THE FIFTH ARMY in MARCH 1918 Ludendorff GERMAN OFFENSIVE Haig GOUGH Somme AMIENS

Description: The Fifth Army in March 1918 by W. Shaw Sparrow With an Introduction by Sir Hubert Gough This is the 1921 Second Edition (ex-Boots Library) A detailed account of the Operations of the Fifth Army on the Somme under General Sir Hubert Gough during the German Spring offensive of 1918 on the Western Front. Sympathetic (perhaps overly) to Gough, but still of use today and containing excellent maps. “On the shoulders of the officers and men of the Fifth Army was thrown practically the whole burden of holding up Ludendorff’s powerful attack, one which was as carefully and ably organized in all its details as it was weighty in its physical and material resources. As Mr. Shaw Sparrow shows by his figures of the divisions engaged, the great and main blow was directed against the Fifth Army, two of Ludendorff’s armies being employed on this task.” (from the Introduction) _______________________________________________ Author’s Note to the Second Edition THERE are persons who circulate the opinion that in March, 1918, the total Allied force on the Western Front was equal in numbers to the German power. Believers in the Versailles Council keep this opinion in circulation, but they never try to support it with evidence. They tell us that the French had 97 divisions; and we know that Haig had 58, nearly all in great need of drafts. Here are 155 divisions. Ludendorff had either 192 (the figures given by Haig), or 195 (the French figures as given by General Mangin). How do the Versailles folk fill in the difference between 155 and 192 divisions ? They do not say. On March 11, 1918, the American rifle strength in France was 49,000 men, and many of them were not yet sufficiently trained to be sent into a tremendous battle. Even if we count the whole of them, 49,000 rifles form only five divisions with ten battalions in each, and with a thousand men in each battalion. General Mangin—a very notable Fochite—has declared (La Revue des Deux Mondes, June 1, 1920) that Ludendorff had a superiority of 33 divisions, but without a reserve for their maintenance. Ludendorff was certain that he had enough superiority in both numbers and training to justify a tremendous effort. I believe that the Allies had in all not more than 162 divisions. Since this book was published I have received the lamentable news that Brigadier-General Dawson, D.S.O., who commanded the South Africans, died of enteric fever last October, while big game shooting in East Africa. There was not a nobler actor in the great drama of March, 1918. Some reviewers have accused me of "attacking" Byng because I try to show in focus certain events which belong essentially to my subject, and which hitherto have been either hidden or heavily veiled. Let me remind these critics that the Third Army has been used as a weapon with which to slay the reputation of the Fifth. Apart from this, what right have they to desire that history should be perverted ? A writer is certain to make mistakes when his subject is vastly complicated. Four errors of detail are corrected in this new edition. But to ask a writer to pass from unavoidable mistakes into falsehood is a grave indiscretion. W. S. S. 8th February, 1921 Front cover and spine Further images of this book are shown below Publisher and place of publication Dimensions in inches (to the nearest quarter-inch) London: John Lane, The Bodley Head 5½ inches wide x 8¾ inches tall Edition Length 1921 Second Edition [xx] + 333 pages + Publisher’s advertisement Condition of covers Internal condition This volume is both ex-"Boot's Library". Original blue cloth gilt and with the Fifth Army "fox" on the front cover. The covers are rubbed and scuffed. There is a discoloured patch on the front cover from the removal of an old "Boot's Library" sticker and further patchy discolouration. The blotchy loss of colour is, however, far more extensive on the rear cover, where there is significant variation in colour. The spine has darkened with age. and there is a shallow vertical crease down the centre, with two small splits in the cloth to the left of the Author's name. The spine gutters are very heavily rubbed and starting to fray. The spine ends and corners are bumped (heavily) and also frayed with further splits in the cloth. There are some indentations along the edges of the boards which, yet again, are fayed in places. This volume is both ex-"Boot's Library". The front inner hinge is cracked but has been partially re-glued. The end-papers are browned and foxed, with remnants of a lending schedule on the rear pastedown (and some pencilled