This was a battle fought principally by troops of the 12th Brigade AIF of the 4th Australian Division, in which my Grandfather fought, plus some elements of the 13th Brigade AIF. Some of the battalions contained a high proportion of South Australians along with some West Australians, Tasmanians and Victorians. There were also Battalions raised in N.S.W. and Queensland.
The German last major offensive of World War One, known as the KAISERSCHACHT or OPERATION MICHAEL was intended to take advantage of the temporary superiority of numbers due to the collapse of the Russian Army and the transfer of many divisions from that front to France. Although American troops were pouring into France their effect was so far negligible as they were untrained and ill-equipped. They held a mere 6 miles of the front line and had only one division ready to fight. This Offensive was therefore intended to defeat the Allies before the American troops could swing the numbers against the Central Powers. It was also obvious that the British Blockade was having its effect at home, resulting in starvation and shortage of materials. Reserves were also drying up and it was obvious that unless the war could be won quickly it could not be won at all.
By 1918, the slaughterhouse battles of mid war, were a thing of the past. Both sides had adopted new Infantry battle tactics, most of which were similar to those used in WW2 and ever since. The Germans had made this a specialty field in training large numbers of 'STURMTRUPPEN' who would infiltrate enemy lines with small infantry assault tactics. They had a variety of weapons from light infantry guns and mortars to light machine-guns, (of which many were captured British Lewis Guns), flame-throwers and large sacks of stick grenades. These troops were intended to clear the way for the rest of the Infantry who would mop up the remaining pockets of defense and occupy captured ground.
The weak point of this was that it took all the best troops away from the ordinary battalions and although some attempt was made to give these specialist training it had not become general and many of the line troops were "war weary".
British Side
On the British side, this problem had been foreseen and "assault training" was planned to be extended to all troops as time permitted, but this was incomplete at time of the offensive. The entire Australian contingent involved in the Battle of DERNANCOURT, had received such training, however and were also battle hardened troops. This would prove vital.
Some Australian Officers had attended British and French training schools where they observed the latest ideas for assault and defense, based on war experience. The training of some of the French assault groups had particularly impressed them. As a result of this they had drilled all their units in how to use Storm Tactics and also how to counter them. Instead of picked groups, the ANZACS were all expected to be "Storm Troops". This training left them more prepared for the German attack methods than the men of the unfortunate British 5th Army, which was over-stretched, despite being deployed in the new style of interlocking defensive posts and machinegun nests, rather than a continuous trench line.
When the KAISERSCHLATCH was launched, on the 21st of March, (Operation MICHAEL) it easily overwhelmed the British 5th Army and its French flanking divisions, all of whom were swept away by the ferocity of the assault and the new German methods. For the first time since 1914, open warfare broke out and the Germans raced toward AMIENS, apparently unstoppable. Hasty defense after hasty defense, crumbled and the war seemed in danger of being lost.
The Germans needed the road to AMIENS or if unable to capture that place, at least get close enough to bring it under artillery fire. This would have been disastrous to the Allied cause as AMIENS was the hub of their supply system, with roads and railway lines reaching out in all directions.
Advance
On the 27th of March, the victorious Germans were advancing on the River Ancre from the South and East, having completely broken through the British and turned to outflank other defenders. The Australian 4th and 3rd Divisions were rushed to the area of ALBERT to blunt the German thrust. The 12th Brigade was part of the 4th Division and arrived in good spirits and with its packs full of abandoned British food supplies, including Red Cross Parcels with fresh socks and luxury items such as chocolate. They had plenty of ammunition and were spoiling for a fight. Many troops were veterans and the force could be described as highly experienced troops, well trained but with a mixture of recently arrived replacements.
The air overhead was dominated by German aircraft and it was obvious that it could not be long before ground troops arrived. Lt. General Congreve ordered Major General MacLagan of the 4th Division to base his main defense line on top of the rises overlooking DERNANCOURT, but chose to use the prominent railway embankment as an outpost line to absorb the initial German Storm troop attacks, then fall back to the main defensive position. The river and town were considered not worth trying to defend as the troops would have their backs to water and swamp and it was the high ground that was really important.
