Introduction

This section will provide a brief overview of the war, and the battles that Canadian Troops participated in. This page will grow over time.

General

Canada in the War A brief description of the causes of the war and Canada's participation

Chronology

The chronology follows the naming convention used by the Report of the Battles Nomenclature Committee, 1921. Battles and actions that Canadian troops participated in are shown in blue. Actions where Canadian troops were presenta s detatched or sub-units are shown in Red. Links to more detail on certain battles are shown as links. Although Canadians operated on other fronts, this focuses on the Western front activities.

Year	Item	Date
1914	Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary assassinated in Sarajevo	28 June, 1914
1914	Germany declares war on Russia	1 August, 1914
1914	Germany declares war on France	3 August, 1914
1914	Germany invades Belgium, establishing the Western Front war, Britain declares war	4 August, 1914
1914	Canada commits 25,000 troops to support England.	5 August, 1914
1914	US declares itself neutral	8 August, 1914
1914	Germans and British troops engage for the first time at Mons. British slow the German advance	23 - 24 August, 1914
1914	Trenches first dug on the Western Front	15 September, 1914
1914	First Canadian Troops arrive in Britain	14 October, 1914
1914	Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry is assigned to the British 80th Brigade and become the first Canadians in France.	21 October, 1914
1914	Troops share an unofficial Christmas Truce in the Western Front trenches.	25 December, 1914
1915	First German Zeppelin raid on British mainland.	19 January, 1915
1915	First use of poison gas in WW1, by Germany at Bolimow in Poland on the Eastern Front	31 January, 1915
1915	the 1st Canadian Division arrives in France	16 February, 1915
1915	Battle of Neuve Chapelle	10 March, 1915
1915	Action of St. Eloi	14-15 March, 1915
1915	Gravenstafel Ridge - Poison Gas is first used on the Western Front, in a German attack on French and Canadian troops on the Ypres Salient. Part of 2nd Ypres.	22-23 April, 1915
1915	St. Julien. Part of 2nd Ypres.	24 April - 4 May, 1915
1915	Lusitania is sunk by a German submarine; casualties include 124 Americans passengers.	7 May, 1915
1915	Frezenberg Ridge. Part of 2nd Ypres.	8-13 May, 1915
1915	Battle of Aubers Ridge	9 May, 1915
1915	Battle of Festubert	17-25 May, 1915
1915	Bellewaerde Ridge. Part of 2nd Ypres.	24-25 May, 1915
1915	Second Action of Givenchy	15-16 June, 1915
1915	The Battle of Loos	25-September- 8 October, 1915
1915	Action of Bois Grenier (part of the Battle of Loos)	25 September, 1915
1915	Actions of the Hohenzollern Redoubt	13-19 October, 1915
1916	Action of St Eloi Craters	27 March - 16 April 1916
1916	Battle of Mount Sorrel	2 - 13 June 1916
1916	Albert (Capture of Montauban, Mametz, Fricourt, Contalmaison and la Boisselle)	1-13 July, 1916
1916	Bazentin Ridge	14-17 July, 1916
1916	Attack at Fromelles	19 July, 1916
1916	Attacks on High Wood	20-25 July, 1916
1916	Pozieres Ridge (Fighting for Mouquet Farm)	1-3 September, 1916
1916	Guillemont	3-6 Setember, 1916
1916	Ginchy	9 September, 1916
1916	Flers-Courcelette	15-22 September, 1916
1916	Thiepval Ridge	26-29 September, 1916
1916	Le Transloy Ridges (Capture of Eaucourt l'Abbaye)	1-18 October, 1916
1916	Ancre Heights (Capture of Regina Trench)	1 October - 11 November, 1916
1916	The Ancre (Capture of Beaumont Hamel)	15-18 November, 1916
1917	German retreat to the Hindenburg Line	24-29 March, 1917
1917	The US declares war on Germany.	6 April, 1917
1917	Battle of Vimy Ridge	9 - 14 April 1917
1917	First Scarpe	9 - 14 April 1917
1917	Second Scarpe	23-24 April, 1917
1917	Attack on la Coulotte	23 April, 1917
1917	Arleux	28-29 April
1917	Third Scarpe (Capture of Fresnoy)	3-4 May, 1917
1917	First US troops arrive in France.	26 May, 1917
