On 20 November-7 December 1917, the Battle of Cambrai was fought between the British under Julian Byng against the Germans under Georg von der Marwitz during the First World War.
Why did it happen?
Following the end of the Battle of Passchendaele on 6 November 1917, Douglas Haig needed a morale-boosting victory to stem the growing criticism of his leadership on the Western Front. One solution offered by Colonel John Fuller was to use tanks in a raid against a quiet section of the Hindenburg Line near Cambrai. Although tanks had been deployed at the battles of the Somme and Passchendaele, they had not seen great success, mostly because they were used in small numbers and were deployed on muddy and difficult terrain. Fuller realised that for tanks to be effective, they had to be deployed on flat, hard ground and, if possible, take the enemy by surprise. After Fuller’s plan was approved by both General Julian Byng and Douglas Haig, it was decided to turn the raid into a full-scale breakthrough attack.
Who was involved?
The British army at Cambrai numbered 100,000 infantry, 20,000 cavalry, 1,000 artillery and 476 tanks. The British plan was to achieve complete surprise over the Germans by avoiding a conventional artillery bombardment and concealing the tanks in woodland until the last minute. Instead, the tanks, supported by infantry, would spearhead the attack by crushing the German barbed wire allowing the infantry and cavalry to exploit the gap towards the important rail and road centres around Cambrai. The British flanks would be protected by two canals: The Canal du Nord on the left and St. Quentin on the right. The German forces at Cambrai numbered 80,000 infantry and 34 artillery.
What happened?
At dawn on 20 November, the Battle of Cambrai opened with the British tanks and infantry advancing towards the German line under artillery fire. The British forces caught the German troops by surprise and the Germans either surrendered or fled the battle. Following up on this success, the British cavalry began to advance but could not achieve any major breakthroughs. What is more, when a column of British tanks advanced upon Flesquieres village unsupported by infantry, the German artillery managed to destroy 39 of the vehicles. German reinforcements arrived between 21-27 November until they numbered twenty infantry divisions, raising German morale. The Germans then abandoned Flesquieres and repulsed a British offensive at Bourlon Wood. On 30 November, Douglas Haig ordered Byng to close the offensive, only for the Germans to counterattack along the battlefield's southern sector using infiltration tactics and aircraft. On 7 December, both sides disengaged from the fighting due to winter weather. The British suffered 45,000 killed or wounded, with 179 tanks destroyed. The Germans sustained 39,000 killed or wounded and 11,000 captured.
What changed as a result?
While the Battle of Cambrai ended inconclusively, it proved a turning point in military history. For the first time, tanks were used on a large scale and showed British commanders that a major attack did not need a long preliminary bombardment to achieve decisive results on the battlefield. The Germans, in contrast, viewed tanks as too unreliable to be useful. Despite this, tanks would play a vital role in the Allied victories of 1918, particularly at the Battle of Amiens, where Allied forces shattered the German army in several hours through combined-arms tactics. Ironically, the Germans ultimately saw the potential of tanks in combination with aircraft and used these two technologies to great effect during the great blitzkriegs that conquered much of Europe during the Second World War.
Bibliography
Bott, Gavin. Line of Fire – Cambrai 1917: The Trial of the Tanks. UK, Cromwell Productions, 2001. DVD.
Chandler, David G. The Art of Warfare on Land. Harmondsworth, Penguin Books, 2000.
Grant, R.G. Battle: A Visual Journey Through 5,000 Years of Combat. London, Dorling Kindersley, 2005.
Westwell, Ian. The Complete Illustrated History of World War I. Wigston, Hermes House, 2012.