Although this was obviously a sound idea, from the results of the battle, if was also fraught with danger. The hillside was open and exposed, so that troops moving back and forth from the top of the rise to the embankment could be seen and fired on by the enemy. Also if the Germans attacked mostly from the ALBERT end, they could 'roll up' the Australian positions on the embankment.
On the plus side in normal weather, the troops on top of the rise could easily bring fire to bear on any Germans trying to carry out such a move from the ALBERT end. Additionally, even if the Germans did take the embankment, the overlooking rise was sufficiently high that they would be unable to use it as shelter from the defenders on the high ground as the Australians were able to do against an attacker on low ground.
The Australian positions were therefore a series of defensive posts along the line of the railway embankment. These were mostly Lewis-gun teams with some infantry companies in support. Some efforts had been made to tunnel beneath the embankment and make bunkers but this was far from complete.
Behind the railway cutting was an old French trench, probably dug for practice in 1914. This was straight, rather than zigzag as would have been more normal and very dilapidated. Behind it is a sunken road, also partly turned into a defense position at some time by the French Army. The main Australian positions were however at PIONEER TRENCH and forming a half circle on the high ground overlooking the rises the Germans would have to come up. Across the face of the hill were three machine-gun posts which, being in very chalky ground, could unfortunately, be easily seen. One of these was in an old Chalk Quarry.
Repulsed
On the 1st of April, the leading German element, the Sturm-Truppen detachment of the 3rd Naval Division arrived and made an attempt to capture the railway crossing. This was very easily beaten off and the Germans either killed, driven off or made prisoner. It was obvious they had no idea the position was so well defended and the action was over in ten minutes. German troops could be seen on the other side of the River off and on over the next few days and ALBERT was abandoned by the British. Clearly a major attack could be expected as soon as the Germans had been able to get enough troops and guns into the area. Actually many of the German troops were slowed up through having captured so many Allied food supplies. They were very short of food and had not seen such luxurious stores in a couple of years. It proved impossible to prevent them stopping to load their packs and eat heartily, especially when their young junior officers were just as hungry.
By the 3rd and 4th of April, it was realized that German troops were hiding in the cellars and basements of DERNANCOURT when French civilians signaled to Australians at the embankment. Intelligence also revealed a very large number of German troops moving to the area and artillery being emplaced. Brigadier General Gellibrand of the 14th Brigade and Brig.General Glasgow of the 13th, expected the attack would probably be on the 5th. They warned their outposts to be particularly on the alert.
During the darkness before dawn, several German mortars fired shots that were considered to be 'registering the range' and the barking of dogs in DERNANCOURT suggested movement of German troops. Various minor skirmishes took place as outposts spotted Storm Troopers creeping up into their jump off positions and some artillery fire was called in. The situation remained quiet at dawn however and at first it seemed as if the Germans would attack another day. Then, suddenly at 7am, just as the Australian troops were eating breakfast, an enormous artillery barrage fell on their rear areas. Artillery and HQ positions were subjected to high explosive and gas rounds. Communications with the Embankment were cut and because of a morning fog, plus smoke and dust from the artillery fire, troops on the high ground could not see what was happening. The bombardment continued for two hours, then switched to a slower fire. In the considerable noise nothing could be heard from the embankment, nor seen, but at 10.35 runners eventually managed to get through and report that close fighting had been going on since about 9am. During the shelling buried, abandoned Allied ammunition dump blew up causing considerable temporary, panic and confusion to both sides. The worse effect of this was the added smoke and dust which made observation from the high ground even harder.
As feared, the Germans did attack from the Cutting end, and were attempting to roll up the Australian posts. The defenders were however under severe frontal assault as well and the advanced posts were in desperate trouble. The heavy machine-gun positions in the chalk hill could not see anything and were then surprised and taken from the rear. The smoke, fog and noise prevented them seeing Storm Troops moving in behind the quarry and although the defenders had survived a heavy shelling, without loss, were in the process of setting up their Vickersguns when they were hailed from behind and found the top of the Quarry lined with German infantry. Exposed on the lip of the quarry and being advanced upon from the front as well, they could do little but surrender.
