fire and grenades. For his actions during the battle, Wark was awarded the Distinguished Service Order, the details of which were published in a supplement to The London Gazette on 3 June 1918. Granted sixteen days leave to the United Kingdom from 3 November, Wark was selected for a senior officers' course at Aldershot, England, in January 1918. On graduation he rejoined the 32nd Battalion in March as its second-in-command, and was mentioned in the despatches of Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig on 7 April. Throughout June and July, Wark temporarily commanded the 32nd Battalion, which had played little part in the German spring offensive. The battalion took part in the Battle of Amiens on 8 August, and continued to harry retreating German forces for the rest of the month and into early September. Victoria Cross, September 1918, to repatriation, September 1919 From 29 September to 1 October 1918, Wark assumed temporary command of the 32nd Battalion, leading the unit in the 5th Division's attack against the Hindenburg Line at Bellicourt (part of the Battle of St Quentin Canal), and the subsequent advance through Nauroy, Etricourt, Magny La Fosse and Joncourt. This series of battles became the 32nd Battalion's final actions for the war, and it was during this period that Wark earned his Victoria Cross. The 32nd Battalion was to commence its attack at Bellicourt at 09:00 on 29 September, and move south through the village. Due to mist and smoke from a preceding artillery barrage, visibility was poor. When the advance was held up by two German machine guns, Wark ordered a tank to neutralise them. On reaching the southern end of St Quentin Canal tunnel, Wark came across two hundred troops of the American 117th Infantry Regiment who appeared to be leaderless, and attached them to his own command. A short time later, with visibility still poor, he appropriated armoured reinforcements and began an advance on the village of Nauroy. As the fog began to lift, Wark organised his troops for an attack on the village from a southerly direction. By 11:30, the battalion had taken the village, along with forty Germans as prisoners of war. Shortly afterwards, Wark observed a battery of German 77 mm guns firing on his rear companies, causing heavy casualties. Collecting a party of his men, he rushed the battery and succeeded in capturing four guns in conjunction with ten crewmen. With