U.S. forces Military_operation captured Conquering the bridge and rapidly expanded Expansion their first bridgehead across the Rhine , two weeks before Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery 's meticulously planned Arranging Operation Plunder .

The unexpected availability of a bridgehead on the eastern side of the Rhine more than two weeks in advance of Operation Plunder allowed Preventing_or_letting Allied high commander Dwight Eisenhower to alter Change his plans to end Process_end the war .

During Operation Lumberjack , Operation Plunder and Operation Undertone in March 1945 , German casualties during February–March 1945 are estimated at 400,000 men , including 280,000 men captured as prisoners of war .