the results, despite German counter-bombardments. On the 43rd Division front, it was discovered that field artillery was only shifting the barbed wire around and not damaging but modern were used in time to create several gaps in the wire. Visibility early on 16 June was poor and the French heavy artillery began with a slow bombardment until when a creeping barrage began to move from the French front line in bounds and a second barrage began at maximum range and crept backwards in bounds, until both barrages coincided on Vimy Ridge and became a standing barrage until the French infantry arrived. The IX Corps divisions found that the German defences were intact when the attack began and the 17th Division was swept by artillery and machine-gun fire, forcing it back to its jumping-off trenches; the 18th Division managed to capture the German first position and a second attack was ordered for the afternoon. IX, XX and XXXIII corps used which contained poison gas and incendiary material on Neuville, Souchez and Angres, German artillery positions at and rear areas. The shells were filled with carbon disulphide and phosphorus, which gave a combined asphyxiating and incendiary effect. The gas shells suppressed the German artillery opposite from and set many fires in Angres but not at Souchez, which had been bombarded so much that there was little combustible material left. The 17th Division managed to advance another and the 18th Division was stopped in no man's land. On the right flank, the 39th Division of XX Corps was repulsed in the first attack, despite creeping forward before zero hour to be clear of a German counter-bombardment and to catch the German infantry under cover. The division prepared a new bombardment for on the German front line, to at least advance across no man's land. The new attack also failed, as did the attacks of the 17th and 11th divisions on either flank. In the XXXIII Corps area, the DM was fresh and easily overran the German front defences with minimal casualties. When the infantry pressed on, they found that the Germans had dug overlapping flanking positions and deep dugouts, which had protected German infantry from the French artillery. The infantry reached where fire from Souchez stopped the advance. Supporting troops had lagged behind in communication trenches full of wounded and prisoners as German artillery-fire increased and only arrived at German counter-attacks were made