numbers - please see the final image below). There is also the tell-tale Boots Library black mark on the underside of the text block. The Half-Title page is heavily foxed and there is further scattered foxing. The paper has tanned noticeably with age. The corners are bruised and turned inwards due to the heavy external bumping. The edge of the text block is grubby, dust-stained and heavily foxed, with the foxing extending into the margins. Dust-jacket present? Other comments No A well-used ex-"Boot's Library" example of the Second Edition, with extensive patchy discolouration to the covers, some occasionally heavy foxing and tanned paper but otherwise collated and complete. Illustrations, maps, etc Contents Please see below for details Please see below for details Post & shipping information Payment options The packed weight is approximately 700 grams. Full shipping/postage information is provided in a panel at the end of this listing. Payment options : UK buyers: cheque (in GBP), debit card, credit card (Visa, MasterCard but not Amex), PayPal International buyers: credit card (Visa, MasterCard but not Amex), PayPal Full payment information is provided in a panel at the end of this listing. The Fifth Army in March 1918 Contents INTRODUCTION. By General Sir Hubert de la Poer Gough, G.G.M.G., K.G.B., K.CO.V.O. PART I THE PRE-BATTLE: DIFFICULTIES AND PREPARATIONS, BRITISH AND GERMAN I. How to Begin II. On a New Front : Defence and its Limits III. Foresight, and Gough's Manifestoes IV. Haig and Ludendorff : their Contests in Pre-Battle Affairs V. Other Pre-Battle Contests of Mind, with some of their Effects VI. Was the Fog a Hindrance to the Fifth Amy's Defence ? PART II THE BATTLE IN ITS MAIN ASPECTS I. German Shells and British Redoubts : the First Day of Oskar von Hutier's attack II. Hutier's Attack moves on to be Baffled III. The Centre Fighting North and South of the Vermand-Amiens Road IV. The Centre Fighting, continued: Framerville, Cerisy, Harbonnieres, and other Combats IV. The Northern Attacks : Preliminary Points and Questions VI. The Joint Attack by Marwitz and Otto von Below : the First Day's Battle VII. Marwitz and Below continue their Joint Attacks VIII. Some Points and Cross-Questions raised by the Foregoing Chapters IX. Saturday and Sunday in the Northern Fighting X. Last Days of the Northern Fighting PART III THE BATTLE IN SOME CHOSEN INCIDENTS AND EPISODES I. A few Scattered Impressions II. Dawson's Five Hundred. How the South Africans were Overwhelmed Sunday, March 24, 1918 III. A few Letters written by Officers of the Sixty-first Division PART IV AFTERMATH, INCLUDING CONTROVERSIES, SIDE ISSUES, AND POLITICAL EFFECTS I. On the Loss of Peronne and Bapaume II. The Transfer of Fifth Army Troops to the Third Army III. Origin of the Cerisy Episode IV. How our Men were Believed in their Grapple against Hutier V. Unity of Command VI. The Troubles of Ministers VII. Some Side Issues and Political Effects VIII. Widespread Injustice and the People's Equity INDEX SKETCH MAPS INSET PLATES 1. March 21, 1918: Approximate Order of Battle, British and German 2. Maxse's Corps, with its Forward and Battle Zones, its Brigades and Battalions, and the Gorman Corps and Divisions 3. Attack on the Fourteenth Division, March 21. Hutier breaks through the Battle Zone, but fails in his effort to cross the Crozat Canal 4. The Cerisy Drama and the very important Combat of Harbonnieres 5. The Boundary uniting Byng and Gough 6. Front of the Ninth Division and the Entrenched Land north and south of it 7. March 21 and 22: German advance to the Peronne Bridgehead, north and south of the Vermand-Amiens Road 8. Map to show how Divisions from the Fifth Army on March 26 formed the Third Army's Right Wing IN THE TEXT 1. Sketch Map on which the German Plans can be followed 2. Brigades of the Sixty-first Division, with the Forward Zone and its Redoubts 3. Front of the Eighteenth Division at 6 p.m. of March 21 4. Malcolm's Front after Colonel Little's arrival, March 26, 1918 5. Flesquieres Salient, March 21, 1918, with the German Divisions, and the Land lost by our Third Army north-west of the Salient 6. Zone Map, Northern Fighting. 