Battle of the Yser
Morlancourt
March–May 1918
Sailly–le–Sec, valley of the Somme River, France, March 1918. [AWM E04667]
Popular memory of the Western Front in France and Belgium is dominated by images of mud, trenches and useless slaughter. Between March and September 1918, however, the operations in which the soldiers of the Australian Imperial Force were involved were fought in more open conditions on the chalk uplands of the Somme region. Although there were very many Australian casualties, these months have always been represented as the great period of success for the five divisions of the newly formed ‘Australian Corps’. From May 1918, they had been under the command of an Australian, Lieutenant General John Monash. Monash was knighted at his headquarters at the Chateau de Bertangles after the British success at the Battle of Amiens in August 1918, and he later wrote an influential book on his experiences titled The Australian Victories in France.
One of the first of these ‘victories’ was achieved in the upland area between the Somme and Ancre rivers west of the town of Albert. On 21 March 1918, the German Army launched a huge offensive at the British lines north and south of the town of St Quentin. The Germans aimed at breaking through the line and cutting the British off from their French allies to the south. Faced with the effectiveness of this stunning attack, British forces began a withdrawal and, by 25 March, were reaching back towards the key city of Amiens. The capture of Amiens would have been a disaster. In this situation Australian and other units were hurried south from their winter positions in Belgium to help stem the enemy advance.
On 27 March 1918, elements of the Australian Third Division relieved exhausted British infantry in the triangle between the Somme and the Ancre. They quickly established an emergency line about three kilometres west of the village of Morlancourt. The French villagers reacted very positively to the appearance of Australian soldiers many of whom had been billeted hereabouts during the Battle of the Somme in 1916:
In the French villages whenever in those weeks these hearty, stalwart battalions marched in they were met with striking demonstrations of affection and trust … ‘Fini retreat, Madame’, said a digger to a village woman as he sat grimly cleaning his rifle while the Third Division halted in Heilly on its way to the triangle between Ancre and Somme. ‘Fini retreat – beaucoup Australiens ici’.
Charles Bean, Anzac to Amiens, Canberra, 1948, p.415
At 4.30 pm on 28 March 1918, the Australians were ordered to straighten the line by moving to the ridgeline overlooking Morlancourt itself. They had only gone half a kilometre before being stopped by strong German resistance. The advance resumed again after dark in light rain but was once again brought to a halt by German fire. On 29 March, Australian artillery forced the Germans to abandon their defensive positions and, on 30 March, three determined assaults by a fresh German division were beaten off. This effectively stemmed the German advance in this area. The Third Division dug in and throughout April 1918 successfully patrolled towards German positions.
By the end of April 1918, the German advance towards Amiens had been halted and the Germans now concentrated their operations against the French further south. Around Morlancourt the Australians, when opportunity presented itself, continued to harass the enemy. A second action at Morlancourt was fought between 4 and 9 May consisting of a series of small attacks leading to the seizure of the new German front line in front of the village. After six and a half weeks in the line the Third Division was now relieved by the Second Division. When the war was over, the Third Division elected to construct its divisional memorial on the heights overlooking the Somme River to commemorate the significant role the division had played in helping to defend this area, and the city of Amiens, against the Germans.
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© 2008 Department of Veterans' Affairs and Board of Studies NSW :: Last update - November 2008