After the liberation of Paris, the advance in northern France came to a halt. The Allied forces regrouped, then cleaned up the remaining German resistance and on the 29th of August 1944, the advance towards Belgium continued. Montgomery's tanks encountered hardly any resistance on the way and made great progress. The German army was totally disorganized. Their troops had the choice between running or surrendering. On the 4th of September 1944, the Allies reached the Belgian city of Antwerp. It seemed as if nothing could stop Montgomery's march to the Rhine.
The Dutch expected that liberation would come soon. So did the Germans! Their army in the Netherlands fled north and east of Holland. The Dutch people observed their chaotic withdrawal on Tuesday 5 September with enjoyment. It was called 'Dolle Dinsdag' (‘Mad Tuesday'). But unfortunately 'Mad Tuesday' didn't mean the end of the occupation. Allied supplies just couldn't keep up with the rapid advance. Allied tanks were forced to stop due to fuel shortages.
The map shows there was but one point from which all Allied material had to be distributed. That’s why supply was so slow. While the Allied leaders carried on discussions about which strategy to follow, the German army regrouped and was sent back to the new Dutch front.
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