The reinforcements the British had recently received enabled our Commander-in-Chief to comply with several requests that the French had made as to taking over additional portions of their line.
“In fulfilment of the rôle assigned to it in these operations, our army attacked the enemy on the morning of the 25th September. The main attack was delivered by the 1st and 4th Corps between the La Bassee Canal on the north and the village of Grenay on the south; at the same time the 5th Corps making a subsidiary attack on Bellewaarde Farm to the east of Ypres in order to hold the enemy to his ground; other attacks with a similar object were made by the 3rd and Indian Corps north of the canal and along the whole front of the second army.
“In co-operation with the French 10th Army on the right, the 1st and 4th Corps went up to the attack. A strong reserve was kept in hand owing to the great length of front to be assailed, and the general commanding the Second Army was directed to draw back the 28th Division to Bailleul and hold it in readiness to meet unexpected eventualities.
“Opposite the front of the main line of attack the distance between the enemy’s trenches and our own varied from about one hundred to five hundred yards. The country over which the advance took place is open and overgrown with long grass and self-sown crops. From the canal southwards our trenches and those of the enemy ran roughly parallel upon an almost imperceptible rise to the south-west. From the Vermelles-Hulluch road southward the advantage of height is on the enemy’s side as far as the Bethune-Lens road. There the two lines of trenches cross a spur in which the rise culminates, and thence the command lies on the side of the British trenches.
“To the east of the intersection of spur and trenches and a short mile away stands Loos (which is about twenty-eight miles south of Ypres). Less than a mile further south-east is Hill 70, which is the summit of the gentle rise in the ground.
“Other notable tactical points on our front were:—
“Fosse 8 (a thousand yards south of Auchy) which is a coal mine with a high and strongly defended slag heap.
“The Hohenzollern redoubt. A strong work thrust out nearly five hundred yards in front of the German lines, and close to our own. It is connected with their front line by three communication trenches abutting into the defences of Fosse 8.
“Cite St. Elie. A strongly defended mining village lying fifteen hundred yards south of Haisnes.
“The Quarries lying half-way to the German trenches west of the Cite St. Elie.