Page:Generals of the British Army.djvu/12

 manner of engagements were fought out in that area. Some positions were carried at the point of the bayonet. Others were encircled so that the garrisons had to evacuate them or choose between annihilation and capture. But, by whatever means, one fell after another. The experience gained was assimilated and the armies marched from strength to strength. On at least one occasion the British were only cheated of a decisive and overwhelming victory by an unkindly fate that brought bad weather when the armies were straining to go forward. A flank was opened in the German lines and through it the German army steadily bled away until an unwonted prudence conquered Prussian pride and the great strategic retreat was carried out. By that retreat, carried out under the compulsion of the British army, the Germans admitted to the world the strategic nature of the Somme campaign success.

By the retreat the Germans hoped to gain a respite. The victory of Vimy Ridge was the unwelcome reality to which that dream materialized. This position was one that was formidable from its natural conformation to begin with, and it had been turned into an obstacle which almost justified the German confidence in its impregnability. The assaulting troops had the advantage of only a limited surprise. The Ridge overlooked the British positions, and little could be done between Arras and La Bassee that was not detected by the German observers. Yet in two days the position was carried with 11,000 prisoners and 100 guns. And it was but three weeks since the enemy had carried out the retreat that was to cut the ground from under the British plans. The British losses were comparatively light; everyone could see that if the battle were to become a precedent, the decisive defeat of Germany was assured.

Just two months later, the capture of Messines Ridge proved conclusively that the success could be repeated against another of the strongest sectors of the line. But the victory on this occasion was even more remarkable. The position was so advantageous to the Germans that the enemy troops had been urged to fight to the last. The ridge overlooked the whole of the Ypres salient which had been held so staunchly against every handicap. The assault differed greatly from that on the Vimy Ridge. The tactics were different in detail though the outlines were the same; but the attack was equally kept under the control