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Today we will be looking at the major battles
Canadians fought in during WW1.
 Powerpoint and filling out chart
Theater of war
 A large geographic area on/in which fighting occurs
 In World War One there were 3 general theatres of war:

Land
 This land theatre can be further divided into more specific theatres of
war
▪ European theatre (this is the only land theatre we will be focusing on in Social
Studies 11)
▪ Asian theatre
▪ African theatre

Sea
 This sea theatre can be further divided into a more specific theatre of
war
▪ Atlantic theatre (this is the only sea theatre we will be focusing on in Social
Studies 11)
▪ Pacific theatre (around Asia)

Air

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Front
A specific area within a theatre of war where
opposing forces (those who are fighting) come
into contact
 Although there are many fronts in WWI there are only 2
that we need to be concerned with in Social Studies 11:
▪ Western Front (in the European theatre)
▪ This front was found approximately between France/Belgium &
Germany
▪ Eastern Front (in the European theatre)
▪ This front was found approximately between Germany/AustriaHungary & Russia

Most of the fighting during WWI was carried out
by land armies in Europe
 Here, the machine gun was the most important
weapon
Naval forces (in the sea theatre) were used
mostly to prevent food and supplies from
reaching their destinations
 Airplanes were also used in a major military
campaigns for the first time during World War I

 But, they played a small role in the war’s outcome

Read page 35 of Counterpoints and answer the
following two questions below.

What was the purpose of Germany’s plan?
a)Who was it trying to defeat?
b)How were they going to defeat them? (i.e. what was the
plan?)

Why did the plan fail?
You have SEVEN minutes to complete this
task.
Purpose: to fend off Russia in the East hile it defeated France
with a lightening speed massive attack.
Planned to defeat Russia and France. They would defeat
France by driving through Belgium and then capturing Paris
within a few weeks.
The plan failed because:
-Russia’s forces were already on the move when G
declared war.
-Britan entered the war when G. invaded Belgium
-G. moved troops to defend East
-tired troops lost the battle of the Marne – trenches
dug in resulting in Stalemate on Western Front.
Major Canadian Battles

Canadian and Fr. Troops vs Gr.

This was the first battle Germans used
chemical warfare -Chlorine Gas.

Due to the gas Around 5 000 troops died
within 10 minutes of the attack.

Canadians used urine-soaked
handkerchiefs (the ammonia in the
urine reacted with the chlorine,
neutralizing it, and the water would
dissolve the chlorine, allowing the
soldiers to breathe) to fight through the
gas attacks
Gas! GAS! Quick, boys! - An ecstasy of fumbling,
Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time,
But someone still was yelling out and stumbling
And floundering like a man in fire or lime. Dim through the misty panes and thick green light
As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.
In all my dreams before my helpless sight
He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.
If in some smothering dreams, you too could pace
Behind the wagon that we flung him in,
And watch the white eyes writhing in his face,
His hanging face, like a devil's sick of sin;
If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood
Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs,
Bitter as the cud
Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues, My friend, you would not tell with such high zest
To children ardent for some desperate glory,
The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est
Pro patria mori.
It is sweet and
fitting to die for
your country

In the end, more than
6,000 Canadians killed.

Canadian John McCrea
wrote the poem: In
Flanders Fields, after the
battle of Ypres

Although the battle was
considered
a“stalemate”, the act of
re-establishing the front
lines earned Canadian
soldiers much respect.
Every day TAPS


Allies launched massive attacks against
Germans.
HUGE failure.
 First day of battle 57 500 British soldiers killed.
 Commander Haig used tactics previously
successful in warfare – troops were ordered to
march across open field and man were shot down
by machine guns.


24,000 Canadian
casualties.
The Royal
Newfoundland regiment
lost 90% of its men
 Newfoundland had not yet
joined confederation
Despite heavy losses
Canadians distinguished
themselves and went on to
lead assaults in other major
battles.
Beaumont-Hamel Newfoundland
Memorial

This was an important battle because
Germans took control of the ridge in 1914 and
it gave them clear view of surrounding
country and supply routes.
 British and Fr. Troops tried to take the ridge for 2
years but were never successful.

Canadian troops led by British officer Julian
Byng chosen to lead an offensive assault on the
ridge.
 April 9th – Canadians move into position and within 2
hours take 1st objective
 April 10th – Canadians take Hill 145
 By April 12th Canadians took last German position.

Causalities: more than 3500 men killed and 7000
wounded. However, losses were significantly
lower then previous allied offensives.

Canadians did what the British and French had
failed to do.

This established them as some of the best troops on the Western front.

Turning point of war in favor of the Entente

First time Canadian military divisions attacked
together. National identity developed.
 Before Vimy solders would say “I’m from Ontario, I’m
from BC, I'm from Alberta” ect. After Vimy they would
say “I'm from Canada.”

Canadians were instructed to take
back Belgian city of Passchendaele
from the Germans.

The battlefield turned to “liquid
mud”, drowning horses and
men…tanks useless.

eventually the Canadian troops
captured Passchendaele BUT The 7
kilometers of front line that Canadian
troops gained was lost back to the
Germans later on.

The Allies had casualties numbering
500 000. The German count was 250
000

Passchendaele was the first battle with a
Canadian General leading Canadian troops
(Before it had only been British Generals).

1 in 5 Canadian solders died – 16,000 needless
deaths.

Americans had just entered the war and
Germans knew one HUGE offensive attack
before the USA arrived was their only chance.

Allies stopped them just short of Paris and
managed to break the German defense. By
Nov. 11 Allies had pushed all the way to the
German border.

Hundred days were the final Allied advance
that won the war.

Canadians were very involved. They were in
forefront of the most difficult tasks of
dislodging German defense
 Ex: lead charge against the Hindenburg Line.