Today's Itinerary and Activities
We packed our gear and rolled out to spend the day in the Arras sector examining the problem of waging war in 1917-18, including Canada’s role at the Battle of Vimy Ridge itself and subsequent events on the Arras front. We visited a bunker excavation where Lance Sergeant Ellis Sifton's platoon was when he won his Victoria Cross. In the afternoon we set off down the Arras-Cambrai Road to consider the problems of 1918, and at day’s end we rode north to the Ypres Salient. Vanessa led this evening's seminar on Vimy with the following guiding questions:
- Should Vimy stand out from other important Canadian events?
- What does the Vimy Memorial accomplish?
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We can see the Vimy battlefield from this vantage point: Mont St. Eloi, the Canadian headquarters, the high ground where the German army, the tree line of the Lorette spur that overlooks the Vimy monument.
On this first stand we are asked to share one word that explains why Vimy matters. Responses include: Propaganda; Romantic; Preplanning; Miscued; Politics; Misleading; Teamwork; Innovative; Strategy; Together; Development; Cooperation; Nationalism; Performance; Unimportant; Duty; History wars. How might this be a useful exercise to understand how your students are thinking about a given event? Where might you go from here? |
The Canadian role at Vimy Ridge
In the spring of 1917, Allied forces are attacking Germany on all fronts. Taking the Cambria road and rail junction are a major goal - if the Allies take this Germany will have to.retreat, as there is no other main junction in France they can access. The Canadians are to assist in holding the ridge while the British move towards Cambrai, that is to say, the Canadians play a supporting role in this effort. There was no distinct battle for Vimy, in fact, the British call the operation the second battle of Arras. The monument is for Canada's war experience in France and the dead with no know grave - not to the battle.
How does this interpretation diverge from how the Battle of Vimy Ridge is presented in the Canadian narrative?
Is it our job as history educators to narrate a national myth?
How does this interpretation diverge from how the Battle of Vimy Ridge is presented in the Canadian narrative?
Is it our job as history educators to narrate a national myth?
Hill 70
When Arthur Currie (who commanded 1st Canadian division at Vimy) replaced Julian Byng in 1917, the Canadian corps is commanded by a Canadian for the first time. This can help us think about the significance of Vimy in a different way - Currie was chosen because of the Canadian success at Vimy.
Why is Hill 70 is considered significant by military historians?
Currie was ordered to take Lens - Haig wanted to keep the Germans in this location so they would be unable to reinforce those at Passchendale when the Allies attacked, or attack the French who has been fighting since 1914 and had protested for a rest. So how do we keep them here, and give them a reason to stay by making them think we're more powerful than we are? The gunners undergo a physical training regime to bulk up, so that two Canadian heavy gunners are able to do the job of 6, which means they can fire more guns - they had one gun firing at the rate of four.
Currie questions orders - suggesting an alternative to the British plan. This is an historic moment for Canada, where the corps commander representing the voice of Canada in France suggests an alternative to the British. His suggestion is that they make the Germans believe they are coming into Lens from Vimy, when in fact they plan to take the high ground, hiding the munitions behind the slag piles in the area and using the same tactics used at Vimy - digging in and forcing the Germans to counterattack. This is another way to look at the significance of Vimy, that it prepared Canadians for other operations significant in their own right.
The result?
The Germans mounted 20 counterattacks to retake Hill 70. Currie suggested the Canadians try to take Lens and the Germans would not give it up, held it until 1918 with the Canadians employing tactics to keep attrit them. This is viewed as a successful operation in killing enemy, and this strategy has been used repeatedly in Canadian warfare.
Why is Hill 70 is considered significant by military historians?
Currie was ordered to take Lens - Haig wanted to keep the Germans in this location so they would be unable to reinforce those at Passchendale when the Allies attacked, or attack the French who has been fighting since 1914 and had protested for a rest. So how do we keep them here, and give them a reason to stay by making them think we're more powerful than we are? The gunners undergo a physical training regime to bulk up, so that two Canadian heavy gunners are able to do the job of 6, which means they can fire more guns - they had one gun firing at the rate of four.
Currie questions orders - suggesting an alternative to the British plan. This is an historic moment for Canada, where the corps commander representing the voice of Canada in France suggests an alternative to the British. His suggestion is that they make the Germans believe they are coming into Lens from Vimy, when in fact they plan to take the high ground, hiding the munitions behind the slag piles in the area and using the same tactics used at Vimy - digging in and forcing the Germans to counterattack. This is another way to look at the significance of Vimy, that it prepared Canadians for other operations significant in their own right.
The result?
The Germans mounted 20 counterattacks to retake Hill 70. Currie suggested the Canadians try to take Lens and the Germans would not give it up, held it until 1918 with the Canadians employing tactics to keep attrit them. This is viewed as a successful operation in killing enemy, and this strategy has been used repeatedly in Canadian warfare.
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The birth of nations |
Pedagogical pause |
At the same time as Canadian confederation, there is a Western movement towards confederated nation states. German and Italy are in a similar position as Canada. In fact, Germany is younger than Canada at this time during the war - Canadians are fighting the Bavarian army at Vimy, not the German army. How might the German, the Italian, and the Canadian experiences of confederation shed light on the significance of the war in each country?
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How do we engage students so that they want to form their own opinions about these events?
What are the big ideas that these battles can help us understand? How are they relevant to students' lives? |
Photo Gallery
Givenchy-en-GohelleThe town of Givenchy-en-Gohelle has declared 2017 as the year of Canada. They kindly prepared lunch for our group, and invited us to learn about their commemoration project.
The mayor tells us that 2017 is an important year of commemoration for Canada, but also for their town. Where the Vimy memorial sits is actually part of the town of Givenchy. In 1917, there was nothing left of the town. For them, when the first Canadian who stepped foot here is when the town began to come to life again. What remained of the town at that time served as German field stations, hospitals, etc. Two weeks of shellfire by Canadian artillery destroyed anything that may have been left. Why are we thought of as liberators when so much destruction was done to the down by Canadians? Is this an aspect of liberation that should be discussed in greater depth in classrooms? |
The Vimy Oaks ProjectLieutenant Leslie Miller from Scarborough, Ontario, was a fruit farmer who fought at Vimy Ridge. He sent home acorns from an oak wood which he planted on his farm. Today the farm no longer exists, but there are nine oaks remaining. Grafts from those oaks have grown 300 saplings, and the oak oak forest at Vimy will be replanted in 2017. 100 of these will be made available to communities across Canada, and recognized as heritage trees by the French and Canadian governments.
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Classroom questions
What parts of the Vimy.plan are used at Hill 70?
How does Vimy leave a legacy in how the Canadian army operates?
How do we reconcile the traditional Vimy narrative with the idea of Canadians being effective and successful killers?
Does Vimy deserve the status is holds as part of our narrative?
How did it get the degree of importance it has as part of our national identity?
Why do nations story their identities in war? Is that a good thing?
Why are battle and wars central to how we understand ourselves?
How should we remember and commemorate?
How is commemoration different in civilian spaces compared with battlefields?
Why does a student in 2016 need to know about these battles?