battle of hill 70

Toll-free: VAC to receive services. Currie thought that Hill 70 — an elevation on the outskirts of Lens, so named because it was 70 meters above sea level — was tactically more important. He received a Victoria Cross for repeatedly running into German fire to rescue wounded Canadians. By the end of only the first day, 1,056 Canadians were dead, 2,432 were wounded and 39 had been taken prisoner. Artillery barrage map for Battle at Hill 70. Currie was initially directed to assault only Lens, a coal mining town a few kilometres north of Vimy Ridge. . Hill 70 was a treeless elevation that dominated Lens. The Hill 70 project has also created a book about the battle which is being sent to schools across Canada. The battle, the first by Canadian troops under exclusively Canadian command, was vital in keeping attacking German forces from the flanks of the British fighting at Passchendaele, the 3rd Ypres battle, just a few miles away. As well, it invites Canadians to become involved in remembrance activities that will help preserve their legacy for future generations. VAC victory at Vimy, further boosted Canada's sense of pride and nationhood on the world stage. He persuaded his superiors to instead allow the Canadians to first capture the nearby high ground to the north (codenamed Hill 70 because it rose 70 metres above sea level). Slowly, the Canadians captured German machine-gun posts and advanced up the hill. It was a great and wonderful victory. The German forces counter attacked before 9 a.m. the next day, but the Allies broke each enemy attempt to reclaim ground. Haig hoped this action would divert German attention and military resources away from the The VAC Russia was wavering on the Eastern Front as the country began to be rocked by revolution while the French army was weakened by widespread mutinies. would prove again and again, under Currie's leadership, through the remainder of 1917 and 1918 as the war eventually wound to an end. After four days of hard combat, the Canadians turned back 21 German counter attacks and held on to their new positions atop Hill 70. Canada’s great sacrifices and achievements on the battlefields of Europe gained our country a new respect on the international stage. Canadian soldiers saw heavy action in the First World War and the names of some of their major battles—like Vimy Ridge and Passchendaele—still resonate today in our country’s collective memory. The attack on Hill 70 resulted in 1,505 men killed, 3,810 wounded, 487 wounded by gas and 41 prisoners to the Germans. It would also prove to be their turn to suffer major casualties as the German defenders poured heavy fire of their own on the exposed Canadian attackers. PDF Version. The battle took place along the Western Front on the outskirts of Lens in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France between 15 and 25 August 1917. Fighting continued around Hill 70 through 18 August, with the Canadian Corps withstanding continued German resistance and counter attacks, in localized fighting that included mustard gas and flamethrowers. Hill 70 was a treeless elevation that dominated Lens. They came with two architects who were commissioned to create a new memorial in Loos-en-Gohelle. The result was carnage as they advanced again and again into the deadly hail of bullets from 250 Canadian machine guns and were pounded by heavy artillery fire. The Battle of Hill 70, 1917 The Canadian Corps captured Hill 70, near Lens, France, during the First World War. The names of Canadians who died at Hill 70 with no known graves are also inscribed on the larger memorial at Vimy Ridge. The service is for Veterans, former RCMP members, their TDD/TTY: 1-833-921-0071. The Battle of Hill 70 took place from Aug. 15 to 25, 1917, at a time when the war was not going well for the Allies. The schedule was pretty grueling, with back to back twelve hour days, and even longer days of travel from Canada to France and back again, but everyone made it home in good shape and with the afterglow … The Battle of Hill 70 - Mackensen Advances in Romania I THE GREAT WAR Week 160 - YouTube. A battle honour formally entitled “Battle of Hill 70” and itself forming part of the “flanking operations” “towards Lens (3rd June-26th August)” 1917. On August 15, 1917, the offensive was launched and the Canadians soon seized most of its objectives on the slopes of Hill 70. Its first major action under his leadership would come in France at Hill 70 and Lens where British high commander Field Marshal Douglas Haig ordered the Canadians to attack to force the Germans to divert troops away from the heavy fighting farther north around Passchendaele. Arthur Currie himself remarked at the time that Hill 70 was “…altogether the hardest battle in which the Corps has participated. The fighting at Hill 70 and Lens was no exception and the 100,000-strong Canadian Corps suffered some 9,200 casualties between August 15 and 25, 1917. GHQ [General Headquarters] regard it as one of the finest performances of the war.”. Learmonth was wounded and later died, and was posthumously awarded the. The Hill 70 Memorial Park, dedicated to the Canadian Corps that achieved victory at the Battle of Hill 70 in August, 1917, was completed on October 2nd, 2019. The Canadian Corps launched its bid for Hill 70 at 4:25 a.m. on 15 August 1917. German resistance stiffened as the Canadians advanced on the hill. Nicholson, in C.E.F. Hill 70 was Currie’s first significant battle and it revealed his agile mind. Moreover, the battle was planned and carried out almost entirely by Canadians—a rarity in the First World War where our men usually fought as part of a larger British effort. Private Harry Brown, 10th Battalion, 1st Canadian Infantry Division From The London Gazette. This esteem helped earn us a separate signature on the Treaty of Versailles that formally ended the First World War. It's not known how many Germans died that day. Learmonth was wounded and later died, and was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross. Share. Poison gas was widely