Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux

Not to be confused with First Battle of Villers-Bretonneux.

Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux
Part of World War I
church of Villers-Bretonneux after the battle
Date 24 – 27 April 1918 Location Villers-Bretonneux, Northern France
Belligerents
British & British Commonwealth	German Army

The Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux came during the period of the battle of Lys, 24–27 April 1918, but was launched against the British lines in front of Amiens.

The Germans developed a small number of tanks, and used them in this offensive. Thirteen of their A7V tanks supported the advance, making it one of the biggest uses of German tanks in World War I (the Germans only built 21 tanks in total during the war).

It involved a successful counterattack by Australian forces against a numerically superior German force.

German attack and the counter-attack

The German attack was preceded by artillery, using both mustard gas and high explosive rounds. The Germans broke through the 8th Division, making a three mile wide gap in the British lines. Villers-Bretonneux fell to the Germans, and the main strategic centre of Amiens was under threat.

General Henry Rawlinson responded by launching an immediate counterattack by two Australian units – the 13th Brigade under General Thomas William Glasgow and the 15th under General H.E. "Pompey" Elliott, both previously kept in reserve, though the 13th had suffered in heavy fighting at nearby Dernancourt.

Rawlinson's plan was to use a pincer manoeuvre, the 15th Brigade attacking north of the town, the 13th south. British troops would support and would follow through in the gap between the Australians. Artillery support was available, but to achieve surprise, there was no preparatory barrage to soften up the German positions.

The attack took place on the night of 24/25 April 1918. The original time for the operation to start had been 8 pm, but General Glasgow argued that it would still be light at this time, with terrible consequences for his men. Glasgow stubbornly insisted for the operation to start at 10.30 pm, eventually settling on 10 pm. The operation began, with German machine gun nests taking some toll on the Australians. A number of charges against machine gun posts helped the Australian advance; in particular, Lieutenant Clifford Sadlier was awarded the Victoria Cross after attacking with grenades. The two brigades swept around Villers Bretonneux, and the Germans retreated, for a while escaping the pocket through a railway cutting. The Australians eventually successfully captured the German positions and pushed the German line back, leaving the German troops in Villers-Bretonneux surrounded and cut off. By the end of the 25 of April, the town had been recaptured and handed back to the villagers.

The Battle was a great success for the Australian troops, who had recaptured the town from forces that vastly outnumbered them, and stalled a major effort by the Germans to yet once again threaten Amiens. The village, which had switched hands between both sides, remained in allied hands to the end of the war. The cost to Australia was some 2,500 men killed or wounded.

A British observer, Brigadier General George Grogan VC, described it as ‘perhaps the greatest individual feat of the war’ up to that time. [Australian National Memorial - Villers Brettonoux ] [[1]]

First tank battle

A7V tank at Roye on 21 March 1918

A "female" Mark IV tank C14

After the Germans took Villers-Bretonneux, the first ever engagement between opposing armoured tanks took place. Three British Mark IV tanks had been dispatched to the Cachy switch line and were to hold it against the Germans. One was a "male" (armed with two 6-pounder (57 mm) guns and machine guns), under the command of Lieutenant Frank Mitchell. It was only crewed by four of the normal crew of seven as the others had been affected by gas. The other tanks were "females" (armed only with 0.303 in {7.7 mm} machine guns). All were advancing when they encountered a German A7V, No.561, "Nixe" commanded by 2nd Lt Wilhelm Biltz.

Biltz's tank fired on the two "female"s, damaging them to the extent that left holes in the hull leaving the crew exposed. Both retreated; their machine guns were unable to penetrate the armour on the German tank.

Mitchell's "male" Mark IV continued to fire at the A7V while on the move to avoid German artillery fire and the cannon of the German tank. The movement meant Mitchell's gunner had difficulty in aiming the Mark IV's six-pounders. The tanks continued to fire at each other on the move until the Mark IV stopped to allow the gunner a clear shot. He scored three hits, which disabled the German vehicle. The surviving German crew, including Biltz, alighted from the vehicle. Mitchell continued to fire at them as they fled on foot.

The British tank was next faced by two more A7Vs, supported by infantry; Mitchell's tank fired several ranging shots on the German tanks, and they retreated. Mitchell's tank continued to attack the German infantry present, firing case-shot rounds at them. Following this, a group of seven of the new British Whippet tanks arrived. The Whippets attacked the German troops, doing much damage both with their machine guns and by running them down. Mitchell later remarked that when they returned their tracks were covered with blood. Only four of the seven Whippets returned, the rest were destroyed by artillery.

Being the sole tank on the field, and slow moving, the Mark IV now became an obvious target for German artillery. Lieutenant Frank Mitchell's tank retreated, maneouvering to try to avoid the shells. A mortar round eventually disabled the tank's tracks. The crew left the disabled tank, escaping to a British-held trench, much to the surprise of the troops in it.

Lt Biltz and his crew reboarded "Nixe" and successfully returned to German Lines. The tank was eventually broken up for spares in June 1918. Earlier in the day, another tank in the same group as Lt Biltz , A7V No. 506, "Mephisto", had fallen onto its side and was abandoned. It was captured by Australian troops when they counterattacked a few days later. Today, it is the only surviving German World War I tank and it is preserved at the Queensland Museum in Brisbane, Australia.

Memorial

After the war, a memorial was established to honour the allied troops That fell in the battle. The Villers-Bretonneux Military Cemetery is located between Villers-Bretonneux and Fouilloy. It some ten miles east of Amiens, and is north of the straight main road to St Quentin. It rises from the road to a plateau, overlooking Amiens, the Somme Valley and the village from which the cemetery is named. The cemetery contains 2,000 graves, of which 779 are Australians. A further 10 Australian casualties are buried in the Villers-Bretonneux Communal Cemetery.

See also

• First Battle of Villers-Bretonneux

References

• The second battle of Villers-Bretonneux
• Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux
• Villers-Bretonneux, 24 April 1918
• Mitchell's account of the battle – excerpt from "Everyman at War" (1930), edited by C. B. Purdom.
• German Panzers 1914–1918 (2006), Steven Zaloga

External links

• Recreation of the tank battle on Youtube
• Multimedia Presentation of Villers-Bretonneux
• 90 years since the Battle of Villers-Bretonneux