07 November 2017

Canada in the Third Battle of Ypres - Marking the centenary

Canadian commemorations marking the centenary of Passchendaele will take place at the CWGC’s Tyne Cot Cemetery in Belgium this week. Ahead of the commemorations, we take a look back at the country’s victorious actions that ended the battle.

Canadian Gunners in the Mud, Passchendaele, 1917, by Alfred Bastien

BATTLE OF YPRES CANADA - BACKGROUND

By mid-October 1917, after three and half months of fighting the British Army was still short of its revised objective of Passchendaele Ridge. The British Army was fast running out of fresh divisions, most already having been mauled by one or more deployments during the Third Battle of Ypres.

On 13 October a temporary halt was called by army command. But the decision was taken to continue the offensive, to secure positions on the relatively dry ground of Passchendaele Ridge, and to keep German attention fixed on Flanders to assist the French attack in Champagne (23 October) and for the upcoming attack at Cambrai in November.

Further attacks would only be launched after a sufficient amount of artillery could be brought forward to support the attacking infantry. Fresh troops were brought in, including the Canadian Corps who had a growing reputation as a formidable fighting force.

What did Canada do in the battle of Ypres?

The Battle of Passchendaele was not the first time that Canadian forces fought at Ypres. The 1st Canadian Division fought in the Second Battle of Ypres in 1915.

The battle, notable as one of the first poison gas attacks by German troops on the Western Front, lasted around a month, beginning on 22 April 1915 and ending in May, with the Allied lines now forced three miles back towards the City of Ypres.

After their withdrawal on 3 May 1915, the Canadians would primarily fight in France, including their famous capture of Vimy Ridge, before being transferred back to the Ypres salient in 1917, ready for the advance of Passchendaele. 

What Canadian divisions fought at Ypres?

Of all the Canadian Corps, only the 1st Canadian division was present for the 2nd Battle of Ypres. However by the time of the Third Battle of Ypres - also known as the Battle of Passchendaele - four Canadian divisions were present. 

The 5th Canadian division was formed in February 1917 and began assembling in Britain, but was broken up in 1918 and provided reinforcements to the other four divisions. 

When did Canada arrive in Passchendaele?

Having initially been spared involvement in the campaign, on 9 October 1917 the Canadian Corps was ordered north to Belgium. Nine days later, the Canadians relieved the exhausted Australian troops holding the lines facing Passchendaele village. Despite some improvement in the weather, the ground around Passchendaele was still almost impassable. General Arthur Currie, the Canadian Corps Commander, wrote in his diary on 17 October: “Battlefield looks bad.

“No salvage has been done and very few of the dead buried.”

Assault on Passchendaele 12 October - 6 November: Canadian Pioneers laying tape through the mud for a road to Passchendaele. © IWM (CO 2253)

Battle of Passchendaele - Canada attack preparations

Meticulous preparations were made for the Canadian attack. Behind the Canadian lines, teams of British and Canadian personnel worked to improve supply lines. In the Canadian Corps area alone over two miles of double-plank road and more than 4,000 yards of tramways were laid, often under fire. 

Extensive reconnaissance was made and German positions were carefully mapped ready for the attack. All effort was made to bring forward guns and ammunition to support the infantry.

ON THE SLOPES OF PASSCHENDAELE RIDGE

On 26 October, the Canadians took their first steps towards the village of Passchendaele. The Canadian Infantry attacked at 5.40 am behind a moving wall of exploding artillery shells with British and Australian units to left and right. The infantry struggled through the rain and mud on either side of the flooded Ravebeek stream. The first German pillboxes were rushed at the point of the bayonet, or targeted with machine gun fire and rifle grenades to cover comrades who attacked from the rear.

The Canadian attack led to mixed success, mud and heavy German fire meant that units were still short of their objectives, but a vital foothold had been gained on the high ground around Bellevue Spur and the southern part of Passchendaele Ridge.

Over the following days, minor operations were conducted to improve these positions and to connect the new frontline to the rear areas, while mule trains and working parties struggled under the cover of darkness to bring forward the required ammunition and supplies.

