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The following is an extract from the 10th Battalion history.
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On the 9th March (1917) the 37th Division was transferred to the VI Corps of the Third Army, with which it was to take part in the Arras offensive of this year, and marched to the vicinity of
Houvin-Houvigneul where training for active operations at once commenced.
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The VI Corps was commanded by Lieut.-General Sir A. Haldane and contained the 3rd, 12th, 15th and 37th Divisions, and the objective of the VI Corps in the operations now very shortly to
commence was the capture of the German third line system from Feuchy Chapel to Feuchy and the high ground about Monchy-le-Preux; the 3rd, 12th and 15th Divisions were to be in the front line
and the 37th in corps reserve.
On the leading division commencing the attack on the Brown, or Third Line, the 37th was to move forward and form up ready to attack Monchy-le-Preux the same day, this being conducted by the 111th & 112th Brigades with the 63rd in divisional reserve. The 10th York and Lancaster was to be in brigade reserve, ready to afford assistance to either of the other brigades of the Division should these demand it.
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The following is Colonel Ridgway’s Operation Order no. 119 of 8th April, 1917.
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The Battalion will parade tomorrow ready to move off at 6.0 a.m. in the following order;
D.B (including Lewis Gunners and 10 men detailed as carrying party from C Coy), A. and C.
Dress: Fighting Order
NCO’s and men remaining in transport lines will parade at Q.M. Stores under Major Welsh.
Right Markers parade at 5.50 a.m. at Q.M. Stores.
Reveille: 4.30 a.m. Breakfast: 5.0 a.m.
Officers valises, Mess cart and M.O.’s cart to be loaded by 5.30 a.m.
All billets to be left clean.
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The April 4th Instruction for Attack set out;
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“The objective of the VI Corps operations is to capture the German Third Line system
from FEUCHY CHAPEL to FEUCHY and the high ground about MONCHY-LE-PREUX.”
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3rd, 12th & 15th Divisions in the front, 37th in Corps Reserve.
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Objectives;
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1st
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Black Line
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Three leading Divisions
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2nd
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Blue Line
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3rd
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Brown Line
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4th
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Green Line
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37 Division
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The drawing above shows the main features and the ‘objective lines’ for the attack
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The timing of the attack phases was laid out in the “Preliminary Outline Plan”
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-Artillery bombardment prior to attack will last 4 days and consist of counter-battery
work and the bombardment of German first and second systems of defence.
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-By 0+3hrs 37 Div on line DAINVILLE - WAGONLIEU - ST AUBIN ready to move forward.
Leading Divisions will have secured Black Line then after pause of 1 hour, will have attacked and captured Blue Line.
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-When capture of Blue Line definitely established and enemy guns in valley between Blue
and Brown consequently silenced, 37 Div will again move forward.
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-0+7hrs leading divisions attack Brown Line and 37 Div move forward to take up position
for attack on Monchy-Le-Preux same day.
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Attack with 112 & 111 Infantry Brigades in front line on right and left
respectively, 63rd Brigade (with 10 York & Lancs) in Divisional Reserve.
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10 York & Lancs will remain in valley in Brigade Reserve. If either 11th or
112th Brigades want assistance 10th York & Lancs will be placed under their order.
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The left being the dangerous flank, careful watch must be kept of the high ground North
of the river.
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......In assembly trenches Battn Hdqrs will be in a dug-out in reserve line between
ITALY LANE and INVERNESS LANE. Coys. will report all in trenches by sending word “HOPEFUL”
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When the battle started, on Easter Monday the 9th April, the weather was bitterly cold. It had been the hardest winter for decades, making life extremely miserable in the trenches.
The attack took place in showers of rain, sleet and snow. The “poor bloody infantry”.
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By the 10th ground had been gained & 10th Battalion was at Lone Copse, but Monchy had not yet been taken. 37th Div. were now required to take the town on the 11th April.
The 111th Brigade supported by units of the 3rd Cavalry Division and some tanks of C Battalion, 1 Tank Brigade, would take Monchy. The 112th Brigade would move forward to the line from La Bargere crossroads to Monchy, supporting the right flank of 111 Brigade. 63rd Brigade (with the 10th York & Lancs) would be Divisional Reserve as laid out in the preliminary plan (above). 15th Division would be north of the 37th, reaching up to the River Scarpe.
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The advance on the 11th was due to start at 5 a.m., unfortunately the 15th Brigade RHA which was brought in to lay down artillery support had insufficient time to prepare and requested a
postponement of the start time. Messages to this effect did not reach the infantry and tanks who went forward with insufficient support, and then suffered casualties from their own
barrage. As the advance began, from a line about 1,000 yards west of Monchy, the weather was very cold, with snow on the ground.
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The 111th Brigade [13/Kings Royal Rifle Corps, 13th Rifle Brigade as leading battalions with 1oth & 13th Royal Fusiliers in support] left their start positions and moved forward against
the German machine guns, to take Monchy.
By 09.00 Monchy was in British hands, the Germans having withdrawn towards the Bois du vert and Bois du Sart, east of the town. The 10th Battalion history (see Ridgway’s report below) says that on the 11th the battalion moved from Lone Copse over a spur and “into and occupied the German trench where I consolidated.” This was presumably close to and on the North side of the town.
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Monchy would swap hands a number of times up to August 1918.
