The ambitious airborne operation immortalised in the film A Bridge Too Far ended in a heroic defeat at the Battle of Arnhem in 1944
It was meant to allow Allied troops to liberate the Netherlands and advance deep into Germany’s industrial heartlands, shortening the Second World War.
Instead, Operation Market Garden, the ambitious airborne operation to seize key bridges over the Rhine, ended in a heroic defeat at the Battle of Arnhem and the loss of more than 17,000 Allied soldiers.
Now, previously unseen photographs shared with The Telegraph shed new light on a pivotal meeting on the eve of the operation, between Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, who drew up the plan, and Lieutenant General Miles Dempsey.
The two commanders were at odds over the operation, with Lt Gen Dempsey doubtful the bold plan for a rapid push to the German frontier through the Nazi-occupied Netherlands could succeed.