Current Information:

Age-23

11, Alexandra Road, West Kensington

Neuville-Vitasse Road Cemetery, France

The Battle of Arras was a series of offensives by the British Army between 9th April 1917 and 16th May 1917. It had been planned in conjunction with the French who would attack in Artois and between them the Allies would force the Germans out of the large salient they had held since the line of trenches was first established. But the Germans had spoiled this plan by falling back to the new and very strong Hindenburg Line in January 1917 and the salient no longer existed.  For the want of an alternative plan the attack went ahead anyway. It all started well for the British who made substantial gains on the first two days but then the offensive ground to a halt and by the end their losses amounted to over 150,000.

The First Battle of the Scarpe (9-14 April)

On 9th April, 1917, 30th Division attacked in the southern part of the battle front, just to the north of the River Cojeul. The assault by 21 Brigade on the left of the divisional front was made by 2nd Wiltshire and 18th Liverpool (Kings). Starting from the village of Mercatel, they first had to cross 2,000 yards of open, shell-torn ground to reach their assault position and not all of them made it. Their attack was not launched until 11.38 that morning and they then had two sunken roads to cross to reach their objective, both of them strongly defended. They reached the first one, the Hénin-Neuville road but in the face of intense artillery and machine-gun fire just a handful from both battalions managed to reach their objective only to find that they could not get through the wire there. Those who could made it back to the first sunken road. 2nd Wiltshire sustained nearly 350 casualties during the course of the day, one of whom was Albert Malster.