The Battle of Vimy Ridge

1. The Battle of Vimy Ridge

2. Location of Vimy Ridge

3. The Battle of Vimy Ridge • German fortified position • Key to German defenses in the north • Featured concrete machine gun bunkers, trenches, underground tunnels, underground dugouts capable of holding entire German battalions

4. The Battle of Vimy Ridge • The four Canadian divisions given the task of taking Vimy Ridge • Lead by Lieutenant-General Sir Julian Byng • First time all Canadian divisions had fought as a unit

5. Canadian objectives at Vimy Ridge

6. The Battle of Vimy Ridge • British learned from failure at the Battle of the Somme • Planning was key to success • Every detail was thoroughly planned and rehearsed • Air reconnaissance identified German trench systems, machine gun nests etc.

7. Large scale replica of German trenches

8. The Battle of Vimy Ridge • Initial artillery barrage lasted a week, over a million shells used • Successfully destroyed German defenses • Germans called this the “week of suffering” • Every soldier knew what the objectives were and had maps

9. The Battle of Vimy Ridge • A creeping barrage was used during the attack (artillery aimed just in front of advancing infantry) • New and improved shells effectively cut barbed wire • Underground tunnels and dugouts allowed troops to advance to the front safely • Communication lines were improved

10. The Battle of Vimy Ridge • On April 9, 1917 at 5:30am the creeping barrage started and 20 000 Canadian soldiers advanced • The only Canadian division not to achieve their objective on time was the 4th division • With reinforcements they too reached their objective

11. Brigadier-General A.E. Ross declared after the battle • “…in those few minutes I witnessed the birth of a nation."

12. The Battle of Vimy Ridge • Only significant victory in the spring offensive of 1917 • One of the most decisive victories of WW1 • Greatest Allied victory till this point • Capture more ground, more guns, and more prisoners than any previous offensive in 2.5 years of war

13. The Battle of Vimy Ridge • 3 598 Canadian soldiers lost their lives out of 10 602 casualties • Canada had achieved the reputation of being one of the best fighting forces in the war • Canada went into the battle still seen as a British colony, but emerged a nation

14. The Battle of Vimy Ridge • Brigadier-General Alexander Ross at the new Vimy Memorial in 1936 said, "It was Canada from the Atlantic to the Pacific on parade. I thought then . . . that in those few minutes I witnessed the birth of a nation."