On September 6, 1944, in a bold and desperate move, the 4th Canadian Armoured Division was split into two formidable fighting forces under the fierce leadership of Brigadiers Bob Moncel and Jim Jefferson. Their mission: to breach the heavily defended Leopold Canal in Belgium. But what awaited them was a nightmare of chaos—intelligence blunders and the unforgiving terrain turned their advance into a bloodbath.

Against a torrent of German fire, the Canadians suffered devastating losses and were forced to withdraw, their hopes shattered by the brutal reality of war.

In the dead of night, the Algonquin Regiment, weakened and under-equipped, embarked on a perilous crossing of the Leopold Canal. With no moonlight to guide them and minimal support, they were met with a hailstorm of German firepower. The Canadians, isolated and vulnerable, struggled to build a bridge or receive the desperately needed supplies. Surrounded by enemies and with no hope of reinforcement, they had no choice but to retreat, leaving behind their fallen comrades in the darkness.

The retreat from the Leopold Canal was a bitter pill to swallow. Yet, in a twist of fate, the Germans were caught off guard, having expected a fresh wave of Canadian reinforcements. The failure to secure the canal crossing was a crushing blow, delaying any further attempts by a full month. During this time, the battered 4th Division was redirected to crack open the Breskens pocket, a new and equally deadly challenge.

As the Canadians fought tooth and nail, the broader strategic picture was clouded by confusion and delay. Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, preoccupied with his grand designs, held back the resources needed to secure the port of Antwerp—a prize captured intact but rendered useless by the German stranglehold on the Scheldt estuary. The delay cost the Allies dearly, as the critical lifeline to the front remained choked off by the enemy.

The Battle of the Scheldt became a grueling test of endurance, largely borne by the Canadian forces. Mired in mud, blood, and relentless combat, they pressed on despite the muddled directives from Allied leaders, including the enigmatic Montgomery and the distant Eisenhower. But the Canadians, driven by sheer grit and determination, ultimately turned the tide, securing a victory that would prove vital in the final push into Nazi Germany. The cost was staggering, but the triumph was a testament to their unwavering resolve.

By early September 1944, the Allied forces that had stormed Normandy were in dire need of resupply, their front lines stretching far from the safety of the beaches. With every step forward, the logistical noose tightened, threatening to choke their advance into Nazi-occupied Europe. The answer to their dilemma lay in Antwerp, a massive port capable of handling the staggering tonnage of fuel, ammunition, and supplies needed to sustain the war effort. But this prize was locked behind the Scheldt River, its banks held by determined German forces. The terrain was a nightmare—pancake-flat, waterlogged, and deliberately flooded by the Germans. The landscape was a maze of polders, canals, and drainage ditches, transforming the battlefield into a treacherous quagmire. With bridges destroyed and German guns entrenched at key crossings, every move was a gamble. The Canadians, tasked with the impossible, faced not only the relentless enemy but also the unforgiving landscape. The future of the Allied advance depended on breaking through this gauntlet and unlocking the lifeline that was Antwerp—a victory that would come at a heavy price.

The capture of Antwerp on September 4, 1944, should have been a pivotal moment for the Allies, but a costly delay allowed the Germans precious time to regroup. In the span of a month, nearly 90,000 men from the 15th German Army escaped across the lower Scheldt to fortify new defensive lines along the Albert Canal. Under the command of General Otto Sponheimer, the Germans entrenched themselves in the Scheldt Fortress South (later known as the Breskens Pocket) and Scheldt Fortress North on Walcheren Island, both fiercely defended. Troops led by Generals Knut Eberding and Wilhelm Daser mustered seasoned forces and collected hundreds of weapons, transforming the region into a nearly impregnable fortress. Even as they battled wounds and illness, these hardened soldiers dug in, aided by coastal artillery ready to rain fire on any advancing Allies. The delay had turned Antwerp from a victory into a nightmare, as the Canadians now faced a well-prepared and determined enemy.