7. South African Front, March 21, 1918, and the Land held below it by the Twenty-first Division 8. Cavalry Fight at Collezy, March 24, 1918 9. Last Stand of the South African Brigade 10. The Nesle Sector 11. The Crisis north-west of the Ancre, March 26, 1918 The Fifth Army in March 1918 Introduction by General Sir Hubert de la P. Gough G.C.M.G., K.G.B., K.C.V.O. When Mr. Shaw Sparrow first asked me to write an Introduction to his book, I refused, because I felt the subject was too personal to myself. Then I saw the following in the Morning Post :— "IN MEMORIAM. " To the glorious and undying memory of the Heroes of the Fifth Army who gave their lives for Britain, March 21st-22nd, 1918. " We thank God upon every remembrance of you. " Lest we forget." After reading this remembrance I felt that my personal inclinations did not count, and that I owed it "to the glorious and undying memory" of my Comrades of the Fifth Army, living as well as dead, to help to throw on their heroism the light which has been so long withheld. I write this Introduction, then, in a full regard of their Memories and in no sense of my own capacity. On the shoulders of the officers and men of the Fifth Army was thrown practically the whole burden of holding up Ludendorff's powerful attack, one which was as carefully and ably organized in all its details as it was weighty in its physical and material resources. As Mr. Shaw Sparrow shows by his figures of the divisions engaged, the great and main blow was directed against the Fifth Army, two of Ludendorff's armies being employed on this task. Thus, the fate of France, of Great Britain, of Europe, rested with those few men who composed the Fifth Army, and who, perforce scattered and unsupported, were worn and exhausted by strain and fatigue for nights and days in succession, yet still fought on against the numbers which tried to overwhelm their defence. There may have been men who showed weakness, indeed there were, and some others made mistakes; but it must not be overlooked that though they might be British soldiers, they were also human beings. For no one to fail would have been beyond the power of human effort. And when we look at the picture in its broad lines and see the numbers of divisions engaged by all parties in the drama, then with no more than justice we can assert that no soldiers of any nation ever displayed so richly the military virtues of courage, endurance, and staunchness under a strain so long and so terrible. We have been brought up to admire and praise "the thin Red Line" which so often stayed the foe. Never was the Red Line so thin as the Khaki Line which manned the long front of forty-two miles for which the Fifth Army was responsible on March 21, 1918. Mr. Shaw Sparrow discusses the reason for the thinness of our line here—a thinness known to Ludendorff— and makes some valuable and interesting observations. The people of Great Britain, not to say those of all the Allies, owe the officers and men of the Fifth Army a debt of gratitude which neither words nor deeds can sufficiently repay. Unfortunately, owing to a variety of causes, to some of which Mr. Shaw Sparrow refers, my countrymen, with few exceptions (confined principally to those bereaved ones who lost their dearest and best), have not shown an appreciation of the splendid deeds of these men. This book throws some clear and true light on what they were called upon to do, and how they did it, and it is my sincere hope that my countrymen will realize from reading its pages the splendour and the achievement of the soldiers of the Fifth Army. Mr. Shaw Sparrow has written a clear and powerful narrative. His book gives proof of much research, and he is in possession of valuable information which, I believe, will be mainly new to the general public. From the point of view of history, he writes clearly and lucidly of the broad outlines of the story, and of the several absorbing questions of military policy and strategy which centre round this tremendous battle. But he does not confine himself to the mere recital of the main events and their causes. He adds drama and reality to the tale by many personal anecdotes which vivify the story and give it life, enabling the reader to judge what manner of men these were who were called on to face the storm. The one would not be complete without the other. Plans, organization of preparation, and the orders of the higher Commanders and Staffs of all forces engaged in a great battle, have undoubtedly an enormous influence, often a decisive one; but in this world we can never escape, least of all in a battle, from the human element. It is these touches which Mr. Shaw Sparrow has introduced into his book which make his whole picture so real and gives it such value. Whatever the plans may be, and whatever the preparations and orders, it is inevitable that the conduct of the officers and men actually engaged in a great struggle should be of the utmost importance. It was so in this case, and to a greater degree than is usual, for as a mere military problem on paper, the battle was prodigious. The troops of the Fifth Army were exposed