and Bussy, but it was stopped by the fresh supplies sent by Manteuffel. At about 5 p.m. the Payen Brigade launched an attack on Vecquemont but was stopped in its turn. At 7 p.m. the battlefield was in complete darkness. The Prussians held all the villages in the valley and billeted there. The French Army was obliged to bivouac on its positions, by night on the heights on the snowy ground, where the temperature fell to and an icy wind was blowing without any obstacle. Withdrawal movement On the next day, 24 December at 9 am, the French artillery launched a cannonade to Béhencourt without any Prussian reply. General Faidherbe made up his mind to retreat. The withdrawal, protected by a line of retarding units, began at about 2 pm. The Prussians would only start the pursuit on the following day, 25 December. At that time, the French Army was arriving at Bapaume. Memorials A war memorial named "Colonne Faidherbe" was erected in 1875, on the heights of Pont-Noyelles, on the place where General Faidherbe directed the last combats. An ossuary contains the bodies of 74 soldiers killed during the battle in and around Pont-Noyelles. In every village of the valley, many soldiers' bodies lie in their communal cemeteries. In the Querrieu communal cemetery, a military grave surmounted by a stele and a cavalry, erected in 1875, contains the bodies of 12 unknown French soldiers. Another grave, also surmounted by a stele, contains the bodies of 18 Prussian soldiers; only the name of one of them is known. References Notes George Bruce. Harbottle's Dictionary of Battles. (Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1981) (). External links Ordre de bataille aller deutschen Armeen 1.8.1870 Battle of Hallue Conflicts in 1870 Battles involving France Battles of the Franco-Prussian War Battles involving Prussia Hallue December 1870 events