ipl-logo

Why General Douglas Haig Won The Battle Of Passchendaele Ridge

545 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: World Wars 1 Canada's economy, military, and society

TORONTO, CANADA- Yesterday, as the sun set on the horizon, signaled the last day of the horrific four month battle at the Passchendaele Ridge, Ypres for British, German as well as Canadian troops.

The battle of Passchendaele, which had begun on July 31st, 1917 carried on till the final attack. It has been told that the Canadians had joined the war sometime in October, on the order of General Douglas Haig. The order was passed on to General Sir Arthur Currie, the Canadian’s new commander, who then prepared the 4 divisions of the Canadian Troops.

After the great success at Vimy Ridge, Canadians were presented with the opportunity to celebrate and enjoy their new success. It had not been too long when the British General believed his troops …show more content…

At first, General Currie objected as he predicted that it would cost about 16 000 lives for no strategic gain, but had no other choice than to agree to Haig’s orders, considering that Canada was allied with Britain.

On October 26th, Canada goes out to fight in the Battle of Passchendaele. The battle was not only horrific and tough; it also became extremely hard to fight due to the poor weather conditions. There were unusual periods of constant heavy rain, making the ground terribly muddy. This made the movement for the soldiers tremendously difficult. Although the mud saved lives, cushioning many shells that landed, preventing their explosion, it still gummed up rifle barrels and breeches, making them difficult to fire. Hence the most common name for this war can be said to be “Sea of Mud.”

“Our feet were in water, over the tops of our boots, all the time,” wrote Arthur Turner, an infantryman from Alberta. “We were given whale oil to rub on our feet…this was to prevent trench feet. To solve it, I took off my boots once, and poured half the oil into each foot, then slid my feet into it. It was a gummy mess, but I did not get trench

Show More
Related
280 Words | 2 Pages

General Gates had underestimated his troops ability to fight until it was too late to back out. The start of the battle involved

Read More
590 Words | 3 Pages

The Battle of Dieppe, or Operation Jubilee, was a calculated collaborative allied infantry and naval attack in an attempt to take the port of Dieppe and the surrounding beaches. Before David O’Keefe’s scholarly contribution to the events surrounding Dieppe, it was largely understood that Dieppe was a trial run for amphibious attacks against the German front in France. It was seen as a huge disaster as sixty-eight percent of allied soldiers that engaged the Germans were either killed or wounded. There is a multitude of reasons as to why the number of casualties were so high. The most apparent of which being that the port, and surrounding beaches, were heavily guarded with artillery, machine guns, barbed wire, and German soldiers.

Read More
498 Words | 2 Pages

Vimy Ridge was one of the greatest battles of Canadian history, it was part of the opening phase of the British-led Battle of Arras, a diversionary assault for the French Nivelle Offensive. This essay will describe the success of the Canadian troops, the battle’s significance, and the importance of the positioning with respect to the geography of the land. The actual battle took place 5:30 am Easter Monday April 9th 1917, but the planning of the attack took place for more than 5 months beforehand starting in November of 1916. Rehearsals and training also occurred, and the soldiers were trained specifically for each position in the war.

Read More
410 Words | 2 Pages

The Canadian Corps, a 100,000 strong fighting formation, was ordered to the Passchendaele front, east of Ypres, in mid-October 1917. Horrible Conditions Launched on 31 July 1917, the British offensive in Flanders had aimed to drive the Germans away from the essential Channel Ports and to eliminate U-Boat bases on the coast. But unceasing rain and shellfire reduced the battlefield to a vast bog of bodies, water-filled shell craters, and mud in which the attack ground to a halt. After months of fighting, Passchendaele ridge was still stubbornly held by German troops. Sir Douglas Haig, the commander-in-chief of the British Expeditionary Force, ordered the Canadians to deliver victory.

Read More
816 Words | 4 Pages

Both sides had the same strategy called the Military Strategy. The strategy was to defeat the other side in one huge battle. Bob just escaped New York barely he thought about his strategy. Now he wants to avoid large battles that put his army at risk. Bob’s army is now defensive which he will try to tire them out and then go in and defeat and defeat the British.

