BATTLE OF VIMY RIDGE
Vimy Ridge was the first joint outing for the four divisions of the CEF and, as Gerry van Tonder explains, was a milestone in a string of martial fixtures that contributed to Canada’s national identity
Two minutes; one minute; 30 seconds; men gasped – perhaps a brief prayer. A mighty roar shook Douai Tunnel and all that trench world, and the stupendous, stunning barrage of April 9, 1917 crashed down before the Highland line. In a flicker of time the dawn was raving. A frantic shower of coloured lights sprayed up through the fog from the German line.”
As Kim Beattie describes in his 1938 book 48th Highlanders of Canada 1891-1928, all four divisions of the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) were to enter the fray that morning.