On April 28, 1917, the British attacked on a front extending in an easterly direction from Vimy Ridge at its northern hinge and southward to the Scarpe River. Gains were made at all points attacked, and the so-called Oppy-Mericourt line which protects the Drocourt switch to the Hindenburg line was pierced again. An eyewitness stated that he saw no less than five gray waves of Germans blindly facing the British fire in an attempt to regain the lost positions. Torrents of British shells tore gaps in the German ranks, and those who succeeded in forcing their way through the barrage were mowed down by sprays of machine-gun bullets. Under this storm the German attack broke down. There was bayonet fighting at different points, and many Germans were killed by blows from rifle butts.
The Canadians, who had been resting since their brilliant work on Easter day, when they swept the Germans from Vimy Ridge, were in fine fighting trim. By a brilliant assault they captured Arleux-en-Gobelle and held the village securely against all attempts made by the Germans to recapture it.
Southeast of Oppy, the British took Greenland Hill, which overlooks the Scarpe Valley. There was fierce fighting north of the village of Roeux, at the chemical works on the Arras-Douai railway, which changed hands several times. The character of the fighting on the 28th did not result in the taking of many prisoners, for almost everywhere it was a struggle to the death.
The loss to the Germans of Monchy-le-Preux was regarded by them as a serious matter, and they were prepared to sacrifice any number of men to retake it. Late in the night of April 28, 1917, they launched two violent attacks against the British positions east of the town. Two new divisions had been brought up and were hurled into the struggle only to be literally torn to fragments before they could reach even an outpost. On this date also Gavrelle was violently attacked from the north. This was the fourteenth or fifteenth counterattack the Germans had made against the village, which failed as all the previous ones had done.
On the same date there were violent outbursts in the Champagne and Aisne regions on the French front, in which the Germans made no progress. The French gained ground and prisoners near Ostel in the Chemin-des-Dames area. German lines were invaded in the sector of Hill 304 on the left bank of the Meuse and a considerable number of prisoners were taken. At Auberive after a violent bombardment the Germans attacked in force, but were repulsed by the French artillery.
South of the village of Oppy, where the fighting had raged for several days, the British captured a German trench system on a front of about a mile. Here the Germans offered the most stubborn resistance, and after the position was won they launched furious counterattacks in the hope of smashing the British before they had opportunity to organize their gains.
The results of the fighting in this region could not be estimated by the number of prisoners taken or the amount of ground gained. The British had a difficult task to perform in assaulting positions protected by natural defenses, and held in strength with quantities of machine guns. After forcing the enemy out of the positions, and when their strength was well-nigh spent, the British troops were forced to beat off repeated counterattacks preceded by barrage fire and to destroy the enemy again and again. They encountered no more formidable conditions in the course of the war than in this region, for the Germans had machine redoubts on the slopes commanding fields of fire on both sides of the Scarpe River, and each advance made by the British exposed their flanks to enfilading fire. In the face of such deadly opposition the British still continued to press onward, forcing the Germans to pay a fearful price for Hindenburg's strategic plans.
On the last day of the month French troops in the Champagne made a new attack on both sides of Mont Carnillet, a commanding peak southeast of Mauroy. To the west the French captured several fortified lines of trenches from the heights as far south as Beine. East of the mount General Nivelle's men forced their way up the northern slopes of Mont Haut; and northeast of this position to the approaches of the road from Mauroy and Moronvilliers. This advance widened on the west and deepened the salient driven into the German lines between Prunay and Auberive, rendering exceedingly precarious their hold on ground east of Rheims.
There was no important fighting on the British front on April 30, 1917, and General Haig's troops were not ungrateful for the brief respite afforded them. The Germans did not attempt any important attacks owing to a shortage of ammunition and military supplies. From documents found on prisoners the British learned that there was a dearth in all war material and that the supply of new guns to replace those worn out was very limited. During the night General Haig's troops improved their positions between Monchy-le-Preux and the Scarpe River, repulsing a feeble German attack on the new positions.
While comparative quiet reigned in the fighting area on the last day of April, 1917, British airmen were active, and in the course of twenty-four hours a number of highly dramatic battles were fought in which the British brought down twenty German aeroplanes and lost fifteen machines themselves.