Chapter 10. Amiens. War Memoirs 1917-1919

The small group of officers stood in the cool of the shade of the trees fanned by the breeze, which was now blowing steadily. They did not say very much to each other; they were all gazing intently at the spectacle set out before them like a vast panoramic film drama. The fact that reserves had been so conspicuously lacking in every action with which they were acquainted made it hard to believe in the reality of this scene as it unfolded. Never before had there been reserves, certainly not reserves brought up with such massive efficiency and in such great force.

The tanks were displaying into battle order, and for the first time the officers had an impression of what it might be like for an enemy if they found themselves attacked by formations that came on in the order they were supposed to do according to the textbooks. The rest of the troops still remained in column of route; obviously the Amiens–Roye road was not sufficiently wide to be able to bring forward the troops and also to carry the returning stream of empty lorries going back after having delivered their goods. Therefore the whole plateau was studded with columns, at a distance of some three hundred yards between each, advancing independently of roads in order to get forward as quickly as possible. This, combined with any lack of response from the enemy, led to a peculiar sense of exhilaration – or at least it potentially did so, for while there were ejaculations of surprise at this sight, there was also a heavy dragging at the heart, as if all felt that the event had occurred too late. Had this happened years before, then it would

have chimed in with the enthusiasm, the sense of mission and crusade that had animated the early armies. As it was, the feelings of elation conflicted with the tide of depression and disillusion, which struggled at the same time for expression because it could at last find some relief from the evils that had originally caused it and that were no longer operating. This must h