Operation ‘Veritable’, to clear the enemy from the country between Maas and Rhine, and if possible to destroy his main force west of the last great barrier into the heart of the Reich, began on 8 February 1945, and from the beginning, in spite of difficult country, including the Reichwald Forest and large areas of floods, very satisfactory progress was made.

It has seemed odd to us, enjoying a new kind of life back in the hinterland of Belgium, that so vast an operation could be undertaken without the assistance of 3 British Infantry Division, and it came as no very great surprise when, after two or three days when nobody appeared to know what our immediate destiny was, and our recce parties rushed hither and thither to little purpose, that firm orders were received for us to relieve 7 Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, in an area south-east of Goch. So on the evening of 24 February, to the accompanying din of innumerable guns supporting an operation directed against Weeze, the Battalion entered Germany itself. The Division in general and the Battalion in particular was destined to play a prominent part in the final break-up of the enemy between the two rivers.

The Battalion was given two days in this area to re-accustom itself to the noises of war, while those responsible planned the operation which was to follow. The whole front was moving slowly forward against stubborn resistance, and the country through which the armour could pass and operate on a large scale was near. In front of us lay a wooded belt of soft ground criss-crossed by inadequate tracks and a few second class roads. The task of the Division was to clear the enemy from this area, and capture the villages of Kervenheim and Winnekendonk, and so open up an adequate axis for an armoured thrust. The operation involved an advance of some twelve kilometres.

It fell to the lot of 2 Lincolns to set the ball rolling, and at 0400 hrs on the morning of 27 February we moved forward to our start line, a sunken track screened by bushes from which we had a good view of our objective, a wooded area near a small village.

At 0730 hrs, supported by the Divisional Artillery and a squadron of Scots Guards in Churchill tanks, (though they were able to help little in view of the soft ground and mines astride the tracks) the advance began. Little was known of the strength or disposition of the enemy here, though resistance in varying degrees had been reported by units of 7 Armoured Division, operating on our left, but the ease with which we succeeded came as a great surprise to us. We were used to gaining our objective – but not without fighting hard. "B" Coy on the left under Capt P Smith and "D: Coy on the right under Maj P H W Clarke MC led the advance, and very soon ‘A’ Coy, commandeered by Maj Larkin MC and "C" Coy under Maj G C A Gilbert MC passed through, and by 0830 hours the very hour optimistically envisaged by the Brigade Commander, we were able to report all objectives taken and consolidation in progress. An unusual feature of the operation from our point of view was the number of prisoners, officers and men alike who readily gave themselves up as we arrived in their lines. We were to become accustomed to this later, on an ever-increasing scale, but this 60- or so, the first to show so obvious a relief and so keen a desire to be ‘out of it’ left us a little puzzled and bewildered. It was indeed indicative of a changed attitude of mind, even among many of the better units of the Wehrmacht, and marked the beginning of that tremendous disintegration which in a very short time led to its final overwhelming defeat and rout.

The Battalion had the unusual experience during this operation of coming under command in turn of each of the three Brigades of the Division. After our early morning advance 2 Royal Ulster Rifles had passed through to capture and consolidate their objective, followed by 1 Kings Own Scottish Borderers, who dug in astride the main road from Udem to Weeze. But on the right 8 British Infantry Brigade were involved throughout the day in very hard fighting with units of Para Regiment HUBNER – a formation well known to the Division from previous battles, and as tough as they come. We were therefore placed under Command of 8 British Infantry Brigade in case the assistance of a fourth Battalion should become necessary. However, we were not called upon, a tenacious stand by 2 East Yorks having saved the situation, and the following day was spent in rest, while 185 Brigade operated to our front.

The final objective of 185 Brigade was the village of Kervenheim, some seven kilometres south of our present position, and towards evening on 28 February we came under their command with orders to be concentrated in an area astride the axis of advance and about four kilometres from the village itself by 0730 hrs the following morning. So at 0600 hrs on 1 March we set off, and by the time ordered were dug in and ready for anything that might be required of us.

