Current Information:

Age-18

18, Holly Terrace, Whetstone

With an end to the fighting on the Eastern Front after the Russian Revolution, Germany was able to bring its troops from there to France and launch a series of offensives in the Spring of 1918, designed to bring the war to a swift conclusion. Four times between March and July they attacked in strength and on each occasion they broke through the British and French lines and made spectacular gains but in each case they over extended themselves and without adequate supplies keeping up with their rapid advances, they could go no further.

The first of these attacks, Operation Michael, was made on 21st March by 63 specially trained divisions, attacking along a 60 mile front held by 26 British divisions, many of them in a weakened state At 4.40am the German artillery opened up with the most ferocious and concentrated bombardment of the war, the likes of which the British had never experienced before. The Forward Zone, consisting mainly of individual posts was blown away. Very few of the men there made it back. Many were killed and many more were taken prisoner. The Battle Zone was also battered as were the British guns, firing from positions just to the rear. Brigade and Divisional HQs were targeted as well and then, from out of the thick mist came the German storm troopers. Moving fast, they skirted round the few remaining strongholds and penetrated deep into the British lines, including those of the Battle Zone, causing the utmost confusion. There were many cases of heroic stands being made but the relentless pressure forced the British back everywhere and there then began a general retreat that went on for two weeks and which ceded to the Germans a huge amount of territory, including all of that that had been won at such great cost during the Battle of the Somme in 1916.

On 21st March, 1918, VII Corps held an 8 mile front which ran along the top of a narrow ridge marked by Lempire and Epehy roughly half way between Péronne and Cambrai and had 13 battalions facing an attack by 10 German divisions. 16th Division were in a pronounced salient on the southern part of this front where 2 companies of the 7th Royal Irish battalion were posted in the Forward Zone, none of who succeeded in escaping. By 9.30am the Battle Zone defences in front of Ronssoy were under attack. At 1.30pm a counter attack was launched against Ronssoy but this failed and by the end of the day, despite the best efforts of all the units of 16th Division the overwhelming nature of the enemy onslaught had driven them back to the rear of the Battle Zone. According to records Frederick Smith of the 1st Royal Dublin Fusiliers battalion, 48 Brigade. was killed  between 21st and 24th March. On the latter date the battalion had been forced back as far as Froissy.