Read More
778 Words | 4 Pages

When they landed the 3rd division and the 2nd Canadian armored brigade were fighting under the 2nd British army. Canadians landed on the beach with the code name Juno beach. Canada eventually moved forward inland after winning the battle. Canada continued fighting inland and they eventually liberated the Netherlands which is still remembered today as a great accomplishment, which the people there

Read More
145 Words | 1 Pages

“If I don’t cross tomorrow, there will be no army.” General George Washington said the morning of the attack on the Hessians. He vowed to lead the army of the young and old knowing the dangers. If his plan fails he and his army will be humiliated and treasoned for the rebellion against the king. George Washington plan was to attack the day after the Hessians has celebrated Christmas.

Read More
369 Words | 2 Pages

The Battle of Vimy Ridge is historically significant because it established the Canadian Expeditionary Force as elite troops of the Entente Army, allowed Canada to emerge from the shadows of the British Empire, and united Canada as a Nation. The battle of Vimy Ridge showed the world that Canada was an important ally of the Entente. French and British troops tried to recapture Vimy Ridge for three years and failed (Service and Sacrifice). However, Canada succeeded in recapturing the ridge (Service and Sacrifice). This shows that Canada is an important ally to the Entente Army because it proved that they were capable of doing things the other powers couldn’t.

Read More
573 Words | 3 Pages

Many Historians believed that the victory of Vimy Ridge was a memorable and unreal moment for Canadians. At that time, Canada was known to be a part of the British Empire. This meant that if Britain was to go to war, then Canada would automatically have to go to war as well.1 The Battle took place on April 9, 1917 and it was a huge victory for the Canadians.2 The significance of the battle of Vimy Ridge to Canadian history was that Canada became famous for its heroic soldiers, its large sacrifice and it was the birth of Canadian patriotism.3 To begin, the battle of Vimy Ridge was not just considered to be the greatest achievement for Canadians, but it became famous for the clever tactics which the Canadian troops used during the war.4 To start off with, The Battle of Vimy Ridge was the first battle in which Canadians from all over the land fought as a united team.5 This gave them an advantage and brought them much success during the war because they outnumbered the Germans.6 This is witnessed when Brigadier General A.E.Ross announced, "In those few minutes I witnessed the birth of a nation.

Read More
1124 Words | 5 Pages

These poor weather conditions resulted in tanks getting stuck, artillery shells having little effect, and troops having to use duckboards to move forward, otherwise they’d drown. Canadian Corps’ was ordered into battle and given two weeks to prepare, despite Arthur Currie's protest and prediction that there may be 16000 casualties. Canadians began the attack on October 26th, 1917 and gained about 100 meters per day and by November 10th they had captured what was

Read More
293 Words | 2 Pages

Soldiers had to take shelter in water-filled craters. The mud covered rifle barrels and breeches making them difficult to fire. It consumed soldiers as they slept, and slowed down stretcher bearers. “The first day I went in, the mud was six inches deep everywhere, and in most places halfway up to my knees” (Colyer, 137). Another significance of

Read More
1128 Words | 5 Pages

Despite their loss, the inexperienced colonial forces inflicted considerable casualties against the invading British, and the battle provided them with an important confidence boost. Colonel Prescott’s leadership throughout the battle is an excellent example of good mission command. Upon receipt of mission from higher and given limited resources, Colonel Prescott effectively issued orders to his soldiers, which ultimately led to

Read More
1266 Words | 6 Pages

The British and French had already attempted to take this area, and although it was valiant they still lost. This put weight on Canada’s soldiers. On April 9th, 1917, 1000 guns opened fire on German positions. 15000 Canadians attacked the Germans and after four days and 10000 casualties, Canada single handedly took Vimy Ridge (Vimy Ridge, 1). This victory gained the nation immense respect from the rest of the world.

Read More
149 Words | 1 Pages

Hence, it would’ve been harder and more tiresome to carry artillery through the mud. Finally, the muddy conditions caused diseases such as trench foot, which caused blisters,

Read More
323 Words | 2 Pages

On June 6, 1944, the Battle of Normandy began. This day, also known as D-Day, would go down in history for making a tremendous impact on the war. The German and American forces fought hard, inflicting injuries beyond compare (G1). Many people were highly dedicated to fighting for their country, resulting in many lost lives (C1). Many Americans were so determined that they actually swam into German fire to fight on the coast of France (F1).

Read More

More about Why General Douglas Haig Won The Battle Of Passchendaele Ridge

Related Topics

Open Document