On 29 August, elements of the New Zealand Division, after heavy fighting in the days prior, occupied Bapaume as the defending Germans withdrew.

On 8 August 1918, the Hundred Days' Offensive commenced on the Western Front and it would prove to be the last major campaign of the First World War.

The commander of the British Expeditionary Force, Field Marshal Douglas Haig, recognised that it was time to put pressure elsewhere on the German front and for this, decided to use General Julian Byng's Third Army.

[Note 1] IV Corps, commanded by Lieutenant General George Harper comprised five divisions, all of which would be employed during the battle.

[10] The second phase, scheduled to begin on 23 August, was to capture Bapaume and then advance further east to Reincourt-les-Bapaume and Bancourt-Fremicourt and the high ground beyond.

[9] The opening phase of the battle began on 21 August, when two battalions of the New Zealand Rifle Brigade, covered by artillery and fog which reduced visibility to less than 100 m (110 yd), moved forward and seized Puiseux, capturing over 100 prisoners.

[12] It struggled to take its objective of Achiet-le-Petit and a feature known as the Dovecot and assistance, in the form of patrols mounted by the Rifle Brigade battalions, was provided.

Seeking to take advantage, he arranged for counterattacks to be mounted by the 17th Army,[15] and these resulted in the loss of Dovecot, which overlooked the New Zealand positions.

[20] As a result of the operations of 21–23 August, the frontline had been established to the east of the Albert-Arras railway line[21] with all but one of the ridges to the south and west of Bapaume held by IV Corps.

However, the 5th Division had been unsuccessful in its attacks which left the ridge running from Loupart Wood to Grévillers and then onto Biefvillers still in the hands of the Germans.

Intelligence indicated that Bapaume was lightly held and the advance was to be supported by two brigades of artillery as well as thirteen Mark IV tanks and a company of Whippets.

[26] The New Zealanders' attack began with a night-time advance on 24 August by the 1st Infantry Brigade to clear the approaches to Bapaume, including Loupart Wood and Grévillers.

[27] However, progress was delayed by heavy machine gun fire and artillery took its toll on the supporting tanks allocated to the brigade.

[33] However, 2nd Infantry Brigade, now the leading formation in the IV Corps sector due to the slow advance of the neighbouring divisions, was exposed to German gunfire on three sides.

In the south, the 1st Infantry Brigade's 1st Auckland and 2nd Wellington Battalions skirted the southern side of Bapaume, taking fire from machine-gun posts on the outskirts of the town.

[43] The German 111th Division attempted to mount a counterattack later in the day but the massing troops were spotted and attacked by British reconnaissance aircraft.

The Germans were caught by an artillery barrage covering a hastily arranged advance, to begin at 6:30 pm, by the New Zealanders and the 37th Division.

[45] Although the planned envelopment of Bapaume had not happened, the day's action resulted in the capture of over 400 prisoners of war along with many machine guns and an artillery piece.

The 63rd Division was still struggling to capture Thilloy while the advance of the 2nd Wellington Battalion, the leading unit of the 1st Infantry Brigade, was checked by gunfire from Bapaume on its right and from its left.

[48][Note 4] To the north, the New Zealand Rifle Brigade suffered the attention of German artillery even before beginning to move forward at 1:00 am.

[52] On short notice, a further attack was arranged for the evening with the aim of pushing forward to the road to Cambrai, this time with a supporting artillery barrage.

[53] Brigadier General Herbert Hart, commanding the New Zealand Rifle Brigade, realising the inadequacy of the preparation time, tried to cancel the operation but to no avail.

[54] Despite this, Beugnâtre did fall to the British; advancing under a covering barrage, the King's Own Scottish Borderers (KOSB) penetrated the village relatively easily before encountering strong machine-gun fire.

[58] Beginning to appreciate the fact that Bapaume may have to be directly attacked, Russell, encouraged by Harper, the commander of IV Corps, began drawing up plans to do so on 29 August, using the 1st Wellington Battalion, of 1st Infantry Brigade.

[59] Particularly heavy barrages were made during the evening and it was noted that the German response was relatively muted and by early in the morning of 29 August, there was no gun fire coming from Bapaume.

Overnight, Bapaume had been abandoned, a state of affairs confirmed by patrols of the 3rd Rifle Battalion entering the town from the north.

[63] In the 1st Infantry Brigade's sector, a German artillery barrage caused some casualties among the assembling troops of the 1st Wellington Battalion.

When the Aucklanders did move off, at 6:00 am, they had lost the benefit of their own covering barrage and their efforts to take Bancourt village was slowed by machine gun fire.

[69] Their advance was not as quick as that of the 42nd Division, making a corresponding move forward, which had made good progress and the British, until the New Zealanders caught up, had to lay down heavy suppressing fire on both flanks.

[71] During the period of its involvement in the Second Battle of Bapaume, there were over 11,000 casualties in IV Corps[72] for an advance of over 32 km (20 mi)[73] during which it took nearly 8,000 prisoners of war.