The Australian Victories in France in 1918

by Sir John Monash

Owing to the vacancy thus created, the Commander-in-Chief, with the concurrence of the Commonwealth Government, did me the great honour to appoint me to the command of the Australian Army Corps, a command which I took over during the closing days of May and retained until after the Armistice.

At that juncture the First Australian Division was still involved in heavy fighting, under the XV. Corps, in the Hazebrouck sector, and no amount of pressure which I could bring to bear succeeded in prevailing upon G.H.Q. to release this Division. It was not until early in August, 1918, on the very eve of the opening of the great offensive, that, at long last, all the five Australian Divisions became united into one Corps, never to be again separated. From that date onwards all five Divisions embarked (for the first time in their history) upon a series of combined offensive operations, the story of which I have set myself the task of unfolding in these pages.

The Australian Army Corps had by that time evolved from a mere geographical organization into one which, over and above its component Infantry Divisions, had acquired a large number of accessory arms and services, called Corps Troops, which formed no part of a Division. It is desirable for the complete understanding of the battle plans of the offensive period, to consider the extent and nature of the whole of the fighting and maintenance resources of the Corps.

These fell theoretically into two categories, comprising on the one hand those units properly designated as "Corps Troops," which possessed a fixed and unalterable constitution, and, on the other hand, those additional units, known as "Army Troops," whose number and character fluctuated in accordance with the varying needs of the situation, and with the requirements of the various operations.

These Army Troops, whenever detailed to act under the orders of the Corps Commander, became an integral part of the Corps, and were to all intents and purposes Corps Troops, until such time as they had completed the tasks allotted to them. The Corps Troops were multifarious in character, and amounted in the aggregate to large numbers, occasionally exceeding 50,000, a number as great as that of three additional Divisions, whose normal strength in the closing phases of the war never exceeded 17,000.

The Headquarters of the Army Corps comprised upwards of 300 Staff and assistant Staff Officers, clerks, orderlies, draughtsmen, motor drivers, grooms, batmen, cooks and general helpers. The Corps Cavalry consisted, in the case of the Australian Army Corps, of the 13th Regiment of Australian Light Horse, and was employed, in conjunction with the Australian Cyclist Battalion, for reconnaissance, escort and dispatch rider duty.

The Corps Signal Troops were an extensive organization, and controlled the whole of the Signal communications throughout the Corps area (except within the Divisions themselves), being responsible for the establishment, upkeep and working of every method of communication, whether by telegraph, telephone, wireless, pigeons, messenger dogs, aeroplane, or dispatch rider. Apart from telegraphists, mechanics and electrical experts in considerable numbers, adequate for the very heavy signal traffic during battle, and even during periods of comparative quiet, Corps Signals also operated two Motor Air Line and two Cable Sections, for the laying out and maintenance of wires. Those within the Corps Area, at any one place and time, amounted to several hundreds of miles.

The whole of the Mechanical Transport, consisting of hundreds of motor lorries, for the collection and distribution of ammunition, food, forage and ordnance stores of all descriptions, was also under the direct control of Corps Headquarters. So also were some half-dozen mobile Ordnance Workshops, for the repair of weapons and vehicles of all kinds. All these were permanent Corps Troops, but represented only a fraction of those serving under the orders of the Corps Commander.

Among the Administrative Services there was a large contingent of the Labour Corps comprising some 20 Companies, for the construction and maintenance of all roads, and water supply installations, and for the handling, daily, of a formidable bulk and weight of Artillery ammunition; also two or more Motor Ambulance Convoys, for the evacuation of the sick and wounded out of the Corps area, and a number of Army Troops Companies of Engineers, as well as two Companies of Australian Tunnellers, who were usually employed upon the construction and maintenance of bridges, locks, water transport mechanism, deep dug-outs and battle stations.

But the fighting units of the Corps Troops formed by far the largest proportion, and comprised Artillery, Heavy Trench Mortars, Air Squadrons and Tanks. The Artillery alone merits more detailed consideration. It comprised a vast array of many different classes of guns for many different purposes, and classified into various categories by reference either to their calibres, their mobility or their tactical purposes.