The British, according to the report of General Byng, on the first day's offensive, had captured in the neighborhood of 5,000 prisoners. Of artillery and munitions, great stores had fallen into the hands of the victors.
It was a great day for Old England and all her Allies. The victory was the greatest achieved by the Allies since the Battle of the Marne.
Cambrai was almost in the hands of the British. The importance of the victory could not be estimated at that time, but every soldier knew that if the enemy could be driven from Cambrai it would necessitate a realignment of the whole German defensive system in Flanders and along the entire battle front. With the victory the British menaced the main German line of communications—Douai, Cambrai and St. Quentin.
Around Lavasquere, formidable defenses, known as Welsh Ridge and Coutilet Wood, had been, captured. Flesquires had been invested and the Grand Ravine crossed. Havrincourt was in British hands.
Trench systems north of Havrincourt and north of the west bank of the Canal du Nord also had been captured. The Masnieres Canal was crossed, and the British had stormed and captured Marcoing Neufwood. East of the Canal du Nord, the villages of Graincourt and Anneux were now in possession of General Byng's men; while west of the canal the whole line north to the Bapaume-Cambrai road was stormed. Bonaires hamlet and Lateau Wood had been captured after stiff fighting.
East of Epehy, between Bullecourt and Fontaine les Croisilles, important positions also had been captured by the gallant "Tommies."
"The enemy was completely surprised."
This was the laconic message sent to Field Marshal Haig by the man who had led the British to victory, as he rested until the morrow. Along the entire forty-mile line the attack had been successful.
There were no American troops in General Byng's drive. The forces were composed solely of English, Scots, Irish and Welsh—a combination that more than once before in this war had proved too much for the Germans to combat successfully.
It was a happy army that slept on reconquered territory on the night of November 20,1917. Men talked of nothing but the most glorious victory since the Marne. They knew that the offensive in all likelihood would be resumed the following morning, and most of the troops turned in early that they might be fit on the morrow to make the foe hunt a new "hole." There was no doubt in the breasts of the "Tommies" that the following day would take them nearer to Cambrai and, consequently, Berlin.