Canadian “Tommy”

INTRODUCTION

HILL 70

15 - 25 August 1917

CONTEXTCURRIETHE BATTLETHE RESULTSNATIONAL SIGNIFICANCETHE HILL 70 MEMORIAL PROJECTQUESTIONS

HILL 70HILL 70

CONTEXT

HILL 70

CONTEXT – OPERATIONAL LVL

• Between the success of VIMY (Battle of Arras) and the insanity of PASSCHENDAELE (3rd Battle of Ypres). Morale is still high.

• New Canadian Corps Commander (Go Canada!).

• Field Marshal Haig insists on a breakthrough at Ypres commencing July 1917; needs a diversion at LENS.

Hill 70

Hill 70 From Vimy

Vimy From Hill 70

CONTEXT - TACTICAL LVL

• British had fought and withdrew in Sept 1915.• Germans not inclined to leave…important rail

junctions and coal still available. • LENS was a built up area now laying in ruins.

Really difficult going through the formerly built up areas…rubble, cellars, sophisticated trench networks.

FIRST BATTLE of LOOS-1915

NOTE: Coal Lift TowersKipling Loses His Son

LT GEN SIR ARTHUR CURRIE

HILL 70

HIS TRAITS• Meticulous planner• Excellent tactician• Studied results of 1916

misery on the SOMME• Applied lessons learned• Innovative• Not well-loved by

troops• Valued the troops• Courage to challenge

his superiors

MORE CLEVER THAN MOST

Corps Commander’s Recce

• Currie did his own recce.• A frontal assault on LENS was foolish.• Currie regarded control of either Hill 70 or

Sallaumines Hill as tactically more important than control of the city of Lens– Currie persuaded General Henry Horne, British First

Army Commander, to take Hill 70, not the city of Lens, the main objective of the limited offensive. Currie believed that the advantageous observational position of Hill 70 would permit well directed artillery to effectively deal with the expected counterattacks.

THE BATTLE

HILL 70

MARCHIN’ IN-STRAGGLIN’ OUT

THE BATTLE - MISSION

• Termed a “small operation” of World War I between the Canadian Corps and five divisions of the German Sixth Army, the mission of First Canadian Corps:– To conduct a diversionary attack on LENS in order to

FIX the German Sixth Army so that it cannot participate in the 3rd Battle of YPRES

THE BATTLE – COMMANDER’S INTENT

The Canadian Corps will execute a limited operation to quickly occupy the high ground at Hill 70, establish defensive positions, and utilizing combined small arms and artillery fire, repel German counterattacks to inflict as many casualties as possible.The defence against the expected German counter attacks termed “killing by artillery”.Currie – “pay the price of victory with shells not human sacrifice”

THE BATTLE – CONCEPT of OPS• THREE DIVISIONS UP. ONE IN RESERVE.• 4TH DIVISION FEINT IN SOUTH. 1ST AND 2ND ATTACK NORTH

AND CENTRE.• FOUR BRIGADES ATTACK. 10 BATTALIONS ASSAULT.• BATTALIONS LEAPFROG TO GREEN LINE.• MACHINE GUN STRONGPOINTS. 1 MG/25 INFANTEERS.• OBSERVATION FORWARD. REDUNDANT COMMS TO THE

GUNS.• EVERYONE DIG LIKE HELL. PROTECTED RESUPPLY

TRENCHES.• REPEL COUNTER-ATTACKS - KILLING BY ARTILLERY.

Machine Gun Strongpoints

• Lewis and Vickers - 240

THE BATTLE – INNOVATIONS

• EMPHASIS ON COUNTER BATTERY FIRE EARLY• IMPROVED ROLLING ARTILLERY BARRAGE• GASOLINE SMOKE SCREEN• AIR AND ARTILLERY OBSERVERS CONNECTED TO

GUNS BY WIRELESS

Rolling Barrage

THE BATTLE - PREPARATIONS• Roads, Rails and Tramways• Logistics resupply and main armaments repair• Rehearsals - troops were rotated through the reserve

area to conduct training and rehearsals in preparation for the assault

• Protected tunnels forward – names inscribed• Raids, bombardment and gas attacks– special companies of the artillery and RE augmented the

regular level of harassment by firing/releasing a total of 3,500 chlorine gas drums and 900 gas shells into Lens

– artillery neutralized 40 out of an estimated 102 enemy batteries in the area

THE BATTLE-PREPARED FOR GAS

THE BATTLE – JUMPING OFF

• 4:25 AM, 15 August. Royal Engineers fired drums of burning oil into the suburb of Cite St. Elisabeth and at other selected targets in order to supplement the rolling artillery barrage and build up a smoke-screen

• Right flank, the 12th Canadian Infantry Brigade of the 4th Canadian Division executed the diversionary operation, drawing German retaliatory fire away from the main operation. Fake tanks in deception plan.

THE BATTLE – RESULTS 15/18 Aug

• BLUE Line taken within 20 minutes• GREEN Line taken within 2 hours less Chalk Quarry• Germans began using their immediate reserves to

mount local counterattacks• Over the following three days, the Germans

executed no less than 21 counterattacks against Canadian positions…all repulsed

• The Germans also began to use poison gas in earnest, including the blistering agent sulphur mustard.

