The Battle of Vimy Ridge was part of the Battle of Arras, in the Pas-de-Calais department of France, during the First World War. The main combatants were the four divisions of the Canadian Corps in the First Army, against three divisions of the German 6th Army. The battle occurred from 9 to 12 April 1917, marking the commencement of the Battle of Arras and serving as the inaugural assault of the Nivelle Offensive. The objective was to draw German reserves away from the French forces, preparing for a crucial offensive along the Aisne and the Chemin des Dames ridge several days later.
The Canadian Corps were to capture the German-held high ground of Vimy Ridge, an escarpment on the northern flank of the Arras front. This would protect the First Army and the Third Army farther south from German enfilade fire. Supported by a creeping barrage, the Canadian Corps captured most of the ridge during the first day. The village of Thélus fell during the second day, as did the crest of the ridge, once the Canadian Corps overran a salient against considerable German resistance. The final objective, a fortified knoll outside the village of Givenchy-en-Gohelle, fell to the Canadians on 12 April. The German 6th Army then retreated to the Oppy–Méricourt line.
Historians attribute the success of the Canadian Corps to technical and tactical innovation, meticulous planning, powerful artillery support and extensive training, as well as the inability of the 6th Army to properly apply the new German defensive doctrine. The battle was the first occasion when the four divisions of the Canadian Expeditionary Force fought together and it was made a symbol of Canadian national achievement and sacrifice. A 100 ha (250-acre) portion of the former battleground serves as a memorial park and site of the Canadian National Vimy Memorial.[5]
^Nicholson 1962, p. 229.
^Turner 2005, pp. 21–22.
^Moran 2007, p. 139.
^ abNicholson 1962, p. 265.
^Canada Treaty Information, Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, 26 February 2002, archived from the original on 21 September 2013, retrieved 17 October 2010
and 20 Related for: Battle of Vimy Ridge information
The BattleofVimyRidge was part of the Battleof Arras, in the Pas-de-Calais department of France, during the First World War. The main combatants were...
during the initial BattleofVimyRidge offensive of the Battleof Arras. The BattleofVimyRidge was the first time all four divisions of the Canadian Expeditionary...
Located 3.8 kilometers (2.4 mi) east ofVimy is the Canadian National Vimy Memorial dedicated to the BattleofVimyRidge and the Canadian soldiers who were...
success in battle from the Second Battleof Ypres, through the Somme and particularly in the Battleof Arras at VimyRidge in April 1917, and Passchendaele...
25 Battleof Thiepval Ridge: September 26–28 Battleof Le Transloy: October 1–18 Battleof the Ancre Heights: October 1 – November 11 BattleofVimy Ridge:...
France while his son stayed in England. One of four soldiers to earn the Victoria Cross at the BattleofVimyRidge, (the others were Thain Wendell MacDowell...
9 April 1917 near Thelus, France, during the BattleofVimyRidge, where his actions led to the award of the Victoria Cross. His citation reads: For most...
commander. The highpoints of Canadian military achievement during the Great War came during the Somme, Vimy, and Passchendaele battles and what later became...
British gallery network beneath VimyRidge grew to a length of 12 kilometres (7.5 mi). Before the BattleofVimyRidge (9–12 April 1917), the British tunnelling...
Flags and Badges of Canada. The Red Ensign carried by the 5th Canadian Infantry Battalion (Western Cavalry) at the BattleofVimyRidge in 1917 survives...
After the Third Battleof Artois (25 September – 4 November 1915) the French Tenth Army had held positions on the western slope ofVimyRidge and the German...
May 2016. Anthony Wilson-Smith. "VimyRidge and the Birth of a Nation". The Canadian Encyclopedia. "BattleofVimyRidge marked Canada's birth as a nation:...
Canada's success in the BattleofVimyRidge on April 9, 1917. The Vimy Foundation was founded in 1996 by John Andrew Powell (son of Ray Edwin Powell), with...
The type had received the official name ofVimy, after the BattleofVimyRidge. By the end of 1918 a total of 13 aircraft had been completed by Vickers;...
Division was a part of the Canadian Corps in the BattleofVimyRidge, which attacked and defeated the Germans, driving them from the ridge. As a result, the...
October 1917: BattleofVimyRidge – 9–14 April Attack on La Coulotte – 23 April Third Battleof the Scarpe – 3–4 May Affairs South of the Souchez River...
gallantry at VimyRidge on 9 April. One of four soldiers to earn the Victoria Cross in the BattleofVimyRidge, one of two to survive the battle and the only...