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The Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux came during the period of the Battle of the Lys, 24–27 April 1918, but was launched against the Allied lines in front of Amiens. The German army built twenty-one tanks in the war and used fourteen A7V tanks in the attack, making it one of the biggest German tank operations in World War I. During the battle, the first tank-versus-tank battle in history occurred when a group of three advancing German A7V tanks met and engaged three British Mark IV tanks, two of which were female tanks armed with machine-guns. The two Mark IV females were damaged and forced to withdraw but the male tank armed with 6-pounder guns, hit and disabled the lead A7V, which was then abandoned by its crew. The Mark IV continued to fire on the two remaining German A7Vs, which withdrew. The "male" then advanced with the support of Whippet light tanks which had arrived, until disabled by artillery fire and abandoned by the crew. The German and British crews recovered their vehicles later in the day. A counter-attack by two Australian and one British brigade during the night of 24 April partly surrounded Villers-Bretonneux and on 25 April the town was recaptured. Australian, British and French troops restored the original front line by 27 April. ==Prelude== In late 1917 and early 1918, the end of the fighting on the Eastern Front allowed the Germans to transfer large numbers of men and equipment to the west. Buoyed by this but concerned that the entry of the United States into the war would negate their numerical advantage if they did not attack quickly and that massed tank attacks like that at Cambrai in November 1917 made far more areas on the Western Front vulnerable to attack, the German commander, Erich Ludendorff, chose to use the temporary numerical advantage to punch through the front line and then advance north towards the sea. In March, the Germans launched the Spring Offensive, against the Third Army and the Fifth Army on the Somme. Understrength due to the small numbers of replacements being sent from Britain. In unfinished defences, the Fifth Army was forced back quickly after the first two days, as the Germans advanced under a heavy bombardment of high explosives and gas. As the Germans advanced steadily west, the Third Army also fell back on its southern flank and the railhead at Amiens was threatened with capture; Paris was bombarded by long-range guns. The Allies moved reinforcements to the Somme front and by the end of May, the German advance of the 1918 Battle of the Somme had been halted in front of Hamel. In preparation for a further attack, German railway construction companies were brought up and work undertaken to repair damaged railways in the captured ground. In early April, the Germans renewed their efforts, simultaneously beginning the Battle of the Lys in Flanders. The Germans managed to advance towards Villers-Bretonneux, a town on the high ground to the south of the Somme River. The terrain allowed artillery observers to see bombardments on Amiens, which was only away, which was of great tactical value. On 4 April, the Germans attempted to capture the town with 15 divisions but were repulsed by troops from the British 1st Cavalry Division and Australian 9th Brigade during the First Battle of Villers-Bretonneux. After the first battle, the forces that had secured the town were relieved and by late April the area around Villers-Bretonneux was largely held by the 8th Division. Although it had been one of the best British divisions it had suffered badly in the German attacks of March, losing and about reducing its infantry by half. Replacements in the latest draft from Britain included 18-year-olds with little training. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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