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5345584 Pte Walter A.D.
Albert Walter joined the army during September 1940 serving initially with the Royal Berkshire Regiment. He transferred to Airborne, 10th Parachute Regiment, which took part in the Arnhem assault on the Rhine Crossing in September 1944.
The initial landings of the advance guard happened on 17 September with 10th Para dropping on 18th September over Drop Zone "Y", at Ginkle Heath, the area that Pte Dixon and 7th KOSB had been holding since the day before.
During the night and early morning of the 19th September, they moved in the direction of Arnhem to occupy the high ground to the North-West of the town. Their movement was blocked by strong German units of "Hohenstauen" 9th SS Panzer Division at the crossroads near the De Leeren Hotel on the Amsterdamse Weg. As I indicated in the report on Pte Dixon, Allied Intelligence had ignored the evidence of these large German formations being in the area. Bloody fighting took a heavy toll, with much hand to hand combat taking place. Sections were dispersed, killed, wounded or taken prisoner.
Pte Albert Walter, aged 30 years, was killed sometime during Tuesday's fighting An account of the action in which he was killed is given by former Pte George Taylor in the book by Martin Middlebrook: "Arnhem 1944 The Airborne Battle".
George was Number Two on a Bren gun serving with 8 platoon, D Company: He says:
"We were held up by some Germans who were in some farm buildings. They had several Spandau heavy machine guns and we kept exchanging fire with them. The barrel got so hot that we had to urinate on it to cool it down before we could change it. We were in shallow scrapes on the edge of a wood about fifty to seventy-five yards from the Germans and we eventually decided that we had to move out. It was then that Nick (Albert) Walter, the Number One on the Bren, was killed, just one hit in the temple. I didn't even know he was hit at first. I had to take the gun from him and leave him, he was still in the firing position."
Pte Walter was initially buried by the side of the road at Amsterdamse Weg, before being interred in the Arnhem/Oosterbeek War Cemetery.
Photo Gallery:
Albert Walter
Albert's Grave in Arnhem
- Albert Walter.
- Albert's Grave in Arnhem.
The Canal Wharf, 2011