- 10th Apr
Placed at disposal of 4th Regiment AAA
Received orders to relieve the 10th Brigade at Blue Line
Stayed in railway cutting
Battalion strength: 18 officers, 418 ORs - 11th Apr
Orders to occupy Brown Line from Point du Jour to Cam Trench
Moved forward at 2 pm
Several inches of snow
Confusion about whether to send out a patrol - 12 Apr
Order for C.Os to meet at H15C55
Target for the day was to attack and take a line held by Germans to the east of Fampoux
Battalion crossed Athies-Fampoux rd at H15C95.55 and turned east.
Proceeded across ground towards Fampoux and entered village around 3.45pm
Started to move out of the east of Fampoux around 4.50pm but came under heavy machine gun fire from several directions
Attack failed due to machine gun
Furthest anyone got was Brown’s Copse (now a British cemetery)
Withdrew to a trench held by 4th Divn on the eastern edge of Fampoux
All companies report attack held up - 13 Apr
South African Brigade relieved by the 26th Brigade at 1.30am
4th SAI strength at 9 am: 12 officers, 207 ORs
Casualties:- Killed: 2 officers, 22 ORs
- Wounded: 4 officers, 172 ORs
- Missing: 6
4th SAI strength at 8 pm: 12 officers, 220 ORs
- 14th Apr
Gas shelled soon after midnight - 15th Apr
Relieved by 6th Gordon Highlanders
Returned to Arras
Men billeted in Hospice (des Viellards?)
Officers in 36 Rue Gambetta
The attack failed because of General Allenby’s failure to plan an effective barrage on the German lines ahead of the attack.
As a result of this fiasco, General Allenby was relieved of his command of the 3rd Army, recalled to England and was eventually given charge of the Egyption Expeditionary Force.
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