in such scanty numbers to an attack so well organized and so formidable that, without exaggeration it can be said, they seemed to have no chance whatever of saving the situation. Yet they did save it, and that they succeeded is due entirely to the truly wonderful and magnificent manner in which they fought and fought on. Courage to face terrific dangers for a few hours would not have sufficed. Their claim to honour rests on a much greater foundation than this, since they supported fatigue and exhaustion through days and nights, and yet maintained throughout their courage and their " will to act." We wonder how they did it. I can only surmise that it came from the great and gallant spirit that animated the Fifth Army, super-imposed on the virtues of honour and self-sacrifice which are the heritage of all our race. Mr. Shaw Sparrow enables us in his pages to see glimpses of the magnificent human element on which depended in the last resort the safety of the Cause. It was this element that imposed strategical failure on Ludendorff. It maintained intact an ever thinning line, a line that perished, yet remained cheerful; kept it intact in front of the German masses which strove to surge forward and to submerge rapidly all the country beyond. These masses hoped to take Amiens and Abbeville, in order to pin us against the sea; they wished to take Paris also, and (perhaps the most potent influence of all) they yearned to end the war, in a victorious peace. Let me say, too, that the Commander-in-Chief has added a footnote to his republished account of the battle, in which the fine temper of the Fifth Army is summed up truly and vividly:— " A marked feature of almost all reports sent in by liaison officers during the battle was the good spirit of the men in the fighting line, and their confidence that they had given a good account of themselves. The following passage from the report of an officer who visited the front south of the Somme on the 28th of March is worth quoting, as giving a first-hand impression of the spirit prevailing at that time:— ' From what I saw and from the people with whom I talked, there seems little doubt that although our men are dog-tired they have not lost heart, and I was told that they are all convinced that we are winning. During the earlier stages of the battle they fought exceedingly well, and killed large numbers of the enemy. Even now portions of the line are putting up a very good fight, and even at times counterattacking with success. Divisions are very much disorganized, and have with them men of all sorts of divisions, and all Divisional Commanders with whom I have spoken have said that once they are able to reorganize they think they will find their divisions much stronger than they expect. ... I have not heard any grousing from anybody.'" Why my country failed to realize or to appreciate the splendid valour and great results achieved, by the men of the Fifth Army is a difficult and perhaps a delicate matter for me to touch upon. The fact certainly was that London Clubs and Drawing-rooms, and the columns of our Press, were filled with the most extraordinary stories. It is of no public interest to repeat those- tales now, or to attempt to refute them; truth is slowly emerging, and with the truth we can rely on the people's innate sense of justice and fair judgment. Can we wonder that the country failed to estimate the truth when a Minister of the Crown, who was in a position to winnow facts from foolish rumours, could repeat, even to me, that " the troops left their positions on many occasions without sufficient reason " ? If such was the case, it was Certainly not true of the troops of the Fifth Army, as is sufficiently proved by the numbers who remained " in their positions" and are buried there. But fear does not make men either just or generous; it is only the greatest and the noblest characters who can maintain these qualities under such conditions, and there is no doubt that our Ministers and others were torn with fear during those fateful weeks. The Prime Minister is responsible probably more than most others for the slurs that were cast on the Fifth Army, for in his speech in the House of Commons on April 9 he made some peculiar comments. Though he declared that he did not wish to say anything unjust, and though he paid a tribute to the gallantry of the whole British Army, yet by implication, if not also by directly inaccurate statements, he made various charges against the Fifth Army. Not one of them can be supported by facts, yet none of them has yet been withdrawn. Among our representatives in the House of Commons is there not a single man who