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World War One
Major conflicts of the war -
Battle of Tannenburg
400,000 russians poured into Prussia hoping to make an early victory to the war. The germans weren't prepared for the attack and only defended with 210,000 men. The Germans used their railway system to get their troops around and surrounded the Russians. The ensuing battle caused the Russian heavy casualties. This battle shows how when the Russians rushed a decision they ended up ultimately losing. Patience is key to winning the war because they wanted to win quickly so they marched into Prussia -
The Battle of the Marne
The Battle of the Marne was a major offensive put on by the French against the Germans. The objective of this battle was to stop the Germans from getting to Paris as they were nearing Paris. The French sent out 150,000 French soldiers were sent out to attack the right flank of the German army causing a split in their front lines halting their invasion of Paris and faltering the Schleiffen Plan. This Battle shows how the French knew what they were fighting for. They were determined to keep Paris -
Battle of Ypres
The battle of Ypres was the first battle where Canadian Forces engaged in. This battle was where Canadians went up against a lethal foe known as chlorine gas. This battle was where Canada held their ground against the chlorine thanks to a doctor who knew that urinating on a cloth and breathing through it filters out the chlorine in the air. In this battle over 6,000 Canadians were dead or injured within the first 48 hours.This battle is significant for Canada because it was our first battle. -
Battle of Ypres Cont.
We proved ourselves as fighters. This was our first battle. We were able to hold back the Germans when the english and French were retreating putting up our name as an up and coming possible powerhouse. Within the trenches of Ypres was also where John McCrae wrote his poem "In Flander's Fields" when a close friend of his was killed. -
The Battle of St. Julien
The Germans after pushing the allies back with piosonous gases contiously bombarded the British and Canadians whom had to rely on makeshift protection. They were eventually pushed back past St. Julien and the Battle became a back and forth game with one side counter-attacking then another one. This battle was significant because it displayed how relentless both sides were to achieve their objectives. Both sides wanted to achieve victory and went through such lengths to get acheive victory. -
Battle of Loos
The Battle of Loos was a difficult position to capture. The land was flat plains and open to German machine gun fire. The German`s constantly used Gas on the Allied forces. The Allies suffered 50, 000 German's lost 25,000 troops. The British had a successful first attack but could not follow up their success. This Battle did not involve the Canadian forces. -
The Battle of Verdun
This battle was a unique battle as it saw the Germans, who had opted to defend the ground they gained rather than continue to attack, were the attackers of this battle. This battle was also technologically unique because it was the first battle where flamethrowers were used. Total casualties were over 650, 000. Verdun was what lead to the Battle of the Somme. This battle displayed the everchanging technology present in war. It showed how lethal this new technology is as it was truly devestating. -
The Battle of Jutland
Jutland was one of the greatest naval battles of World War 1. This Battle took place just south of Norway. This was one of the greatest fleet battles to take place without the aid of submarines or airplanes. It has not been surpassed since. This was a battle for naval dominance to prove which sea-bearing side was the better side. The clash was between the British navy and the English navy. One of the starts of this war was competition for a better in the early 1900's and proved the better side. -
Batte of the Somme
The Battle of the Somme was a major offensive that the allies was, would let them break through German lines however, it ended up in a stalemate. the tactics the British intended on using were outdated and wouldn`t work due to advances in technology. This battle caused the life of over 20,000 British soldiers that day. This battle was significant because eventually the German's broke through their lines and launched a major counter attack. However, they were eventually held back. -
Canada joins the Battle of the Somme
Canada joined the battle and suffered heavy losses too. The Somme technically wasn`t one offensive rather it was a series of battles along the Somme river. Canada participated in these attacks and lost many people too. One such attack that Canadians were involved in was the capture of the village Courcelette. The Somme showed the effects that war had on the soldiers. The soldiers were experiencing hell. I also showed how with changing technology, tactics and warfare are going to change too. -
The Battle of Flers
This battle saw the Allied armies, minus Canada attack the German frontline. This was the first time tanks were used in warfare. There was a small number of tanks and even fewer of these tanks actually worked. 7 failed to start up. German rifles had very little effect on the tanks and they lost 2 km of land in the first 2 days. The success of these tanks in this battle displayed how effective technology was in waging war. Technology was looked at as a luxury this changed after this battle. -
