#VE75 Part 5. Crossing the Rhine. Our penultimate look at the RE Railway opertions leading to VE day.@Proud_Sappers @RE_Hist_Society @REMuseum
With staging areas set up in Holland, the focus became crossing the Rhine and projecting railway lines deep into Germany to support ops
With staging areas set up in Holland, the focus became crossing the Rhine and projecting railway lines deep into Germany to support ops
On 24th March 1945, Op Varsity Plunder commenced, the crossing of the Rhine at Wesel. 1056th Engr Group, US Army Engineer Corps bridged the Rhine by the 9th of April at Wesel using British trestles on timber piles and 1752ft of 4ft deep RSJ and 2 miles of track.
The British crossed the Rhine at Spyck 3 miles north of Emmerich. The first pile was driven on the 11th of April. Two Port Construction Coys RE assisted the work using floating pile drivers. 32 spans of UCRB were abuilt on top of trestles
The bridge was completed the 8th of May
The bridge was completed the 8th of May
In honour of being opened on the 8th of May, Victory in Europe Day, the 2368ft long bridge at Spyk was named Victory Bridge.
Shunting loco moving UCRB spans at Spyk.
By VE day the Allies had pushed head of steel deep into Germany. The British had reached Breman whilst the Americans had reached Apolda and Stuttgart. Post May 8th the Allied forces would become an Army of occupation and the task of reconstruction of the rail network would start
Today marks 75 years since VE Day and the opening of the Bridge at Spyk over the Rhine. In part this was due to the hard work of the RE railway bridging school at Kings Newton near Derby in preparing the RE Railway Bridge Construction Companies.
References. @ICELibrary Civil Engineer in War, @railwaygazette Standard Military Railway Bridges by FS Bond and US Military Railway Service by D DeNevi and B Hall.