On September 8, 1944, the 4th Canadian Armoured Division reached Belgium’s Ghent Canal, establishing a fragile bridgehead at Moerbrugge. Under constant German attack, the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, reinforced by the Lincoln and Welland Regiment, held their ground. Despite isolation and German infiltration, Sergeant-Major George Mitchell heroically led an ammunition supply run, earning the Distinguished Conduct Medal. After fierce resistance, engineers built a Bailey bridge, allowing Sherman tanks to cross and push the enemy back. By September 10, the Germans retreated to the Leopold Canal, though a subsequent crossing attempt by the Algonquin Regiment failed.

As Operation Market Garden began, the 2nd Canadian Division took over Antwerp from the 53rd Welsh Division, but a British failure to secure the northern bank allowed the Germans to fortify their defenses. In the midst of this chaos, a bizarre episode unfolded, dubbed the "Streetcar War," where soldiers from both sides shared Antwerp’s trams. Soon after, Major-General Charles Foulkes launched a daring night assault across the canal near Wyneghem. After several fierce counterattacks, the Canadians advanced toward the Dutch town of Woensdrecht, preparing for one of the toughest battles of the war​.

In October 1944, the battle to seize Woensdrecht became a brutal showdown between Canadian forces and a fiercely determined German defense. On October 7, the Calgary Highlanders advanced toward Hoogerheide, sparking intense house-to-house combat. Reinforced by Battle Group Chill, the Germans threw 2,500 fanatical paratroopers and artillery at the Canadians, slowing their progress. On Black Friday, October 13, the Black Watch suffered catastrophic losses, with 145 casualties and 56 fatalities. Despite relentless counterattacks, Canadian forces, led by the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry and supported by Sherman tanks, finally captured Woensdrecht on October 16. After days of heavy fighting, the Canadians held the village against fierce resistance. By October 21, with only 170 men remaining, they secured the victory that opened the road to Walcheren Island, paving the way for the Allies to finally liberate the Scheldt Estuary.

Operation Switchback began with a seemingly insurmountable challenge—destroy the German stronghold in the Breskens Pocket, a fortified area covering 525 square kilometers of strategic terrain on the south bank of the Scheldt River. This region had been transformed into a fortress, with the Germans hiding behind the Leopold Canal and using the terrain to their advantage. The battlefield was flooded and lined with high dikes, making any attack a nightmare for advancing troops. Led by Lieutenant-General Guy Simonds, the Canadians prepared for a grueling assault using amphibious vehicles, flamethrowers, and other specialized equipment. However, they were met with fierce German resistance. The enemy was well-prepared, their artillery and machine guns poised to unleash a deadly barrage on the approaching forces. This battle would not be won easily—it would be a brutal fight for survival and control of the region.

The crossing of the Leopold Canal was an epic struggle. The Royal Winnipeg Rifles and Canadian Scottish Regiment led the charge, attempting to break through the German defenses. In the dead of night, Canadian soldiers ferried across the canal, under constant enemy fire. Conditions were nightmarish—soldiers were pinned down in flooded ditches, with mud up to their knees and no cover from the relentless machine-gun and artillery fire. Every inch gained felt like a monumental victory, but the cost was devastating. By the time the Canadians managed to establish a tenuous bridgehead, they had suffered massive casualties. It was a battle of sheer willpower, as the soldiers fought not only the Germans but the elements themselves. Despite the overwhelming odds, Canadian forces persevered, linking their bridgeheads at great human cost. The battle for the Leopold Canal had become a symbol of the brutal nature of Operation Switchback, where one in every two soldiers who crossed the canal was wounded or killed.

With the Canadians barely holding the line at the Leopold Canal, the 9th Brigade prepared for a daring amphibious assault across the Braakman Inlet. The plan, delayed by logistical challenges, was finally executed on October 9. Under the cover of darkness, amphibious vehicles transported Canadian soldiers across the water to land on the enemy’s shores. At first, they faced no resistance, but as dawn broke, German coastal artillery from Walcheren Island opened fire on the advancing Canadians. Despite this, they pressed forward, securing the villages of Hoofdplaat and Biervliet. This amphibious landing was a critical success, as it gave the Allies a foothold deep inside enemy territory, but the fight was far from over. The Canadians would soon face a determined German counterattack, as they pushed inland into the heart of the Breskens Pocket, knowing the battle would only grow fiercer.