used, often forcing the men to gasp for air inside their restrictive respirators as they struggled to see the advancing enemy through their fogged-up goggles. The city itself had been bashed by years of warfare, and German trenches cut through the ruins of the brick homes of the city's coal miners. Most importantly, it cemented the reputation of the Canadian Corps as an effective assault force within the larger British army — a reputation the Canadians This and further attacks on Lens achieved the desired results, even though much of the town was still in German hands. Haig characterized the battle as “one of the finest minor operations of the war,” while Currie described it as among the hardest battles fought and won by the Canadian Corps. Six of our soldiers earned the Victoria Cross, the highest award for military valour that can be received, in the fighting there: Private Harry Brown, Company Sergeant Major Robert Hanna, Sergeant Frederick Hobson, Corporal Filip Konowal, Major Okill Massey Learmonth and Private Michael James O’Rourke. Throughout late July and early August, as the Canadians prepared to assault Hill 70, they harassed and distracted the German forces. The Attack on Hill 70. Last month, a delegation came in Loos-en-Gohelle prepare for the event. Against this challenging backdrop, the Canadian Corps was called into action. Also, the Hill 70 was a superb defensive position that had been temporarily taken two years earlier during the Battle of Loos. They were successful at Hill 70 which was major for their allies who were fighting near Passchendaele. The capture of Hill 70 in France was an important Canadian victory during the First World War, and the first major action fought by the Canadian Corps under a Canadian commander. This memorial should be built next to the military cemetery. In addition to the obelisk, there is a series of walkways dedicated to the six Victoria Cross awards, as well as plazas dedicated to … Chinese-Canadian soldier Frederick Lee fought in the Battle of Hill 70 during the First World War. The shocked Germans reacted as expected and flung a total of 21 counterattacks against our soldiers over the days that followed. Attacking Allied soldiers now ran from shell hole to shell hole as they tried to move forward up the hill. jumped atop a parapet and hurled hand grenades at the enemy during a German counter attack on 18 Aug. The battle took place along the Western Front on the outskirts of Lens in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France between 15 August 1917 and 25 August 1917. The Canadians were sent to capture a city that lay half in ruins. German infantry troops were met by “fountains of earth sent up by the heavy shells” and “a hail of shrapnel and machine-gun bullets,” according to the history of the German 5th Foot Guard Regiment, and were annihilated. Currie was the first Canadian put in charge of the Corps, Canada's main fighting force on the Western Front. You do not need to be a client of The city of Lens, an industrial coal mining centre, had been in German control since 1914, and was overlooked in the north by Hill 70. Replacing British General Julian Byng, T… As a testament to the intensity of the fighting at Hill 70, Brown, Hobson and Learmonth sadly did not survive the battle to receive their medals. Mr Last took Colonel Hutchings and his family to Hill 70 in Loos to give them a tour of its underground tunnels, which had been dug under No Man's Land during the battle between 15-25 August 1917. Counter Attack. The Germans of the 7th Infantry Division saw the attack coming and were ready with defensive fire. The Royal Engineers fired drums of burning oil into the German positions on the hill, along with heavy artillery fire. Where, The battle took place in the City of Lens and surrounding hills, the Nord-Pas-De-Calais region of France. The German forces counter attacked before 9 a.m. the next day, but the Allies broke each enemy attempt... Six Victoria Crosses. Those who gave their lives at Hill 70 and Lens were among the more than 66,000 Canadians who died in service during the conflict. A simple and secure way to do business online with Canada's sacrifices — including the nearly 1,900 Canadian soldiers who died in the battle — are remembered today at the Hill 70 Memorial, and at the Loos British Cemetery outside Lens, France. Lens, which lay inside German-occupied territory not far from Vimy Ridge, had suffered terribly in the war. Konowal was with his battalion at Hill 70, near Lens, France, when his bravery and determination over the three days of the battle, from August 22 to 24, earned him the Victoria Cross. Assistance Service. The First World War was a particularly bloody conflict and even relatively successful battles took a devastating toll. A003717-v8.jpg 1,000 × 786; 184 KB. Lieutenant General Arthur Currie took command of the Canadian Corps (see Canadian Expeditionary Force) David Milne - Loos from the Trenches on Hill 70.jpg 640 × 438; 63 KB. Currie thought that Hill 70 — an elevation on the outskirts of Lens, so named because it was 70 meters above sea level — was tactically more important. The Battle of Hill 70 was a localized battle of World War I between the Canadian Corps and five divisions of the German Sixth Army. Watch later. Battle of Hill 70 The key people who were involved in the battle were: -Sergeant Hugh Cairns The outcome of this battle is exactly what the Canadians were expecting. Most of our country’s overseas troops would serve with the Canadian Corps in the trenches of the Western Front that snaked almost 1,000 kilometres across Belgium and northern France. The First World War raged from 1914 to 1918 and was the bloodiest conflict that had ever been seen up to that time. Instead of attacking the heavily fortified city directly, Currie, after studying the ground, convinced his British superiors that a better plan would be to capture Hill 70, directly to the north. GHQ [General Headquarters] regard it as one of the finest performances of the war.”