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World War I tactics
Tactic and strategy used in world war i
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LIEUTENANT--GENERAL SIR ARTHUR CURRIE (A brief account of the battle of Passchendaele)
Lieutenant-General Sir Arthur Currie was the most capable soldier that Canada has produced. Certainly, he did not look like the great soldier he had become. A very tall man, at six-foot-four, he was also somewhat overweight. Through his successes as the Commander of the Canadian Corps, he knew how to delegate authority and stand by the decisions of his subordinates.
Currie, however, was not a professional soldier. He was born in Strathroy, Ontario, on December 5, 1875 and raised, he had moved to Canada’s west coast in his late teens. As an adult, he movedto Victoria, British Columbia, he had become a schoolteacher, and insurance salesman, and, a real-estate speculator, an occupation that made him one of Victoria’s leading citizens. Like all goodCanadian businessmen at the time, he joined the Canadian Militia. In 1897, he had enlisted as a lowly gunner in the 5th Regiment, Canadian Garrison Artillery; by 1909, he was the lieutenant-colonelcommanding the regiment. In late 1913, Currie accepted the challenge of raising and training an infantry unit, the 50th Regiment, Gordon Highlanders of Canada.
When the war broke out in August 1914, the highly regarded Currie was commanded of an infantry brigade. Currie fought with exceptional composure at Ypres in 1915 where his 2nd Brigade made a remarkable stand against the poison gas. Having impressed his superiors, Currie was promoted to command the “crack” 1st Canadian
Division. He led the “Red Patch” at Mount Sorrel, through the horror of the Somme in 1916 and at Vimy Ridge, Arleux, and Fresnoy in the spring of 1917. In June, Currie had been knighted and named commander of the Canadian Corps, now four divisions strong.
One of Currie’s most impressive and important achievements had come during the winter or 1919-17, while he was still a divisional commander. By analyzing the fighting he had witnessed on the Western Front, Currie had drawn up what proved to be a blueprint for tactical success. In a paper, Currie synthesized the best of British and French concepts, and with many of his own beliefs based on personal experience. Under Sir Arthur Currie, the Canadian Corps emerged as an outstanding formation on the ...
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...m: not only was he a mere colonial, he was a non professional to boot, and he was much younger that th earmy commanders who would have reported to him. Far from demonstating his carelessness over casualtiles, Passchendaele proved Currie’s concern for he preservation fo the lives of the men under his command; indeed, Currie’s actons throughout th war stand as strong evidence of his desire, and ability, to win battles only at the least possible cost. A lot of Canadians, veterans and conscripts alike, had little regard for General Currie. Passchendaele convinced many of them that victory was his old consideration.
Charges of this nature dogged Currie for the rest of his life. Political enemies, took up the cry as the war wound down. He was being accused as a Canadian commander of deliberatley sacrificing the lives of his men in the pursuit of his own personal glory. His death five years later, in 1933 at the age of fifty-seven, may be attributed, at least indirectly, to the lawsuit. His funeral was a major event in Montreal and thousands lined the streets to honour the “Great Leader” of the Canadian Corps. He is buried in Mount Royal Cemetery, Montreal.
With careful planning, co-operation, good leadership and courage, Currie managed to bring out the characteristics of a well thought out success at Vimy Ridge in April of 1917 (Dancocks, 1985). Sir Arthur Currie’s responsibility was to command the 1st Canadian Division (Hyatt, 1987). He pushed his troops to undergo rigorous training and to prepare themselves by using a life-size course, with every trench marked by tape and a flag (Dancocks, 1985). Currie designed very accurate maps and he had a small-scale plasticine model built so that it could be studied by all soldiers. Arthur Currie insisted that his division’s knowledge of the enemy was excellent (Dancocks, 1985).
Billy Bishop’s path to greatness was not an easy one. He encountered many challenges throughout his young life that recognized him as a fiercer fighter pilot and a true hero. Billy Bishop faced an incredibly tough task to achieving his dream of becoming Canada’s greatest ace. Bishop had a tough life at Owen Sound Collegiate. He would be the subject to many jokes and preferred the company of girls. However his anger and fists won him acceptance on the school ground. He was a good natured boy born on February 8th, 1984. In 1911, at the age of 17, his parents sent him Royal Military College in Kingston, Ontario due to his mediocre marks in school which his father knew would not allow him to get accepted to the University of Toronto. He was not an academic student and in his third year of high school was found cheating on a class exam which would later be the subject to many controversie...
After the Canadian victory at Vimy Ridge, other counties immediately started to view Canada as a strong and determined army. In earlier years, many British and French attacks had been made against the ridge, as it was the barrier preventing the allies from getting to Lens-Douai Plain. The French has lost 150,000 men at Vimy, while the British also suffered heavy causalities. Before the battle at Vimy, Canadian forces were not recognized for any significant military contributions, and a Canadian had never been commander of more than a single division of soldiers. After their victory, however, both Britain and France viewed Canada and their soldiers as a military force to be reckoned with. In fact, Sir Arthur Currie became commander of the entire Canadian corps after his performance in commanding the first Canadian division at Vimy. This showed that the British commander...
