BRITISH SOLDIERS WITH A DITCHED MARK IV TANK IN A GERMAN TRENCH DURING THE FIRST BATTLE OF CAMBRAI....
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BRITISH SOLDIERS WITH A DITCHED MARK IV TANK IN A GERMAN TRENCH DURING THE FIRST BATTLE OF CAMBRAI....
Today 106 years ago, on November 20, 1917, the First Battle of Cambrai began on the Western Front.
Following the conclusion of the Third Battle of Ypres, the British were desperate for success. An offensive was planned towards the French city of Cambrai, as this was fresh ground that hadn't been ravaged much by the war.
Cambrai was also an important supply hub for the Germans. The attack were to be carried out by the British Third Army, which would deploy more tanks at once than ever before in the war, as well as new artillery techniques to break through the German lines.
On November 20, 1917, following a hurricane bombardment, the British attacked at Cambrai with 476 tanks and 110,000 infantrymen. As the British infantry only attacked 20 minutes after the bombardment, the Germans were caught by surprise and the British broke through in numerous places.
In six hours, the British advanced further at Cambrai than in 3 months in Flanders. By the end of the day, the British had advanced 6 km along a 11 km wide front, taking 4,200 prisoners.
The British consolidated their positions and attacked the next day on November 21, which did not go as smoothly, as German reinforcements were sent in and offered stiff resistance.
The fighting was especially fierce at Anneux and the Bourlon Woods near Cambrai. After a week of futile attacks, the British offensive was called off on November 28, the Germans still being in possession of Cambrai.
Then on November 30, the Germans launched an incredibly ambitious counter-attack with gas and Stormtrooper infiltration tactics. The attack took the British by surprise, who were pushed back and by December 7, the frontlines were the same as it had been on November 20.
In the First Battle of Cambrai, the Germans had suffered 54,720 casualties, of whom 8,817 were deaths, and the British had suffered 75,681 casualties, of whom 10,042 were deaths, and nearly 180 British tanks were destroyed.
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