the great battle which had just started.
Just before reaching Avesnes-le-Compte I spotted some Divisional
transport on the roads, and, on making inquiries at Avesnes, I learnt
that the 149th Infantry Brigade were quartered at Manin about two
miles away. So I left the train and reached our H.Q. just in time for
dinner.

The 50th Division had marched from Warfusee, and were now proceeding
towards Arras to take part in the battle which had started on April
9.

XXII

THE BATTLE OF ARRAS

The Battle of Arras started with a great success. The Vimy Ridge was
recaptured and the vast fortress between Telegraph Hill and Neuville
Vitasse, including a substantial part of the famous Hindenburg Line,
fell in one day. The high ground at Monchy-le-Preux was soon stormed
and secured. But after this progress became very slow, nothing seemed
to come of these great tactical successes. The fighting, instead of
developing into open warfare as we had expected, became again very
similar in character to the great trench to trench battles on the
Somme.

The French waited a week before starting their offensive in Champagne,
and when it did start it failed completely. The weather broke down on
April 10, as it generally did in 1917 whenever the British commenced
offensive operations. It became very cold and it rained or snowed
almost incessantly for over a week. It is hard for one who saw only a
small sector of this great battle to understand what prevented us from
taking greater advantage of our great initial success, which certainly
surprised and disorganised the enemy. But it was not merely the
weather which broke down at a critical moment. There were other causes
at work to delay and impede success. I strongly suspect that the
British infantry units were still suffering from their tremendous
exertions in 1916; and they certainly had not the confident assurance
of victory which inspired the terrible sacrifices on the Somme.
Hitherto our artillery had never been so strong nor had the mechanical
aids to victory been so numerous or so varied. Gas-projectors and
oil-drums were first used in this battle, new aeroplanes were first
launched out in public; the British held the mastery of the air, and
the Germans had not yet devised any effective remedy for the British
tanks. But the British troops were not the troops of the Somme. The
old type of volunteer had largely disappeared, and the same resolution
and confidence were not displayed