The French divisions were forced Motion back and the two divisions of the II Bavarian Corps , advanced Cause_to_make_progress westwards on the north side of the Somme , eventually being stopped Process_end around Maricourt , Montauban and Fricourt .

Fricourt lies to the west , Contalmaison is to the north , Montauban to the north-east and Carnoy and Maricourt are to the south-east .

After a mutually costly battle Hostile_encounter for Fricourt , where the French were eventually forced out , the front line stabilised Cause_change_of_strength and both sides began Process_start to dig Self_motion improvised defences .

Fricourt is a village that was fought Hostile_encounter over in July 1916 , during the Battle of the Somme , which took place Process_start in France during the First World War .

Fricourt is from Albert , north of Bray and west of Mametz , near the D 938 road and at the junction of the D 147 with the D 64 .

Fricourt Wood was north-east of the village , with a château on the edge of the village and a number of craters , known as the Tambour ( to the Germans ) on the west side .

Fricourt formed Creating a salient in the German front-line and was the principal German fortified village between the River Somme and the Ancre .

The ground sloped south-west from Bazentin ridge , divided by Willow Stream , which rose Cause_change_of_position_on_a_scale in Trônes Wood and flowed Motion past the ends of the Mametz and Fricourt spurs .

German fortification of the area around Mametz and Fricourt had created Creating a web of trenches deep behind the front-line trench , which was irregular making many angles from which an attacker could be engaged .

On 24 June 1916 , the artillery preparation began Process_start for the Anglo-French offensive ; the Fricourt area was subjected to several British gas attacks Attack during the bombardment .

British patrols Patrolling reported Reporting the retirement overnight and at noon on 2 July , troops of the 17th Division occupied Hold the village and captured Conquering Fricourt Wood in the mid-afternoon .

The 28th ( `` Baden '' ) Reserve Division , which held Defending the front from Montauban to Fricourt and Ovillers , was saved Rescuing from destruction Destroying by reinforcements from the 10th Bavarian Division .

The German defence south of the road mostly collapsed and the French had `` complete success '' on both banks of the Somme , as did the British from Maricourt on the army boundary , where XIII Corps took Conquering Montauban and reached Arriving all its objectives and XV Corps captured Conquering Mametz and isolated Fricourt .

The German defeats Conquering from Foucaucourt to the Albert–Bapaume road , left the German defence Defending on the south bank incapable of resisting Defending another attack Attack ; a substantial German retreat began Process_start from the Flaucourt plateau to the west bank of the Somme close to Péronne ; north of the Somme in the British area , Fricourt was abandoned GiveUp overnight .