final bombardment began at with registration of targets for an hour. At the mines in the Carency sector and the Lorette Spur were sprung, as an intense bombardment of the first two German positions continued, until a ten-minute pause at followed by a ten-minute hurricane bombardment. As the infantry began their attack, the bombardment changed to a creeping barrage. At the infantry attack began in bright dry weather. Three of the trench lines on the Lorette Spur were captured by Chasseurs and supporting infantry of XXI Corps with many casualties. A fortified post in the centre of the German line was not captured and German artillery near Angres bombarded the lost trenches, as machine-guns in Ablain swept the French infantry. Fighting continued after dark and the French began to dig in. The German front trenches at Carency were captured and against orders, the French tried to continue into the village but fire from a strong point to the east stopped the French advance. XXI Corps had managed to advance through the maze of fortifications on the Lorette Spur and IX Corps beyond made a little progress. On the northern flank of XXXIII Corps, the 70th Division attacked Ablain, Carency and Souchez and strong points at and the sugar refinery. The division reached the fringes of the villages but the repulse of the right-hand regiment led the most advanced troops to withdraw to a line forward of the start-line. In the XXXIII Corps area, the (DM) attacked with two waves of "shock troops", who were lightly-equipped and pushed forward as quickly as possible, leaving isolated German positions to the (cleaners) following them. The German wire was found to be well cut and by the advanced troops reached point Vimy Ridge and dug in, having made an advance of over , supported soon after by the arrival of machine-gun teams. Divisional reserves were ordered forward at and at d'Urbal ordered the 18th Division to move up but it had been stationed back to be out of German artillery range. Reserve units had great difficulty in advancing through German artillery fire, which left the DM in a narrow salient and under fire from all directions. During the afternoon, the DM was counter-attacked and forced off the ridge, managing to take several guns, machine-guns and prisoners with them. The 77th Division reached Givenchy-en-Gohelle, the cemetery at Souchez, Château de Carleul and took and thirty