...ton, Pierre. Marching as to War: Canada's Turbulent Years, 1899-1953. Toronto: Doubleday Canada, 2001. Print.
chance, every stage of the attack was planned to the very last detail. General Currie
The Canadian Corps had just been given a new lease on life, whether they knew it or not. Canadian Major-General Arthur Currie and Lt.-General Sir Julian Byng and the entire Corps had been tasked with an impossible task in some opinions. Tasked they were with ...
John Alexander Macdonald was born in Glasgow, Scotland on January 11, 1815. His family immigrated to Canada (Kingston, Ontario) in 1820, Macdonald was five years old at the time. In 1829 Macdonald ended his schooling, his parents could not afford to send him to university. Macdonald would later say that if he had went to university he would have ended up in literature, not politics. (Waite, John, 7-10)
Canada over the years have made itself known with it’s aspect of military combat. It’s soldiers have proven themselves undoubtedly strong willed and the prowess of Canadians shown bright in the battlefields of WWI and WWII. However, the brilliance of the Canadian forces was not without its own indigenous faults. In WWI alone, there have been 100,000 men conscripted into the armed forces, upping the count to meet the number Robert Borden, the PM at the time’s promised 500,000 by 1917. Simple math presents that over 20 percent of the men that then made up of Canada’s armed forces were conscripts, and the men were unwilling to do battle. Out of the French, 93% of those who were enlisted had applied for exemption. The lack of discipline out of the French Canadian soldiers even resulted in riots in Quebec. The savagery of the riots shocked conscripts and volunteers alike, and lowering the morales of both Conversely, the majority of soldiers who applied for the exemption of the military did not receive their goal. Nevertheless, those men still found other ways to avoid the frontlines, by assuming non-combat roles with duties of cleaning and other labour. While these militia servants were frowned upon, and even harassed by other soldiers, it did not stop the population of conscripts from ...
McAllister, James. The. The "Canada at War." Second World War. http://www.secondworldwar.co.uk/canada.html
Battles such as Vimy Ridge, the Second Battle of Passchendaele and the Battle of the Somme were some of the worst battles that the world can find Canadian's. Our northern nation had boasted over 600,000 soldiers to the battlefields whilst also providing vital manufacturing facilities and training soldiers from across the world. The strong imperial bond between Canada and the 'Motherland' was an important factor in Canada's decision to participate wholeheartedly in World War I, and influenced many in their decision to join the army. Most Canadians felt a strong connection to the British Emp...
Canada's sacrifices and contributions to the war changed its history and enabled them to become more independent and they friendship with Britain grew stronger and stronger. Canada was first inducted into the World War 1 when Britain declared war on Germany, August 4, 1914. Canada being allies with Britain had to support those in the war even know they weren’t in there and fighting all on the front they were backup just in case the German soldiers broke through the trenches and head towards France. Later on the Governor General also declared war on Germany but the Canadians fought under the ruling of a Britain commander. The achievements of Canadian military during the First World War came during the Somme, Vimy Ridge, and Passchendaele battles and what later became known as "Canada's Hundred Days". They help fight for the freedom and peace for the small village of Passchendaele and however as it was a muddy hell, they still persevered throu...
Many advocate uniforms as a method in decreasing school violence, and increasing school safety. Uniform advovates cite a plethera of reasons for this. 5As uniforms prevent the display of gang colors, and make outsiders more easily identifiable, uniforms are believed to increase school safety (John A. Gavin, "Schools Find Stricter Rules, Uniforms Can Lessen Bullying,"). In
School uniforms are a way for principals to know who belongs on campus and who does not. A while back, researchers studied that the reason certain school require students to wear school uniforms is because they feel that it will help stop other students from bulling one another, just because they don’t have on high priced shoes or clothing it shouldn 't stop them from doing what they do best. "The good thing is people judge you on your inner characteristics rather than what you wear," said Nick Duran, an 8th grader and the student-body president at Rogers Middle School (Portner)." Safety is they key, when students enter the school ground, they should feel safe and not think that someone is going to harm them. Students feel as if they have to wear school uniforms it will
School uniforms have become more common nowadays than before. They used to be worn in private schools only it was very rare to go to a public school and see students wearing the same designated outfit. But not everyone is fond of wearing uniforms to school, many people see it as teachers and school administration taking away the rights of self-expression from students. But that shouldn’t really matter because kids and teenagers go to school to gain knowledge and be prepared for the real world not to show off their new pair of shoes to other kids.
As stated, in the article “The Pros and Cons of Uniforms in School” by Holly Charlonne, “some schools will look to uniforms as a possible way to bring together students from various backgrounds as a unit” (Charlonne). When the students are dressed alike, it takes away the social segregation that sometimes a child may feel if they do not have the same style of clothing as another child. Charlonne, also suggests, another proof of this advantage can be seen in the “cutting down the number of cliques that are formed in school due to economic or social status seems to have had a positive outcome in past from having students wear designated uniforms in public schools” (Charlonne). Wearing the uniform reduces the competition for who has the best clothes and who doesn’t, and allows the student to focus their attention on more productive matters. When the students all wear the exact same thing, they feel as though they belong to the group. The unity created by all students in uniform gives them an elevated sense of pride toward their school. Recent surveys have shown that “despite the fact that they (students) aren’t exactly thrilled about wearing uniforms, some students do recognize the benefits they offer”, in fact “54% of the students” included in this survey, report “having to wear a uniform didn’t compromise their identity” (Lake). It is for this reason that I firmly agree with the notion of public school