THE BATTLE – RESULTS 21-25 Aug

• 2nd and 4th Canadian Divisions attack LENS directly on 21 August. Keep 6th Army “fixed”.

• The initial attack proved to be a miserable failure with the majority of the attackers being killed, wounded or taken prisoner

• Finally took Green Crassier and all other 21 Aug objectives by 25 Aug.

21 – 25 AUGUST 1917

THE BATTLE – THE GLORY

• Six Victoria Crosses (“only” 4 at Vimy)• In 10th Battalion (Calgary Highlanders) alone:

– 1 x VC (Pte Harry Brown)– 3 x DSOs– 10 x MCs– 60 x MMs (a Canadian record)

Hill 70 Victoria Crosses

• Pte Michael James O’Rourke (7th Bn)

• Pte Harry Brown (10th Bn)• Sgt Frederick Hobson

(20th Bn)• Maj Okill Massey

Learmonth (2nd Bn)• CSM Robert Hill Hanna

(29th Bn)• Cpl Filip Konowal (47th Bn)

THE BATTLE – THE SACRIFICE

• Approximately 9,200 Canadian casualties• 3,150 killed• 6,050 wounded, missing, captured• Compared to Vimy - 11,297 Canadian casualties• Currie – “…a great and wonderful victory”.• Haig – “one of the finest minor operations of the

war”.

NATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE

HILL 70

JAM – Just Another Memorial?

• Hill 70 was:– A Canadian victory top to bottom;– Hard won with 6 VCs;– A step from Colony to Country;– A seat at Versailles.

• Currie considered for promotion to Field Marshal.• Respect for Canadian military capability reinforced in

spades (pun intended).• Hill 70 Memorial Project Team will provide what the

Government missed in 1922.

THE HILL 70 MEMORIAL PROJECT

HILL 70

Project Objective

• The objective of this project is to erect a suitable memorial to the soldiers of the Canadian Corps on Hill 70 in time for the 100th anniversary of this historic and significant victory.

• Pomp and circumstance – memorial to be dedicated in the presence of 100 man guard and bands. Guests warmly invited.

PROJECT TEAMDIRECTOR – MARK HUTCHINGS

ARCHITECTS - TIM MURRAY, SARAH MURRAYPROJECT MANAGERS- DOUG GREEN, WARREN EVERETT

MEDIA RELATIONS- BILL NEILLFUNDRAISER- ROB BAXTER

HISTORIAN- MIKE MCNORGANCEREMONIAL – JOHN RODERICK

EDUCATORS - JOHN SCOTT COWAN, SUSAN EVERETTENGINEER - DON KENNEDY

ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT – WSP London and ParisLAWYER- ED BRADLEY QC, CROWN ATTORNEY

HILL 70

Hill 70 Memorial Site

SLAG RAMP

Aerial View – Memorial Site

Monument Design Concept

MORE THAN A MONUMENTA BOOK

MINTED COIN SERIESSTAMP

VC PARK WALL OF PARTICIPATING UNITS AND BRANCHES

LEGACY BURSARIESWEBSITE

LINK HILL 70 TO THE MAPLE LEAF MEMORIAL TRAIL?

HILL 70

PROJECT SCHEDULE2014 - OPEN CRA CHARITY, INVESTMENT ACCOUNT, ETC2013-2014 - GAIN FRENCH GOVERNEMTN SUPPORT (proceeding well)2013-2014 - GAIN CANADIAN GOVERNMENT SUPPORT (proceeding well)MAY 2014 – SELECT/ACQUIRE EXACT SITE (awaiting MOU from City of LOOS)JUNE 2014 – PROVIDE LANDSCAPE and MONUMENT DESIGN FINAL (proceeding well) 2014 – 2015 - ENGR TESTS ( agreement with WSP proceeding well)2014 – 2017 - COORD WITH LOCAL AUTHORITIES (roger, so far)2016- BUILD MONUMENTAPRIL 2017- OPENING CEREMONIES2017 - HANDOVER TO CWGC or APPROPRIATE GOVERNMENT MINISTRY

HILL 70

BRANCH CONTRIBUTIONS

QUESTIONS?

HILL 70

15 - 25 August 1917

CWGC CEMETERY LOOS

200 meters from the Memorial Plaza

HILL 70 – 15 to 18 August 1917

there was a tremendous victory for the Canadian army in the first world war when it captured Hill 70 at Loos in 1917.

More VCs were won there than at Vimy, and for the first time it was an entirely Canadian Operation. Yet there is no

monument whatever to the men who made such a remarkable sacrifice for Canada.

• We will be asking for all units which perpetuate a CEF BN which was part of the Corps will be asked to contribute funds to pay for a laser cut granite cap badge of the unit to be mounted in one of the walls of the monument. If you would also like to send men to participate in the 100 man guard of honour or part or all of your excellent band for the opening ceremony we would be delighted. The opening is currently being planned for Saturday 8 April 2017 ( one day before the Vimy ceremony so we can participate as part of the build up to the main national event there, and so all the troops, visitors, and VIPs will already be on site).

• We are now about to formally brief the MVA, MND, and Min of Heritage. Many of their staff are already aware, as are the CDS, the VCDS., and the Comd CA