Major Canadian Battles – What you need to know!!
Ypres (2nd Battle) – April 1915 – Belgium
 6035 Canadians killed in 48 hours
 First German Gas Attack (chlorine)
 First Major Canadian Battle
 French retreated – Canadian troops held off Germans
 Canadians recognized for bravery
The Somme – July 1916 – France
 24000 Canadian casualties
 After 4.5 months of fighting, only 6 miles of territory was
gained
 Rain, mud and cold made fighting difficult
 Lessons from the Somme were applied to other battles (i.e.
creating barrage of artillery to protect soldiers while
crossing No Man’s Land)
 90% of the Newfoundland regiment was killed (only 68 of
the 801 Canadians survived)
 Known as one of the ‘bloodiest’ battles of WW1
 Canadians gained further recognition from Allied Powers
Vimy Ridge – April 1917 – French / Belgium border
 10602 Canadian casualties
 Canadian forces win one of the most important battles of
the war under the command of General Arthur Currie
 Canadians fought together under Canadian command for
the first time as an individual regiment
Passchendaele (3rd Battle of Ypres) – May 1917 – Belgium
 15000 Canadian casualties
 After 8 months of fighting, only 5 miles of land was gained
 Low-ground territory, so when shelling began, the
battlefield flooded and became extremely muddy
 Canadians fought under command of Arthur Currie again
 Artillery played an important role in the battle – to weaken
enemy positions
 Soldiers carried and placed duckwalls over the ground so
they wouldn’t slip on the mud
 Received recognition for doing the impossible
 Canadians gained control of the town of Passchendale