in the afternoon amidst heavy rain, which saved the situation for the Australians, whose line had been penetrated by a German counterattack across a railway bridge west of the town; in doing so they suffered heavily, though, losing 14 officers and 207 other ranks. Later in the month, they took part in the Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux, launching an Anzac Day attack that successfully recaptured the town, which had been lost the previous day following an attack by four German divisions. After the German offensive was halted, a brief period of lull during which "Peaceful Penetration" operations were carried out as the Allies sought to regain the initiative. On 8 August, the Allies launched their own offensive, known as the Hundred Days Offensive, which ultimately brought about an end to the war. The 49th Battalion took part in the initial fighting, attacking around Bray, but by the end of the month was rotated to the rear. The following month, commencing on 18 September 1918, the 49th undertook its final offensive action of the war, forming part of the divisional reserve during an attack against the Hindenburg Line's outpost line, as part of efforts to penetrate the forward part of the German main line in Picardy. Shortly after the attack, the Australian Corps, which had been heavily depleted by the fighting throughout 1918, was withdrawn from the line for rest and reorganisation. It did not return to the front before the armistice was signed on 11 November, and was subsequently disbanded on 9 May 1919 as part of the demobilisation and repatriation process. According to the Australian War Memorial, throughout the course of the war the 49th Battalion lost 769 men killed and 1,419 men wounded. Members of the unit received the following awards: one Distinguished Service Order (DSO), two Officers of the Order of the British Empire (OBEs), 19 Military Crosses (MCs) with one Bar, seven Distinguished Conduct Medals (DCMs), 85 Military Medals (MMs) with eight Bars, six Meritorious Service Medals, 21 Mentions in Despatches, and 10 foreign awards. The unit also received a total of 17 battle honours, which were bestowed in 1927. Inter-war years During the inter-war years, the focus of Australia's defence planning was primarily upon the maintenance of a part-time military force, known as the Citizen Force. During the war years, this force had existed alongside the AIF, albeit largely only on paper. After the demobilisation