Mook, Milsbeek, Gennep

Liberation began in Limburg. Yet it would take until early 1945 before the entire province was liberated. Then the Allies started Operation Grenade, which aimed to recapture the area west of the Rhine.

Mook was taken by American troops on 17 September 1944. Three days later, the Germans managed to retake Mook, but the same day Mook was swept clean with the help of British troops. Eric Holmes of the 1st battalion of the Suffolk Regiment was killed in the process. His parents were notified of his death, but his grave turned out to be untraceable. For more than 40 years, his family searched for his grave, until it was finally discovered at the foot of the Catholic church.

Mookerheide hunting lodge was taken by the Waffen-SS in 1940. After the Americans recaptured the castle in September 1944, they discovered a huge ammunition depot. More than 20 train wagons were needed to remove the ammunition.

The inhabitants of Gennep were evacuated at the end of September 1944, with the exception of those living in two sanatoria for TB patients. In Gennep, a bailey bridge over a kilometre across the Meuse River was constructed in early 1945. The bridge allowed Montgomery to advance further towards the Ruhr. It was the beginning of the great Rhineland offensive.

On the route, you will pass Liberation Route listening stones that tell you more stories about war and peace in this area.