Battle of Arras
The Battle of Arras was lead by the French against the Germans. The battle saw hours and hours of shelling before the attack itself was launched. The attack was massive. The allies used many newly made technological advancements such as the 106 shell and gas canisters. Power came in numbers and this battle displayed that but tactics can defeat any army any size which is what happened with the Germans and their skillful defence of Arras. -
The Battle of Vimy Ridge
The battle of vimy ridge is one of Canada's greatest battles in it's histroy. This battle was the first place where the Canadian divisions fought together. This battle was a key battle. It was madatory to push the German`s off of the ridge because the ridge held a major tactical advantage for whichever team possesed it. The French and English armies both tried to take the ridge but failed. It was up to the Canadians. -
Vimy Ridge Part 2
This battle is completely different from all other battles of WW1. The commander was General Arthur Currie. One of his motto`s was to overlook nothing. He stood true to his word as he never overlooked a single aspect of the battle. He had his troops rehearse for every single aspect of the war. He changed the very way of Generals breaking all of the rules in the unspoken ``rulebook`` for Generals. For starters, he reahearsed for a battle. At the time this was unheard of. -
Vimy Ridge Part 3
The strategy for the General`s would be to send as many troops over the trench and have them charge into no-man`s land. Currie also came up with a new strategy known as the Vimy Glide. It was precise movement onwards after the gun`s fired. Month`s of planning was placed to make this battle successful and Currie was the mastermind behind the plan. He had perfected many techniques of war such as reconnaissance and spotting. Currie also switched around the squad dynammic. -
Vimy Ridge End
He gave his troops maps to show them they were trusted and told each and every one of them their job. When the attack was launched it went nearly perfectly. There were minor glithces however valiant efforts by the Canadians were bale to overcome theses. This event is arguably one of the most important events in Canadian History because this battle displayed Canada`s wit and strength as a country. It displayed to other countries we are a dominant force and a force to be reckoned with. -
Aftermath of Vimy Ridge
After the capture of Vimy Ridge, one of the German Generals stated: "we are not going to get that ridge back from the Canadians". He also said ," Is there really a point in fighting". He knew that once Vimy Ridge was lost, the German's had esentially lost the war. After the war, in honour of the soldiers whom passed on at Vimy, the French government granted the Canadian Government permition to create a monument honouring their fallen. This monument still stands today at Vimy Ridge Memorial. -
The Battle of Passchendaele
After Arthur Currie`s success at Vimy, the Allies were having trouble taking the Belgian village of Passchendaele. The weather and conditions were horrible. The ground as knee deep in mud. There were permanent craters on the land throughout the Battlefield. This Battle saw many losses. The French and English couldn`t take the village and the Canadians were called in to releive Anzac soldiers. -
The Battle of Caporetto
The Battle of Caporetto resulted after the Italians swithced alliances. Once they switched, Austria-Hungry and Germany both attacked the Italian front. They used unconventional warfare methods and soon broke through Italian lines forcing them to retreat with the enemy on their heels. A staggering 250,000 were captured. This was a devestating blow for Italy. This Battle displayed how new technology could be used to its maximum potential. It displayed the very real threat these new weapons were. -
Canadians join The Battle of Passchendaele
Canadians joined the battle to relieve Anzac forces(Australian and New Zealander). Currie objected however his objection was overruled. The offensive on Passchendaele began October 30, 1917 and eventually the German`s were pushed back and Passchendaele was taken. The Canadians had used this battle that they were very versatile and were able to perform in all conditions anyhwere.Canadians established their names as fighters taking a position which was arguably one of the most difficult to take. -
The Battle of Cambrai
The Battle of Cambrai saw the English attacking the German's. The reason this battle is so important because it revolutionized one of the new warfare technologies. It was the first battle where tanks in significant amounts were used. The tanks however, were rather quickly deemed as ineffective warfare methods. They were essentially useless for attacking as they would suffer many problems such as getting stuck and malfunctioning. -
The Battle of Amiens
The Battle of Amiens was the battle part of the 100-day offensive. It was the first successful attack which lead to the eventual downfall of the Germans. This Battle is considered the "Black day of Germany" as troop morale dwindled tenfolds with a large portion of the German army surrendering to the Allies. This battle featured the Canadian 4th division. This battle is a very significant battle because after losing this battle the Germans started to crumble.