will rise and tell the whole truth while challenging the implications (to use no severer term) put into circulation by the Prime Minister ? The impressions created by the Prime Minister's speech were these : (1) that the enemy broke through the resistance of the Fifth Army; (2) that the organization of all and every means to stern the torrent was neglected by the Staff of the Fifth Army, and that it was left to the fortunate initiative of General Carey to save at least one critical situation; (3) that the line of the Somme was abandoned before the Germans brought up their guns; (4) that the bridges were not adequately destroyed; (5) that the Third Army held, " never giving way 100 yards, and that their retirement took place in order to conform to a retreat on their right flank." Readers of Mr. Shaw Sparrow's book will find the true answers to all these " tales." Of special interest will be the fact which he brings out that the Third Army retired because it was obliged to by the position and losses of its own troops; and that if it could only have held its ground, threatening the German right flank along the boundary uniting the Fifth and Third Armies, such action would have been pregnant of most advantageous results, relieving greatly the strain on the hard-pressed Fifth Army, whose urgent need of more men should have been stated by the Prime Minister. It will also appear from these pages that the Fifth Army did not withdraw from the Somme in the Peronne sector till the Third Army was some six miles behind its left. This fact is equally clear in the large coloured map of the retreat given by Lord Haig in the second volume of his " Dispatches." Between March 24 and 27 the Third Army's right was constantly west of the Fifth's left. Mi*. Shaw Sparrow discusses in an interesting manner some grave questions of generalship. I do not say I agree with all his deductions, but he has at least placed before the reader all the facts, including the numbers of the divisions on all sides, so the reader should be able to arrive at correct conclusions for himself. As regards the positions and movement of reserves, he presents both to civilians and to military students a problem of intense interest and importance. I do not propose to discuss this question at length. Both British G.H.Q. and French G.Q.G. had a difficult task. They had many diverging interests to protect, and the arrangements for co-ordinating their efforts, which were in the hands of an Executive Committee of Allied Generals speaking different languages and responsible to different Governments, were not such as to commend themselves to students of war. It was easy for Ludendorff to play upon their fears, and in fact he seems to have been rather too successful in doing so. This will be realized when it is seen that the French Reserves were grouped behind (a) Reims, (b) Verdun, (c) Belfort, to meet an attack through Switzerland! The British Reserves were grouped behind Ypres and Arras. The one part of the line behind which there were no general reserves was behind the long forty-two-mile front of the Fifth Army. It was quite apparent to the Fifth Army that they were going to be the object of a great attack, and fortunately they were as ready as their small resources would permit. The general situation, however, made it necessary that we should run no risks in the north, where we had little room to spare between the German lines and the Channel ports. Therefore, until he knew definitely that the attack on the Fifth Army was to be the main attack, Sir Douglas Haig felt compelled to keep reserves in the north. To the Fifth Army, therefore, fell the role of sacrificing itself for the common good in order to gain time for the transfer of the distant reserves to the battlefield. This is an operation of war which has often been carried out before, and is often one of the most brilliant combinations of strategy. It is always a very difficult task, and entails heavy loss on the force to which it is entrusted. " La manoeuvre en retraite" is usually the only correct course to adopt on these occasions, for the essential thing is to gain time, to delay the enemy, and not to secure territory. It is essential also to preserve the containing force from overwhelming defeat, as of course, if it is once overwhelmed, the enemy becomes free of all his movements, and he can gain ground rapidly. In this case, the task set the officers and men of the Fifth Army was particularly hard by reason of the great disproportion in numbers which existed between the opposing forces. A study of Mr. Shaw Sparrow's pages and his maps will show that the task imposed on the Fifth