In its early stage, the attack by 185 Brigade went well, and by the middle of the morning all three Battalions were investing the village from the north. We moved forward in open order across the fields and dug new positions behind 2 Kings Shropshire Light Infantry, who were on the left. The fighting now increased in intensity, as conditions gradually became worse. The ground was soggy enough in all conscience, but now it began to rain, and movement off the roads became a nightmare. Repeated attacks to gain a footing inside the village were repulsed by a determined enemy, and finally the Brigade Commander called upon the C O to assist 1 Royal Norfolk with one company. ‘A’ Coy under Maj S J Larkin MC, were given the honour, and after a fierce struggle in which Lt J R Seabrook was killed and `Lt J C R Welch wounded, cleared and consolidated the factory area at the north end of the village and secured a footing astride the main road from Udem.

Darkness prevented further progress, but the back of the enemy resistance in Kervenheim had been broken, and it was no difficult task in the early morning for ‘A’ and ‘C’ Coys to complete the capture of the village, and by 1400 hrs the whole Battalion was concentrated in its southern outskirts. Meantime the remainder of our own Brigade supported by 3 (Tk) Battalion Scots Guards had moved on a parallel course to our left, and were now cutting across our front.

By 1500 hrs 1 Kings Own Scottish Borderers were on the right of the main road bearing south from Kervenheim, and 2 Royal Ulster Rifles on the left. The final objective was still Winnekendonk, and it was to a very tired Battalion of Lincolns that our own Brigadier, under whose command we had reverted, allotted the task to be completed as soon after 1700 hrs as possible.

Again the strength and dispositions of the enemy was a matter for conjecture. 3 Reconnaisance Regiment were in contact some three thousand yards to the right, and further right still he was holding 53 Division at bay in Weeze. Patrols from 1 Kings Own Scottish Borderers had met him on the left. And to the front a Honey tank of 3 Scots Guards had been knocked out by an SP gun. P W statements had left us to believe that Winnekendonk and the woods behind it were held by a weak battalion.

In spite of the fact that the C O had given considerable thought to the problem he now had to face and all arrangements for fire support had been made by the C R A, as it was a fast ball from every point of view. The co-operating squadron of tanks had not yet contacted us, and time, almost as formidable an adversary as the enemy himself, began to loom large in the picture.

H hr was fixed for 1745 hrs, and at this time, after a further advance of 3.5 kilometres, the Battalion was poised on the start line. However, to the C O’s horror, no tanks had appeared and no artillery fire was falling. "Shall I go, Sir?", asked Maj P H W Clarke MC, who was commanding the right forward company. "Wait", was the reply. Then, almost immediately, down came the barrage, but still no tanks appeared. The signal to attack was given and then as the Battalion went forward, the Churchills lumbered up the road. All was well, but it had been an agonising moment.

Capt P Smith commanded the other forward company and the supporting tanks were the Right Flank Squadron of 3 Scots Guards. Immediately the Battalion emerged from the cover of the woods, which had screened the start line, it met heavy machine gun fire from the right flank, combined with considerable mortar and shell fire. Atk guns of varying calibre’s concentrated on the tanks, and the battle was on. One Churchill was knocked out, another had its turret blown off. A third accounted for the SP gun causing the damage.

Twelve hundred yards of open ground had to be crossed before the cover of buildings was reached, and the Battalion surged forward under pitiless fire. Many fell, including Maj P H W Clarke MC, killed by a grenade as he moved from platoon to platoon cheering on his men, but the remainder did not waver. By 1820 hrs the road junction at the near approach to the village had been reached. But still the enemy parachutists fought back grimly. Snipers fired from first floor windows and Spandaus shot through loop holes made in the walls at ground level.

