DROCOURT-QUEANT

The battle honour “Drocourt-Queant” represents one of the most formidable offensive operations of the First World War undertaken by the 2nd Battalion, CEF (the “Iron Second”), whose proud lineage and battle honours are officially perpetuated by the Governor General’s Foot Guards.
The Precursor: Fresh off a costly two-day victory at Upton Wood (securing the Fresnes-Rouvroy Switch) where the Battalion suffered heavy losses—including the tragic death of No. 2 Company Commander Captain C. Ross Cameron—the exhausted troops had little time to rest. At 5:15 a.m. on September 2, 1918, they assembled on the Wancourt Road, ready to assault the Drocourt-Quéant Switch of the Hindenburg Line.
The Attack: Moving forward at 8:30 a.m. in a tactical “diamond” formation, the Battalion swept south of Upton Wood. An unusual feature of the opening phase was the sight of hundreds of German prisoners marching to the rear in disciplined columns. The Battalion successfully crossed the formidable barbed wire entanglements of the main Drocourt-Quéant Line under escalating German shellfire.
A Split Battalion: As they approached Cagnicourt, the Battalion faced blistering “grass-cutting” machine gun fire from the Buissy Switch
. The forward companies (Nos. 2 and 3) became pinned down in a sunken road north of Cagnicourt. Meanwhile, a Brigade staff officer, mistakenly believing the rear companies were veering too far north, ordered Companies Nos. 1 and 4 to redirect to the right. This split the Battalion, forcing them to pass south of Cagnicourt, where they were immediately committed to the front line.
Consolidation and Relief: Following a grueling day of disjointed, intense combat, the companies were consolidated north of Cagnicourt that night. They held their hard-won positions until they were relieved on September 5th, moving back to the Drocourt-Quéant Line west of Cagnicourt before withdrawing to Wailly Huts.
Heroism in the Field: The brutal shelling and high casualties of the offensive brought out immense bravery. Captain Norman McLeod Halkett, the Medical Officer/Surgeon, was awarded the Military Cross (MC) for his conspicuous gallantry under relentless artillery fire near Vis-en-Artois and Dury, tending to the wounded in the open and in exposed trenches with utter disregard for his own safety.