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The following is Colonel Ridgway’s account of the operations of the 9th - 12th April:-
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“The Battalion occupied about 1 p.m. 9th inst. the reserve and second reserve trenches between Infantry and Inverness communication trenches. About 3.40 p.m. on receipt of a message from
the brigade-major, the Battalion followed in rear of the 4th Middlesex and eventually reached Battery Valley, where the Battalion occupied an old German communication trench on the west side
of the valley. We remained here until 3 a.m. the 10th when I moved over the top to the railway and along this to the sunken road where two companies dug in as per map, the other company
in support in the quarry.
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I gained touch here with mounted troops of the 9th Division in Fampoux on my left, and later on got in touch with the 4th Middlesex, who were 1,000 yards off on my right rear. I sent out
patrols to the railway bridge, and found nothing of the enemy and the bridge intact.
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About 12 noon the brigade-major’s message arrived and I immediately prepared to follow the Middlesex Regiment, after they had passed through me.
My two leading companies crossed the sunken road, and on reaching the low ground came under heavy machine-gun fire from the direction of Mount Pleasant Wood. My other company was still in the sunken road. As the 4th Middlesex were held up just in front of me, I dug in and waited for the dark. The brigade-major’s message timed 4.55 p.m. now arrived, directing me to proceed to Lone Copse Valley in support. I proceeded there about 8 p.m. and dug in along the bank with my right resting on Lone Copse. Here I was joined by three companies 4th Middlesex, and I sent out patrols in the direction of Monchy and Roeux.
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 London buses at Monchy-le-Preux on the 11th April. This photo is
from Max Arthur’s book ‘Forgotten Voices of The Great War’.
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At 11.15 a.m. 11th inst. I moved the Battalion, as advanced guard to the Brigade, in the direction of the Bois de Aubepines, and on reaching the top of the spur the Battalion came under heavy
frontal and enfilade machine-gun fire and had severe casualties in the leading company.
I then “trickled” the rest of the Battalion over the danger zone and got into and occupied the German trench where I consolidated, and got into touch with troops of the 15th Division.”
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Entry in Battalion War Diary, 12th April; “Division relieved from ground won from enemy near MONCHY-LE-PREUX by 17th Division.
This Battalion relieved by 10th West Yorks and proceeded to ARRAS by route march. Billets in HOSPICE-DES-VIEILLIARDS.”
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The Brigade General, General Staff (B.G.G.S) at the time was Brig. Gen. Douglas, Lord Loch
on the staff of Lt. Gen. Haldane commanding VI Corps. The advance by the corps on the 9th had not been as large as anticipated and Loch wrote on the 10th April; “We did not have the success yesterday that we hoped for - Why I can’t say. Several little
things went to stop us.
One is that at one place some of our men got too far behind the field gun barrage and consequently the Germans had time to man the parapets. On another place one brigade lost direction and did not arrive at the place ordered. Bitterly cold weather with a gale blowing - we have just had a snow storm and all the country is white. This has been going on continuously - the ground is very wet and we can’t get the guns up, or at least they are very much delayed. Though we are disappointed we did not do so badly. Our Corps captured two systems of trenches and part of another, 1600 prisoners and 59 guns. The other Corps did well, apparently 10,000 prisoners altogether.” On the 11th, as mentioned above, Monchy-Le-Preux fell, there is a memorial in the village to the 37th Division. Loch
hoped that some of the lessons from the action would have been learnt; “We have learned one lesson which we learnt before but were not allowed to profit by and that is that the
same men cannot attack from trenches and advance for more than 5000 yards at the outside.
The physical and mental strain will not allow of it. There fore if we want to succeed we must have fresh men in such a position that they can pass through the tired ones and carry on.”
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Sir Basil Liddell Hart summed up the opening day at Arras in his ‘A History of the World War’;
“The results of the opening day had been greater and quicker, both in prisoners and
progress, than in any previous offensive - yet they had extinguished the dim hope of a strategic breakthrough. A contributory factor was the misuse of the tanks. With only sixty
machines available it would have been wiser to have concentrated them in aid of the the vital effort to gain Monchy-le-Preux instead of spreading them over the front.
The error was repeated in the next phase, whereas, if all available tanks had been concentrated on the south side of the salient formed by the first day’s attack, they could have taken the German resistance in enfilade, and might have rolled it up.
So on April 10th the Third Army butted direct at a stiffening resistance, with its guns
too far back to support the infantry. Not until the morning of April 11th did the arrival of four tanks help a battalion of the 37th Division to seize Monchy-le-Preux - driving in a
wedge which was, however, too narrow and too late.”
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On the 20th April the 37th Division joined the XVII Corps and took over part of the line north of the River Scarpe, near Fampoux in the map above. In the coming action, the Second Battle
of the Scarpe, the 37th Division was to attack on the left and the 51st Division on the right of the XVII Corps front.
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On the 21st April Private, 32216, John Thomas Dillon
of the 10th Battalion York and Lancaster Regiment was killed, the battle started on the 22nd. I believe it highly likely that my grandfather and John Thomas Dillon both knew each other as they had the same family name and were in the same Battalion. My father and myself were both christened John.
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John McCrae
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In Flanders Fields
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In Flanders fields the poppies blow
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Between the crosses, row on row,
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That mark our place; and in the sky
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The larks, still bravely singing, fly
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Scarce heard amid the guns below.
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We are the Dead. Short days ago
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We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
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Loved and were loved, and now we lie
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In Flanders fields.
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Take up our quarrel with the foe:
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To you from failing hands we throw
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The torch; be yours to hold it high.
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If ye break faith with us who die
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We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
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In Flanders fields.
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John McCrae’s memorial stone at Essex Farm cemetery
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