WFA Battlefield Tour: Cambrai 1917 and 1918

The Western Front Association is delighted to offer a Battlefield Tour which will focus on the battles at and around Cambrai.

Dr Jack Sheldon will again be joining the team, bringing his encyclopaedic knowledge of all things German Army on the Western Front with him. Clive Harris will be working with Jack: Clive has strong family connections to the battles in this region, his Great Grandfather Charlie Addams was a Gunner in the 12th Eastern Division who fought in the 1917 battles here, he also had a Great Uncle who served in Hawke Battalion, RND who held the Flesquieres pocket during the 1918 Spring Offensive.

This tour of the Cambrai Battlefield will start with a look at the 1917 battle, where - led by tanks - the BEF made significant ground on the opening day. Despite this positive start - that led to Church Bells peeling across the UK on the 23rd November - the battle soon became an attractional affair. With Douglas Haig’s strategic reserves already committed to Italy, initial advances could not be consolidated and, in the face of fierce German counter attacks, Bourlon Wood in particular witnessed a bitter costly struggle on both sides of the wire.

We then turn our attention to the final year of the war, with both the German Spring Offensive being launched across this ground in March and the eventual advance to victory in September. Again Bourlon Wood playing a key role in events.

WW1 British Tank In Bourlon Wood — Knocked our British tank in Bourlon Wood (IWM Q 45407)

These unique tours enable both Jack and Clive to explain and explore the evolving battles from both sides of the wire. Personal connections visits and requests are both welcomed and encouraged.

Our WFA National tours have a history of selling out quickly, they are restricted to just 25 participants to ensure quality. We feel these tours not only provide a comprehensive study of the campaign, but also offer an informal, social, weekend on the ‘old front line’ for WFA members and the chance to remember over a century on. Whilst open to the general public any non-members will be warmly encouraged to join the WFA.

The tour will start with a pickup at Watford Gap Services before heading south to Ebbsfleet International Station offering superb convenient links from London rail hubs and in addition provides secure parking at a reasonable rate.

Transport is via an executive standard coach and return channel crossings are also included. Personal visits to relatives or people of interest to you are positively encouraged and will be incorporated into the tour itinerary where possible.

Day 1 - Friday 19 September

Travel to Dover and across to Calais. En route to our Hotel we will stop at the Cambrai Memorial to the missing and Louverval Cemetery to discuss the events of 1917 that lead up to the Cambrai battle. We will also study and explore the works of Charles Sargeant Jagger that adorn the memorial to the missing from the battle.

Day 2 - Saturday 20 September

Today we study the the November 1917 battle around Cambrai. Although initially conceived as 'raid in strength' to show the capabilities of tanks, the plan soon grew into a significant offensive.

Our day will see us follow the 62nd (West Riding) Division assault from Havrincourt, the 51st (Highland) Division attack on Flesquieres and the 12th (Eastern) Division's assault on the eastern flank of battlefields towards Bonavis Crossroads and Pam Pam Farm.

We then focus on the struggle for Bourlon Wood by both the Guards Division and 35th Bantam Divisions to end our day.

Day 3 - Sunday 21 September

The day is spent studying the events of September 1918 in the area, focussing on the Allied advance in September, where, led by the Canadian Corps, the road between Cambrai and Arras witnessed a series of significant actions that led to the crossing of the Canal du Nord, capture of Bourlon Wood and eventual occupation of Cambrai with is major railhead.

Day 4 - Monday 22 September

The day allows time for personal visits plus a study of the Vis-en-Artois Memorial commemorating the casualties of the Last 100 Days of the war before our onward travel to the UK.