Arras, Battle of, was a British-led assault on German forces during World War I (1914-1918). The battle took place near the northern French city of Arras in the spring of 1917, from April 9 to May 17. At that time, Arras was a key stronghold on the Western Front, the battlefront that ran through Belgium and France . The Allies gained significant ground in the battle, but the attack failed to break the German lines. The deadlock of trench warfare (fighting from fortified ditches) continued.
Background.
British and French armies began battling German forces on the Western Front in 1914. Over the next two years, warfare killed millions of soldiers, but little ground was gained or lost. By early 1917, British and French military leaders believed the German army was nearing collapse. They hoped that a combined offensive on the Western Front would win the war.
The British-led part of the offensive—the Battle of Arras—was planned in three main thrusts along a 20-mile (32-kilometer) front. East of Arras, British troops would push the Germans back along the Scarpe River. To the north, Canadian troops were to take the high ground at a hill called Vimy Ridge . To the south, Australian and British troops were to take the German positions around Bullecourt. The Arras assault was also a diversionary attack—an attack intended to draw attention away from a larger French attack to the southeast in Champagne.
To prepare for the assault, New Zealander and British miners connected old underground quarries to form some 12 miles (19 kilometers) of tunnels and chambers in the Arras area. The tunnel system hid and protected the troops that were assembling. They also provided for movement of supplies, reinforcement, and the evacuation and treatment of wounded soldiers.
Prior to the attack, British artillery pounded the German lines. Included in the bombardment were new methods of firing poison gas shells.
The battle.
On the snowy morning of April 9, 1917, British troops attacked along the Scarpe River east of Arras. The German front lines, largely destroyed by the bombardment, collapsed. The British advanced more than 3 miles (5 kilometers)—the largest single-day Allied advance since the deadlock of trench warfare began in 1914. Despite bitter German resistance, the British went on to capture several towns. They took the key stronghold of Monchy-le-Preux, 6 miles (10 kilometers) southeast of Arras.
Canadian troops at Vimy Ridge also attacked on April 9. Following a creeping barrage (a moving bombardment), the Canadians advanced against heavy German fire. Bloody fighting stalled them on the ridge’s crest and around the town of Vimy. Still, the Canadians pressed the attack and secured the ridge and the town.
At Bullecourt, British leaders thought tanks —newly developed and at that point unreliable—could make up for a lack of artillery. The tanks arrived late, however, and the attack was delayed 24 hours. Some British units, unaware of the delay, attacked alone on April 10. German gunners quickly defeated them. On April 11, the main Australian attack went forward with just 11 tanks. The troops hit thick belts of barbed wire and a hail of gunfire. Some troops managed to reach the German trenches, but counterattacks forced survivors to fall back to their own lines. The attack failed, and two-thirds of the attacking Australians were killed, wounded, or captured.
By April 15, German counterattacks had halted the British advance north and east of Arras. On April 16, the French offensive began in Champagne, but it failed terribly. To ease pressure on the French, the British launched further attacks in the Arras area—including another costly assault at Bullecourt. Bloody fighting inched the lines forward until the battle ended in May.
Aftermath.
The Arras assault improved the British positions on the Western Front. The high ground at Vimy Ridge, in particular, was a significant gain and an important morale booster for the Allies. But the success came at great cost. Allied losses totaled about 150,000 casualties (people killed, wounded, or captured), of which more than 20,000 were Australian and Canadian. The Germans suffered more than 100,000 casualties.
