Current Information:

SDGW-01/09/18

Born-USA

Starting on 8th August, 1918, the Allies launched a series of offensives, collectively known as the Hundred Days Offensive, that resulted in the collapse of the German army and the end of the war by November. British, Australian and Canadian troops attacked across the old Somme battlefield and on the Arras front causing the demoralised German Army to fall back on a daily basis while the French did the same thing further south.

By the beginning of September much of the territory that had been lost earlier in the year,  when the Germans had made spectacular gains in March and April, had been won back but the Allies relentless pressure did not falter. The village of Épehy, just to the west of the Hindenburg Line, a formidable German defensive system proved to be a thorn in the side for the British Fourth Army in early September largely because it was defended by the Alpine Corps, a crack unit of the German Army. 58th and 12th Division made many attempts to capture it, and on more than one occasion they managed to enter it and the neighbouring village of Pezières, only to be forced to fall back through lack of support and stiff resistance. On 10th September it was the turn of 173 Brigade of 58th Division when the 2/2nd London and 2/4th London battalions attacked at 5.15am. Once again they managed to get into the village but the artillery barrage that preceded their advance had not been adequate and the enemy still had a strong presence there. As a result the Londoners found themselves surrounded and had to fight their way back eventually establishing themselves around a defensive structure called Tottenham Post. The one success of the day was when the remaining battalion of 173 Brigade, 3rd London, attacked the trenches to the south-east of Épehy which they captured and held. The fighting on this day resulted in many casualties one of whom was Edwin Price of 3rd London who was killed in action.