September 1918 ... The Hindenburg Line & Cambrai
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The Division was transferred to XVIIth Corps for the action around Arras. The aim was to seize the northern end of the Hindenburg system and the Dricourt-Queant system behind it which would threaten the new German positions to the east of the Somme and those at Lys. The evacuation of Lys would drive the enemy back from the lines in front of Cambrai to the Canal du Nord and the Canal St Quentin and then pressing on against these canal lines to seize Cambrai itself and drive the enemy back on Maubeuge.
On September 1st the 188th Brigade moved up six thousand yards to Hendecourt arriving at 01:30 on the second to pass through the right of Canadians whose objective was Magnicourt. The Brigade then moved to cut the Queant-Cambrai railway and seize high ground east of Queant and press onto Inchy. The other brigades moved forward behind the 188th. Every detail of the huge programme was carried out successfully involving an advance of ten miles from the initial assembly position. The 189th captured Inchy and inspired battalion leadership resulted in the Drake Battalion advancing across the railway and on to Pronville capturing a large proportion of the Hindenburg support line. The main body of the Battalion remained on the Pronville-Inchy road cutting off the enemy retreat resulting in a substantial number of prisoners, machine-guns, trench mortars and field guns being taken.
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Queant as abandoned by the Germans | | IWM Cat Ref: Q 7048 |
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Inchy as captured by the RND | | IWM Cat Ref: Q 7066 |
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The Hood and Hawke battalions received orders to press from Bois de Boucher to Inchy. They encountered considerable opposition but, assisted indirectly by the earlier advance of Drake, arrived at the junction of Hindenburg support line and the Buissy switch at dusk. These lines covered the western approaches to Inchy, they were heavily manned and strongly fortified but needed to be taken before the Division could press on to its final objective.
The battalions were reorganized overnight and attacking at 09:30 Hawke and Hood swept past the Hindenburg line and reorganized on the outskirts of Inchy. Drake advanced later capturing Tadpole copse by 13:00 and consolidated a position on the Western outskirts of Moeuvres, Hawke and Hood consolidated the hold on Inchy to secure a bridgehead across the Canal du Nord. The Marine Battalion went forward the following day to support the efforts but the position could not be held and the units fell back to just west of the canal during the fourth. The Germans crossed the canal that evening to the left of the divisional front and re-entered Inchy but were thrown back by the Marine Battalion. That night the 189th Brigade was relieved by the 190th and gradually the battle died down.
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Canal du Nord aerial reconnaissance
Over the night of the 7th-8th the Division was relieved by 57th Division and retired for rest, reorganisation and training. The advances of this operation had been outstanding and the leadership of the Division once again proved to be of the highest order. 385 men had been killed with over 2,400 wounded and almost 500 missing but these losses were considerably lighter than those for the August battles. The early deficiencies of the advance, notably the breakdown of communications and the lack of effective use of machine-guns for attack, had largely been addressed. In addition, an end was called to the attack once the opposition stiffened; Corps Command had instructed that there was to be no frontal assault. It was now clear that localized assaults on a narrow front would break the Germans. Resistance was still gallant but the enemy lacked reserves and its mobility was greatly hindered due to the disorganization of the
railways. Persistent offensives over wide fronts would finally break the enemy's capacity to resist even if the will was not broken.
By the twenty-sixth the line of the Third Army to the right was roughly in alignment with the positions achieved by the Canadians and Royal Naval Division earlier in the month and both came forward once more. The Royal Naval Division took up positions west of Moeuvres for an assault to be launched the following day on the tactically important lines at the canals. The Canadians were on the left and would attack Bourlon and the 52nd Division on right were to cross the canal and move on to the Hindenburg support line. The Germans still held positions on the western side of the Canal du Nord.
At 04:45 the 190th Brigade moved forward under a Stokes Mortar barrage and crossed the canal opposite Moeuvres before seizing the high ground. The Brigade was reinforced and fought its way south along the Hindenburg support line. The 52nd Division had been held up crossing the canal and the Germans still held many parts of the line when the 188th and 189th brigades crossed the canal at 07:00. The 188th formed on the reverse slope of Bourlon ridge to assault the Anneux-Graincourt line. At 07:58 the Marines and Anson battalions went over the crest of the ridge. The attack came under a cross fire from the positions in the Hindenburg system that were still in German hands and a strongpoint on the Bapaume-Cambrai road. The Anson Battalion advance ground to a halt which prevented the Marines progressing further without exposing the right flank. A detachment of Anson was able to gain a foothold at the
strongpoint but was eventually thrown back. The Hindenburg system was gradually cleared and both Hawke and Drake came up between 10:00 and 13:00 to support the Anson Battalion. At 14:15 the strongpoint was bombarded by the artillery and Drake, Hawke and Anson were able to move on to capture Graincourt and the Marines, with the RIR in support, took Anneux. The line was immediately consolidated and reinforced. At 18:30, whilst the Division was waiting for the 57th Division to advance through and take the final objective, the Germans counterattacked but were driven back. The 57th advanced through the following day and by 09:00 had captured the line west of the Canal d' Escaut.
