Tanks in the Great War, 1914-1918

by J. F. C. Fuller

On the 11th three important tank attacks were made, the first from Feuchy Chapel on Monchy; the second from Neuville Vitasse down the Hindenburg Line, and the third against the village of Bullecourt.

The first attack was eminently successful for, though only three of the six tanks which started from Feuchy Chapel reached Monchy, it was due to the gallant way in which they were fought more than to any other cause that the infantry were able to occupy this extremely valuable tactical position. Once Monchy was captured the cavalry moved forward. From all accounts the Germans, at this period of the battle, were in a high state of demoralisation, but notwithstanding this, as long as they possessed a few stout-hearted machine-gunners, an effective cavalry advance was impossible, and the only arm which could have rendered its employment feasible was the tank—the machine-gun destroyer—and as there were no longer any fit or capable of coming into action the Germans found time to stiffen their defence and to consolidate their position.

The second attack was made from Neuville Vitasse with four tanks. These machines worked right down the Hindenburg Line to Heninel, driving the Germans underground and killing great numbers of them. They then turned north-east towards Wancourt, and for several hours engaged the Germans in the vicinity of this village. All four eventually got back to our lines after having fought a single-handed action for between eight and nine hours. It was a memorable little action in spite of the fact that its ultimate value was not great.

The third operation, the attack on and east of the village of Bullecourt, is the most interesting of the three. All previous operations in this battle had been based on the timing and strength of the artillery barrage, the tanks taking a purely subordinate part. In the present attack the position of the tanks, as compared with the other arms, was reversed; for they took the leading part, and though the attack was eventually a failure, they demonstrated clearly the possibility of tanks carrying out duties which up to the present had been definitely allotted to artillery—the two chief ones being wire-cutting and the creeping barrage which, henceforth, could be carried out by wire-crushing and the mobile barrage produced by the tank 6-pounders and machine-guns.

The plan of attack was as follows: 11 tanks were to be drawn up in line at 80 yards interval from each other, and at 800 yards distance from the German line. Their task was to penetrate the Hindenburg Line east of Bullecourt; 6 to wheel westwards (4 to attack Bullecourt and 2 the Hindenburg Line north-west of Bullecourt), 3 to advance on Reincourt and Hendecourt, and 2 to move eastwards down the Hindenburg trenches. This operation was similar to the one already discussed in [Chapter VIII], “Tank Tactics,” and called the “Trident Formation.”

All 11 tanks started at zero, which was fixed at 4.30 a.m. Those on the wings were rapidly put out of action by hostile artillery fire; however, 2 out of the 3, ordered to advance on Reincourt and Hendecourt, entered these villages and the infantry following successfully occupied them.

In spite of the very heavy casualties suffered, the tanks in the centre had carried out their work successfully, when a strong converging German counter-attack, partly due to the impossibility of creating offensive flanks to our central attack, retook the villages of Reincourt and Hendecourt, captured the two tanks and several hundred men of the 4th Australian Division. The loss of the two tanks was unfortunate, for the Germans discovered that their latest armour-piercing bullets would penetrate their sides and sponsons. This discovery led to a German order being published that all infantry should in future carry a certain number of these bullets.

The interest of the Bullecourt operation lies in the fact that it was the first occasion on which tanks were used to replace artillery. It failed for various reasons—the haste with which the operation was prepared; the changes in the plan of attack on the night prior to the attack; the unavoidable lack of artillery support; and above all the insufficiency of tanks for such an operation and the lack of confidence on the part of the infantry in the tanks themselves.

Between April 12 and 22 all tank operations were of a minor nature. By the 20th of this month thirty of the original machines were refitted and on the 23rd eleven of these were employed in operations around Monchy, Gavrelle, and the Chemical Works at Rœux; excellent results were obtained, but no fewer than five out of the eleven machines sustained serious casualties from armour-piercing bullets, which had now become the backbone of the enemy’s anti-tank defence.

The general result of the tank operations was favourable, though the number of casualties sustained exceeded expectation. The value of the work they accomplished was recognised by all the units with which they worked. The casualties they inflicted on the enemy were undoubtedly heavy; in most cases where they advanced the infantry attack succeeded, and the highest compliment which was paid to their efficiency came from the enemy himself, who took every possible step to counter their activity.