Battles of World War I Canada’s Role

The war begins . . . By the beginning of August 1914 the major powers were at war. Thousands of Canadians volunteered. A huge training camp was set up at Valcartier, Quebec.

Trench Warfare A stalemate forced soldiers to “dig in” to protect themselves from machine gun fire and shells. Space between the trenches was called “no-man’s land”.

Ypres 1915 Poison gas was used for the first time. Canadian troops were the only ones to “hold the line”. We lost 6 000 men.

Battle of the Somme 1916 Canadians were fighting alongside the British. Almost 60 000 men were lost the first day, the highest ever in one battle. Artillery was not able to take out German machine guns. The battle went on for 141 days despite a lack of progress.

Vimy Ridge 1917 General Arthur Currie wanted to ensure his troops fought together and were well-prepared. Artillery hit the German side for days before troops were sent in. Canadians won the Ridge.

Passchendaele 1917 The land was flooded and mud-choked because dams had been destroyed. Canadians won the battle, took 7 km of land but it was soon lost to the Germans again. Almost 16 000 Canadians were killed.

In the Air Canadians joined the British Royal Flying Corps. More glamourous than the trenches but also more dangerous. Famous aces like the Red Baron and Billy Bishop battled in dogfights.

On (and under) the Sea Germans used unterseeboots to cut off British supplies. The sinking of the Lusitania helped encourage the Americans to join the war. German ports were blockaded to prevent supplies from coming in.

The End In early 1918 the Germans tried one last hard push to win the war before the Americans could mobilize their troops. By the summer it was clear they had run out of supplies. Germany surrendered November 11, 1918.