Now the light was going fast, and the infantry and tanks went into the village in billows of smoke, punctuated by the orange flashes of the enemy 88’s, and criss-crossed in all directions by lines of red tracer. It was a great and terrible spectacle. By this time the Battalion had really got its teeth in and was not to be denied, and while Battalion HQ itself was fighting its way into a house, the leading Company had reached the centre of the town. ‘C’ Coy HQ with Maj G C A Gilbert MC in charge, found a Bosche bazooka team stalking through the back gardens towards them. They held their fire until the leading man was only five yards away and then left fly. Eight Germans met sudden death, and when the light of day came to illuminate the scene, they lay where they had fallen, a grim tableau of one of the minor incidents of war.

Savage fighting continued until the parachutists had had enough. It is reckoned that 30 were killed and 50 wounded, 80 surrendered, and the following morning when the village was finally cleared 70 more gave themselves up.

The next day we took our ease and saw the reward of our efforts, as the Guards Armoured Division poured through "our" village to chase the enemy to the banks of the Rhine, and after his final desperate stand in the Wesel bridgehead, force him to abandon the territory west of the river for ever.

One cannot say whether Winnekendonk will be inscribed among the Battle Honours of the Regiment, but never have the men who wear its badge acquitted themselves more nobly. It must rank as one of the finest actions of the war – a struggle to the death with fine fighting soldiers on either side. Many messages of congratulations were received: the C O spoke to all ranks, and tails were definitely up.

But for many, alas, Winnekendonk was the final battlefield. Maj P H W Clarke MC and fifteen other ranks were killed. Capt P Smith, Lt J A Hunt, 2^nd Lt J G Orwin and 62 other ranks were wounded, and 6 reported missing.

It was with sad hearts that we laid to rest Major Clarke. Bringing from the tiny village of Binbrook in the Wolds all that is best and finest in the true Lincolnshire character, he had proved himself a leader of outstanding ability and superlative courage. Brought up in a military tradition and with a military heritage, the Regiment was his pride, and the Battalion his joy. To it he devoted his all – a service that was timeless and selfless, combining to a nicety the confidence and exuberance of youth with the thoughtful judgement of a veteran. He was beloved by his fellow officers, and almost worshipped by his men. He name will live in their hearts forever.

The death in the battle of Kervenheim of Lt J R Seabrook has already been noted. He was leading his platoon across a bullet-swept stretch of road, and died as he had worked since he had joined us in October 1944 – doing his duty and thinking of his men.

The awards to the Battalion for the battle of Winnekendonk were by no means commensurate with the magnitude of the action or the glory of his fulfilment. The C O, Ltcol C I Fairbank DSO, received a bar to his DSO, to everyone’s delight and pride. A magnificent leader of men and an inspiration beyond words to express, no honour could be too high to mark his devotion to his Battalion and the task in hand during this long action.

Capt P Smith who was wounded twice during the battle and had to be evacuated, much to his disgust the second time, was awarded the MC. We were sorry to see this intrepid Scot carried away protesting in the rich brogue of Angus. This record can pay no adequate tribute to the work he had done as Pl and Coy Comdr since ‘D’ Day, and we had hoped he would have the luck to see it through. We are glad to hear that he is out and about again. The MM went to Sjt Nicholson of ‘B’ Coy: Sjt Boothman of ‘S’ Coy, Spl Spye of ‘D’ Coy and Pte Conner of ‘C’ Coy.

Total casualties for the whole operation were 2 officers and 15 Ors killed, and 4 Officers and 82 Ors wounded, and 6 Ors missing.

The Battalion remained for 10 days in Winnekendonk and on 13 March moved to take over a sector of the Rhine, first at Hochend and later in the area of Obermormter.

Here the chief enemy was the pall of evil-smelling and cough-producing smoke with which the West bank of the Rhine was covered to obscure the enemy’s view of the mighty preparations for its crossing, but the amazing Bosche still carried out his patrols in spite of the formidable river barrier. One such party, consisting of 11 men of 7 Para Div was completely accounted for by one of our patrols under Capt H J Pacey MC. This was not only a magnificent achievement in itself, but it also provided, together with other information already acquired, proof of the presence of the major part of the 1^st Parachute Army on our front – a fact of no small interest to the formation destined to carry out the crossing.