9 APRIL – 16 MAY 1917

9 APRIL – 16 MAY 1917 THE BATTLE OF ARRAS CEMETERY INFORMATION 1 3 In the spring of 1917, the Allies launched a major offensive against the German Army on the Western Front. British Empire troops attacked the formidable German defences around Arras. Fighting through snow and icy mud, they made significant advances and the Canadian Corps took Vimy Ridge. But the battle soon became a bloody stalemate. Over 38 days, some 300,000 servicemen on both sides were wounded, missing or killed. The British Army suffered an average of 4,000 casualties every day – a higher rate than any other British offensive on the Western Front. For many, the fighting they experienced at Arras was the most brutal of the war. 1 3 5 2 2 4 CABARET-ROUGE BRITISH CEMETERY 5000F Rue Carnot, 62153, Souchez Named after a small red-brick café that stood nearby and was destroyed in 1915, this is the largest CWGC cemetery in the Arras area with over 7,650 graves. 2 ARRAS MEMORIAL & FAUBOURG D’AMIENS CEMETERY Boulevard du Général de Gaulle, 62000, Arras Just outside the centre of Arras, this cemetery is dwarfed by a memorial commemorating nearly 35,000 First World War soldiers of British, South African and New Zealand forces who have no known grave. Another memorial here commemorates 1,000 missing of the Flying Services. VIMY MEMORIAL Chemin des Canadiens, 62580 Givenchy-en-Gohelle A must-see, the Vimy Memorial is dedicated to members of the Canadian forces who died during the First World War. It is also the place of commemoration for 11,000 Canadians with no known grave. 4 MONCHY BRITISH CEMETERY 62118, Monchy-le-Preux Near the spot where Newfoundlanders fought in 1917, this small cemetery demonstrates how exquisite architecture could transform wartime burial places. 5 BAILLEUL ROAD EAST CEMETERY D919, 62223 Saint-Laurent-Blangy Among the 1,300 graves here is that of Isaac Rosenberg, one of Britain’s greatest war poets, who lost his life in 1918. British soldiers move up to the front near Arras, 29 April 1917 Ernest Brooks © IWM Q 2105