In spite of this success, however, and all the benefits which flowed from it, the general retirement to the south continued, and the German armies, seeking persistently after the British troops, remained in practically continuous contact with our rearguards.
Sir John French’s despatch of September 17 describes the operations of the British Forces on August 28 and 29:—
On that evening, he says, the retirement of the Force was followed closely by two of the enemy’s cavalry columns, moving south-east from St. Quentin.
The retreat in this part of the field was being covered by the 3rd and 5th Cavalry Brigades. South of the Somme General Gough, with the 3rd Cavalry Brigade, threw back the Uhlans of the Guard with considerable loss.
General Chetwode, with the 5th Cavalry Brigade, encountered the eastern column near Cérizy, moving south. The Brigade attacked and routed the column, the leading German regiment suffering very severe casualties and being almost broken up.
The 7th French Army Corps was now in course of being railed up from the south to the east of Amiens. On the 29th it nearly completed its detrainment, and the French 6th Army got into position on my left, its right resting on Roye.
The 5th French Army was behind the line of the Oise, between La Fère and Guise.
The pursuit of the enemy was very vigorous; some five or six German corps were on the Somme, facing the 5th Army on the Oise. At least two corps were advancing towards my front, and were crossing the Somme east and west of Ham. Three or four more German corps were opposing the 6th French Army on my left.
This was the situation at 1 o’clock on the 29th, when I received a visit from General Joffre at my headquarters.
I strongly represented my position to the French Commander-in-Chief, who was most kind, cordial, and sympathetic, as he has always been. He told me that he had directed the 5th French Army on the Oise to move forward and attack the Germans on the Somme, with a view to checking pursuit. He also told me of the formation of the 6th French Army on my left flank, composed of the 7th Army Corps, four Reserve Divisions, and Sordêt’s Corps of Cavalry.
I finally arranged with General Joffre to effect a further short retirement towards the line Compiègne—Soissons, promising him, however, to do my utmost to keep always within a day’s march of him.
In pursuance of this arrangement the British Forces retired to a position a few miles north of the line Compiègne—Soissons on the 29th.
The right flank of the German Army was now reaching a point which appeared seriously to endanger my line of communications with Havre. I had already evacuated Amiens, into which place a German reserve division was reported to have moved.
Orders were given to change the base to St. Nazaire, and establish an advance base at Le Mans. This operation was well carried out by the Inspector-General of Communications.
In spite of a severe defeat inflicted upon the Guard 10th and Guard Reserve Corps of the German Army by the 1st and 3rd French Corps on the right of the 5th Army, it was not part of General Joffre’s plan to pursue this advantage; and a general retirement on to the line of the Marne was ordered, to which the French Forces in the more eastern theatre were directed to conform.
A new Army (the 9th) had been formed from three corps in the south by General Joffre, and moved into the space between the right of the 5th and left of the 4th Armies.
Whilst closely adhering to his strategic conception to draw the enemy on at all points until a favourable situation was created from which to assume the offensive, General Joffre found it necessary to modify from day to day the methods by which he sought to attain this object, owing to the development of the enemy’s plans and changes in the general situation.
In conformity with the movements of the French Forces, my retirement continued practically from day to day. Although we were not severely pressed by the enemy, rearguard actions took place continually.
On August 30 and 31, the British covering and delaying troops were frequently engaged. In the districts of St. Quentin—Verdun and Ham—Péronne a battle was fought lasting some days. The special correspondent to the Daily Telegraph wrote:—
St. Quentin, the scene of the British fight on Sunday, August 30, was ready for evacuation a couple of days previously. On the British right the French force, under the gallant General Pau, scored a distinct success. On Sunday and Monday the Germans were hotly pressed near Guise, and the French, once getting the upper hand, hammered away at the enemy, and completely demoralised them. One German army corps was completely broken and thrown into the Oise, and, being cut off on both sides from their supports, lost fearfully, a remnant withdrawing and leaving enormous numbers of dead, wounded, and prisoners in the valley.
A captain of a French infantry regiment reached the Gare du Nord yesterday, with his left leg shattered by a shell; but the severity of his wound did not prevent him describing the battle of Guise as he saw it. “The Germans who engaged us were,” he said, “the élite of their army—the 10th Corps and the Imperial Guard—but our troops gave proof of their extreme bravery and of their marvellous dash. They received heroically the German thrust, and very soon took a vigorous offensive, which was crowned with success. The German masses were forced to bend back, and their losses were enormous. I am certain of that. When I fell, the German retreat increased, and our offensive movement claimed victory. But on our left the line was bent back to La Fère, and the offensive could not therefore be persisted in.”
The correspondent to the Daily Telegraph stated that at St. Quentin, when he retired from Landrecies, General French established himself temporarily in the Lycée Henri-Martin, named after the most patriotic historian of France. The English artillery covered the heights that command the town. It was a repetition of the battle of Saint Quentin of 1870, with this difference—that the enemy approached the town from another direction. For the space of ten days or so fierce and uninterrupted fighting took place between Saint Quentin, Péronne, and Vervins. A French artillery regiment was at a place called Catelet, between Cambrai and Saint Quentin. However, the German column, in spite of these attacks on both its flanks, one of which was driven back on to Guise a week ago, continued to force its way towards the Oise valley, and General French moved his headquarters first to Noyon, and then to Clermont.
The English troops were then deployed all the way between Clermont and Soissons.
On Monday, August 31, the Allies’ left was brought round and southwards, their headquarters being at Aumale, where General d’Amade, the hero of the French Morocco campaign, was with his staff.
A very vigorous effort was made by the Germans on September 1, which brought about a sharp action in the neighbourhood of Compiègne. The action was fought principally by the 1st British Cavalry Brigade and the 4th Guards Brigade, with a body of German cavalry, preceded by a light scouting column in the forest of Compiègne, and was entirely satisfactory to the British. The German attack, which was most strongly pressed, was not brought to a standstill until much slaughter had been inflicted upon them, and until ten German guns had been captured. The brunt of this creditable affair fell upon our Guards Brigade, who lost in killed and wounded about 300 men.
Another corps of German cavalry advancing on the opposite flank of the column pushed its line to the railway station at Anizy-le-Château, between Laon and Soissons. The enemy, however, found that the railway line had been rendered useless.