With a view to renewing a general advance, General von Barnekow had ordered up his last reserves from Essigny, when towards three o'clock the Brigade Pittie unexpectedly pushed forward an attack along the railway line. Its right scourged by artillery fire from Castres, it found its left taken at unawares by the charge of five squadrons of reserve cavalry from the Urvilliers hollow. Simultaneously Colonel von Hartzberg advanced with the 32nd Brigade, and drove the enemy back to Moulin de Tout Vent. The Brigade Foerster, south of Grugies, had still held out stubbornly, although now seriously threatened on the right from Giffecourt, as well as by the 12th Cavalry Division on its left flank. Its left flank now completely uncovered by the retreat of the Brigade Pittie, and its last strength exhausted by a long struggle, the brigade found itself finally forced to evacuate its long-held position. The 31st Brigade advanced along the railway-line as far as the sugar-factory, and Colonel von Boecking drove the last French detachments out of Grugies. He then prepared with his artillery the attack upon Moulin de Tout Vent. Against these heights the 41st Regiment, the battalions already ordered up from Essigny, and the 32nd Brigade advanced to a concentric attack. The French did not prolong their resistance, and indeed were already in retreat. The entire German fighting line, with the 12th Cavalry Division on its right, moved forward on the town, which was now reached by the fire of the artillery posted at Gauchy. The cavalry repeatedly broke in on the retreating hostile bodies; and the railway-station and suburb, in which was found only the rear-guard of the XXth French Corps, was occupied after a short struggle. Whilst on the southern section of the battle-field the action took this turn, on the northern side the attacks were also being pushed. By two o'clock the 28th Regiment advancing from Roupy by the road from Ham had carried the farmstead of L'Epine de Dallon; and almost simultaneously Count von der Groeben's infantry came up to renew the offensive. Whilst on the right some companies of the 4th and 44th Regiments opposed the advance of French detachments from the larger copse, Major von Elpons with six companies of the Crown Prince Grenadiers, advanced from Holnon and Selency upon Francilly, and, notwithstanding the hot fire of the defenders, forced an entrance into this very straggling village, in which many prisoners were made. As, however, the East-Prussian Regiment then advanced further south of the Roman road, it had in its turn to sustain a formidable attack.