Crossing the Roer
Crossing the Roer
bigpigeon.us webpage WWII-Germany > The ETO > To the Rhine > Ops. Veritable & Grenade, © 2023 by Robert A. Christiansen, updated by RAC 11 Sep 2022.

During Operations Veritable and Grenade, Allied armies cleared the west bank of the Rhine River in the northern Rhineland to allow preparation for the coming Rhine crossing.
Elements of four Allied armies were involved in Veritable/Grenade, the first three from Montgomery's British 21st Army Group:
  • The Canadian First Army advanced southeastward from Nijmegen between the Rhine and Maas/Meuse Rivers.
  • The Canadians were assisted by XXX Corps of the British Second Army.
  • The US Ninth Army, delayed by Roer River flooding, advanced northeastward across the Roer.
  • ​The US First Army, part of Bradley's US 12th Army Group, protected the Ninth Army's right flank, and thus cleared portions of the Rhine upstream from Dusseldorf.
The North Rhineland, 8 February - 10 March 1945
(Note: Accompanying maps give March 7 and 5 as termination dates. March 10 is used more often.)​
  • The Canadian First Army's Operation Veritable began just east of Nijmegen and moved southeast. British forces had occupied Nijmegen in September 1944 as part of the Market Garden operation. For this operation, the British XXX Corps was assigned to the Canadian army.
  • The US Ninth Army's Operation Grenade began by crossing the Roer River, and then proceeded northeast, thus outflanking a portion of Germany's Siegfried Line. US forces had occupied the left bank of the Roer in December 1944  just before Germany's Ardennes counteroffensive.

After Operation Veritable began, German engineers sabotaged the upstream Roer River dams, flooding the Roer Valley. Although Operation Grenade officially began on 9 February, the Ninth Army didn't begin crossing the Roer until 23 February, thus increasing the burden on the Canadian First Army.

​On 26 February, the British XXX Corps was given a portion of the Canadian army's front, and Operation Veritable was renamed as Operation Blockbuster.

The first two days of the Ninth's Army's Operation Grenade were difficult, both because the Roer River was still in flood stage and the Wehrmacht mounted substantial resistance from the east bank of the Roer. Bridges were soon built and subsequently the Ninth Army was able to exploit the use of armor to great advantage. Canadian and American forces linked up at Geldern on 3 March after a nine-day US campaign.

During Operation Grenade, the US First Army was charged with protecting the Ninth Army's right flank, and thus had advanced to the outskirts of Cologne by 5 March. Much of the Siegfried Line in the First Army's sector had been overrun during the Fall of 1944.
Allied Drive to the Rhine - North Rhineland
Allied Drive to the Rhine - North Rhineland
Operations Veritable and Grenadde
Operations Veritable and Grenade
Sources for Big Pigeon's The ETO > To the Rhine > Operations Veritable & Grenade webpage:
Major Sources:
  • None yet.
​Sources for webpage images: (C/O = courtesy of)
Pottawattamie Area WWII Dead - The ETO > To the Rhine > Operations Veritable & Grenade: 03-07 - The ETO > To the Rhine > Operations Veritable & Grenade: (five dead, updated 23 Dec 2022)
† Baker, Everett Ernest, SN 17-122-788, US Army, Montgomery Co.
  • Co. L, 26th Inf. Regt., 1st Inf. Div., III Corps, First Army; DOW 26 Feb 1945 near Kreuzau, on Roer River S of Düren, Germany; The ETO > To the Rhine > Ops. Veritable & Grenade.
† Braden, William Court, SN 37-465-735, US Army, Montgomery Co. & Adams Co., NE.
  • Co. D, 415th Inf. Regt., 104th Inf. Div., VII Corps, First Army; KIA 26 Feb 1945 near Roer River, N of Düren, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany; The ETO > To the Rhine > Ops. Veritable & Grenade.
† Decker, Charles Earl, SN 37-750-378, US Army, Harrison & Mills Cos.
  • 39th Inf. Regt., 9th Inf. Div., III Corps, First Army; DNB 28 Feb 1945 Udingen, S of Düren, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany;  The ETO > To the Rhine > Ops. Veritable & Grenade.
† Lutz, Wilbur Leroy, SN 37-485-626, US Army, Harrison Co.
  • 67th Armored Regt., 2nd Armored Div., XIX Corps, Ninth Army; KIA 3 Mar 1945 near Krefeld, W of Rhine River & NW of Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany; The ETO > To the Rhine > Ops. Veritable & Grenade.
† Rohrberg, Robert George, SN 37-490-420, US Army, Pott Co.
  • Co. F, 13th Inf. Regt., 8th Inf. Div., VII Corps, First Army; KIA 23 Feb 1945 near Düren, North Rhine–Westphalia, Germany; The ETO > To the Rhine > Ops. Veritable & Grenade.