Lachlan Roche Mr. Whitfield Social Studies 17, April 2015 The Second Battle of Ypres The Second Battle of Ypres was the first time a former colonial force defeated a European power on European soil. The first of these began on 22 nd April 1915 as a surprise attack by the German 4th Army on the French sector of the Allied Front Line. Additionally, the battle was the first time that a former colonial force (the 1st Canadian Division) … Several types of gas soon became widely used by both sides, and though it never proved a decisive, battle-winning weapon, poison gas became one of the most-feared and best-remembered horrors of the war. As soon as Allied commanders received news of the breaking of the line on their left, they sent reinforcements to the 3rd Canadian Infantry Brigade to strengthen the line between St. Julien and the Bois des Cuisinièrs. Please select which sections you would like to print: Corrections? As a result, the decision was made to focus on the Eastern Front in 1915. Beginning before dawn on May 24, the German assault sought to capture Bellewaarde Ridge. The third battle of Ypres, popularly known as Passchendaele, began on July 31, 1917, and continued until November. The Germans detonated a mine at St. Éloi (now St. Eloois) on April 14, and three days later the British responded by blowing up most of Hill 60, a rise 3 miles (5 km) southeast of Ypres. The use of poison gas had come as a tactical surprise to the Allies who roundly condemned its use as barbaric and reprehensible. Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Forming up, elements of the division, led by the 10th Battalion, 2nd Canadian Brigade, counterattacked at Kitcheners' Wood around 11:00 PM. of Guelph wrote "In Flanders Fields" in the voice of those who perished in the war. Two days later, on 24 April, a … 11 - May Flowers, 1915 - Old World In Ruins, Eastern Front. The Canadians held the old front line and the flank along the St. Julien–Poelcappelle road in the hope that a counterattack would restore the shattered left. It was the first time that Germany successfully used chemical weapons on a large scale on the Western Front. In early April 1915 the Allied forces on the Ypres front comprised (from south to north) elements of the two corps of the British Second Army—which included the 1st Canadian Division—commanded by Gen. Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien, the French 45th (Algerian) and 87th Territorial divisions under Gen. Henri Putz, and the Belgian 6th Division under Maj. Gen. Armand de Ceuninck. That same day, German heavy guns, including a 17-inch howitzer, began the preparatory bombardment of Ypres, and an increase of tear gas dispersion in the forward area was an ominous sign of the coming battle. Meanwhile, the 3rd Canadian Infantry Brigade prepared for a counterattack to capture the Bois des Cuisinièrs—an oak forest whose name the British and Canadians had translated as “Kitcheners’ Wood”—roughly 1,000 yards (0.9 km) west of St. Julien. A dangerous method of dispersal, it resulted in numerous casualties among the German forces. This was done by opening the gas cylinders by hand and relying on the prevailing winds to carry the gas towards the enemy. Pronunciation of second battle of Ypres with 1 audio pronunciation, 3 synonyms, 10 translations and more for second battle of Ypres. The French 153rd Division was being brought up, but it took some time to gather fresh troops, and three Belgian battalions were lent for the attack. The first gas attack came on 22 April. The battle marked the Germans’ first use of poison gas as a weapon. Additionally, the French endured around 10,000. The Second Battle of Ypres comprised the only major attack launched by the German forces on the Western Front in 1915, Eric von Falkenhayn preferring to concentrate German efforts against the Russians on the Eastern Front. Updates? Unprepared for such an attack, the French troops began retreating as their comrades were blinded or collapsed from asphyxiation and damage to lung tissue. However, the legacy was not easily earned as they had to pay the price of losing most of their troops who were either wounded, killed, or had went … This attack witnessed the first use of a new German weapon on the Western Front: a cloud of poisonous gas. With the German defeat at the First Battle of the Marne in September 1914 and the unraveling of the Schlieffen Plan, both sides commenced a series of flanking maneuvers in northern France and Flanders. The Second Battle of Ypres was a battle of the First World War. The Second Battle of Ypres was a First World War battle fought for control of the strategic Flemish town of Ypres in western Belgium in the spring of 1915, following the First Battle of Ypres the previous autumn. Following the defeat of a small counter-offensive led by General Ferdinand Foch, French directed Plumer to begin the planned retreat. These activities diverted the Allies’ attention from the northern face of the salient, where the first German blow would strike the junctions of the British, French, and Belgian forces. By 8:00 pm there were no formed bodies of French troops east of the canal, all their batteries in that sector had been captured, and the entire left flank of the 1st Canadian Division lay exposed to attack. The unusual noise of traffic behind the German lines caused so little alarm that three of the eight Canadian field batteries at Ypres would be caught while rotating troops from the front line to the rear. Ypres was the principal town within an important salient, or bulge, in the British lines on the Western Front during World War I.The Ypres salient was the site of three major battles—First Ypres (October–November 1914), Second Ypres (April–May 1915; marked by the Germans’ first use of poison gas as a weapon), and Third Ypres (also called Passchendaele; July–November 1917)—with total Allied and German … Meeting heavy resistance, they released a gas cloud on May 10. The left flank of this line was in contact with the St. Julien garrison, whereas the right bent back some distance from the old front line. The hero of Tannenberg, he was able to use his fame and political intrigue to influence the German leadership. 