Arras and Messines, 1917 (VCs of the First World War) Book

This book covers the actions on the Western Front from January to July 1917 in which forty-nine VCs were awarded to British and Commonwealth soldiers, each one of which is recounted in detail. British and Canadian troops moved eastwards from Arras to capture Vimy Ridge. In the battle that began on a bitterly cold Easter Day in April 1917, the British 3rd Army under General Allenby attacked the newly constructed Hindenburg line while the 1st Army under General Horne took Vimy Ridge. Two days after the attack began the British captured the strategically important hill village of Monchy le Preux. A new offensive took place later that same month, followed by a further assault in early May after which the campaign shifted north towards the Franco-Belgian border where the high ground of Messines Ridge was captured in a brilliantly planned and executed combined operation by British forces in June.Read More