I – April 9-12; 1917 (political)
Describe – The battle of Vimy Ridge began at dawn on April 9th 1917. Canadian troops had well earned a reputation for an aggressive attack but felt resentment towards the British after being split amongst the British regiments. British officials believed that the Canadian officials did not have the military expertise to lead a regiment. In 1917, Arthur Currie was promoted to general and knew the key to victory was to have properly trained troops. He decided to use a new tactic, the advancing troops would be preeced by a curtain of shells so the enemy would have no time to prepare a defence. The Germans were unprepared for the fast advance of the Canadians and by nightfall the ridge was theirs.
HI – It was the first total Canadian victory with Canadian troops led by Canadian troops.
Halifax Explosion
I – December 6th, 1917
D- On the morning of December 6th 1917, on the harbor of Halifax Nova Scotia the French munitions ship “Monte-Blanc” collided with the Belgian ship “Vessel lmo”causing monte-blanc to catch fire. Attempts to put out the fire failed, and crew could only warn people of the impending explosion. For many it was too late. The sound broke buildings 100km away, and over 1600 people were killed and 9000 injured. Relief was sent from all parts of the nation for this horrific event.
HI – This was the largest non-atomic explosion in history.
“The Assassination”
I- June 28th 1914. (Political Event)
D- Tensions had been increasing the countries. Bosnia was originally in the province of Serbia but that changed when Austria-Hungary defeated them. A lot of the serbs in Bosnia wanted to go back into Serbian control. The Black Hand were a group of terrorists trying to achieve this goal. Heir to the Austrian throne, Franz Ferdinand and wife had a visit planned to Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia. On this trip, Gavrillo, prince of the Black Hand killed the royal couple. Austria blamed the serbs for the murder, and demanded the arrest of the Black Hand and the right to send in Austrian Troops to monitor them. Austria had Germanys support and with that, Austria attacked Serbia, Russia, Germany, France and mobilized their forces as well.
HI – This was the spark that ignited the war.
The Schlieffen Plan
I- August 1914 (Political Event)
D- This term was developed by general Alfred Von Schlieffen, and called for the majority of German forces to concentrate on attacking France (through Belgium) cutting of costal ports for the british ships and circling on Paris from the North. The General believed France would attack along the Franco german border while the Russian army would take seven months to mount and attack. The Germans would take Paris and cut off French forces. After defeated the French, they would travel east to defeat the Russian army before they could prepare a serious attack with no Belgian resistance, the French attacking along the border and Russians slow organizations.
HI – This plan showed that even before the war, Germany was anticipating one.
The Treaty of Versailles
I- 1919 (Political)
D- The treaty of Versailles was the peace settlement that ended WWI. Germany and its allies had to accept full