. Hill 70 has never been a very well known battle, having been long overshadowed by the famous Vimy Ridge, but now a new monument has been erected to commemorate those who were lost there. The Germans were hit even harder, with as many as 25,000 of their soldiers being killed, wounded or taken prisoner during this period. The United States had recently entered the war but would need time to prepare before its troops joined the battle. The Battle of Hill 70 which took place in August 1917 was a crucial moment for the Canadian contingent sent to the Western Front in WWI. Toll-free: 1-866-522-2122 It is available The war had largely reduced Lens to a blasted maze of ruined buildings which was studded with strong enemy defensive positions. families, and caregivers and is provided at no cost. Despite failing to achieve all of its goals, it was a remarkable success for the Canadian Corps. An important chapter in our wartime history that is less well remembered, however, came at Hill 70 in France where the Canadian Corps won an impressive victory in the summer of 1917. A soldier wounded in the Battle of Hill 70 being evacuated to a Casualty Clearing Station. For most conspicuous bravery, courage and devotion to duty. Sir Douglas Haig launched a strategic offensive in Flanders, east of Ypres on 31 July 1917. The bulk of the causalities were on the first day of the attack. Meanwhile, Currie ordered 200 gas bombs fired into German positions south of Lens, as a diversionary tactic during the actual assault on Hill 70. Machine guns and pill boxes … Our team will be reviewing your submission and get back to you with any further questions. Assistance Service can provide you with psychological support. The primary Allied powers included Britain (along with its overseas dominions like Canada), France, Russia, Italy and the United States. 1-800-567-5803. (The Battle of Loos was the first time the British had used poisoned gas on the Western Front.) The battle took place along the Western Front on the outskirts of Lens in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France between 15 and 25 August 1917. After managing to capture the western portion of Lens, the Canadian attacks petered out in the face of stiff resistance and the Battle of Hill 70 came to an end by August 25. The ruins offered plenty of cover for the Germans in the city. Thanks for contributing to The Canadian Encyclopedia. In the summer of 1917, the war was not going well for the Allies. About 9,000 Canadians were killed or wounded in the overall battle, while an estimated 25,000 Germans were killed or wounded. The Canadians eventually captured the heights of Hill 70, but the cost was high. The battle took place along the Western Front on the outskirts of Lens in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France between 15 and 25 August 1917. Currie believed that by capturing the hill he could aggravate the Germans in surrounding positions and provoke them to come out of their dugouts and attack. The Battle of Hill 70 took place in the First World War between the Canadian Corps and four divisions of the German 6th Army. The 23-year-old officer caught German grenades that were thrown at him, and tossed them back at the enemy. 2017 will mark the centenary of Canada’s Forgotten Victory. Another four Canadians also received the Victoria Cross for bravery at Hill 70, the British Empire's highest award for military valour. "The sketches of the … The situation became very critical, all wires being cut. 193 likes. The opposing Central Powers were chiefly comprised of Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire. Many of our soldiers had to engage in desperate hand-to-hand combat against the tenacious German attackers who managed to reach the Canadian defensive lines. However, some historians argue that Hill 70 was one of Canada's most significant contributions of the First World War, more important even than Vimy Ridge. Since 1915, Hill 70’s defences had been enhanced, containing a maze of deep trenches which were protected by coils of barbed wire up to five feet in height. The Germans were hit even harder, with as many as 25,000 of their soldiers being killed, wounded or taken prisoner during this period. "It was a great and wonderful victory. More than 650,000 men and women served our country in uniform during the First World War. He believed that a traditional, frontal assault on Lens, followed by an Allied occupation of the city, would be futile if the Germans could simply shoot down at the Canadians from the commanding hills. The Battle of Hill 70 took place in the First World War between the Canadian Corps and four divisions of the German 6th Army. 1-800-268-7708, TDD/TTY: In some cases companies reached, and held their objectives while sustaining over 70% causalities. Canadian soldiers resting near the German lines during the Battle of Hill 70. The centerpiece of the Memorial is an obelisk signifying the victory of the Canadian Corps at the Battle of Hill 70. A line of Canadian troops receiving drinks.jpg 800 × 632; 141 KB. The Battle of Hill 70 took place in the First World War between the Canadian Corps and four divisions of the German 6th Army. The Battle of Hill 70 began on August 15th, 1917, and on August 15th, 2017, we will be marking the centennial year since the battle begun - what better time than this to remind Canadians of how their land truly became a country? More than 650,000 men and women served our country in uniform during the First World War. Photo: Imperial War Museum CO 1801. The centerpiece of the Memorial is an obelisk signifying the victory of the Canadian Corps at the Battle of Hill 70. Allied artillery softened up the German positions in the area and trench raids were conducted south of Lens to mislead the enemy on where the main attack would come. So Currie convinced his superiors, including Haig, to drastically alter the plan of attack, by making Hill 70 the Canadians' main objective. “It was altogether the hardest battle in which the Corps has participated,” wrote Currie himself. 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