World War I Battles: Loos

On October 8, 1915, the Battle of Loos on the WWI Western Front ended, and the German forces contained the British attack (85,000 casualties). From the article:

"The Attack Begins
Around 5:50 a.m. on September 25, the chlorine gas was released and forty minutes later the British infantry began advancing. Leaving their trenches, the British found that the gas had not been effective and large clouds lingered between the lines. Due to the poor quality of British gas masks and breathing difficulties, the attackers suffered 2,632 gas casualties (7 deaths) as they moved forward. Despite this early failure, the British were able to achieve success in the south and quickly captured the village of Loos before pressing on towards Lens.

In other areas, the advance was slower as the weak preliminary bombardment had failed to clear the German barbed wire or seriously damage the defenders. As a result, losses mounted as German artillery and machine guns cut down the attackers. To the north of Loos, elements of the 7th and 9th Scottish succeeded in breaching the formidable Hohenzollern Redoubt. With his troops making progress, Haig requested that the 21st and 24th Divisions be released for immediate use. French granted this request and the two divisions began moving from their positions six miles behind the lines.

Corpse Field of Loos
Travel delays prevented the 21st and 24th from reaching the battlefield until that evening. Additional movement issues meant that they were not in position to assault the second line of German defenses until the afternoon of the September 26. In the meantime, the Germans raced reinforcements to the area, strengthening their defenses and mounting counterattacks against the British. Forming into ten assault columns, the 21st and 24th surprised the Germans when they began advancing without artillery cover on the afternoon of the 26th.

Largely unaffected by the earlier fighting and bombardments, the German second line opened with a murderous mix of machine gun and rifle fire. Cut down in droves, the two new divisions lost over 50% of their strength in a matter of minutes. Aghast at the enemy losses, the Germans ceased fire and allowed the British survivors to retreat unmolested. Over the next several days, fighting continued with a focus on the area around the Hohenzollern Redoubt. By October 3, the Germans had re-taken much of the fortification. On October 8, the Germans launched a massive counterattack against the Loos position.

This was largely defeated by determined British resistance. As a result, the counter-offensive was halted that evening. Seeking to consolidate the Hohenzollern Redoubt position, the British planned a major attack for October 13. Preceded by another gas attack, the effort largely failed to achieve its objectives. With this setback, major operations came to a halt though sporadic fighting continued in the area which saw the Germans reclaim the Hohenzollern Redoubt.

Aftermath
The Battle of Loos saw the British make minor gains in exchange for around 50,000 casualties. German losses are estimated at around 25,000. Though some ground had been gained, the fighting at Loos proved a failure as the British were unable to break through the German lines. French forces elsewhere in Artois and Champagne met a similar fate. The setback at Loos helped contribute to the downfall of French as commander of the BEF. An inability to work with the French and active politicking by his officers led to his removal and replacement with Haig in December 1915."