Battle of the Yser
Dernancourt
28 March and 5 April 1918
![The Dernancourt battlefield, July 1919. [AWM E05566]](/dernancourt/images/awm-e05566.jpg)
The Dernancourt battlefield, July 1919. [AWM E05566]
The early months of 1918 were a time of German preparation and Allied apprehension. The great British offensive at Ypres (Ieper) in Belgium in the second half of 1917 had not achieved the long-looked-for breakthrough of the enemy lines and the final withdrawal of Russia from the war, in early 1918, released many German divisions which could be sent to the Western Front. The German high command thought the spring of 1918 would probably be their last chance to defeat the British and French before the build-up of American forces in France finally tilted the odds against them. A breakthrough of the Allied line might allow the Germans to split the British and French armies and push the British back against the North Sea coast where they could be destroyed. General Eric von Ludendorff, the German commander, did not anticipate complete victory but hoped for a situation where his enemies would be forced to come to the negotiating table. On 21 March 1918, Ludendorff launched his great offensive against the British east of the Somme near the town of St Quentin. It was a success and soon British forces were in rapid withdrawal back across the old battlefield of the Somme towards the major city of Amiens.
The five divisions of the Australian Imperial Force, now organised into the Australian Corps, had spent the winter of 1917–18 in Belgium. As this new crisis developed on the Somme, Australian units were hurried south to help hold back the German advance. On 27 March 1918, elements of the Fourth Division took up positions around Dernancourt. This village on the River Ancre is on the south-western outskirts of Albert which had been occupied by the Germans. On 28 March, the Germans attempted to resume their advance. In the morning mist the Germans came out of Albert along the railway line. They were initially single-handedly resisted by Sergeant Stanley McDougall, 47th Battalion (Queensland and Tasmania).When the Germans succeeded in securing a foothold in the Australian line, Sergeant McDougall, again single-handed, charged the German position. He killed seven and captured a machine-gun which he turned on the attackers, routing them and causing many casualties. He continued his attack until his ammunition ran out, then seized a bayonet and charged again, killing three men and an officer. Then, using a Lewis machine gun, he killed many more of the enemy and made it possible for thirty-three prisoners to be taken. McDougall’s action saved the situation and for his bravery he was awarded the Victoria Cross.
On that day, fighting spread along the whole front between Dernancourt and Albert. The 48th Battalion (South Australia and Western Australia) and the 12th Machine Gun Company supporting a British unit were strongly attacked but all attacks were beaten back. British and Australian artillery interfered with German attempts to rally troops and to bring forward support troops for further assaults. One German attempt to mount an attack was ruined by what Charles Bean, the Australian official historian, called ‘a rather strange occurrence’. As the Germans were massing for the attack, a chance shell caused an old British ammunition dump to explode. The noise was deafening and the Germans scattered. By this time the Australians, who had had three days and three nights of moving, marching, digging, fighting and little sleep, were nearly exhausted. However, rain which began with a drizzle in late afternoon, became heavier during the night and made further German attacks unlikely. The Australians were soon withdrawn from the line for a rest.
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On 5 April 1918, the Germans made a renewed effort at Dernancourt. The 47th and 48th Battalions, rested after the fighting on 28 March, were back in the line. Under cover of morning mist, and in the face of stiff Australian resistance, the Germans positioned themselves across the rear of the 48th Battalion. Using a railway bridge just west of Dernancourt, enemy soldiers managed to get behind the Australian outposts lining the railway embankment. The Germans brought forward a field gun to threaten the Australian flank to the north. The 48th Battalion, having held the Germans at the front, but faced with being surrounded, extricated itself in a fighting withdrawal. At 5.15 pm the Australian reserves counter-attacked and, despite intense fire, succeeded in pushing the Germans back, ending their action. Charles Bean described the significance of the actions at Dernancourt:
This was the strongest attack made against Australian troops in this war … On those two days [4–5 April 1918] here, and further north and south, Ludendorff’s primary and greatest offensive of 1918 really ended.
Charles Bean, Anzac to Amiens, Canberra, 1948, p.426
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© 2008 Department of Veterans' Affairs and Board of Studies NSW :: Last update - November 2008