61318: Battle of Neuve Chapelle

The Battle of Neuve Chapelle was fought between 10 and 13 March 1915, and was originally intended to comprise part of a wider Allied offensive in the Artois region.
However, delays in the arrival of relieving British troops for Ypres, owing to a redirection of effort towards Gallipoli, resulted in the attack on Neuve Chapelle being launched as a distinct action in its own right.
Douglas Haig’s First Army led the attack with 40,000 men placed along a 3km front. The advance was preceded by a 35 minute bombardment of 342 guns along a 2,000 yard line (more shells were discharged in this 35 minutes than in the whole of the Boer War)
After the initial progress, which saw the village taken in just four hours, supply and communication problems began to plague the troops. The shortage of artillery shells, more than anything, was blamed for the lack of success.
Altogether allied casualties during the battle were 11,200 (7,000 British and 4,200 Indian) with similar losses on the German side.