On 30 October a second attack was launched. Despite the mud and enemy fire the Canadians took most of their objectives and managed to establish forward outposts some 100 yards from the outskirts of Passchendaele village. Another pause followed for consolidation and to bring the supplies forward for the next attack.

Men of the 16th Canadian Machine Gun Company holding the line in a landscape of mud and water-filled shell holes, November 1917. © IWM (CO 2246)

Did Canada win the battle of Ypres?

Ultimately, the Allied forces won the Battle of Passchendaele, holding the village of Passchendaele and the important high ground of Passchendaele ridge, thanks in no small part to the courage of the Canadian Corps. 

VICTORY AND LOSS AT PASSCHENDAELE

At 6 am on 6 November, the Canadian Corps began the attack which would see them capture the village of Passchendaele. Advancing from assembly positions in no man’s land, the Canadian infantry escaped the German counter barrage. In the shattered remains of Passchendaele, Canadian troops fought bayonet-to-bayonet with the German defenders. The ruins, cellars and dugouts were cleared with Lewis gun fire and grenades, before Canadian troops took up positions on the far side of the village.

By mid-afternoon the Canadian Corps had reached all of its objectives and had taken more than 500 German prisoners. During the afternoon, German counter-attacks were broken up before they could advance by British and Canadian artillery and by 7.30 pm the new front line was comparatively quiet, the ruins of Passchendaele village were finally in Allied hands.

During a rainstorm on 10 November, one final attack was made northwards along the line to Passchendaele Ridge. While Canadian units reached their objectives, British units to their left were forced back by a determined German counter-attack.

Further advances towards the village of Westroosebeke were considered, but in light of the forces being sent to Italy and the impending attack at Cambrai, these were deemed impracticable. On 14 November the exhausted, but victorious Canadian Corps was withdrawn from the line.

A Canadian military funeral at a cemetery at Poperinghe, Belgium, 11 August 1917. The coffin is draped with the union flag. © IWM (Q 5875)

How many Canadians died at Passchendaele?

The Canadian Corps paid a high price for its capture of Passchendaele. For the period 26 October to 11 November, the Canadian Corps recorded casualties of more than 12,400 wounded, missing or killed, of whom some 4,000 were dead.

The CWGC commemorates in Belgium more than 3,700 servicemen of Canadian forces who died during the Second Battle of Passchendaele (26 October to 10 November 1917). Their graves can be found throughout the countryside surrounding Ypres Salient.

Canadian burials at CWGC war graves in Ypres and those listed on our memorials include:

Four Canadian Victoria Cross winners are commemorated at our sites in Belgium, three on the Menin Gate and one buried at Tyne Cot Cemetery. Private James Peter Robertson, 27th Battalion, Canadian Infantry, was awarded his Victoria Cross for his actions on the morning of 6 November 1917, the morning of the Canadian push at Passchendaele. 

The London Gazette states that he was noted for “most conspicuous bravery and outstanding devotion to duty in attack,” capturing a machine gun that was preventing his unit from advancing, and then galvanising the attack. He was later killed that same day, whilst helping to rescue two comrades who had been hit in front of the trenches. 

Explore more WW1 Canadian memorials looked after by the CWGC.

Why was the Third Battle of Ypres important to Canada?

Building on their earlier successes in the First World War, including the battle of Vimy Ridge, the Canadian actions during the battle of Passchendaele further cemented Canada’s reputation as one of the most effective combat forces in the world. 

How did the battle of Passchendaele affect Canada?

Canada’s role at Passchendaele, Vimy, and throughout the war, became known as the ‘birth of a nation’. Having lost around 60,000 men during the war, the Canadians felt that they had earned a seat at the Paris Peace Conference rather than just sending representatives as part of the British delegation. Alongside Canada, South Africa, India, Australia, New Zealand and Newfoundland all sent delegations to the conference, and also received their own seats at the League of Nations. 

This was an important step on Canada’s road to Dominion Status, formerly granted at the 1926 Imperial Conference and, in 1982, the confirmation of Canada’s constitution and establishment of Canada as a wholly independent nation.

Find Canadian war records.