During the First World War, 619,636 Canadians enlisted with the Canadian Expeditionary Force and 424,000 shipped overseas. While the roles of soldiers at the Somme and Vimy Ridge are celebrated in Canadian history, there are many unsung heroes who...
During the 100 Days Offensive that would eventually close out the First World War, one of the most significant battles for Canada was the Battle of Scarpe. It would begin on Aug. 26 and run for the next five days and would prove to be an...
On Jan. 2, the Humber Railway Disaster would occur, with 32 men and boys being killed in a head-on collision of a Grand Trunk Railway commuter train with an unscheduled freight train near Toronto. A young man by the name of Goodwood would see the...
With Canadians entering into the Battle of the Somme in September at the Battle of Courcelette, they would be thrown back into the fray after several German victories at various locations along the front. This led to the need for Thiepval to be...
For two and a half months, the terrible Battle of the Somme had been fought on the Western Front but at this point, beyond the Newfoundlanders, there had been no Canadian troops taking part in the overarching battle, which would last from July 1 to...
Amid the First World War and the arrival of the Spanish Flu, there was something else going on in Canada that most people don’t know about. At the time, Russia was dealing with the Bolshevik Revolution, which was threatening its ability to continue...
We are going to shift things now, from Canadian troops to Newfoundland troops with our battles of the First World War for Canada. While it is true that Newfoundland did not join Canada until 1949, I am including the battles that Newfoundland took...
It was along a ridge between Hooge and Zwarteleen that Canadian troops would come to Mount Sorrel, a small hill that rose 98 feet into the air, but provided a clear vantage point over the surrounding area. The force that occupied this spot would...
Today, I continue my journey through the battles of the First World War involving Canadians and once again we come to a battle that inflicted terrible losses on Canadian troops, all for barely any gain in ground. Today, I look at the Actions at St...
In the second major engagement of the Canadian Army in the First World War, the troops who had enlisted in a flurry of patriotism would soon find that the First World War was not a war like any other. The Battle of Festubert was launched on May 15...