Battle of Hill 60 (Western Front)
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See also Battle of Hill 60 (Gallipoli)
The Battle of Hill 60 was a British assault that was subsidiary to the Battle of Neuve Chapelle. Hill 60 was a low rise on the southern flank of the Ypres salient and was named for the 60 metre contour which marked its bounds. The hill had been captured by the Germans on December 10, 1914 and the British immediately began tunnelling a number of mines beneath the hill. By April 1915 six mines had been completed, containing a total of over 10,000 lb (4,500 kg) of explosives. At 19:00 on April 17, 1915 the mines were detonated, demolishing a large part of the hill and decimating the German soldiers occupying the trenches. The British battalions suffered only 7 casualties in capturing the hill.
A German counter-attack succeeded in recapturing the hill but the British regained possession on April 18. Fighting continued until April 22.
Hill 60 was eventually taken by the Germans following a gas attack on 5th May, 1915. The front trenches were overrun when the forward companies were almost wiped out. Only 2 officers and 70 men from one battalion were able to march away, on relief, after the action.
It was due to a stout defence by a platoon of the Devon and Dorsets and the Battalion Headquarter Staff of the Duke of Wellington's Regiment that a major breakthrough was prevented.