Remembering the First Battle of Bullecourt in the First World War
On 11 April, we commemorated the 105th anniversary of the first of two battles fought by the Australian Imperial Force (AIF) at the small French town of Bullecourt during the First World War.
Following the battles at Verdun and the Somme in 1916, the weary German army withdrew their forces between Arras and Soissons to a stronger defensive position known to the Allies as the Hindenburg Line.
The small French town of Bullecourt was incorporated into an imposing 140-kilometre stretch of trenches, barbed wire, machine guns and artillery fortifications, which ran from Arras to Laffaux in northern France.
The hastily planned operation was to be led by British tanks, with infantry support from the 4th and 12th Brigades of the 4th Australian Division.
Unlike previous engagements on the Western Front, no artillery bombardment was to take place prior to the attack, a decision that would prove costly for the Australians.
The Australian assault was originally planned for 4:30am on 10 April 1917 but the tanks had failed to arrive in time so the Australians, who were laying in the snow covered field, returned to their trenches.
The attack began the next day, but the use of tanks was a disaster. Some of the tanks failed to arrive, and those that did either broke down or were quickly destroyed by German artillery, with only one tank managing to make it to the German frontline.
Despite this, the Australians managed to break through the German lines and capture two trenches, a feat considered almost impossible on the Western Front without artillery support.
An Allied communication error prevented artillery from shelling the German counterattack and German troops were able to get behind the forward-most Australians.
Cut off from reinforcements and with their flanks exposed, the men of the 4th Division were forced to retreat under heavy fire back across no man’s land to their original positions.
More than 3,330 Australians were killed or wounded during the First Battle of Bullecourt, while 1,170 Australians were captured – the largest number captured in any action during the First World War.
A second battle would be fought by Australians at Bullecourt from 3 May until 15 May 1917, with the casualties of both battles contributing to 1917 being the most costly year of the war for the AIF.
On this 105th anniversary we honour the men of the 4th Australian Division who fought at Bullecourt and all those who served during the First World War.
Lest we forget.
(Image: A scene in the Hindenburg Line, showing Australians with a Stokes mortar assisting in the operations near Bullecourt. The gun (covered by a German groundsheet) is on the left of the picture. The soldiers are 4858 Private A A McTaggart (left), who gained the Belgian Medaille Militaire for fine work during this action, and 5667 Private E R Carey (right). Both are members of the 2nd Australian Light Trench Mortar Battery.)