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Franz Ferdinand of Austria was killed with his wife Sophie on June 28th, 1914 in Sarajevo. Archduke Franz and Duchess Sophie were both shot and killed by 19-year-old Gavrilo Princip after the plan to kill them had failed at first. The killings of these two caused a chain of events that led up to the start of WWI, where countries joined to fight together, including Canada (“Austria's Archduke Ferdinand Assassinated.” 2010). Canada is part of the British empire which needed help in the war. -
On August 14th, 1914 Britain declared war on Germany. Canada is part of the British empire so they joined. Now Europe was divided into the Triple Entente: Britain, British Empire, France, Russia, and the Triple Alliance: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy (Castelow, Ellen, “World War One and the Triggers for War.”). More than 60,000 Canadians died and more than 170,000 were injured during the war. Newfoundland was not part of Canada yet but 1,300 died (“Legacy - the Cost of Canada's War.”). -
In October 1914, the first Canadian Contingent sailed out to England from Quebec (“First World War Timeline.”) and was called CEF, Canadian Expeditionary Force (“Canadian Expeditionary Force.” 2006). More than 30,000 soldiers, nurses, doctors, etc, volunteered to go (“First World War Timeline.”). In England, the soldiers trained then went to France in 1915 where they fought in the Second Battle of Ypres (“Canadian Expeditionary Force.” 2006). -
The Second Battle of Ypres was the first major battle Canada had fought in WWI. This battle took place in Ypres, West Flanders, Belgium from April 22nd to May 25th, 1915. It is estimated that more than 6,500 Canadian soldiers died, were injured, or were captured during the Second Battle of Ypres. The first two gas attacks during WWI happened during this battle (“Canada and the Second Battle of Ypres.” 2006). -
"In Flanders Fields" is one of the most famous war poems and it was written by John McCrae in May of 1915. He wrote this poem in about 20 minutes during the Second Battle of Ypres. John McCrae was an officer and surgeon in the Canadian army at the time. The poem was what made the poppy a remembrance symbol (Marsh, James. “In Flanders Fields.” 2011). -
The Battle of the Somme took place from July 1st to November 18th, 1916 in Somme River valley, northern France. More than 24,000 Canadian Casualties were recorded. This battle was one of the bloodiest battles of WWI as there were over 1 million casualties (Foot, Richard. “Canada and the Battle of the Somme.” 2006). This battle had the first tanks used in WWI. they were used by the British forces but most of them broke down (Onion, Amanda. “Why Was the Battle of the SOMME So Deadly?” 2018). -
The Battle of Vimy Ridge took place in northern France and lasted 4 days, April 9th to April 12th, 1917. There were more than 7,000 Canadian casualties with more than 3,000 deaths. This battle is the most celebrated Canadian military victory (Foot, Richard. “Battle of Vimy Ridge.” 2006). It also is a tribute to all the soldiers who fought in the war (“The Battle of Vimy Ridge - Fast Facts.” 2019). The Canadian National Vimy Memorial was made in honor of the fallen soldiers during this battle. -
The Battle of Passchendaele also known as The Third Battle of Ypres started July 31st to November 10th, 1917. After 3 months this battle resulted in the Canadian and British forces gaining control over the village of Passchendaele, West Flanders. There were about 12,000 wounded Canadians with around 4,000 deaths (Foot, Richard. “Canada and the Battle of Passchendaele.” 2006). -
The Battle of Amiens, also known as “Hundred Days”, meaning the last hundred days of the war, was fought from April 8th to August 11th, 1918. With the use of tanks, artillery, and air attacks, the Canadians and their allies won this battle against Germany but around 11,800 Canadians died or were injured. This was Germany's worst defeat and they decided to sign the armistice on November 11th (Tattrie, Jon. “Battle of Amiens.” 2006). -
The Treaty of Versailles is the document that was signed by both sides that officially ended WWI. This treaty was signed in the Palace of Versailles, Paris, in June 1919. Germany had penalties and the treaty held Germany responsible for starting the war. (“Treaty of Versailles.” 2009). The Treaty was signed up until 1933 when Adolf Hitler undid the Treaty (Hillmer, Norman. “Treaty of Versailles.” 2013).
