Good Battlefield Guide > Virtual tour of the 1917 battlefields of Arras
Sacred Ground: Following in their footsteps
"Men
fought like brutes; and hideous things were done
And
you have nourished hatred, harsh and blind.
But
in that Golgotha perhaps you'll find
The
mothers of the men who killed your son."
From 'Reconciliation',
by Siegfried Sassoon
Vimy Ridge
Vimy
Ridge is an escarpment with a gradual rise on the 'British' (West) side
and a steep one on the German. This view from the base on the Canadian
Memorial on the height (Hill 145) looks NNE. The twin peaks of the Double
Crassier at Loos can be seen clearly. In the middle ground are the industrial
towns of Lens and Lievin, now much larger than in '14-18. Arras is over
the photographers left shoulder. The dominance that this height provides
caused it to be the scene of much fighting.
The
Canadian Corps captured Vimy Ridge on 9 April 1917. After the war the
Canadian Government purchased the land. Much of it - like this view up
the gradual shell-pitted slope to the summit - was left undisturbed and
is still dangerous to enter. The twin pylons of the magnificent Canadian
Memorial are on the horizon.
At
the top of the ridge the trenches were very close together, and this
was a scene of constant and terrible mining, with both sides fighting
hard for possession of the crater lips that would give a local tactical
edge. Some of the trenches remain - set in concrete. Some of the mine
galleries and tunnels also remain and are open for visits. The incredible
and vast complex of tunnels is still being explored and mapped by experts,
for they still contain many secrets.
Canadian Cemetery No 2
Within the grounds of the Vimy Ridge Memorial are two military cemeteries containing casualties from the successful attack on the Ridge on 9 April 1917 and from later incidents here. In this one, No 2 Cemetery, lie 746 Canadian and British soldiers.
Givenchy Road Canadian Cemetery
The smaller cemetery in the grounds contains 111 Canadian casualties. The Givenchy road referred to leads to the village of Givenchy-en-Gohelle at the foot of the escarpment, rather than its more famous twin at the La Bassee Canal further north.
Neuville St Vaast / La Targette
Lying
100m from the road junction called La Targette (or Aux Rietz) where
the Béthune-Arras road crosses the Thélus-Mont St Eloi
road, the La
Targette British Cemetery is
dwarfed by the French National Cemetery behind it. 612 British soldiers
lie here, mostly buried when medical units were here between April
1917 and September 1918. The French cemetery is a chilling place; a memory
of death on industrial scale when our Allies fought here in 1914 and
1915. A similarly enormous German cemetery with 45,000 graves lies a little
further on the road to Arras.
Thélus
Zivy
Crater Cemetery
The area of Vimy Ridge was once scarred by the effects of much mining activity. 53 soldiers bodies were dumped in one crater when they were killed in the April 9th advance in 1917, and later it was decided to leave them there and build this pleasant cemetery around them. It is unusual but not unique, for Lichfield Crater Cemetery, a short distance away, contains a further 58 men - of which one, curiously, is a Russian.
Looking
from the lip of the Zivy Crater, west towards the British positions
of 1915 onwards. The buildings of Neuville St-Vaast can be seen on the
right skyline, perhaps half a mile away. The chalk mark running left-right
across the muddy field in the middle distance, in front of the telegraph
pole, is the old British front line. The whiter mark on the left is the
location of the Zivy Redoubt, a strong point in the British trenches.
Roclincourt
The
photographer is standing on a road running south-east from Roclincourt
along the German support line of April 9th 1917, looking south-west
towards the modern eyesore that is St-Laurent Blangy, nowadays a suburb
of Arras. The lane in view cuts the road at a position called Chantecler.
The two ragged clumps of trees and bushes each side of the lane as
it curves left mask the lips of Claude and Clarence craters, blown
under the British front line by German miners.
From
the British support line looking north-east, the chalk markings on
the ground around Claude crater are evidence of the mass of trenches
that were once here. It is a pity that these craters have been neglected
and are overgrown; they are also unpleasant spots, having been used
as a rubbish dump.
Bailleul Road West Cemetery
In the old No Man's Land near Clarence crater, this cemetery contains the graves of 98 men of the 9th (Scottish) Division. This formation advanced from trenches only yards away from this spot on April 9th 1917 (moving from right to left across this picture).
Point du Jour
Point
du Jour is an exposed position on the long crest of a low whaleback
hill to the north-east of Arras. A German redoubt here was the furthest
objective for the 34th Division, attacking from near Roclincourt some
3 miles distant on 9th April 1917.
Lying alongside the very busy Arras-Douai main road, some 780 British soldiers lie in Point du Jour Military Cemetery including a number of men of the Lincolnshire Regiment whose bodies were discovered in recent years.
This
30-feet high Memorial to the 9th (Scottish) Division, built in
a Highland manner from granite blocks, reminds us of the deeds of the
first Scots formation of the New Armies. Their fighting record, including
a successful advance along the north bank of the Scarpe towards Fampoux
on 9th April 1917, was second to none. "Remember with honour the
9th Scottish Divsion who on the fields of France and Flanders 1915-1918
served well" reads a plaque on the memorial. How many of the drivers
of cars and trucks thundering by on the main road spare it a thought?
