On the evening of the 11th April, in a blinding snowstorm, the Battalion moved forward to the fight. Marching through Arras, they came to the caves at Ronville. These caves were like nothing seen before. Excavated by Spanish prisoners in the middle ages to provide stone for the building of the city, they extended over an enormous area, and were capable of holding thousands of men. The sensation of finding oneself in this huge underground town, complete with electric light and water supply, after stumbling down a long, uneven stairway, will not be forgotten by those who survive.
After one night here, the caves had to be evacuated next morning to make room for more troops coming up. The Germans had now been driven back as far as Wancourt, which was captured the previous day. On leaving the caves, cellars in Ronville village were occupied. No sooner were the men in, however, than orders were received to move further forward. The Battalion paraded on the road leading to Beaurains, which was crowded with vehicles and men, and marched off in the afternoon. After their experiences of trench warfare the sight of open, rolling country, the scene of yesterday's fighting, was very strange and, to some, invigorating. Passing through the ruins of Beaurains and Neuville Vitasse, the route turned across country towards Wancourt, and about dusk the Battalion reached a sunken road, where it halted. Owing to a delay in the arrival of the Lewis gun limbers, the Lewis gunners were behind the rest of the Battalion, and some difficulty was experienced by them in locating the sunken road. Up to this point there had been no firing or signs of activity. After a conference of Commanding Officers a relief of the 14th Division was arranged. W, X and Y Companies moved a little further up and occupied Niger and Nepal trenches, which were some distance behind the front line, and Z Company were sent to dig a trench a little further forward near Wancourt cemetery. Here they remained for the day. At night detailed orders were received for an attack at dawn, the Battalion's frontage being near Wancourt Tower.
At 1 a.m. on the 14th April the men moved to the assembly position in the dry bed of the Cojeul River, with the 8th Battalion in support and 5th Border Regiment in reserve, the 9th Battalion being already in a line just south of Guemappe. The original orders had now been considerably altered, and zero hour arrived before fresh orders had been circulated to the Companies. The result was that at 4.30 a.m., after moving in file from the assembly position to a bank, some 200 yards in front, the Battalion advanced under a barrage in four waves of Companies, W being front and Z in rear, with no orders except a rough indication of the direction.
As they advanced they were met by very heavy machine-gun fire from the front and from Guemappe in their left rear. W and X Companies reached the ridge 500 yards from the starting point, and passing down the other side, were not seen again during the day. Y and Z Companies also reached the ridge, but could get no further. Later they were joined by the 8th Battalion, which was also held up.
The fighting then died down, but apart from one brief message from X Company no trace could be found of the two front Companies, and the casualties in the remaining two were very heavy. To add to the confusion, the 56th Division on the right had lost direction, and men of the London Regiment were everywhere mixed with those of the 50th Division.
At dusk orders were received that the line on the ridge would be taken over by the London Rifle Brigade. As soon as the light permitted search was made for W and X Companies. Eventually the remnants consisting of 4 officers and about 20 men were discovered. Having reached a small system of trenches, they had organised their defence and successfully beaten off determined attempts to surround them. About 80 men were finally assembled after the relief, and more joined the Battalion during the next few days, but the casualties amounted to over 200, or more than 50 per cent, of the total fighting strength. The officers killed were Capt. Brock, Lieut. Richardson, and 2nd Lieuts. Greener, Payne and Newton, whilst many were wounded. Capts. R.S. Johnson and H. Walton, commanding W and X Companies, were subsequently awarded the Military Cross, and Corporal Betts the D.C.M. and Croix de Guerre.
After burying as many bodies as could be recovered, the remnants of the Battalion moved back to dug-outs in the Hindenburg Line on Telegraph Hill, which were reached, after a roundabout march, at dawn.
From these dug-outs the Battalion returned next day to the caves at Ronville, where it was re-organised and re-equipped ready for further action. After four days' rest it again moved up, on the 21st April, this time to dug-outs in the trench system known as "The Harp," the Q.M. Stores remaining in Arras, where on the 22nd April Lieut. Lewis, acting Q.M., was killed by a shell. In "The Harp" fighting stores were issued, as the Battalion was to be in reserve for the attack on the 23rd April. At zero hour, just at dawn on that date, St. George's Day, the bombardment commenced, and the sight of the gun flashes against the red sky as the Battalion moved forward will not readily be forgotten. After two halts in sunken roads orders were received to occupy Niger trench once more, but by this time the fighting had died down. Although constantly on the alert, no further orders were received, and after two nights there, the Battalion was relieved by the 14th Division and returned to Telegraph Hill. One night was spent there, and the following day, the 27th, it entrained at Arras for Mondicourt, from where it marched to billets at Humbercourt, arriving about 3 a.m.
Here a few days were spent resting and training, and on the 1st May a march was ordered to Berles-au-Bois, which was found to be a village of ruins without inhabitants. After one night there the Battalion marched to Riviere-Grosville, where the billets were quite good. Here Lieut. G.D.R. Dobson went to hospital, and Lieut. R.B. Ainsworth became Adjutant. Two or three days were spent there, and on the 3rd May a return was made to Humbercourt. Here very pleasant days were spent in training, particularly those on the range at Lucheux Forest, where elaborate field firing schemes were carried out.
After about a fortnight there the Battalion was ordered up in reserve for an attack by the 33rd Division and marched to Monchy-au-Bois, where the accommodation was found to consist of an open field in which was a trench line and much wire. Shelters were erected of ground sheets, and a few tents obtained, and in these the men lived for five days, training being continued. Their services were not required in the line, however, and they marched back to Laherliere. Here a long stay was expected, but the following day the journey was resumed to Souastre, where the Battalion spent perhaps the most enjoyable month in its history. The men were accommodated in a hut camp built round a large parade and sports ground. As a result of easy training, plenty of recreation and fine weather, the moral of the men reached a very high level.