ollowed the
Germans through St. Quentin and met with strong resistance beyond it.
The position to be attacked consisted of high rolling downs with deep
traverse valleys, giving good cover for supports and forward guns, and
on the right a broad longitudinal valley closed by a ridge on which
stood the village of Mericourt. The French had a stiff task in front
of them, and did not propose to advance as far as the British--6,000
yards--with the result that even if they were successful our frontage,
thrown back from left to right, would be 7,500 yards, and if
unsuccessful over 10,000. Added to this their zero hour was nearly an
hour after ours, and there would be a very real danger of
counter-attack from the right. The Divisional Commander, therefore,
decided to leave the valley severely alone to start with, merely
smoking by guns and bombs from aeroplanes the Mericourt Ridge and
attacking all along the high ground on the north. As our attack and
the French attack progressed the valley was to be cleared by three
whippet tanks supported by the 1st Battalion West Yorks, lent to the
16th Infantry Brigade, while finally an attack from the high ground
against the Mericourt Ridge would be delivered with a view to cutting
off posts in the valley between the two attacks. The 139th Infantry
Brigade of the 46th Division remained in position at Sequehart,
together with two companies Life Guards Machine-gun Battalion, to
secure the right flank against counter-attack. The machine-gun
nests on the Sequehart-Mericourt road enfiladed the start line of the
6th Division, and the G.O.C., 139th Infantry Brigade (Brig-Gen. J.
Harington), was asked to capture these just before the general attack.
The 46th Divisional Pioneer Battalion (1/1st Monmouthshire Regiment)
undertook this task, and twice attacked the position but without
success, in spite of the greatest gallantry. The Commanding Officer
(Col. Jenkins) and his Adjutant were both unfortunately killed. Their
bravery, however, was well rewarded, as their action enabled the 6th
Divisional troops to work round and cut the position off, and the
enemy eventually surrendered.

The weight of artillery for the operations of the 8th October was
immense. In addition to the Divisional artillery there were the 5th
and 16th Brigades, R.H.A., 161st, 168th, 230th, 231st, 232nd Brigades,
R.F.A., and the 14th and 23rd Army Brigades, R.F.A. Only a part of
these fired the creeping barrage, the 6th Divisional