1917	Affairs south of the Souchez River	3-25 June, 1917
1917	General Sir Arthur Currie appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Corps. Currie became the first Canadian to hold overall command of Canadian troops. He was appointed over other British Generals who had higher rank/more seniority. Currie had his detractors but was the greatest Canadian General and to some the greatest military leader of all time.	8 June, 1917
1917	Capture of Avoin	26-29 June, 1917
1917	Battle of Messines (Capture of Wytschaete)	7-14 June
1917	Pilckem Ridge	31-July-2 August, 1917
1917	Battle of Hill 70	15 - 25 August, 1917
1917	Langemarck	16-18 August, 1917
1917	Menin Road Ridge	20-25 September, 1917
1917	Polygon Wood	26 September - 3 October , 1917
1917	Broodseinde	4 October, 1917
1917	Poelcappelle	9 October, 1917
1917	First Passchendaele	12 October, 1917
1917	Second Passenchdaele	26 October - 10 November 1917
1917	Battle of Cambrai - Tank attacks	20-21 November, 1918
1917	Battle of Cambrai - Capture of Bourlon Wood	23-28 November, 1918
1917	Russia and Germany sign an armistice at Brest-Litovsk, effectively ending the two-front war and allowing Germany to concentrate troops on the Western Front	15 December, 1917
1918	US forces make their first offensive	28 May, 1918
1918	St. Quentin	21-23 March, 1918
1918	Actions at the Somme Crossings	24-25 March, 1918
1918	First Bapaume	24-25 March, 1918
1918	Rosieres	26-27 March, 1918
1918	First Arras	28 March, 1918
1918	Moreuil Wood	30 March, 1918
1918	Avre	4 April, 1918
1918	Estaires (First Defence of Givenchy, 1918). Part of the battle of the Lys.	9-11 April, 1918
1918	Messines (Loss of Hill 63). Part of the battle of the Lys.	10-11 April 1918
1918	Hazebrouck. Part of the battle of the Lys.	12-15 April, 1918
1918	Bailleul (Defence of Neuve Eglise). Part of the battle of the Lys.	13-15 April, 1918
1918	First Kemmel Ridge . Part of the battle of the Lys.	17-19 April, 1918
1918	US forces make their first offensive	28 May, 1918
1918	Canadian Hospital ship Llandovery Castle sunk by German U-Boat. Life boats were pursued and sunk. 234 were killed, including 14 nursing sisters. 24 survived. This attack proved a rallying cry for the Canadian troops for the rest of the war.	27 June, 1918
1918	Action of La Becque	28 June, 1918
1918	Capture of Hamel	4 July, 1918
1918	Battle of Amiens (code named "Llandovery Castle"). On 8 August, 'the Black Day of the German Army' - Canadian and Australian troops, plus 600 tanks, shatter German forces and reach Hindenburg line.	8 - 11 August 1918
1918	Actions around Damery	15-17 August, 1918
1918	Albert (1st Pioneer Battalion on detached duty)	21-23 August, 1918
1918	Second Bapaume	31 August-3 September, 1918
1918	2nd Battle of Arras	26 August - 3 September 1918
1918	Scarpe (Capture of Monchy-le-Preux). Part of the 2nd Battle of Arras.	26-30 August, 1918
1918	Drocourt-Queant Canal	2-3 september, 1918
1918	Havrincourt	12 September, 1918
1918	Epehy	18 September, 1918
1918	Canal du Nord (Capture of Bourlon Wood)	27 September - 1 October, 1918
1918	St. Quentin Canal	29 September - 2 October, 1918
1918	Beaurevoir Line	3-5 October, 1918
1918	Cambrai (Capture of Cambrai)	8-9 October, 1918
1918	Battle of Ypres	28 September-2 October, 1918
1918	Pursuit to the Selle	9-12 October, 1918
1918	Battle of Courtrai	14-19 October, 1918
1918	Battle of the Selle	17-25 October. 1918
1918	Battle of Valenciennes (Capture of Mont Houy)	1-2 November, 1918
1918	Battle of the Sambre	4 November, 1918
1918	Passage of the Grande Honnelle	5-7 November
1918	Capture of Mons	9-11 November 1918
1918	Armistice	11 November, 1918
1919	Kinmel Park Mutiny. Canadian troops mutiny because of delays in returning to Canada.	4-5 March, 1919
1919	End of the war/Treaty of Versailles	28 June, 1919

Primary source: Nicholson, G. W. L. 1962. Official History of the Canadian Army in the First World War: Canadian Expeditionary Force 1914-1919.