ORDER OF BATTLE.
April—May 1917.
| H.Q.R.A. | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| C.R.A. | Brigade Major. | Staff Captain. | |
| Brig.-Gen. C. G. Stewart, C.M.G., D.S.O. | Major T. E. Durie, M.C. | Capt. W. E. Bownass. | |
| 156th Brigade. | |||
| Lieut.-Colonel B. A. B. Butler. | |||
| Adjutant: Capt. B. L. Oxley. | |||
| "A" Battery. | "B" Battery. | "C" Battery. | "D" Battery. |
| Major Lutyens. | Major M. A. Studd, M.C. | Major G. Lomer, D.S.O. | Major W. A. T. Barstow, M.C. |
| Major H. McA. Richards, M.C. | Major Barker. | ||
| 162nd Brigade. | |||
| Lieut.-Colonel O. M. Harris. | |||
| Adjutant: Capt. R. H. Pavitt. | |||
| "A" Battery. | "B" Battery. | "C" Battery. | "D" Battery. |
| Major G. Fetherston, M.C. | Major V. Benett-Stanford, M.C. (wounded). | Major A. van Straubenzee, M.C. (wounded). | Major W. P. Colfox. |
| Major H. C. Cory, M.C. | Capt. W. G. Pringle. | ||
| Major L. Hill. | |||
The strategical cat was now well out of the bag. A great attack, it was learnt, was to be launched upon the whole German system from and including Vimy Ridge on the left to a point well south of Arras on the right. The 33rd Divisional Artillery was to be responsible for the zone immediately south of the river Scarpe, and, after taking part in the preliminary bombardment, was to advance in support of the assaulting infantry so as to keep in touch with the foremost troops throughout the battle. With this knowledge the importance of a thorough acquaintance with the enemy lines was realised, and many hours were spent in front line and observation station studying the hostile wire, trenches and all the back areas. For wire-cutting and bombardment of the German front line our own fire-trench was the best place, and from it a very clear view of the objectives could, in certain parts, be obtained. In order to see the opposing support lines and back areas, however, a higher view point was necessary, and for this purpose certain ruined houses were utilised in the Faubourg St. Sauveur—an outskirt of Arras on the Cambrai road—together with the ruins of Blangy and some tall factory chimneys on the eastern edge of Arras.
The latter offered the most hair-raising experiences at times. On normal occasions the top of a tall chimney sways in a most noticeable manner with every gust of wind; when, as was often the case here, a deliberate shoot was carried out upon it by the enemy, and 5·9 in. shells were bursting around its base, it really seemed to the wretched observer, perched on an iron cross-bar at the top, that the chimney must sooner or later sway right over and break in two, even if a well-aimed shell did not by a direct hit effect the same result. Moreover the inhabitants of these chimneys, being quite near to the enemy trenches, had often the pleasure of hearing a shell, aimed at some object behind them, whisk past their ears in the course of its flight so close that it seemed inevitable that ultimately the chimney must be hit.
With the arrival of the working parties on March 27th real activity set in. Not only did the pits, platforms and dug-outs begun by the 15th Division require to be completed, but also accommodation for twelve thousand rounds of ammunition in every battery position had to be made ready, while the ammunition which was already there needed sorting. Moreover, the word was passed round to hurry—time was short, and the day of attack was not far off. Hurry, indeed, was the watchword, and for four days the men toiled unceasingly; on the 30th work was redoubled, for on that day the remainder of the gunners of each battery, which had arrived at Duisans the previous night, came up into billets at Arras and continued the work of preparation. In addition to making ready the battery positions in Arras, advanced positions were ordered to be dug and ammunition dumped just behind our own front line, whither the batteries would advance as soon as the first objective in the attack had been secured. This work was of necessity slow, for detection was easy and by day hostile aeroplanes caused a maddening series of interruptions.
On the 30th/31st the first guns of the Divisional Artillery came into action. "A" and B/156 (Major Lutyens and Major Studd) placed advanced wire-cutting guns five hundred yards behind Arras Cemetery, while Major Fetherston (A/162) put a forward section in the garden of a house on the eastern outskirts of Arras, with the task of cutting wire just south of the river Scarpe on the enemy second and third lines. Wire-cutting was immediately begun, and from this date the 33rd Divisional Artillery started to take its active share in the forthcoming battle.
By April 1st the remaining guns of the brigades which had been left at the wagon lines were brought into action. From their headquarters in 6, Rue Jeanne d'Arc and 34, Rue des Capucins, Lieut.-Colonel Butler, who had just been posted to the 156th Brigade, and Lieut.-Colonel Harris directed the work of the batteries, which was now exceedingly heavy. Work on the positions was still in progress, wire-cutting—always a slow business—was continued day in day out, ammunition needed constant replenishing, registrations had to be checked and renewed, and gunners and drivers were being instructed in the route by which the advance to the forward positions would be made. The brigades lay between the Baudimont Gate and St. Nicholas, and the advance from there must inevitably take the batteries over a canal bridge and through narrow winding streets before they could reach Blangy. Whether that bridge would be intact when the time came and whether the streets would not be blocked by shell-torn houses remained to be seen; the route was laid down for the batteries, and that route had to be known by all ranks.
On Wednesday, April 4th, began the bombardment proper, the five-day bombardment which was to precede the launching of the Spring offensive. In secret orders it was known as "V" day, the succeeding days being designated "W," "X," "Y" and "Z"—"Z" representing zero. From this it will be seen that originally April 8th was fixed for the attack; on the 6th, however, orders were received that between "X" and "Y" days there should be a "Q" day, for the attack was postponed for twenty-four hours and it was necessary that the code system should be continued. Each day had its own special programme with targets, rates of fire and hours of bombardment fixed. One day was devoted to the destruction of all woods, another to trench-junctions, a third to villages and cross-roads, and so on; the enemy front and support line and his wire were at the same time kept under continual bombardment by day and night, and every night prolonged gas-shelling of known and suspected battery positions was carried out.
The "village" day was a wonderful sight; all around behind the enemy lines great clouds of smoke and brick-dust hung heavily, in which every now and then further explosions took place. From Tilloy on the right—handed over to the mercies of a 15 in. howitzer—from Athies, Feuchy, Fampoux and numberless others these mighty columns of destruction could be seen rising, and the casualties amongst the enemy in the villages, which until now had been left more or less untouched, must have been tremendous. The enemy retaliation was not heavy; in fact, its weakness gave rise to the rumour that he, knowing what was coming, had filled his trenches with wire and had retired to a rear position. Patrols, however, proved the falsity of this, as did also the harassing fire which was intermittently directed upon the 33rd Divisional batteries, and which, although not heavy, was sufficient to cause casualties and give rise to great worry lest some of the vast piles of ammunition in the positions should be exploded.