Today is the centenary of the start of the second German 1918 Spring Offensive, intended to defeat the British Expeditionary Force before significant American troops arrived in Europe.  The BEF had to fight desperately to hold the German advance along the line of the River Lys, which lies on either side of the French-Belgian border near Ypres.  Three Orcadian soldiers died in the first day of fighting.  The biography of one of them, Peter Allan of Burray, has been updated.  It can be downloaded as a pdf from the Burray section of the website, or directly using the link below.