As the Canadian forces moved deeper into the Breskens Pocket, they encountered a brutal German defense. At the town of Breskens, the Germans had fortified anti-tank ditches with deadly mines and barbed wire, making every advance treacherous. Bad weather canceled much-needed bomber support, leaving the infantry to rely on artillery and ground forces to push through. The Stormont, Dundas, and Glengarry Highlanders led the charge, fighting their way through house-to-house battles in the streets of Breskens. Despite the ferocity of the enemy's defense, the Canadians' tactical innovation, combined with their sheer determination, finally broke the German resistance. At Fort Frederik Hendrik, the Canadians prepared for what they feared would be a bloody showdown. However, a surprise German surrender spared them from another round of carnage, marking a turning point in the battle. The Canadians had not only overcome the enemy's defenses but had also outsmarted them.

What was initially expected to be a swift, four-day operation had turned into four weeks of relentless fighting. The Germans' stubborn defense, combined with the flooded, waterlogged terrain, made every Canadian advance a grueling challenge. The soldiers endured horrific conditions and constant enemy fire, but they never gave up. The battle for the Breskens Pocket was one of sheer determination and courage. By the end, 2,077 Canadian soldiers had been killed or wounded, a heavy price for such a vital victory. On November 1, the Breskens Pocket was finally cleared of enemy forces, and the Canadians could at last take a breath. The capture of this region cleared the way for Allied forces to advance toward the Scheldt Estuary, and more importantly, it opened the port of Antwerp—crucial for the supply lines needed to drive the final push into Germany. It was a hard-fought victory, but one that would prove vital in ending the war.

Following their hard-won victory at Woensdrecht, the 2nd Canadian Division pressed forward with Operation Vitality on October 24, 1944. Their objective was to clear the South Beveland peninsula and open the route to Walcheren Island, the last bastion guarding the vital port of Antwerp. As the 4th Brigade advanced along the narrow isthmus, they encountered heavy resistance. German artillery fire rained down relentlessly, and the flooded, muddy terrain made progress agonizingly slow. Mines and anti-tank guns lay in wait along the narrow roadways, forcing Canadian forces into a grueling battle where every step was hard-fought. Despite attempting outflanking maneuvers and nighttime attacks to surprise the enemy, the Germans held their ground, turning the battle into a brutal test of endurance.

On October 26, British forces from the 156th Brigade launched an ambitious amphibious assault near Hoedekenskerke. While their landing faced only minor opposition, the Canadians were tasked with crossing the heavily defended Beveland Canal. Early attempts by the Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders were met with fierce German resistance and repelled with heavy casualties. Undeterred, Les Fusiliers Mont-Royal and the South Saskatchewan Regiment made a successful crossing in subsequent attempts, breaking through enemy lines and capturing hundreds of prisoners. This victory pushed the Allied advance westward, tightening the noose around the remaining German forces in the region. Yet, with Walcheren still in German hands, the most difficult battles were yet to come.

As Canadian forces made progress in South Beveland, a clever ruse was unfolding on North Beveland Island. Major Dick Porteous, leading a small force, devised an audacious plan to deceive the German garrison. Using only a few Canadian mortars and a strategic flyover by Typhoon aircraft, Porteous made it appear as though a major attack was imminent. The bluff worked to perfection, and on October 30, the entire German garrison—367 soldiers—surrendered without a single shot being fired. This bloodless victory secured the northern flank and weakened German defenses, but the toughest battle lay ahead: the deadly approach to Walcheren Island through the infamous causeway.

The final barrier to Walcheren was the 1,200-meter Walcheren Causeway, a narrow, exposed strip of land connecting South Beveland to the island. This stretch became a nightmare for the advancing Canadians, who faced withering fire from German artillery, machine guns, and mortars positioned along the heights. On October 31, the Black Watch launched a bold assault, but they were met with devastating losses, forced to retreat with heavy casualties. The following day, the Calgary Highlanders tried again, but their advance was also cut down in a vicious counterattack, leaving them on the verge of being wiped out. The fighting on the causeway was nothing short of a bloodbath, with every inch of progress coming at an unbearable cost. Yet, despite the staggering losses, Canadian forces managed to hold their precarious position, refusing to retreat.

