This left the 4th Armored Division to drive northward to the Belgium border in the west Flanders area. From 06 to 08 September the British 2nd Army on the right of the 2nd Canadian Corps, were able to reach and clear the city of Antwerp. Following this the 4th Canadian Brigade arrived and relieved the British 7th Brigade on the Albert Canal in Belgium. Drawing a line through Belgium north of Merksem, the 4th Canadian Division found itself to the left and the 2nd Canadian Division to the right of this line.

On 04 September 1944 the 4th Canadian Division arrived at the Ghent-Brugge Canal at Oostkamp. Prior to this the Germans had opened the dikes in the lowlands of the west Flanders area of Belgium and the Netherlands to deter the possibility of Allied landings. This was even before the feared period of landings at the time of D Day. Also the Germans had blown all the bridges across the Ghent-Brugge and Leopold Canals. The flooding had left a pocket of land bordering the North Sea coast and the Scheldt Esturay. This contained the bunkers and gun emplacements of the west wall defenses. It was well defended by a 100,000 man German Force.

In order that the Canadian Corps would be able to clear the Scheldt area, an amphibious assault would have to be made. This was most important to the Allied Forces as the Port Facilities at Antwerp were most desperately needed to assure further operations in the Netherlands and the drive into Germany itself. Naturally the planning staff for this operation would be hampered by the fact that little or nothing was known of the extent of the German Defenses in this area of the Scheldt. With this in mind it would be a most difficult operation especially with only amphibious infantry troops.

Had it not been for the existence of a small dedicated group of Dutch Resistance People in the Breskens area of the Netherlands this operation called Switchback could have resulted in a very costly landing with many casualties. This group led by a young man of 19 known only as "Gentile", who continually changed his place of residence to avoid detection; we know call Peter de Winde or Comrade de Winde a member of the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 002 in Lahr, Germany. The Bresken resistance group had been working on a plan to assist the Allies in the breaking of the German defenses in the west Zeeland-Flanders area of the Scheldt Estuary.

The Breskens resistance group were also involved in the harboring of downed Allied Airmen and their escape back to England. To give an idea of the number of downed airmen there were in 1944; in the spring of that year one family in the town of Zelzate, Belgium were caught hiding 47 escaped Allied servicemen. In the case of the Breskens Group they were hiding two allied airmen; one RCAF Flight Lieutenant Gordon Sim and one American Flight Sergeant Jack Carter during the time the Canadian Corps was preparing their plans for Operation Switchback.

When the German Force in the Scheldt realized the pending threat of assault was imminent, they forced all the civilian population out of their homes along the coast and the farm population inland was forced to open their doors to any and all they could take in. This movement of people assisted the resistance in such a way that they were able to move their hidden airman from one safe place to another without detection. The headquarters of the resistance was located in an old windmill owned by the De Hulster family at Schoondijke which is approximately 10 Kilometers south of Breskens. After the population was moved away from the coastal areas the two airmen were kept either in the mill or in the house of the De Hulster family.

By the middle of September 1944 the resistance biggest problem was to survive with the remainder of the Dutch people in the enclosed enemy area of the Scheldt Pocket. This area of Flanders was under continual artillery fire and air attacks by Allied Forces from the south. Imagine the feeling of the people when the town of Groede, which had been declared a Red Cross Casualty District was subjected to an air raid by Typhoon aircraft from the Allied 2nd Tactical Air Force. During this time the resistance made radio contact with the assaulting Allied Force along the Leopold Canal but were unable to break in on the sending wavelength of any of the fighting units Their aim at this point was to try and inform the Allied Forces of the existence of Fort Fredrik Hendriks in Breskens. This fortress and many of the others defenses in the Breskens area were well known to the resistance, they had made a study of them for the direct purpose of passing this information to the Liberators.

It was becoming more difficult for the Allies to break into the Breskens area from the south due to the flooding and the stiff German resistance, a new plan to approach Breskins by water from the north became more imperative. For this reason someone from the resistance would have to make it through to the Allies with the information on hand to assist in solving the current problem holding up the Allied advance.

On the night of 27 & 28 September Peter de Winde dressed in the uniform of Gordon Sim set off in a rubber dingy from a beach in the area of Hoofplaat on the Scheldt heading for Terneuzen, Belgium to the east. Unfortunately the dingy soon sprung a leak and Peter was forced to swim in the cold sea water, on past the Braakman Inlet eastwards. After an exhausting eight hour struggle he finally reached the breakwall at Terneuzen.

It is quite certain the information that Peter de Winde had passed on to Brigadier Rockingham's 9th Brigade Staff and the assistance he gave to the troops in the landing and clearing of the Scheldt Pocket were greatly responsible for the success of the operation and especially in the saving of many casualties in the initial landing which was a surprise.

Because of these events and because this most historical windmill has now been totally restored by the people of Schoondijke, we of the Royal Canadian Legion in Germany have thought it would be most appropriate if we could place a bronze plaque on this landmark in memory of the event. The plaque to have the following text appearing under the Legion Crest and to be installed during the 50th Anniversary Ceremonies commemorating the Liberation of Holland.

 EXPRESS ITS GRATITUDE AND APPRECIATION TO THE DE HULSTER FAMILY OF SCHOONDIJKE FOR THEIR BRAVE CONDUCT AND GALLANT SERVICE DURING THE BATTLE OF THE SCHELDT ESTUARY IN THE AUTUMN OF 1944.

IN THE DE HULSTER'S MILL FLIGHT LIEUTENANT RAYMOND GORDON SIM ( RCAF ) AND HIS COMRADE IN ARMS FLIGHT SERGEANT JACK CARTER ( USAAF ) FOUND A SAFE HOME AS MEMBERS AND ADVISORS IN THE DUTCH RESISTANCE HEADQUARTERS.

BOTH WERE LIBERATED DURING THE NIGHT OF OCTOBER 22nd, WHEN DUTCH RESISTANCE FIGHTERS BROUGHT THEM SAFELY TO THE CANADIAN COMMAND POST OF THE NORTH SHORE NEW BRUNSWICK REGIMENT, THUS ENABLING THEM TO RESUME THEIR ACTIVE DUTY.

The Windmill	Starting the mill	Fritz, Aulie and the milner	The farmhouse	Aulie having a look around

Syd Phillips, Mayor, Milner & John Wallace	Peter de Winde, Syd Phillips, Milner & John Wallace	Picture taken at the presentation	Picture taken at the presentation	Picture taken at the presentation

Legion placque mounted on the wall of the mill	Andy telling the story to two of our Legion members