The attack made by the 3rd and 4th Canadian Divisions on October
26th formed an essential preliminary to the capture of the whole
Passchendaele Ridge and town. It was necessary to establish a good
jumping-off line for the attack on the village itself, and this was
accomplished, though our men went through some very stiff fighting
indeed before the position was won. The troops of the 9th Brigade had as
their objectives Bellevue Spur and the high ground about it, and after
the fighting a captured German officer remarked that the Spur was
considered to be the key of Passchendaele town, and that its capture by
the Canadians was a notable feat of arms, considering the efforts made
by the German Higher Command to ensure its successful defence. One does
not know if the officer was merely endeavouring to alleviate the mild
rigours of his captivity, but in any case the fighting was most
difficult and critical, and too much praise cannot be given to the
scattered parties of men who hung on to isolated positions in
shell-holes and ditches along the crest of the hill, under the most
intense shell-fire, and held back the enemy until reinforcements arrived
and consolidated the line.
The 43rd Battalion held the centre of the 3rd Divisional front, on the
left of the Gravenstafel-Bellevue Road, with the 58th Battalion on the
right and the 4th Canadian Mounted Rifles on the left. At 5.40 a.m. the
troops went forward in the steady rain, advancing splendidly over the
muddy, wet ground, and by half-past six men of the 43rd were seen
against the sky-line going over the crest of Bellevue Spur. The German
artillery fire had been immediate and heavy, and formidable pill-boxes
on the top and flanks of the hill maintained steady fire upon our
troops, causing many gaps in the waves of infantry stumbling and
slipping upon the muddy slopes. "D" Company, led by Captain Galt and
Lieutenant Shankland, made good progress up the hill, until checked by
the heavy fire of a machine-gun in a strong emplacement to the right
front. Collecting a few men, Captain Galt attempted its capture, while
Lieutenant Shankland continued the advance with the remainder of the
company. He gained the crest of the hill, and here close fighting won
our men more ground. The pill-boxes were captured, but a trench some
fifty yards beyond them checked the advance, and the weary survivors of
the attack dug themselves in as well as possible.
In the meantime the battle was going badly enough. On the right the
troops of the 58th Battalion, held up by determined resistance and the
concentrated fire of many machine-guns at Snipe Hall, had been unable to
make good their objective, and were drifting back in twos and threes to
the comparative shelter of the jumping-off line. But a few parties of
men held out with Shankland's company on the crest, and maintained a
rough and disjointed line of shell-holes, of which there were many,
across the hill top. Upon this line the Germans poured a relentless
stream of lead. At no time previously had our men experienced such
shelling. The mud and water dispersed by the bursting shells clogged the
weapons of the Canadians, and, in spite of instant attention, in many
cases rendered them temporarily useless. The going was terribly hard,
but Lieutenant Shankland held his battered line for four hours along the
crest of the Spur, keeping his men together and in good spirits,
recruiting those soldiers of other companies who had gained the hill but
were left without officers, and maintaining against heavy counter-attack
the Canadian position that had cost so much to win. But here a new
danger asserted itself. On his left Shankland had established rough
connection with the 8th Brigade, but now these troops were forced to
withdraw, while on the right his flank was completely exposed, and
German troops were advancing from the direction of Snipe Hall,
enfilading his line, and threatening to cut him off altogether. After a
careful survey of the whole position, he handed over the command to the
Machine-gun Officer, who, though wounded, had refused to leave the line
while his guns were in action, and making the best of his way back to
Headquarters, handed in a very valuable report, giving a clear summary
of a critical situation, and enabling steps to be taken that previous
lack of information had rendered unwise. While the men of the 52nd and
58th Battalions drove back the enemy on the flanks, the Lieutenant got
back through the mud and shell-fire to his own company on the hill top.
The Germans had attempted to rush this precarious position, and had been
beaten back by our machine-gun fire with heavy losses. They had
continued to lose, for the 52nd Battalion, advancing in splendid style,
drove many of them back across the fire of Shankland's company of the
43rd upon the crest of the Spur. Finally, the flanks were firmly
established, and our troops consolidated the new line, with the object
of our attack accomplished, though they had not penetrated as far into
enemy country as they had hoped.
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