Due to the huge success of the operations over the previous two days Corps Command ordered the 57th Division to push on and capture the far side of the canal. With this taken the Royal Naval Division was ordered through and on to Cambrai. Once again, the Division would distinguish itself and demonstrate why it had become so highly regarded. The Division fought its way forward aiming to reach Maubeuge before the Germans west of the Ardennes could withdraw. If this task failed then the Germans would be able to reorganize at the Rhine whereas if it was achieved the capitulation would surely come in France. The task before the XVIIth Corps was to reduce the line west of Cambrai as quickly as possible. This line was still strongly defended.
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In reality the position was in great confusion. Parties of the 57th had crossed the canal but it was unknown if they had been cut off. It was unclear if the 2nd Division to the right had crossed the canal. The Germans were also still in great strength in La Folie Wood. To clarify the position the 189th Brigade was sent forward to force crossings of the canal and the river.
The Hood Battalion was sent to clear the wood and Drake to Cantignual Mill where the enemy had retired from the canal but held the river crossing in great strength. The 57th Division had already crossed the canal and Drake moved into their positions and immediately attempted to cross the river. The main bridge was broken although a small wooden footbridge survived on a lower level but was heavily covered by the enemy's machine-guns and all attempts to cross failed. A leading seaman took a Lewis gun and made for the main bridge. Arriving at the gap he displayed great agility as he managed to get to the far bank and brought the gun into play. The German guns were silenced for a moment and a few more men made it across the main bridge. This small detachment was able to maintain the position until dusk when more men were able to cross in twos and threes after dark. A second crossing was made by the 2nd Division lower down and two Hawke
companies were brought forward in support but the position had already been lost by the time they arrived. A fresh attack was delayed until dawn. Drake continued to dribble over the river during the course of night as the Engineers positioned pontoon bridges under heavy enemy fire.
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Divisional medics feeding wounded prisoners |
At dawn Drake crossed in force and by 10:00 Hawke had also crossed. Hood, having secured La Folie Wood after stiff resistance, crossed on Drake's left. At midday the Marines and RIR took over the line and pressed on to the higher ground. The Division was now on the outskirts of Cambrai with only two positions between it and the town. The 190th Brigade was brought forward for the final push on the thirtieth with Anson to assault a strong point on the flank. By 13:00 on thirtieth all objectives had been secured following a second bombardment to finally quell the resistance offered. One enemy strong point remained to the right but this was cleared by the Marines and Anson before 07:00 on October 1st. Later that day the Division was relieved by the 52nd Division which was to push on and attack Niergnies. In four days the Division had advanced the line seven miles in almost continuous fighting and overcame four successive
prepared defensive positions, capturing over 2,200 prisoners whilst sustaining almost 2,500 casualties. Outstanding leadership had once again been at the forefront to keep all the units of the Division up with the attack to prevent it stalling.
The capture of Niergnies was imperative before the Third Army could advance on the Beaurevoir line. A decision was taken not to bombard the town and all attempts to capture it failed before, on the fifth, the XVIIth Corps Command was informed the capture of Niergnies and its defences was of vital importance and must be achieved. The Royal Naval Division was about to entrain to transfer to the First Army and Major-General Blacklock had started on leave for England. Corps Command put in a request for the temporary return of the Division to undertake the operation and this was granted. The transfer of the Division was postponed and its commander recalled. The Division was promised immediate relief as soon as Niergnies was captured.
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Trench Map 57B.NW Extract; Published: October 1918; Trenches corrected to 7th October 1918 |
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German prisoners captured at Niergnies | | IWM Cat Ref: Q 9514 |
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On the night of October 7th-8th the 188th and 189th brigades took up positions alongside each other, this time North-East of Rumilly. Eight tanks would provide support for the men in this critical and difficult operation. The opening barrage was provided by the artillery of the 52nd and 37th Divisions and commenced at 4:30. By 06:00 the trench line in front of Niergnies was taken by Drake and the RIR. The Hawke Battalion was covering the flank to the left with Anson attempting to get round Niergnies to the south-east. By 08:40 the village had been taken by the Marines and Hood although the enemy works beyond was still in German hands. Hawke had also progressed well on the flank.
At 09:30 the Germans counterattacked with seven captured British tanks moving forward against the Division's line. The situation was in doubt until two of the tanks were destroyed, one by a captured anti-tank rifle and the other by a captured field gun. At 09:55 the village was again in the Division's control. Hard fighting ensued for the remainder of the morning and several German counterattacks were thrown back. At 15:00, following an accurate barrage, the line was pushed forward again. The battalions consolidated to the east of the village and, having achieved the task set of them, were relieved that evening by the 2nd Division. 630 casualties had been sustained but over two thousand prisoners had been taken and, more importantly, the left was now open for advance of the Third Army. Two days later Cambrai was taken and the last of the enemy's prepared defences fell.
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