanry
Ox & Bucks LI, 2nd,
Parah
Parah
Parah
Parah
Parah
R Berks
R Scotsh
R Scots Fusiliersh
RTRh
RTRh
RTRh
RURt
Seaforth Highlanders
Seaforth Highlandersh
Sherwood Rangers Yeomanry
Staffordshire Yeomanry
Canadian Army:
Army, First Canadian
Brigadeh Canadian
CorpsCanadian
Division, 3rd Canadian
Highland Light Infantry of
Canada
North Novas Scotia
Highlanders
North Shore Regiment
Stormont, Glengary & Dundas
Highlanders
Queen’s Own Rifles of
Canada
Cassels, Brigadier
Crear, General
DD Tanks
Dempsey, Gen Sir Miles
Deutch, Generalmajor
Diersfordterwald
Eisenhower, General Dwight D,
Esserden
Esserden, Klein
Fiebig, Generalmajor
FLASHLIGH,T Operation
Force U
Gale, Lt Gen Sir ‘Windy’
Gleadell, Lt Col
Grant-Peterkin, Lt Col
GRAVESEND Ferry
Gray, Lt Col
GRENADE, Operation
German Army:
Army Group H
Army, First Fallschirmjager
Corps, XLVII Panzer Corps
Corps, LXXXVI Infantry
Corps, II Fallschirmjager
Divisionh Fallschirmjager
Divisionh Fallschirmjager
Divisionh Fallschirmjager
Divisionh Panzer Grenadier
Divisionh Flak
Divisionh
Divisionh Panzer
Ear Battalion
Erzatz Battalion
Kampfgruppe Karst
RegtFallschirmjager
Regt 19 Fallschirmjager
Regt 21 Fallschirmjager
Regt, 1051 Grenadier
Regt, 1052 Grenadier
Regt, 1062 Grenadier
Haffen
Hamilcar Glider
Hamminkeln
Henderson MC, Lt
Hill, Brig James
Hitler Youth
Hodges, General
Hopkinson, Lt Col
Horrocks, Lt Gen
Horsa glider
Hydte, Oberst von der
Issel River and Canal
Kesselring, Generalfeldmarschall Albert
Lancaster Bomber
Lewis, Lt Col
LVT, Landing Vehicle tracked
MacMillan, Maj gen
MARKET GARDEN, Operation
/> McNair MC, Capt
Mills-Roberts, Brigadier
Montgomery Field Marshal
Movement Light
Nijmegen
Oliver, Brig James
Patton, General
Pipe Factory
Rees
Reichswald
Remagen
Rennie, Maj Gen Thomas
Rhineland, Battle of
Rhur
Ridgeway, General
Ritchie, Lt Gen
Rockingham, Brig
Roer River and dams;
Rundstedt Generalfeldmarschall
Scheldt Estuary
Schlemm, General
SHAF
Siegfried Line
Simpson, General
Sinclair, Brig Roddie
Smoke Screen
Speldrop
Strategic Situation
Straube, General
Thomas, Mah Gen
TILBURY Ferry
Topham VC, Cpl
TORCHLIGHT, Operation
Trotter, Lt Col John
TURNSCREW, Operation
US Army:
Army, First US
Army, Third US
Army, Ninth US
Army Group 12th US
Corps, XVI US
Corps, XVIII US Airborne
Divisionh US Armoured
Divisionh Airborne
Divisionh US
Divisionh
Divisionh US
RegimentGlider
Infantry
RegimentParachute
Infantry
VARSITY, Operation
Vaughn, Thomas Wynford
VERITABLE, Operation
Volksgrenadier
Volksturm
Waldenburg, Generalmajor Seigfried
Wardmanns Haus
Wasp flamethrower
Wesel
WIGEON, Operation
Wire Factory
