Home › P › Picardy (BATTLES OF British who had)

Picardy (BATTLES OF British who had)

BATTLES OF British, who had borne the brunt of the sult of this two-days' spurt of activity attack, had lost not much over 100,000.

Furthermore, it was now evident that the Germans had spent themselves considerably, and were forced to slacken their efforts, to gain breath. It was at this time, March 28, 1918, that the announcement was made that General Foch had been made commander-inchief of all the forces on the western front.

In the last two days of the month the Germans again renewed their efforts, with the added weight of heavy re-enforcements of troops that had been brought from the eastern front. Six villages around Montdidier were taken from the French, though two of these were retaken the following day. Between Montdidier and Moreuil the Germans delivered especially heavy attacks. Moreuil changed hands several times during the two days. Between Moreuil and Lassigny the Germans were successfully checked. On the British front the Germans were equally active. But here they gained no ground and only lost heavily in casualties. South of the Somme the British regained possession of the village of Demuin.

At the end of this two-days' effort it was obvious that the German offensive was more than ever a failure. The critical moment had passed. Early in the morning of April 4, 1918, the Germans launched a new offensive, headed directly toward Amiens, from three directions. Fifteen German divisions were directed toward the French, and fourteen against the British; altogether about 350,000 men, on a sixteen mile front. Ten desperate assaults were delivered against the French, during the day and the succeeding night, but although the Germans gained some ground, the French could not be dislodged from their main positions on the higher ground, in the neighborhood of the village of Morisel. Grivesnes was subjected to exceptionally heavy pressure, but the French were able to sustain their hold at this point. So battered were the Germans by these efforts that on the following day the French, under General Pétain, succeeded in making some considerable gain of territory PICASSO by the Germans was a slight gain purchased at a price in men lost decidedly too heavy. Now there came another of those characteristic lulls, following these great efforts, which were probably periods during which activity was merely transferred to behind the German lines, in the bringing up of new men and war material.

The lull was short. On the morning of April 10, 1918, the Germans broke loose again, directing their fierce attacks against the British positions between the Lys river and Armentières. Here the British were driven back to the line running through Wytschaete, along the Messines Ridge, to Ploegsteert. Farther south the Germans crossed the Lys.

Still farther south the British held their positions. Givenchy was recaptured from the Germans, important in that it was on high ground and commanded the road to Bethune. It was now obvious that the Germans had given up their original plan of driving a wedge in between the British and the French, and that now, instead, they hoped to exhaust the British by sheer weight of superior numbers.

During the next week the British were called on to test their utmost endurance.

Again and again the Germans brought up new contingents and hurled them prodigally at the British lines. On April 15, 1918, the British were driven out of Bailleul. Other notable gains were made by the Germans on this day.

Wytschaete was taken and Haig's men were driven from most of their positions along the Messines Ridge.

At the end of the week, however; on April 20, 1918, it began to become quite obvious that the Germans had fought themselves to a standstill; that it could now be said that the main offensive was a failure, and that the Allies could now look into the future with confidence.

During this last phase of the offensive the Germans had all but exhausted themselves in the Lys region, and though at times the British had been strained to the point of breaking, they had succeeded in holding back the Teuton onslaught. The net result to the Germans had been a considerable gain of territory, encourthrough their counter-attacks, in the aging to the layman behind the th lines, region south of Moreuil. The northern but of slight value from a military point and western outskirts of Cantigny, of view, in that the price for this terriwhich had been captured a few days previously by the Germans, were also again in the hands of the French.

Meanwhile the British south of the Somme were also subjected to a severe tory had been too heavy in men.

Fighting in this region continued with considerable fury for some weeks, but the big battles of Picardy had been bornly, but were forced back to within nine miles of Amiens. But the net re-