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Western Front: 1915 – 1917: Stalemate
Operations in 1917
1. Nivelle's
Offensive
2. Battle of Arras
3. Battle
of Messines
4. Third
Battle of Ypres
5. French
Victories
6. Battle
of Cambrai
Battle of Arras
Short Summary:
BATTLE OF ARRAS (April 9-May 3, 1917). The German withdrawal to the
Hindenburg Line had invalidated the Allied plan for their 1917 offensive;
nevertheless, Gen. Robert Georges Nivelle, the French commander, persisted
in going ahead with the attack on the Aisne. The plan provided for an
initial British offensive at Arras to draw German reserves away from
the Aisne. This offensive had great initial success, but was soon halted
by stiffening resistance. The only important gain was the capture of
Vimy Ridge by the Canadian Corps, which provided a firm northern anchor
for the British in the first great German drive of 1918.
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Haig began 1917 as a field marshal, secure in the confidence
of George V, who wrote after the Calais conference: "The King begs
you to dismiss from your mind any idea of resignation. Such a course
would be, in His Majesty's opinion, disastrous to his Army and to the
hopes of success in the coming struggle." The offensive to which
he was pledged in support of Nivelle extended from approximately eight
miles south of Arras to seven miles north of it, and was to be carried
out by the Third Army of Gen. Sir Edmund Allenby (later 1st Viscount
Allenby) on the right and the First Army of Gen. Sir Henry Sinclair
Home (later 1st Baron Horne) on the left. The whole of the German front
was under the command of Gen. Baron Ludwig von Falkenhausen. The initial
attack was to be made by 14 divisions, but for the first time the British
were not undergunned and had at their disposal 2,800 pieces. The Germans
had 6 divisions in the line, but they also were in the novel situation
of possessing abundant reserves-another 6 divisions.
The attack began successfully on April 9, in squally,
snowy weather, even though the tanks were an almost complete failure,
all of them being either ditched before they went into action or speedily
maimed when they did so. The advance immediately north of the Scarpe
River was the deepest made by any belligerent since trench warfare had
frozen the western front. Here Lt. Gen. Sir Charles Fergusson's corps
breached the German third line, captured the village of Fampoux, and
covered a distance of three and one-half miles. Horne's army prospered
as greatly as Allenby's did, but the Canadian Corps of 4 divisions,
which bore the main burden in the assault, had not far to go on the
muddiest part of the front to the crest of Vimy Ridge. The ridge was
not completely secured by nightfall, but little was left for the following
day.
That day provided a rude shock. Allenby's simple telegraphed
order overnight to pursue a beaten army was issued under a misapprehension.
The army was indeed beaten, but there was another of equal strength
in the rear. Falkenhausen had disobeyed orders so that he could keep
his reserves out of range, and they were on the average 15 miles farther
east than they ought to have been. Now they were ready to fight, while
the original British divisions were exhausted. Nothing serious could
be attempted until April 23, when in a two days' battle the British
outfought the enemy but made small progress. The last phase of the battle
was the single day of May 3, when Haig permitted the attack to proceed
solely in the hope of aiding Nivelle to keep the French fighting. Intervention
by Gough's Fifth Army on the right at Bullecourt led to the terrific
slogging.
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