As the battle for the causeway raged on, hope arrived in the form of British reinforcements. Under the cover of darkness, British forces from the Cameronians and Highland Light Infantry found a way to cross the Sloe Channel, bypassing the death trap of the causeway.
On November 3, these British troops broke through the German defenses on Walcheren and linked up with the exhausted Canadians holding the causeway. This combined force finally overwhelmed the German positions, securing South Beveland and opening the path to Walcheren. The brutal battle, which had cost the Allies dearly, was finally over, but the victory paved the way for the liberation of Antwerp and a crucial supply line that would help end the war in Europe.

Walcheren Island, standing as the last obstacle between the Allies and the vital port of Antwerp, had been transformed by the Germans into an impregnable fortress. This heavily defended bastion bristled with powerful naval artillery, strategically positioned to rain destruction on any invading force. Surrounded by flooded, treacherous terrain and fierce coastal defenses, the Germans, under General Wilhelm Daser, were ready for a brutal, last-ditch stand. Every inch of the island was fortified, and the stage was set for one of the bloodiest confrontations of the Scheldt Campaign.

As German forces dug in, Canadian General Guy Simonds devised a bold and controversial plan that would change the fate of the battle. Ignoring opposition from both Allied command and the Dutch government-in-exile, Simonds gave the green light to breach the island’s protective dikes. On October 3, 1944, the Royal Air Force bombed the Westkapelle dike, sending torrents of water across the island, submerging 80% of Walcheren under floodwaters. While devastating to the Dutch civilians, Simonds believed the flood would cripple the German defenses, making it easier to dislodge them. The waters drowned the enemy’s confidence, leaving only scattered high ground and villages as potential strongholds, setting the stage for a final, all-out assault.

On November 1, 1944, the long-awaited assault was launched with the full force of Operation Infatuate. In the early hours, under the cover of darkness, British Commandos embarked on Infatuate I, storming across the Scheldt to land at the heavily fortified port of Flushing. Against withering machine-gun fire and relentless bombardment, they fought to establish a beachhead. Overhead, Typhoon fighter-bombers screamed through the sky, pounding the German defenses as naval guns opened up in a barrage of destruction. Simultaneously, Infatuate II saw commandos storm Westkapelle’s beaches, braving waves of enemy fire, crashing through the flooded landscape with a mixture of amphibious craft and raw courage. Each step forward came at a high price as the battle for the island raged.

The commandos, facing near-impossible odds, found themselves in a deadly gauntlet of artillery, mines, and fierce German resistance. Entire squadrons of landing craft were destroyed or damaged before they could even reach the shore. Yet, the Allied forces pressed on with unshakable resolve, capturing critical points such as the battered village of Westkapelle. The fighting was brutal, with commandos engaging in hand-to-hand combat, clearing houses one by one, and neutralizing entrenched gun batteries. Despite the heavy losses, the Allies pushed the Germans back, dismantling their once-formidable defenses. The fall of Westkapelle and Domburg marked a turning point in the battle as the German grip on Walcheren began to crumble.

As Allied forces closed in, the German defenders, holed up in the fortified town of Middelburg, knew their defeat was imminent. The once confident General Daser, now surrounded by floodwaters and cut off from reinforcements, held on in the hope that the town’s defenses would hold long enough to prolong the fight. But with the safety of the remaining Dutch civilians at risk, the situation grew dire. In a daring maneuver, British Royal Scots advanced with amphibious Buffalo vehicles, crashing through the flooded terrain in a final thrust to capture Middelburg. Facing overwhelming force and the inevitability of destruction, Daser surrendered on November 6, 1944. The final holdouts laid down their arms on November 10, bringing an end to the battle for Walcheren. This victory opened the Scheldt Estuary, securing Antwerp as a critical supply line for the Allies and marking the beginning of the end for the German war machine in Western Europe.

The Battle of the Scheldt was one of the most critical and brutal campaigns fought by the Canadian Army during World War II, yet it remains relatively unknown. After the Normandy invasion, this battle became the key to unlocking the all-important port of Antwerp, necessary for Allied resupply as they pushed deeper into Germany. However, delays in leadership—driven by Field Marshal Montgomery's focus on Operation Market Garden and his personal rivalry with General Eisenhower—prevented timely support for the Canadians. Despite this, the Canadian forces pushed forward, enduring hellish conditions to complete their mission.