Code-name Nelly
British Radar Units on Walcheren and Flanders, 1944-1945
Operation 'Infatuate' was conceived to capture the island of Walcheren and was part of the plan to clear the
mouth of the Scheldt River, enabling Antwerp to be used as a port. The Germans had heavily fortified
Walcheren during its four years of occupation and it was here, at the entrance to the Scheldt River, that the
Germans were making a stand. It took nearly two months of bombardments by the Royal Air Force (RAF)
and no less than six allied operations by land to quell the dogged German resistance.
Paul Crucq
With the surrender of the German garrison on Walcheren
at the beginning of November, the operations to clear
the enemy from the riverbanks of the Scheldt were
completed. Minesweeping commenced, but it was not
until the end of November that the first Allied supply
convoys entered the port of Antwerp. The Germans
understood the importance of Antwerp and ordered
their Navy and Air Force to bring the Thames-Scheldt
convoy route to a standstill. The German Kriegsmarine
deployed E-boats, the midget submarines Biber, Molch
19 Zeeuws Tijdschrift 2004/6-7
