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Northeast of Cerny the Germans succeeded in occupying French trenches on a 216-yard front, but at all other points where they advanced the French counterattacks and barrage fire rolled them back and wrought disaster among their ranks. During the last week of May, 1917, the French forces along the Chemin-des-Dames only fought on the defensive.
The French captured first-line German trenches over a front of three-quarters of a mile northeast of Chevreux near Craonne, during the night of May 8, 1917, capturing several hundred prisoners. Vigorous counterattacks made about the same time by the Germans to regain lost positions on the plateau of Chemin-des-Dames and on the Californie Plateau were shattered by the French artillery.
The French continued to make progress, slowly but firmly pressing the Germans back from many points, and gaining more ground than they lost through counterattacks. By the 6th of May, 1917, they had captured all the unconquered positions on the Chemin-des-Dames and were masters of the crest over which it runs for more than eighteen miles.
Counterattacks on the French front along the Chemin-des-Dames and in the region of Chevreux resulted in heavy losses to the Germans in men and guns. Toward the close of the day, May 11, 1917, the British after the hardest and most sanguinary fighting won two positions at Roeux just north of the Scarpe, and at Cavalry Farm beyond Guémappe.
The German headquarters was silent concerning the fight on this date. While the French continued to hold their position on the eastern extremity of the Chemin-des-Dames they threatened to turn the right flank of the Laon bastion by an advance over the open ground north of Berry-au-Bac.
On the same date there were violent outbursts in the Champagne and Aisne regions on the French front, in which the Germans made no progress. The French gained ground and prisoners near Ostel in the Chemin-des-Dames area. German lines were invaded in the sector of Hill 304 on the left bank of the Meuse and a considerable number of prisoners were taken.
Quentin in this period had been subjected to almost continuous attacks. At the cost of enormous losses that had not been exceeded during the war, save at Verdun in the previous year, the Germans had only gained a slight advance on a front of 2,000 feet, at the foot of the slope leading to the Chemin-des-Dames between Vauclerc and Craonne.
Craonne was an especially valuable capture, for it stands on a height at the east end of the Chemin-des-Dames, protecting not only the plateau north of the Aisne, but the low ground between it and Neufchâtel. The Germans had held the place since the first battle of the Aisne, and against its cliffs many gallant French troops had vainly flung themselves, only to be thrown back with heavy losses.
During the night of April 25, 1917, the Germans renewed their attempts to recover lost positions on the high ground near the Chemin-des-Dames, and especially west of Cerny. West of Craonne they hurled masses of men against Hurtebise Farm with disastrous results. Eastward in the vicinity of Ville-aux-Bois the French artillery dropped shells with mathematical precision on the German lines.
With this accomplished the German support line from Drocourt to Queant would be seriously endangered. The French lines on the Chemin-des-Dames north of the Aisne continued to be subjected to attack, the Germans throwing great masses of troops against the positions on the heights.
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