Canada In The Great War

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Canada In The Great War

• Most Canadians served in the Canadian
  Expeditionary Force (CEF), which fought all of
  its battles on the Western Front (Belgium and
  France)
• The CEF fought as part of the British forces for
  most of the war.
• Almost 2,500 Canadian women joined the medical
  field and ambulance corps, and some served as
  nurses in the Canadian Army Medical Corps, known
  as the Bluebirds.

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Bluebirds
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The Battles

• Write down the battle answers on the worksheet
  provided
• Read your textbook pg.30-35 for more information

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Battle of the Marne (1914)

• As part of the Schlieffen Plan, Germany moved its
  army through Belgium and into France.
• Germany threw all of its forces against the
  French Army, but was stopped at the Battle of the
  Marne, only 35km from Paris.
• The Schlieffen plan failed because Germany was
  denied a quick victory against France, and was
  forced to fight on two fronts (Russia and
  France).
• As a result of Germany not taking France, both
  sides were locked in a stalemate, and dug into
  their trenches for 4 more years of fighting
  around the same area on the Western Front.

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Second Battle of Ypres

• When April 1915
• Where Ypres, Belgium (Flanders District)
• Germans used poison (chlorine) gas (first time
  in battle)
• Canadian casualties 6,035 (1 in 3)
• Type of warfare Trench warfare
• Battle did this for Canada Established the
  reputation of the Canadians as a fighting force.
• John McCrae Canadian who wrote the famous poem
  In Flanders Field in memory of a friend who was
  killed in the battle of Ypres.
• There would be 3 major battles at Ypres. The
  third battle is known as Passchendaele.
• The Allies also used gas in WWI.
• Adolf Hitler was temporarily
  blinded in a British gas
• attack in 1918.

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Ruins of Ypres
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Verdun

• (Not a Canadian battle!)
• Start 21st February, 1916
• Finish 19th December, 1916
• Where North-Eastern France
• Total casualties 700,000
• Mincing Machine of Verdun because of the sheer
  number of casualties and suffering of the
  combatants.
• Battle Strategy War of attrition (wear down the
  enemy)
• Battle Outcome French victory as the German
  attackers failed to capture Verdun and were
  pushed back to their initial starting lines.

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The Somme (The bloodbath)

• When July 1916 (Somme River, France)
• Duration 5 months
• Why the Allies attacked The Germans were busy
  with the French at Verdun, so the Allied
  commander (Douglas Haig) tried to end trench
  warfare with a massive attack. Big Push
• Canadian casualties 24,029
• Casualties on both sides 1,250,000 (58,000
  British 1st day)
• Newfoundland Regiment suffered 90 casualties,
  and every officer was either killed or hurt. (30
  minutes)
• Land taken Only 13km of land had been gained
• 23 Canadian men ordered shot at dawn after
  facing a court martial, and then the firing squad
  because they would not or could not return to the
  front.
• Many Canadians suffered from Shell shock

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Canadians going Over the Top
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Vimy Ridge

• When April, 1917
• Where Vimy Ridge (France), near the Belgian
  border
• French British killed in 2 years 150,000
• Canadians killed 3,000 killed (7,000 injured)
• Leader of CEF after Vimy Gen. Arthur Currie
  (Victoria)
• Significant facts
• Canadians suffered heavy losses (110 metre high /
  8km long ridge)
• Was a turning point of the war for the Allies
• Was the first time in history that Canadian units
  fought together as one (They fought under General
  Julian Byng)
• The victory became a symbol of Canadas
  independence and nationhood
• Canadian troops were soon recognized as some of
  the best troops on the Western Front
• Canadian General Arthur Currie was promoted to
  replace British General Byng as the leader of the
  CEF, which marked the end of British soldiers
  commanding Canadian troops.
• People said this Canada became a nation at Vimy
  Ridge

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Look at the picture on page 32

• Why do you think the photo of Canadian soldiers
  returning from Vimy Ridge became one of the most
  famous images of Canadians in World War One?

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They said it couldnt be done and we did it.
gt Canadian historian Pierre Berton on Canadas
victory at Vimy Ridge.
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German P.O.W.s after Vimy Ridge
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Passchendaele

• When October, 1917
• Reason for Allied problems Mud
• Terrain Utter desolation!!
• Destroyed drainage system
• Heavy rains
• Oozing quagmire of yellow mud.
• Gen. Curries complaint Passchendaele could not
  be taken because troops could not move through
  the mud.
• He also predicted that there would be 16,000
  casualties
• Cdn. Battle achievement They took the town and
  held it until reinforcements came.
• Canadian casualties 15,654 (500,000 on both
  sides)
• Canadian survival rate One out of every five
  survived!!!
• Land gained 7 kilometres of mud

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Canadians in the Air

• Canadian Air Force in 1914 Zero
• Canadians in the British Royal Flying Corps in
  1918 40
• Why Germany had the upper hand German planes
  greatly outnumbered the British and French.
• Aerial combat Dogfights
• 1916 pilot life expectancy 3 weeks
• Germanys ace Manfred von Richthofen (Red Baron)
• 80 planes shot down
• Canadian who shot him down Captain Roy Brown
• Canadas ace Billy Bishop
• 72 planes shot down
• A pilot needed to shoot down 5 planes to become
  an ace.
• Bishops award Victoria Cross medal
• Awarded for Courage and Bravery

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Manfred von Richthofen The Red Baron
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Billy Bishop
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War at Sea

• German submarines U-boats
• 1915 torpedoed ship The Lusitania (1,198 dead)
• Significance of Lusitania sinking
• American public opinion began to turn against
  Germany.
• It began the process of America coming out of
  isolation to become involved in world affairs.
• German sea policy Unrestricted submarine warfare
  (began in 1917)
• Allied system of protection Convoy system
• Three reasons why the U.S.A. entered the war in
• The 1915 sinking of the Lusitania.
• German U-boats unrestricted submarine warfare.
• Zimmerman Telegram Americans learned that
  Germany was encouraging Mexico to attack the
  United States when Britain intercepted a
  telegram.
• Canadas merchant marine had the dangerous
  job of shipping munitions and food across the
  Atlantic ocean to Britain.

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U-boat
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Convoy System
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Eastern Front

• Canadians didnt fight on the Eastern Front!
• The Russian Campaign (August 1914 1916)
• By August 1914, Russians were invading Germany,
  which took the Germans by surprise.
• The Germans were forced to send troops from the
  Western Front to the Eastern Front to fight
  Russia.
• The Germans advanced into Russia until 1916.
• In March 1917, Russia Czar Nicholas of Russia was
  forced to abdicate and a provisional government
  was formed. In October 1917, the Bolsheviks
  (Communists) under Lenin took over the government
  and then signed a truce (peace) with Germany,
  ending the Eastern Front.
• The Gallipoli Campaign (April 1915 December
  1915)
• Turkey (Ottoman Empire) joined the Central Powers
  in an attempt to keep Russia out of the Gallipoli
  peninsula (water passage allowing Russia a route
  to the Balkans and Black Sea).
• The British also wanted control of the Gallipoli
  peninsula so they could help supply Russia.
• The battle was a poorly planned disaster for the
  Allies (Australians)
• The Gallipoli Campaign had little impact on the
  war!

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Casualties of War
Country Mobilized Forces Total Casualties of Force
Russia 12,000,000 9,150,000 76
British Empire 9,000,000 3,200,000 36
France 8,400,000 6,200,000 73
Germany 11,000,000 7,100,000 65
Austria-Hungary 7,800,000 7,000,000 90