Canada and Genuine Independence

‘The battle of Vimy Ridge, when all the Divisions unified and on Easter Monday “did one attack and took Vimy Ridge – well, it was the greatest achievement of Canada as a nation in that war. It was a great achievement at any time.” Structurally, the ridge was elevated to about 480 feet above the ground and four and a half miles long, stretching from western to the eastern portion of the Douai Plain; giving the Germans a commanding view of the countryside since 1914. General Byng was informed that the Canadian Corps will be responsible for capturing the ridge because they had showcased marvellous strategies and patriotic feelings at previous battles therefore being the robust group of people needed by the allies in order to triumph at Vimy Ridge. General Byng advised a senior Canadian Officer, General Arthur Currie, to carefully examine The Somme and gather intelligence and develop new tactics to be used at Vimy. Therefore, General Currie distributed some 40 000 trench maps down to the platoons and the creeping barrage strategy was used yet again against the Germans but was more intense and lasted for a shorter period of time. Trench maps gave the Canadians familiarity with the battle terrain and the barrage technique was successful, resulting in Canadian victory. “The Canadians. They’ve Taken Vimy. Nobody did it before.” This is why it was the single most important battle in building the independent Canadian nation and because Canadians used originality, intelligence, innovativeness and most importantly; it was an entirely Canadian victory. Shortly after the battle, the CEF was granted independent status under the British High Command and this was only accorded to the Canadians.13 This is also why many Historians believe that the battle of Vimy Ridge symbolizes the genuine independence of Canada.’