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Second Battle Of Ypres Essay

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Beginning of the Second Battle of Ypres:

The Second Battle of Ypres was the first major battle for Canada that took place from April 22 to May 25, 1915. The battle was fought outside the Belgian city of Ypres. The first week of April, the troops from Canada were moved to the City of Ypres to fight in the battle. The Germans held a higher ground and were able to fire into the British and the Canadians trenches from the north, the south and the east. The Germans wanted to remove the salient so they introduced a new weapon, chlorine gas.

Description of the War:

The Germans wanted to remove the Canadian soldiers by introducing a new weapon, poison chlorine gas. In this battle, it was the first time soldiers had used chlorine gas as a battlefield …show more content…

This was a major part of the battle because many soldiers didn’t understand this weapon causing the defensive soldiers win. Another significant element of the battle is that it was Canada’s first crucial battle. It was given the nickname “Canada’s Baptism in Fire” because the second battle of Ypres was known as the worst battle in World War 1. After the battle, the French and British began to make their own gas bombs and masks. Even though the Germans had a less significant battle, it was still significant because there was the release of chlorine gas. Many soldiers believed that the Germans had found a war-winning weapon when in reality more soldiers gained the ability to use the weapon making it …show more content…

Many of these soldiers weren’t sure how to use chlorine gas therefore, they had to be trained. Over 31,000 men had traveled to England as part of the Canadian Expeditionary Force. There were two major soldiers in the Second Battle of Ypres, Guy Melfort Drummond, and Russell Boyle. Guy Melfort Drummond was born into a rich family. He was raised first to be a citizen of the British Empire and secondly be a citizen of Canada. Guy defended the British Empire from the Germans. Russell Boyle was also willing to defend the German forces. In 1919, when the battlefield had been cleared, the soldiers had found a wooden cross that said “Unknown Canadian Officer - Royal Highlanders of Canada. The dead body that was dug into the ground ended up being Guy Melfort

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