Editing Battle of Passchendaele (section)

====Winter 1917–1918====

The area to the east and south of the ruins of Passchendaele village was held by posts, those to the east being fairly habitable, unlike the southern ones; from Passchendaele as far back as Potijze, the ground was far worse. Each brigade spent four days in the front line, four in support and four in reserve. The area was quiet apart from artillery-fire and in December the weather turned cold and snowy, which entailed a great effort to prevent [[trench foot]]. In January, spells of freezing cold were followed by warmer periods, one beginning on 15 January with torrential rain and gale-force winds, washing away plank roads and [[duckboard]] tracks.{{sfn|Boraston|Bax|1999|pp=167–168}} Conditions in the salient improved with the completion of transport routes and the refurbishment of German pillboxes. Both sides raided and the British used night machine-gun fire and artillery barrages to great effect.{{sfn|Seton Hutchinson|2005|pp=79–80}} On the evening of 3 March 1918, two companies of the 8th Division raided Teal Cottage, supported by a smoke and shrapnel barrage, killed many of the garrison and took six prisoners for one man wounded.{{sfn|Boraston|Bax|1999|p=171}} A German attack on 11 March was repulsed; after that the Germans made no more attacks, keeping up frequent artillery bombardments and machine-gun fire instead.{{sfn|Gillon|2002|pp=180–183}} When the German armies further south began the [[German spring offensive|Spring Offensive]] on 21 March 1918, "good" divisions in Flanders were sent south; the 29th Division was withdrawn on 9 April and transferred to the Lys.{{sfnm|1a1=Seton Hutchinson|1y=2005|1p=80|2a1=Gillon|2y=2002|2p=186}}