After the rout at Kasserine, Patton at first counseled, then admonished Ward of the need for personal leadership of his division in order to keep German forces under pressure. Impatient with the progress of the 1st Armored Division, Patton took the unusual step of ordering Ward to personally lead a night assault on the Meknessy Heights, a series of stubbornly defended knolls in front of the 1st Armored Division's lines. Ward obeyed the order, and the attack was initially successful. Wounded in the eye, he was awarded a Purple Heart, Silver Star, and later the Distinguished Service Cross. However, the stalemate east of Meknassy continued, and it appeared to Patton that Ward was still overcautious and too reluctant to incur casualties when conducting offensive operations. By 1 April 1943 the American offensive that had begun at El Guettar had bogged down against stiffened Axis defenses. With the concurrence of British General Sir Harold R. L. G. Alexander, commander of the Allied 18th Army Group, Patton finally relieved Ward of duty. Patton's actions were in keeping with personal written instructions to him from General Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Supreme Allied Commander in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations (MTO), after Fredendall was sacked: "You must not retain for "one instant" any man in a responsible position where you have become doubtful of his ability to do his job."