Canada in World War I: Part 6 - Vimy Ridge

(Note: I've been writing this blog for three years and a few months (the 100th post was the latest one). The manner in which I write them has changed drastically since its beginning. The earliest creation was a brief run-down of Wikipedia articles, read quickly, written quickly, and with limited information - essentially the plan was a way to get the information without mowing through pretty dry text for a while. Now, as you know, they're done in more thorough sections based off books. That's why this Vimy article is not just a repeat but a necessary one as the previous one not only didn't do it justice but simply wasn't as informed.)

Vimy was a formidable defensive fortification in every sense. The slope upwards was steep, the opponent was dug in and heavily armed, the assault lacked the element of surprise, and since the previous assaults that have cost the lives of 300,000 men, the Germans had solidified their position to even greater strength. When the French heard the Canadians - a mere colony fighting in a game of giants - was planning on attacking the ridge, they were met with open contempt. They had the British had already tried and failed, so what chance did the Canadians have?

Artillery men got extra street cred for firing shirtless.

While the task was daunting, the only way they would have a chance would be to plan relentlessly. For months they would draw up battle plans and train, working in a new system that would be a hallmark of why the Canadian forces would find such success in the battles to come. While most armies would have their officers knowing the game-plan and the infantry following suit, the Canadians had each one of their soldiers know the task at hand. The rationale was officers had a soft outer shell just like any other human, and if they were killed the attacks would either dissolve into chaos or be forced into retreat. Now, with the new system, individual soldiers could take the reins as they, too, know the battle plan. It was a significant and successful change, leading to many assaults moving much further than they would otherwise, as well as creating a number of great Canadian heroes along the way.

You know Snoopy from Charlie Brown
went after the Red Baron in his imagination,
right? You really won't get the "Snoopy's
Bane" joke otherwise.

After a few months of training and planning, the first shells began to drop on the German defences. The shelling was intense. 1.6 million shells were allocated to Vimy, amounting to 2500 tons of ammunition used daily. (That's 15,384 Shaquille O'Neil's worth, if you were wondering.) They called it the "German Week of Hell," one surviving soldier in particular describing the bombings as so plentiful that they used them as if they were "grains of sand." Aerial photographs were of the utmost importance in getting the bombs landing in the right spots, and the work of recon planes was one of those unsung hero positions in the war; I don't see any Call of Duty games advertising fast-paced photography action of a warzone. Still, it was no less dangerous than anywhere else, especially with the dreaded pilot Baron von Richthofen, better known as the "Red Baron", better yet known as "Snoopy's Bane", patrolling the skies.


After the week of bombing, Byng made his announcement to go over the top and begin following the creeping barrage; ninety meters every three minutes. To his troops, he said "chaps, you shall goo over exactly like a railroad train, on the exact time, or you shall be annihilated." He was right. Bombs would go on time, every time, and if you were too early or were lagging behind you would either get hit by friendly fire or the lost time would allow the Germans to regroup and fire on your advance. It's a good thing, then, that every troop knowing his role - all 15,000 of them with 12,000 in support. On April 9th at 5:30 a.m., they set out hoping to take four key lines at various time intervals, hoping to be finished in seven hours and fourty-eight minutes. With officers were getting killed, the chaos of battle raging, and nerves being fried to bits, the intense training of the Canadians began to pay off.

The Canadians found success in spite of the hellish fighting conditions, with men drowning in shell holes, losing their boots in the muck, and the hills themselves being so terribly steep. Many fell behind the creeping barrage as they just couldn't keep the pace towards the two hardest to take points; the two pieces of highest ground, one creatively referred to as the "Pimple" and the other uncreatively named Hill 145. Without the barrage to support, the Canadians were left in the open and were being killed in droves as they advanced up the hill. In desperation, a highlander unit - a group so new they were not yet kilted, because yes, they still fought in kilts - was thrown up the hill at the last moment. Meant to be a reserve force only, they were forced to charge in without an artillery barrage, and the act of boldness and outright bravery surprised the Germans, resulting in a Canadian victory and a taking of the hill.

By April 10th only the Pimple stood. Easily the hardest point to take, the Pimple was the highest ground, the mud around it so thick that it went waist deep at points. Nevertheless, Byng was confident. In one of the few letters he wrote to his wife during wartime, he spoke of the elite Prussian guard that held the point, said to be some of Germany's strongest fighters. "Poor old Prussian guard. What a mouthful to swallow, being beaten to Hell by what they called untrained colonial levies." That Byng. Got to love 'im.

A painting titled "The Ghosts of Vimy Ridge." I'd take this over a Campbell's soup can any day. 

The ensuing battle on the 10th cost a heavy toll, so high that the typical battalion would lose half their numbers in the fight. But nevertheless, careful planning, training through all ranks, and individual feats of courage propelled the Canadian army not only to victory but to a level of international respect from friend and foe alike. To the Germans, the Canadians were something to fear, and to the British, the Canadians became a powerful weapon.

Vimy has held a lasting Canadian legacy, and one that is deserving in every right. It marked the first time all four Canadian divisions would fight together, and in doing so they took a fortification that was previously thought unbreakable, stepping over the fallen of French and British alike that had tried and failed in months past. However, the victory came at a brutal cost. In four days of fighting, Canada had 10,500 casualties, 3,598 of which were killed. The 9th was the single bloodiest day in the war for Canada.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of Vimy Ridge, a spot that to this day is Canadian land, gifted to us by the grateful French. Vimy will be remembered as more than just a successful battle, but as a nation building moment. Canada was founding in 1867, but came into its own on April 9th, 1917.