Here were in position the 3d British Army (General Byng) in the section
toward Arras, and, on the right to the south, the 5th British Army
(General Gough) in the region west of St. Quentin. On March 21 there was
a tremendous bombardment followed by infantry attacks all along the
line, which resulted in winning many first-line positions. This was
nothing more than had been expected, and provision had been made against
it; but, unfortunately, as at Cambrai, the Germans had been enabled to
make an unexpected concentration of superior numbers against positions
of the 5th British Army.[1] The assault of this overwhelming force broke
through the British lines, even to the extent of involving engineers and
laborers behind the lines, as at Cambrai, with the same disastrous
results. This breakdown of the defense forced a retreat from the British
positions far different from the retirement that had been planned--and
it brought about the withdrawal of the whole 5th Army, resulting in what
the British Premier called "crippling one of our great armies."
After such a disaster, it was found necessary to abandon a great amount
of terrain to maintain a junction between the two British armies.
Péronne and Bapaume were soon captured by the Germans, and on March 27
the Germans reported the occupation of Albert. On the same day Roye and
Noyon were taken. On the next day the Germans had pushed as far west as
Pierrepont and taken possession of Montdidier. As was to be expected in
such a retreat, there soon was a large toll of British guns and
prisoners. On March 29 the Germans claimed 1,100 guns and 70,000
prisoners. They had also captured great quantities of material and 100
tanks.
These were heavy losses, but such losses were not the really serious
element in the situation. A study of the map will show that, as the 5th
Army retreated toward the west, there was left an increasingly long
sector south of Noyon and curving north, west of Montdidier to the Avre
River--and it was necessary that this dangerous opening should be
protected by the French reserves. With extraordinary rapidity and
efficiency French troops were rushed to this region, and the almost
impossible task was accomplished of repairing the defense. But the drain
on the French reserves had been heavy, and the necessity to use them for
this purpose had neutralized a force that had been prepared for a
different object against such a German drive.
That these reserves were being held as a mobile army was so generally
known that, it will be remembered, there was daily expectation of a
counterattack by this force. There is no need to point out how great
might have been the results of an assault upon an enemy exhausted by
days of fighting; but any such plan was rendered impossible at the time
by the need to use these troops to defend the new line, which was nearly
as long as the original battle line at the time of the attacks on March
21.