Western Front
Battles of Arras as part of the Allied
Artois and Champagne Offensive begin with
Battle of Vimy Ridge (see 14th) and
First Battle of the Scarpe 1917 (see 23rd and May 4th).
Mining operations in support of the Battles of Arras & Vimy Ridge:
To assess the consequences of infantry having to advance across cratered ground after a mining attack, officers from the Canadian Corps visited La Boisselle and Fricourt where the mines had been blown on the First day of the Somme. Their reports and the experience of the Canadians at The Actions of St Eloi Craters in April 1916, where mines had so altered and damaged the landscape as to render occupation of the mine craters by the infantry all but impossible, led to the decision to remove offensive mining from the central sector allocated to the Canadian Corps at Vimy Ridge. Further British mines in the area were vetoed following the blowing by the Germans on 23 March 1917 of nine craters along no man's land as it was probable that the Germans were aiming to restrict an Allied attack to predictable points. The three mines already laid by 172nd Tunnelling Company were also dropped from the British plans. They were left in place after the assault and were only removed in the 1990s. Another mine, prepared by 176th Tunnelling Company against the German strongpoint known as the Pimple, was not completed in time for the attack. The gallery had been pushed silently through the clay, avoiding the sandy and chalky layers of the Vimy Ridge but by 9 April 1917 was still 21 meters (70 ft) short of its target. In the end, two mines were blown before the attack, while three mines and two Wombat charges were fired to support the attack, including those forming a northern flank.
The ground battle (continues until May 16) begins at 0530 hours in bitter cold and sleet on 12-mile front. Allenby breaches third line of Hindenburg Line, taking 5,600 PoWs and 36 guns in 2,000-6,000 yard advance, but 4-mile gap open for 7 hours not fully exploited as cavalry too slow (until April 10). German PoWs are marched to the rear as British troops moved forward during the fighting at Arras:
https://i1.wp.com/ww2-weapons.com/w...Arras.jpg?ssl=1
British troops preparing to advance from their assembly trenches at Arras: © IWM (Q 5118):
https://twitter.com/CenturyAgoToday...9544449/photo/1
Edward Thomas, British poet, essayist, and novelist, is killed in action at Arras:
https://twitter.com/CenturyAgoToday...0952576/photo/1
BATTLE OF VIMY RIDGE (until April 14): After 3-minutes shelling by 1,203 guns (383 heavies) and with 150 Vickers MGs’ barrage, 30,000 men of Canadian Corps (Byng) storm the Ridge on 2-mile front and taking villages and 4,000 PoWs with 54 guns. North end of Ridge remains in German hands. The battle was the first occasion when all four divisions of the Canadian Expeditionary Force participated in a battle together and it was made a symbol of Canadian national achievement and sacrifice.
Canadian troops and captured German troops at Vimy Ridge: © IWM (CO 1155):
https://twitter.com/CenturyAgoToday...4630656/photo/1
Commandant de Peuty note to Trenchard ‘
Victory in the air must precede victory on land.’ Royal Flying Corps 754 (385 single-seater fighters) vs German 264 (114 single-seater fighters) planes. RFC (including Lieutenant ‘Billy’ Bishop) give strafing close support to ground advance. This is the most disastrous period in the history of the entire war for the Royal Flying Corps, as they flew in support of the ground battle, and suffered highest proportional losses of any month of the war.
France: Renault FT-17 light tank trials begin.
Naval and Overseas Operations
Irish Sea: US liner
New York mined (by
UC-65) off Liverpool.
Spanish steamer
San Fulgencio, carrying British coal for Barcelona, torpedoed.
Asiatic and Egyptian Theaters
Russians occupy Kizil Robat. British occupy Harbe (four miles north of Belad).
Political, etc
Russia: Russian Provisional Government (see March 14th) issue Proclamation to Allied Governments declaring in favor of self-determination of peoples (except of course, for those parts of the Central Powers’ territories promised to Italy, Romania, Japan, and to be occupied by Great Britain & France in the Middle East; oh, and Africa) and a durable peace.
United Kingdom: Admiral William Sims, United States Navy, arrives in England (see June 18th). Jellicoe apparently tells him on April 10 no solution now to U-boats.
Due to lack of supply, British beer prices have risen, causing disaffection among factory workers.
Canada: Total Canadian oversea enlistments to date:- 407,302 of which Ontario 170,205, Montreal 36,282, Quebec 8,145.
Brazil: The Republic of Brazil breaks off diplomatic relations with the German Empire.