cleared. The third phase of the Battle of the Scheldt was now complete. Daser ordered his men to retreat and make a stand on "Fortress Walcheren". Operation Infatuate As the fourth phase of the battle opened, only the island of Walcheren at the mouth of the Scheldt remained in German hands. The island's defences were extremely strong: heavy coastal batteries on the western and southern coasts defended both the island and the western Scheldt estuary, and the coastline had been strongly fortified against amphibious assaults. Furthermore, a landward-facing defensive perimeter had been built around the town of Flushing (Dutch: Vlissingen) to defend its port facilities, should an Allied landing on Walcheren succeed. The only land approach was the Sloedam, a long, narrow causeway from South Beveland, little more than a raised two-lane road. To complicate matters, the flats that surrounded this causeway were too saturated with sea water for movement on foot, but had too little water for an assault in storm boats. Inundation of Walcheren To hamper German defence, Walcheren island's dykes were breached by attacks from RAF Bomber Command. Due to the high risks for the local population, the bombings were sanctioned at the highest level and preceded by leafleting to warn the island's inhabitants. The first bombing was on 3 October at Westkapelle, on the western shore of the island. The Westkapelle dyke was attacked by 240 heavy bombers, resulting in a large gap that allowed the seawater to enter. This flooded the central part of the island, allowing the use of amphibious vehicles and forcing the German defenders onto the high ground surrounding the island and in the towns. The bombing at Westkapelle came with severe loss of life, with 180 civilian deaths resulting from the bombardment and the resulting flooding. Attacks on other dykes had to ensure that the flooding could not be contained. On 7 October, dykes in the south were bombed, west and east of Flushing. Finally, on 11 October, northern dykes at Veere became a target. Bombing against the island defences was hampered by bad weather and requirements for attacks on Germany. The island was then attacked from three directions: across the Sloedam causeway from the east, across the Scheldt from the south, and by sea from the west. Battle of Walcheren Causeway The 2nd Canadian Infantry Division attacked the Sloedam causeway on 31 October. Post-war controversy exists around the claim that