Army was fulfilled, in spite of its immense difficulties, and in fact it is difficult to recall from history a case in which a force has better fulfilled that extremely difficult and dangerous role. It was bitter, therefore, to the officers and men of the Fifth Army, but more particularly to the families of those who gave their lives in these dark days of struggle, to hear the misconceptions which were so freely bandied about of their action and their conduct, and the hard judgments passed upon them. For various reasons my troops had taken over a part of the line held by the French Army. It may have been understood by the British G.H.Q. that the French would be solely responsible on my front for all supports and reserves; but certainly it was not my impression that all my supports and reserves should come from French sources, though a plan of gradual relief by French troops had been worked out, commencing from the South. When I relieved the Third French Army under General Humbert, it was withdrawn and posted round Clermont. There I thought it remained. In reality all the divisions of the French Army were ordered away and posted elsewhere, General Humbert and his Staff alone remaining. During the battle, when General Humbert arrived at my Headquarters to support the line, and eventually to take it over as previously arranged, I said I was very glad to see him, as my men were struggling against terrific odds. He replied, however, " Mais je n'ai que mon fanion," referring to the small flag on his motor-car. This was not exactly the amount of support that the moment seemed to require. The difficulties and disorganization caused by the hurried return of French divisions from distant parts of the theatre are referred to by Mr. Shaw Sparrow. One French Corps Staff arrived with a few candles for a dozen Staff Officers simultaneously to study maps and write orders. Verily we all had to improvise much. Whatever the cause, the actual result anyhow was that by Sunday, March 24, I believe I am correct in saying, three British divisions had reached the Third Army, while the fourth to arrive was sent to me, and was able to get hurriedly into action that morning, but without previous reconnaissance. This was the 8th Division, coming from the vicinity of Ypres, viz. the left of the British line, whereas the danger which the Fifth Army was struggling to meet as best it could with its most inadequate resources was on the extreme right of our line. Mr. Shaw Sparrow justly criticizes the distance which the 50th and 20th Divisions were from the front when the battle opened. They were my local supports, though still retained under the orders of G.H.Q., for reasons previously given by the C.G.S. to myself. Mr, Shaw Sparrow's book is a serious and valuable contribution to History, and the British public owe him a debt of gratitude for a task of considerable research and ability which does justice to British soldiers, and elucidates and di; ensues in a clear and interesting manner the different cause:, which influenced the battle, showing a real appreciation of strategical principles, worthy of the consideration of All military students. H. P. GOUGH. Please note: to avoid opening the book out, with the risk of damaging the spine, some of the pages were slightly raised on the inner edge when being scanned, which has resulted in some blurring to the text and a shadow on the inside edge of the final images. Colour reproduction is shown as accurately as possible but please be aware that some colours are difficult to scan and may result in a slight variation from the colour shown below to the actual colour. In line with eBay guidelines on picture sizes, some of the illustrations may be shown enlarged for greater detail and clarity. This volume is both ex-"Boot's Library". The front inner hinge is cracked but has been partially re-glued. The end-papers are browned and foxed, with remnants of a lending schedule on the rear pastedown (and some pencilled numbers - please see the final image below). U.K. buyers: To estimate the “packed weight” each book is first weighed and then an additional amount of 150 grams is added to allow for the packaging material (all books are securely wrapped and posted in a cardboard book-mailer). The weight of the book and packaging is then rounded up to the nearest hundred grams to arrive at the postage figure. 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Binding: Hardback

Place of Publication: London

Non-Fiction Subject: History & Military

Language: English

Special Attributes: Ex-Library

Author: Walter Shaw Sparrow

Publisher: John Lane, The Bodley Head

Year Printed: 1921