Second Battle of Arras

Battle of Arras
Part of the Western Front of the First World War
The town square, Arras, France, February 1919
Date 9 April – 16 May 1917 Location Arras, France 50°17′23″N 2°46′51″E / 50.28972°N 2.78083°E / 50.28972; 2.78083Coordinates: 50°17′23″N 2°46′51″E / 50.28972°N 2.78083°E / 50.28972; 2.78083 Result See Analysis section
Belligerents
British Empire  United Kingdom  Canada  Australia  Newfoundland  New Zealand  South Africa	German Empire
Commanders and leaders
Douglas Haig Edmund Allenby Hubert Gough Henry Horne	Erich Ludendorff Ludwig von Falkenhausen
Strength
first day: 14 divisions in the assault 9 divisions in reserve	first day: 12 divisions in the line 5 divisions in reserve
Casualties and losses
158,000	120,000–130,000

 British Empire

The Battle of Arras (also known as the Second Battle of Arras) was a British offensive on the Western Front during World War I. From 9 April to 16 May 1917, British troops attacked German defences near the French city of Arras on the Western Front. The British achieved the longest advance since trench warfare had begun, surpassing the record set by the French Sixth Army on 1 July 1916. The British advance slowed in the next few days and the German defence recovered. The battle became a costly stalemate for both sides and by the end of the battle the British Third and First armies had suffered about 160,000 casualties and the German 6th Army 125,000 casualties.

For much of the war, the opposing armies on the Western Front were at a stalemate, with a continuous line of trenches from the Belgian coast to the Swiss border. The Allied objective from early 1915 was to break through the German defences into the open ground beyond and engage the numerically inferior German Army (Westheer) in a war of movement. The British attack at Arras was part of the French Nivelle Offensive, the main part of which was to take place on the Aisne 50 miles (80 km) to the south. The aim of the French offensive was to break through the German defences in forty-eight hours. At Arras the British were to re-capture Vimy Ridge, dominating the plain of Douai to the east, advance towards Cambrai and divert German reserves from the French front.

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