On the left of our attack, west of the Canal du Nord, the 36th (Ulster)
Division captured a German strong point on the spoil bank of the canal
and pushed northward in touch with the West Riding troops, who, as the
first stage in a most gallant and remarkably successful advance, had
taken Havrincourt. By 10:30 A. M. the general advance beyond the
Hindenburg reserve line to our final objectives had begun, and cavalry
were moving up behind our infantry.
In this period of the attack tanks and British infantry battalions of
the 29th Division entered Masnières and captured Marcoing and Neuf Wood,
securing the passages of the Canal de l'Escaut at both villages.
At Marcoing the tanks arrived at the moment when a party of the enemy
were in the act of running out an electrical connection to blow up one
of the bridges. This party was fired on by a tank and the bridge secured
intact. At Masnières, however, the retreating enemy succeeded in
destroying partially the bridge carrying the main road. In consequence
the first tank which endeavored to cross at this point fell through the
bridge, completing its destruction.
The advance of a number of our guns had been unavoidably delayed in the
sunken roads which served this part of the battlefield, and though our
infantry continued their progress beyond Masnières, without the
assistance of tanks and artillery, they were not able at first to clear
the enemy entirely from the northern portion of the village. Here
parties of Germans held out during the afternoon, and gave the enemy
time to occupy Rumilly and the section of the Beaurevoir-Masnières line
south of it; while the destruction of the bridge also prevented the
cavalry from crossing the canal in sufficient strength to overcome his
resistance.
In spite of this difficulty, a squadron of the Fort Garry Horse,
Canadian cavalry brigade, succeeded during the afternoon in crossing the
canal by a temporary bridge constructed during the day. This squadron
passed through the Beaurevoir-Masnières line and charged and captured a
German battery in position to the east of it. Continuing its advance, it
dispersed a body of about 300 German infantry, and did not cease its
progress until the greater part of its horses had been killed or
wounded. The squadron thereupon took up a position in a sunken road,
where it maintained itself until night fell. It then withdrew to our
lines, bringing with it several prisoners taken in the course of a most
gallant exploit.