Canada Autonomy Essay

Canada made an important contribution to World War I. In order for Germany to carry out the Schlieffen Plan, they had to go through neutral Belgium to attack France. As a result Britain came to Belgium’s aid. At this time Canada was tied to Britain’s foreign policy, so when Britain went to war so did Canada. Canada contributed to the war effort in specific battles in Europe, in the air, on land, at sea, and through a war effort at home. In Canada, there were many pilots being trained to fly airplanes. Billy Bishop was Canada’s top air ace in the First World War, due to the fact he shot down 72 enemy planes. He was the second best air pilot second to Manfred von Richthofen also known as The Red Baron. When the French and Canadian troops went to war in the Belgian town of Ypres on April 22, 1915 the German’s attacked with chlorine gas. Many soldiers suffocated or choked to death from the deadly fumes. This was the Battle of Ypres, where more than 6000 Canadians were killed, wounded, or captured. Even with the Germans using their chlorine gas, the battle lasted for a month, but neither side gained much advantage. The Battle of the Somme was near the Somme River in France in July, 1916. Canada had 24,000 casualties at the Somme. Both sides suffered heavy losses. Despite all the casualties, the Canadian troops distinguished themselves as brave soldiers during the battle of the Somme. In the Battle of Vimy Ridge, Lieutenant-General Julian Byng led Canadians to an astounding victory. The Canadian Corps captured German position, gaining more ground, and capturing more artillery than most of their allies. In this battle there were 3,598 men killed. The Battle of Vimy Ridge gave Canadians a sense of national pride and the reputation of being an elite fighting force. When the Canadians captured Passchendaele, with Canadian general Arthur Currie, the “victory” resulted in more than 200,000 casualties on each side. This included 15,000 Canadians. On August 8th to November