missing), the tactic of holding an outpost line to break up enemy attacks was considered a success. Relieved and moving to a rest area, the 1/4th Bn was lucky to receive two drafts of fully trained reinforcements totalling 420 men, but they came from all over the UK, diluting the Cockney nature of the battalion. For several months the battalion did its share of line holding outside Arras, interspersed with occasional trench raids and bombardments. The Hundred Days The Allied counter-offensive (the Hundred Days Offensive) began in summer 1918, the 56th Division joining in at the Battle of Albert on 23 August. After rushed preparations, the 1/4th Londons attacked behind an intense barrage at 05.07 towards the village of Boyelles and the trench system at Boisleux-Saint-Marc. Four tanks assisted against Boyelles, where the garrison surrendered, but the left of the battalion was held up by the Marc position until the troops on either flank pressed forward and cleared it. The battalion resumed the advance at 16.30, attacking in widely extended formation and suffering few casualties, capturing machine guns and patrolling 500 yards beyond the Germans' Boyelles Reserve trenches. Another rushed attack went in on 28 August, towards Bullecourt to clear a section of the Hindenburg Line. 1/4th Londons led 168th Bde in support of 169th Bde, some of whom went astray, so the battalion had to mop up obstinate German pockets and it was not until late evening that the area was cleared. The division continued the attack next day, 1/4th Londons being in support. Bullecourt having been recaptured by the Germans, the division attacked again on 31 August, with 1/4th Londons in the centre, clearing the village by mid-afternoon. The battalion gained satisfaction from finally capturing Bullecourt, where the 2/4th Bn (see below) had fought the previous year. When the assault crossing of the Canal du Nord began on 27 September, the 1/4th Londons watched as the rest of the division advanced across their front along the far bank of the canal, before following up themselves on the near (west) bank against slight opposition. The advance was now a pursuit, held up only by German rearguards. On 6 October, patrols from the 1/4th Londons entered Aubencheul-au-Bac without opposition, taking the line as far as the Sensée Canal. The battalion was withdrawn for rest, and did not return to the line until 3 November, when it followed up in conjunction