Battles of WWI

Where Canadians first saw the 1915: Ypres April 22-May 27 Where Canadians first saw the battle in WWI Canadians lost over 6000 men, waiting for reinforcements In Flanders Fields, Belgium First Canadian Division

John McCrae wrote his poem “In Flanders Fields” First Gas Attack John McCrae wrote his poem “In Flanders Fields” just after the battle of Ypres in memory of a fallen friend.

In Flanders Fields In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the Dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved, and were loved, and now we lie       In Flanders fields. Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep, though poppies grow       In Flanders fields.

1916: The Somme (July-November) Canadians reputation grows and are said to be feared by the Germans. They ran into heavy fighting and suffered some 2,600 casualties before the full-scale offensive even got underway. By the end 24 000 troops are lost

1st time tanks used (caused more confusion then damage, not good defense against artillery) The final attack of the Somme, the Canadians advanced to Desire Trench - a remarkable feat of courage and endurance. Last advance of 1916The autumn rains turned the battlefield into a bog and the offensive staggered to a halt. The line had been moved forward only six miles, though ground of itself was not particularly important except in terms of morale.

The Allies had suffered some 650,000 casualties, and both sides had about 200,000 killed. Well might the Germans refer to the Battle of the Somme as das Blutbad - the blood bath. One German officer described the Somme as 'the muddy graveyard of the German army'; The Somme had cost Canada 24,029 casualties, but it was here that the Canadians confirmed their reputation as hard-hitting shock troops. "The Canadians", wrote Lloyd George, "played a part of such distinction that henceforward they were marked out as storm troops; for the remainder of the war they were brought along to head the assault in one great battle after another. Whenever the Germans found the Canadian Corps coming into the line they prepared for the worst."

1917: Vimy Ridge (April 9-12) British and French had tried to take the ridge earlier in war however both failed. 1st Canadian-only offensive (without the British or French). Led By British Lieutenant-General Julian Byng. Canadian Maj. Gen. Currie, responsible for tactics and planning (lessons learned from Sommes)

Maj. Gen. Currie, Planned and rehearsed their plan before the attack. Instituted the Marching Barrage. Before, artillery was used to destroy the enemy barbwire and trenches, before sending the troops over the top. Unfortunately most of the Germans were in fortified bunkers that protected them from the shelling and then would come out of the bunkers when the shelling stopped and open machine gun fire on the allies. In the Marching Barrage the troops were ordered to be right behind the artillery barrage, thus the enemy would not have enough/as much time to prepare a defense.

Train tracks built for fast delivery of supplies to front Canadians learned and followed right behind the artillery shells, thus taking ground quickly and with surprise Sappers to dig a tunnel under the Germans’ trench at the base of the Ridge and set off a massive explosion. This explosion, followed by the marching barrage, caught the Germans by surprise and the ridge was taken by nightfall. Train tracks built for fast delivery of supplies to front

“If they take Vimy Ridge, they will be going home in a row boat.” This Canadian victory was highly recognized by all the Allied countries. Four Victoria Crosses were awarded to Canadian soldiers and Arthur Currie, Commander of the 1st Canadian Division, was knighted. Some argue that this is one of the most important landmarks on the road to Canadian nationhood. Canadians however suffered the killing or wounding of 10,602 soldiers.

1917: Passchendaele (October 26 - November 10) Canadians move here after Vimy, Currie argued that it was too muddy but was ignored The battle saw 16,000 of the 20,000 men die here. The Pre-attack barrages of the artillery created huge craters in the ground of ‘no-mans land.’ These holes filled up with water when it rained and drowned many soldiers.

The plan: drive a hole in the German lines and advance to the Belgian coast and capture the German submarine bases there. The land was largely reclaimed marshland, swampy even without rain. After the heavy shelling and lots of August rain no-mans land was an impassable terrain of deep "liquid mud", The Germans were well entrenched in their pillboxes which the initial bombardment had not destroyed. The town of Passendale was finally taken by the Canadian forces, but the allies suffered almost half a million casualties, and the Germans, just over a quarter of a million.