when the German spring offensive occurred and caught the Entente forces off guard. The battalion was hastily ordered south from their rest camp at Quesques to stop the German advance. In the move south, they encountered thousands of fleeing refugees and disorganised retreating British units. At Doullens, the battalion took up defensive positions whilst the Doullens Conference took place, putting all allied Entente forces under French command. After which, the battalion was sent forward to defend beside the Bray–Corbie Road, near Amiens, remaining in the frontline against constant German attack for 39 days before being relieved. It also took part in fighting around Morlancourt at this time. The battalion then took its turn in manning the frontline, including at Villers-Bretonneux, where 'A' Company was essentially wiped out in a German gas attack. Thus to reinforce the battalion before the Battle of Hamel, it was linked up with the American 131st Regiment of the Illinois National Guard, forming a new 'X' Company. However, General John Pershing forbade any American soldiers to fight under foreign command and they were withdrawn shortly before the battle commenced. The battalion then took part in the Allied Hundred Days Offensive which ultimately brought about an end to the war. The 41st Battalion's final involvement in the fighting came in early October when they took part in the joint Australian–US operation along the St Quentin Canal. After finishing the Hundred Days Offensive near Bony, France, near the present Somme American Cemetery and Memorial, the battalion had been reduced to a strength of less than 250 men, from a normal strength of over 1,000. Due to falling recruitment numbers and the failure of the two conscription referendums in Australia, it was decided to merge the 42nd Bn AIF into the 41st. However, this was met with strong resentment and resistance, in a near mutinous atmosphere. It took three attempts for the units to parade as one, with the 42nd Bn becoming 'B' Company of the 41st Bn, allowed to wear the 42nd Bn unit colour patch underneath their 41st Bn patch. It was out of the line resting when the Armistice was signed in November 1918, yet it took three days for official news of the Armistice to reach them in Saint-Maxent, France. The unit was slowly sent home in a series of groups and was formally disbanded in May 1919. Losses during the war totalled 444 killed