Why the Allies ignored the most vital port in Europe for two months
In late 1944, the Allies were stalled by a logistical nightmare. While they pushed into the Low Countries, their supply lines stretched to the breaking point. The solution was Antwerp, a massive deep-water port, yet it remained useless for weeks because Allied leadership prioritized other, less critical objectives.
By September 1944, the Allied advance into Europe faced a severe supply crisis. Captured ports like Cherbourg were too distant from the front lines to sustain the rapid movement of troops. Antwerp, the largest surviving port in Western Europe, was the obvious strategic choice to support an invasion of Germany. Although the Belgian resistance secured the port with its infrastructure 90% intact on 4 September, it remained inaccessible. The Germans had heavily fortified the Walcheren peninsula at the mouth of the Scheldt river, creating an impenetrable barrier of artillery that blocked Allied minesweepers from clearing the waterway.
Despite warnings from Admiral Sir Bertram Ramsay that Antwerp was useless as long as the river mouth remained in German hands, Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery prioritized Operation Market Garden and other secondary objectives. Montgomery, aiming to spearhead the invasion of Germany, resisted calls to focus on the Scheldt. This delay allowed the German 15th Army to entrench itself, flooding the polder landscape and turning the region into a defensive stronghold. It was not until mid-October, following a direct confrontation with General Dwight Eisenhower, that Montgomery finally designated the clearing of the Scheldt as the top priority for the 21st Army Group.
The resulting campaign, led by the First Canadian Army under Lieutenant-General Guy Simonds, was a brutal test of endurance. From 2 October to 8 November 1944, Allied forces engaged in costly amphibious assaults and ground fighting against tenacious German defenders. The cost was high, with 20,873 Allied casualties, including 6,367 Canadians. Once the area was finally secured and the harbours de-mined, the first supply convoy reached Antwerp on 28 November. The port’s opening proved decisive, allowing 2.5 million tons of supplies to reach the Allies between November 1944 and April 1945, ultimately enabling the successful final push into Germany.
Source: Battle of the Scheldt
