The Story of the Great War, Volume 8: Victory with the Allies; Armistice; Peace Congress; Canada's War Organizations and vast War Industries; Canadian Battles Overseas
History
The Story of the Great War, Volume 8: Victory with the Allies; Armistice; Peace Congress; Canada's War Organizations and vast War Industries; Canadian Battles Overseas
World War, 1914-1918
Daybreak on the 7th found the Canadian infantry occupying Craters 6
and 7, but no progress had been made against German positions. The
attackers had lost their way or were worn out from exhaustion. Though
the opposing forces were within forty yards of each other during the
night they had never come to grips.
Orders continued to come up from the rear to capture the enemy's
intrenchments at any cost, and while reenforcements went forward, in
the conditions existing at the front they mysteriously vanished.
That night the Fourth Brigade began to come up to the relief. The
Sixth Brigade had fought nobly for three days and nights, with
casualties of 617 officers and men. The 27th had lost eight officers
and 209 of its rank and file killed or wounded. The 31st came next
with 180 casualties, then the 29th with a roll of 180 casualties,
while the 28th lost 101. The brigade had achieved a glorious defeat.
The relief, which lasted over four nights, put the 21st instead of the
27th on the right in the trenches, the 18th replacing the 28th in the
center support position, while the 19th took the place of the 31st on
the left in the Canadian craters.
Before the relief was completed on the night of April 8-9, 1916, a new
attack was made against Craters 2 and 3. Captain Miller of the 21st,
leading the attack on the right, was wounded in the engagement. With a
bombing party he had gained the edge of Crater 2 without being
observed. Finding the crater too strongly held, an attack was not
attempted until Lieutenant Brownlee and fifty men reenforced the
party. By this time the Germans were alert and started such a heavy
fire that only a fourth of the party succeeded in struggling back to
the trench.
The assault on Crater 3 by the 18th was also a failure. Lieutenant
Kerr, who led the party, was wounded, and the blasting German gunfire
forced them to reoccupy the old British line, putting out an advanced
post before it fifty yards from the German crater. There was great
difficulty in getting in the wounded. Captain McKeough and Sergeants
Richardson, Cunningham, and Bowie again and again dashed through the
fire to bring in the casualties. Meanwhile the 19th Battalion was
engaged in relieving the 31st in the Canadian craters. Majors Moors
and Morrison (19th Battalion), who successively held this dangerous
position, could accomplish little as the German Crater 5 dominated it.
Attacks were made, but all failed. On the night of April 9, 1916, an
assault was pushed with some success. Lieutenant Davidson (21st) and
Lieutenant Brownlee with a strong party of bombers seized Crater 1 and
pushed north to capture Crater 2 from the rear. Here they failed, but
dug in close to its rim and consolidated the ground thus won.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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