In the previous blog post “Tip of the Sword on the Arras-Cambrai Road” one of the positions on the disposition map was conjectured to be a strong-point that was created from an existing structure. Evidence has come to light that indicates that the units of the 4th Canadian Infantry Brigade, comprising the 18th and, possibly … Continue reading Strong-Point on the Arras-Cambrai Road
Tactics
Tip of the Sword on the Arras-Cambrai Road
Appendix 16 of the September 1918 18th Battalion War Diary is described as “Disposition Sketch 18th Bn. on the 21st”. It is directly related to Battalion Operational Order No. D.242 dated September 20, 1918 detailing the relief by the 18th Battalion of the 21st Battalion in the “left front-line” on the night of the 2th … Continue reading Tip of the Sword on the Arras-Cambrai Road
Battle Patrol Report December 1917
December 1917 found the 18th Battalion in the Acheville Sector. The general level of activity for the Battalion was a marked change from the hell of Passchendaele and the war diary gives the impression that both the Canadian and German units in this sector had hunkered down for December and were not overly interested in … Continue reading Battle Patrol Report December 1917
The Best Rest in Many Moons: A Letter by Major Sale
Major Sale was an active and influential member of the Goderich, Ontario community as a dentist. He was active in the Canadian Militia with the 33rd Regiment and joined the 18th Battalion as a captain shortly after its inception in October 1914. He served his Battalion diligently and was earned a promotion to major in … Continue reading The Best Rest in Many Moons: A Letter by Major Sale
Rifle Grenades Revisited
In a post entitled "The narrow escapes that some fellows have are nothing short of marvellous": A Letter from the Front the, then, Private Caldwell relates in some detail a battle between the 18th Battalion, C.E.F. and it opposite German numbers: "Our last term in the front line was rather exciting. Our bomb throwers had been … Continue reading Rifle Grenades Revisited
“The narrow escapes that some fellows have are nothing short of marvellous”: A Letter from the Front
Private (later Lieutenant) Wesley Strang Caldwell was yet to earn the Military Medal for his actions at Courcelette, the Somme, when this letter was published in the Huron Expositor on March 10, 1916. He was 20-years old, just shy of his 21st birthday by 40 days. He was a combat veteran claiming to have served … Continue reading “The narrow escapes that some fellows have are nothing short of marvellous”: A Letter from the Front
The Raid at Hill 70
4th Canadian Infantry Brigade Order No. 142 outlined the details of a raid on the German lines in detail. The order specifically directs the Battalion in the intention and actions during the raid and was an important preparatory step for the Battalion, and the other Battalions of the Brigade for the attach on Hill 70 … Continue reading The Raid at Hill 70
Tank Tactics and Barbed Wire: February 1918
The tank and the creation of tank doctrine in the First World War was a process that hoped to take advantage of the use of a mechanical machine to overcome the obstacles that the Western Front with its static warfare footprint of obstacles in the form of trenches, barbed wire, and more telling, the destruction … Continue reading Tank Tactics and Barbed Wire: February 1918
The Stress of Combat: Captain Lloyd at Vimy Ridge
There is no doubt that Captain E.R.V. Lloyd served with bravery and distinction during the World War 1 with the 18th Battalion. Enlisting as an “Original” on November 3, 1914 in Windsor, Ontario, he rose through the ranks. First as a private soldier and then had the rather unusual circumstance of being promoted from the … Continue reading The Stress of Combat: Captain Lloyd at Vimy Ridge
Sergeant Austin’s Accident: The Tale of Two Emerging Modern Weapon Systems
Robert Wallace Austin reg. no. 113067 joined the Canadian Army at 8:45 a.m.[i] on July 23, 1915 in the city of Ottawa.[ii] He was just shy of one month past his twenty-first birthday when he joined the 8th Canadian Mounted Rifles (8th C.M.R.) and he was to be transported to England in October 1915 to … Continue reading Sergeant Austin’s Accident: The Tale of Two Emerging Modern Weapon Systems
