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The French Tanks, here first employed, were disappointing, and Loivre was the only gain. The 17th was spent in beating off counter-attacks west of Reims, while the French offensive spread east to Moronvillers. Here the same tale had to be told; gallantry carried various points of importance, but a month's fighting failed to give the French complete control of their first day's objectives.
Nivelle swept forward, carrying all of the first line of German positions between Soissons and Craonne. They also took the second line positions, south of Juvincourt, east of Craonne, reached the outskirts of Bermericourt, and advanced up the Aisne canal at Loivre and Courcy. During these operations the French captured 10,000 Germans and a vast amount of war material.
To the south of Juvincourt they succeeded in penetrating the German second-line positions and held on. Every effort made by the Germans during the day failed, the French artillery literally tearing their ranks to pieces. Further advances were made by the French to the banks of the Aisne Canal at the villages of Courcy and Loivre.
Progress along the whole French front continued in October; Gouraud's right pressed on to a level with, and then in advance of, the American left towards Challerange and Grandpré; his centre advanced towards Machault, and on his left Berthelot took Loivre, Brimont, and forced the passages of the Suippe at Bertricourt and Bazancourt, and of the Aisne at Berry-au-Bac.
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