The
fields surrounding the memorial are still full of Great war iron to
this day ... as well as the bodies of brave men. The dark shapes in
the grass are rusty iron; nearby were recently found several soldiers
graves, over 80 years since they died.
British
shrapnel shell cases at Point du Jour, May 2002.
St-Laurent Blangy
Containing
the graves of 1,294 British soldiers, Bailleul
Road East Cemetery was
expanded after the war by the consolidation of many small battlefield
cemeteries into a larger plot. It is adjacent to a German military cemetery.
Fampoux
Fampoux British Cemetery
Containing the graves of 118 soldiers who fell in the 1917 battle of Arras, this cemetery lies alongside 'York Lane', a track that runs along the summit of one of the gentle ridges facing Arras, between Fampoux and Point du Jour. Here the photographer faces west, looking towards the British advance, and some impression of the considerable height can be made from the distant horizon on the left of the picture.
From
the same spot looking south-west, the spire of Fampoux church can be
seen down in the valley of the River Scarpe. The land rises on the
opposite bank in another series of gentle ridges. The importance
of occupying this ground from an observation point of view is obvious.
Sunken Road Cemetery
Another lane runs north from Fampoux, this time towards Bailleul Sire Berthoult. For much of its length it is sunken below the level of the adjacent fields. British attacks crossed from west to east in April 1917, towards the Hyderabad Redoubt position and Roeux village. This ground was captured on the first day of battle, April 9th, by units of the 4th Division. 196 men lie here, many where they were buried as the battle moved forward.
Just
yards away along the lane towards Fampoux, this Celtic cross to the
Seaforth Highlanders looks out over the gentle slope down which the
2nd Battalion of that regiment, together with the 1st Royal Warwicks,
moved to virtual annihilation as they approached Roeux.
It
is difficult now to comprehend how this was once a scene of great carnage
and immense valour. Roeux lies to the right, down in the Scarpe valley
(a little to the east of Fampoux). The Hyderabad Redoubt lay in the
centre of the photograph. Devastating fire from the north (left) edge
of the village cut down the attacking British infantry in great numbers
- several times.
Level Crossing Cemetery
In this plot, along a lane running towards Monchy-le-Preux where it crosses the Arras railway a mile south of Fampoux, lie 405 British soldiers. Note the modern train moving towards Roeux (right to left).
Roeux
On
the edge of Roeux stood a chemical works, next to the railway line. It
was just behind the camera. Machine guns here, with their garrisons safely
sheltered in a complex of underground galleries, were in a perfect position
to cover the horizon (along which the sunken lane to Bailleul runs). It
is a little obscured by bushes now, but you get a reasonable impression
of the view that the defenders of Roeux had when confronted by British
infantry breasting the summit and coming down the slope (centre of picture,
horizon line).
The
site of the once-notorious chemical works is now a supermarket. The
post-war railway buildings which replaced those devastated in 1917
are themselves now redundant. Roeux station is now a just small glass
shelter.
Wancourt
Hibers
Trench Cemetery
Containing the graves of 138 British soldiers, this pretty cemetery now lies between a motorway and the TGV line. It lies in an area captured by the 50th (Northumbrian) Division on 12th April 1917, when they attacked the formidable positions of the enemy's Wancourt-Feuchy Switch.
Monchy le Preux
On
a foggy February day, the bronze Caribou still looks out over the centre
of Monchy village to remind us of the feats of the Newfoundland Regiment
here in 1917.
Also
in the village is this fine memorial to the 37th Division, recalling
their attacks here in the Spring of 1917. The bronze figures are life-size. Oddly
there is nothing to remember the cavalry, sent into Monchy when it
seemed a breakthrough was on the cards.
Croisilles
Croisilles
British Cemetery
Located a few hundred yards outside the village, in the marshy valley of the River Cojeul, alongside an old track to St. Leger. This is a post-war concentration of graves from the surrounding area, added to a plot originally started by units of the 7th Division after the captured the village in April 1917. Today it contains the graves of 1,170 British soldiers.
Bullecourt
The
main fighting line of the Hindenburg system ran through the village
of Bullecourt. Attacked by British and Australian units in April and
May 1917, it was devastated. The remains of many thousand men
lie in the area. There are also many vestiges of the trench systems.
This memorial, adjacent to the village church, commemorates the formations
that took part in this battle: the 1st, 2nd, 4th and 5th Australian
Divisions, and the 7th, 58th and 62nd Divisions of the British Army.
On
a lane just outside the village is this modern (1992) memorial to the "10,000
members of the AIF who were killed or wounded in the two battles of Bullecourt". Attacking
unsupported by tanks which failed to arrive, the Aussies fought magnificently
here.
Arras
A
beautiful town and a fitting place to end our tour. The square in
front of Arras railway station contains not only the impressive town
war memorial, but this reminder that the men of the Tank Corps fought
here in 1917, and their sons returned 23 years later."In
memory of the officers & men of the 4th and 7th Royal Tank Regiments
killed at the Battle of Arras 21st - 23rd May 1940 and their predecessors
of the Tank Corps who fell at Arras in the Great War".
We hope you have enjoyed this virtual trip around the 1917 Arras battlefields. How about taking another tour