Little Quarter
Little quarter was given in the vicious hand to hand fighting. Because the position at the railway embankment was unfinished and only intended as an outpost line to absorb the initial shock, the defenders had considerable difficulty in seeing the attackers once they entered the shadow area. The only solution was for some of the men to crawl forward onto the rail tracks and using them for cover, fire down on the Storm Troops who were trying to get up. Others knelt or even stood, in order to see the approaching enemy hidden in the gardens, orchards and hedges of DERNANCOURT. Their courage earned them great praise in the official accounts, but casualties were inevitably heavy. Had they remained concealed the Germans could have approached to within bomb throwing distance, almost unobserved.
The old French trench was as vulnerable as feared and the Germans concentrated on taking one end, which then enabled them to fire along it in enfilade, forcing it to be abandoned. At the underpass fighting was vicious and the Germans eventually penetrated to the cemetery although they found it hard to advance any further. As the morning wore on German parties kept attacking and though repulsed many times, eventually broke through in one place after another. By lunchtime they had taken most of the Embankment and mopped up, then severely depleted, turned for the main road.
The approaches to the civilian cemetery proved murderous and many Germans were pinned down in this position as the visibility improved and troops on the high ground fired on them. Only at this point however did the Germans realize they had now come upon the main Australian line. The fighting around the railway embankment had been so severe, that the Storm Troops made the mistake of thinking it was the main position. By then casualties to the German force had been extremely heavy and they were faced with attacking what was now realized to be the main defensive position, with their ranks considerably depleted. Probably hoping that it would be weakly held and that the troops they had overwhelmed in the morning had been the main body, they advanced on the high ground and the Albert to Amiens road.
During the afternoon they briefly took the sunken road, but were then driven back in a bayonet charge. Fierce hand to hand fighting took place and the German Storm Troops were became so badly reduced that they lacked strength to take their objectives. Attack after attack stalled in front of the main Australian position and eventually the German attacks ceased.
What was thought to be Cavalry was seen moving up behind DERNANCOURT during the afternoon and heavily shelled as the Australian gunners had moved their 18pdrs closer and could see further as the earlier fog, smoke and dust dispersed. The reports of Cavalry were erroneous but the Australian HQ feared an enemy attempt to either flank them of exploit a breakthrough if one of the attacks succeeded. The German mounted troops were wiped out by concentrated artillery fire, but were later found to have been horse drawn guns moving up to engage the main defensive line, not cavalry.
Withdrawn
By 9pm the Germans had withdrawn back across the river and the front line was static once again. The Germans had taken Albert after it was abandoned by the British and the offensive had almost reached the road, but a combination of severe casualties, failing morale and exhaustion took their toll once the attack had faltered and broken on the Australian positions.
The infantry fighting methods and general style, were not those that most wargamers think of as WW1. The fighting was of a very much WW2 and present day format, with squads and platoons formed around light machineguns using small infantry tactics. The massed attacks of the early war years were long gone by the time this battle was fought.
The Australian units involved were from the 12th and 13th Brigades A.I.F. These were the 45th, 46th, 47th, 48th, 51st, 52nd Battalions. They were supported by artillery of the 4th Australian Division, plus mortar and machinegun units. A small number of tanks were available to assist in the area behind the sunken road. These were mostly Whippet's.
The attack was the left flank of a German operation known as "SONNENSCHEIN" which involved their XIII Corps attacking to the North of Albert, while the XXIII Corps attacked DERNANCOURT. Forces involved were the 3rd Jager Sturm Battalion with supporting machineguns and light field artillery, while the bulk of the attackers were the 13th & 79th Infantry Divisions, 50th Reserve Division and the artillery of these assisted by that of the 17th Division. Each of the German Divisions had its own "Sturm" elements.
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