22, 1915, when the Germans, using poison gas for the first time in the war, launched another massive assault on the salient at Ypres. The Second Battle Of Ypres 1093 Words | 5 Pages. In two days of fighting, the British bloodied the Germans but were still forced to concede another 1,000 yards of territory. … Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. “In Flanders Fields” was published in Punch in December 1915, and it became perhaps the best-known poem about World War I. Between the Algerians’ position and St. Julien, a distance of over a mile, was a gap through which the Germans had penetrated, and a German machine gun swept the unprotected rear of the Allies’ old front line. The 10th Canadian Field Battery, by switching fire to the left rear, stopped the German advance in its sector before moving to a less-exposed position. Second Battle of Ypres, (April 22–May 25, 1915), second of three costly battles in World War I at Ypres (now Ieper), in western Flanders. The offensive was to begin on the night of April 15–16 or with the next favourable wind thereafter. Though the Canadian troops attempted to improvise protective measures such as covering their mouths and noses with water or urine-soaked handkerchiefs, they were ultimately forced to fall back though they exacted a high price from the Germans. Flares soared upward, rifle fire flickered from the parapet, and the two battalions charged. Assessing the situation, Plumer also recommended falling back. Gas was not a new weapon in 1915 but the Second Battle of Ypres was the first time chlorine gas was used and the first time it was employed on such a scale. Though the Germans had not achieved a breakthrough, they succeeded in bringing Ypres within range of their artillery. Though the Germans had failed the frontal assault on the Allies, they had gained the much needed high ground in the area. How to say second battle of Ypres in English? Background. During the Second Battle Ypres, the British suffered around 59,275 casualties, while the Germans only had 34,933. Williams and R. James Steel (2020). Reinforced by two platoons and a machine gun from the Canadian 13th Battalion, this force formed a short but effective flank. To seal the breach, the 1st Canadian Division of General Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien's Second British Army was shifted to the area after dark. The Second Battle of Ypres was the Great War battle in which … As such, he recommended withdrawing two miles to a new line in front of Ypres where his men could consolidate and re-form. On 22 April 1915, at the Second Battle of Ypres, the Germans (violating the Hague Convention) used chlorine gas for the first time on the Western Front. This latter attack had been ordered by French Gen. Ferdinand Foch at about 8:00 pm on April 22 to regain the ground lost to the gas attack. In the fighting at Second Ypres, the British suffered around 59,275 casualties, while the Germans endured 34,933. Formations in the salient were cautioned to expect an attack, but the intended use of gas was not communicated to the troops. The Second Battle of Ypres was the first time Germany used poison gas on a large scale on the Western Front in the First World War and the first time a former colonial force pushed back a major European power (Germans) on European soil, which occurred in the battle of St. Julien-Kitcheners' Wood. Thus far, the counterattack had been a remarkable success, but German machine guns placed near the southwest corner of the wood still commanded the southern approaches. The Second Battle of Ypres was fought from 22 April to 25 May 1915 on the Western Front of World War I when the Imperial German Army launched an offensive against the Entente forces at the Ypres salient in Flanders, Belgium.Ypres was the first battle in history to feature the use of chlorine gas. The Second Battle of Ypres is also notable for being the engagement during which Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD composed the famed poem In Flanders Fields. In addition, the French incurred around 10,000. Great War Blog On Facebook. In fact, the German XXIII and XXVI Reserve Corps, after a short artillery preparation, had attacked under cover of a discharge of nearly 200 tons (180,000 kg) of chlorine gas. Around 5:00 PM on April 22, 1915, troops from Albrecht, Duke of Württemberg's German 4th Army began releasing the gas towards the French troops at Gravenstafel. Father and son who died on the same day in World War I The Second Battle of Ypres. It was during this time that Canadian officer John McCrae penned the first lines of the poem “In Flanders Fields” as a tribute to a friend who had been killed in the fighting. [57] [58] Tanks were first … Its deadly effect was carried on … The remainder of the Belgian army extended north through the area that had been flooded during the First Battle of Ypres. In a brutal battle, they succeeded in reclaiming the area from the Germans but sustained high casualties in the process. Though the Germans had failed to break through the Allied lines, they reduced the Ypres Salient to around three miles which allowed for the shelling of the city. During World War I, the Second Battle of Ypres was fought from 22 April – 25 May 1915 for control of the strategic Flemish town of Ypres in western Belgium after the First Battle of Ypres the previous autumn. Second Battle of Ypres, (April 22–May 25, 1915), second of three costly battles in World War I at Ypres (now Ieper), in western Flanders. As the two sides sought an advantage, they clashed in Picardy, Albert, and Artois. During the course of the battle, the Germans debuted the use of poison gas on the Western Front. Although the Belgian and Canadian hinges held firm, the gates to Ypres had been thrown open. Though Germany had elected to follow an "east-first" approach, Falkenhayn started planning for an operation against Ypres to begin in April. Get exclusive access to content