Operation Manna
In Spring 1945 Allied bombers carried out missions over occupied Netherlands- but their payload wasn’t bombs
In the dying embers of the Second World War in Europe, Allied forces had pushed Nazi Germany back out of areas it had occupied for years. The end of the war was in sight but in April 1945, the consequences of Nazi occupation were being dealt with. Those living under Nazi rule had been left starved and short of other necessary supplies, and to give a helping hand the Allies launched a first-of-its-kind mission.
The Netherlands had been under Nazi occupation since May 1940. From May 10, five days of fighting took place across the country and this resulted in the invasion of Hitler’s forces being complete. In 1944, southern parts of the country were liberated by the Allies following airborne missions such as Operation Market Garden.
However, the northern areas of the country remained under Nazi rule. These areas suffered from famine and starvation until May 1945 when the Nazis lost control of the situation and eventually surrendered to the Allies. The situation was so dire that some locals were forced into eating small pets and tulip bulbs, some of which were found to be poisonous.
On April 29, 242 Lancaster bombers took off from British airfields with the Netherlands in its sights. These aircraft were normally filled with explosives ready to drop on key targets across occupied Europe but on this occasion, they dropped thousands of tonnes of food across
Codenamed Operation Manna, a ceasefire was in place for when the bombers would drop the supplies in fields across the Netherlands. The Germans were cautious, however, placing anti-aircraft guns near the drop sites just in case paratroopers were dropped instead of food supplies.
There were six designated drop zones: Valkjenburg Airfield (Katwijk), Duindigt Racecourse and the Ypenburg Airfield (The Hague), Waalhaven Airfield and Kralingse Plas (Rotterdam) and Gouda. It is reported that Dutch authorities were given just a day’s notice of the drops, so they would need to work fast to be ready.
Ceasefire corridors were created for the bombers so they could safely get to the drop zones. Despite the ceasefire, The food supplies were dropped in hessian sacks and contained dried fruits, tinned food, and chocolates amongst other items.
The people of the Netherlands showed their gratitude to the bomber crews in several ways. One was creating large thank you signs in fields across the country out of the bags the drops were made in. By the middle of May, the Netherlands was free of Nazi control, and the Third Reich’s reign of terror was brought to an end.
Despite the ceasefire order, some planes returned from the missions with bullet holes in them. This is thought to have been rifle fire from German patrols, and not from any defensive positions that were still dotted around the Dutch countryside.
Peace returned to the Netherlands and the rest of occupied Europe in May 1945, but it left a population scarred. Thousands suffered at the hands of a Nazi regime that was only brought to an end following years of brutal fighting and sacrifice. The people of the Netherlands were captives, and the organised cease-fire between the Nazis and Allies made sure that many of them lived to see the end of the war.