from our 1768 First Edition with your subscription. This attack began at 5:00 pm, and the right advanced to the thin line of the 1st Canadian Brigade; the left, briefly assisted by a French battalion, came up abreast and extended to the canal. Sweeping over the trench, the Canadians pressed on through the wood, recovering the four guns of the 2nd London Heavy Battery, but, instead of advancing northwestward toward the east side of Pilckem as planned, they lost direction and emerged to dig in along a hedge northeast of the wood. Subsequent British counterattacks over the next two days failed to retake St. Julien and the units engaged sustained heavy losses. On April 24 a second German gas attack hit the Canadians directly, but, although some units were forced to fall back, the 1st Division held the line until reinforcements could be rushed to the front. The Second Battle of Ypres was Canada’s first major engagement in the First World War set in Flanders in the Ypres Salient – a section of the front line surrounding the town of Ypres, Belgium. The promised French attack did not materialize, however, and the survivors of the Middlesex Regiment, too few to hold their advanced position, were forced to fall back. Great War Blog On Kindle. Illustration for John McCrae's “In Flanders Fields” from a limited-edition book (1921) containing the poem. The Second Battle Ypres was fought April 22 to May 25, 1915, during World War I (1914-1918) and saw the Germans conduct a limited offensive around the strategic town of Ypres in Flanders. In preparation for the assault, German troops moved 5,730 90 lb. The reinforcements arrived at the front line about 1:00 am. The battle marked the Germans’ first use of poison gas as a weapon. Opposite the French, the Germans had added slightly to the ground they had captured west of the canal, in spite of the efforts of the French 87th Territorial Division reserves and fresh troops transferred from Nieuport (now Niewpoort) to stop them. Before daylight the Canadian line was withdrawn to the captured trench south and east of the wood. The effect of the gas on the French was greater than the German infantry had anticipated. The Second Battle of Ypres was a battle of the First World War fought from 21 April–25 May 1915 for control of the strategic Flemish town of Ypres in western Belgium, following the First Battle of Ypres the previous autumn. Fear of the new weapon. As trench warfare continued, both sides began assessing their options for bringing the war to a successful conclusion. Continuing pressure on the northern part of the Ypres Salient, the Germans released a second gas attack on the morning of the 24th as part of an effort to take St. Julien. However, no German troops were ready to pass through. After the effort against Bellewaarde Ridge, the Germans brought the battle to a close due to a lack of supplies and manpower. After a pause of eleven days, the Germans resumed the battle by releasing their largest gas attack to date across a 4.5-mile section of the front. The Battle of Frezenberg: 8–13 May 1915 The Battle of Bellewaarde: 24–25 May 1915 The scene of the battles was the Ypres salient on the Western Front, where the Allied line which followed the canal … Though many neutral nations agreed with this assessment, it did not stop the Allies from developing their own gas weapons which debuted at Loos that September. This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/event/Second-Battle-of-Ypres, The Canadian Encyclopedia - Canada and the Second Battle of Ypres, Government of Canada - The Second Battle of Ypres (22 April-25 May 1915). e Second Battle of Ypres is today remembered as marking the rst use of gas on the Western Front. By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. Cassar deals with the entire 2nd Ypres. On April 14 reliable and detailed information was received at British and French headquarters that the Germans intended to use a new weapon, asphyxiating gas discharged from cylinders, opposite the northern edge of the Ypres salient at Langemarck (now Langemark). The Second Battle of Ypres was the first mass use by Germany of poison gas on the Western Front. A German move to widen the breach had failed, a German attempt to cross the canal in front of the Belgians had met with no success, and the right flank of the Belgian 6th Division still held. This approach clashed with General Paul von Hindenburg who wished to deliver a decisive blow in the East. Their first move was to be securing a bridgehead across the Yser (Ijzer) canal. For the first time, a former colonial force (the 1st Canadian Division) defeated a European power (the German Empire) on … British and Canadian units advanced throughout the morning, effecting a link with the French on the left. The second battle began on Apr. At 5:00 pm on April 22 a heavy greenish yellow haze rose from the German trenches opposite Langemarck and rolled southwestward on the gentle breeze of that sunny afternoon. The Germans use chlorine gas on the Western Front for the first time, tearing a four-mile gap in the allied lines. Opening with a heavy artillery bombardment, the Germans moved against the British 27th and 28th Divisions southeast of Ypres on Frezenberg Ridge. It targeted a 4-mile stretch of the Allied line on the north side of the salient, held by French and Algerian troops. The attack was unsuccessful and was broken off in May. Opposite the Allies was the German Fourth Army under Albrecht, duke of Württemberg. It also marked the first time a former colonial force (the 1st Canadian Division) defeated a European power (the German Empire) in Europe (at the Battle of St. Julien and Battle of Kitcheners' Wood). At daybreak on April 23 the Allies began the arduous process of establishing a continuous line along the Canadian flank to join the French on the Yser canal. As the gas was denser than air it quickly filled low-lying areas, such as trenches, forcing the surviving French defenders into the open where they were susceptible to German fire. 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