1.
World War I
–
World War I, also known as the First World War, the Great War, or the War to End All Wars, was a global war originating in Europe that lasted from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918. More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilised in one of the largest wars in history and it was one of the deadliest conflicts in history, and paved the way for major political changes, including revolutions in many of the nations involved. The war drew in all the worlds great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances, the Allies versus the Central Powers of Germany and Austria-Hungary. These alliances were reorganised and expanded as more nations entered the war, Italy, Japan, the trigger for the war was the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, by Yugoslav nationalist Gavrilo Princip in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914. This set off a crisis when Austria-Hungary delivered an ultimatum to the Kingdom of Serbia. Within weeks, the powers were at war and the conflict soon spread around the world. On 25 July Russia began mobilisation and on 28 July, the Austro-Hungarians declared war on Serbia, Germany presented an ultimatum to Russia to demobilise, and when this was refused, declared war on Russia on 1 August. Germany then invaded neutral Belgium and Luxembourg before moving towards France, after the German march on Paris was halted, what became known as the Western Front settled into a battle of attrition, with a trench line that changed little until 1917. On the Eastern Front, the Russian army was successful against the Austro-Hungarians, in November 1914, the Ottoman Empire joined the Central Powers, opening fronts in the Caucasus, Mesopotamia and the Sinai. In 1915, Italy joined the Allies and Bulgaria joined the Central Powers, Romania joined the Allies in 1916, after a stunning German offensive along the Western Front in the spring of 1918, the Allies rallied and drove back the Germans in a series of successful offensives. By the end of the war or soon after, the German Empire, Russian Empire, Austro-Hungarian Empire, national borders were redrawn, with several independent nations restored or created, and Germanys colonies were parceled out among the victors. During the Paris Peace Conference of 1919, the Big Four imposed their terms in a series of treaties, the League of Nations was formed with the aim of preventing any repetition of such a conflict. This effort failed, and economic depression, renewed nationalism, weakened successor states, and feelings of humiliation eventually contributed to World War II. From the time of its start until the approach of World War II, at the time, it was also sometimes called the war to end war or the war to end all wars due to its then-unparalleled scale and devastation. In Canada, Macleans magazine in October 1914 wrote, Some wars name themselves, during the interwar period, the war was most often called the World War and the Great War in English-speaking countries. Will become the first world war in the sense of the word. These began in 1815, with the Holy Alliance between Prussia, Russia, and Austria, when Germany was united in 1871, Prussia became part of the new German nation. Soon after, in October 1873, German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck negotiated the League of the Three Emperors between the monarchs of Austria-Hungary, Russia and Germany
2.
United Kingdom
–
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country in western Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, the United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland, with an area of 242,500 square kilometres, the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world and the 11th-largest in Europe. It is also the 21st-most populous country, with an estimated 65.1 million inhabitants, together, this makes it the fourth-most densely populated country in the European Union. The United Kingdom is a monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since 6 February 1952, other major urban areas in the United Kingdom include the regions of Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester. The United Kingdom consists of four countries—England, Scotland, Wales, the last three have devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in their capitals, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively. The relationships among the countries of the UK have changed over time, Wales was annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. A treaty between England and Scotland resulted in 1707 in a unified Kingdom of Great Britain, which merged in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, there are fourteen British Overseas Territories. These are the remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in the 1920s, British influence can be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. The United Kingdom is a country and has the worlds fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP. The UK is considered to have an economy and is categorised as very high in the Human Development Index. It was the worlds first industrialised country and the worlds foremost power during the 19th, the UK remains a great power with considerable economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence internationally. It is a nuclear weapons state and its military expenditure ranks fourth or fifth in the world. The UK has been a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council since its first session in 1946 and it has been a leading member state of the EU and its predecessor, the European Economic Community, since 1973. However, on 23 June 2016, a referendum on the UKs membership of the EU resulted in a decision to leave. The Acts of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have devolved self-government
3.
British Army
–
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom. As of 2017 the British Army comprises just over 80,000 trained Regular, or full-time, personnel and just over 26,500 trained Reserve, or part-time personnel. Therefore, the UK Parliament approves the continued existence of the Army by passing an Armed Forces Act at least once every five years, day to day the Army comes under administration of the Ministry of Defence and is commanded by the Chief of the General Staff. Repeatedly emerging victorious from these decisive wars allowed Britain to influence world events with its policies and establish itself as one of the leading military. In 1660 the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were restored under Charles II, Charles favoured the foundation of a new army under royal control and began work towards its establishment by August 1660. The Royal Scots Army and the Irish Army were financed by the Parliament of Scotland, the order of seniority of the most senior line regiments in the British Army is based on the order of seniority in the English army. At that time there was only one English regiment of dragoons, after William and Marys accession to the throne, England involved itself in the War of the Grand Alliance, primarily to prevent a French invasion restoring Marys father, James II. Spain, in the two centuries, had been the dominant global power, and the chief threat to Englands early transatlantic ambitions. The territorial ambitions of the French, however, led to the War of the Spanish Succession and the Napoleonic Wars. From the time of the end of the Seven Years War in 1763, Great Britain was the naval power. As had its predecessor, the English Army, the British Army fought the Kingdoms of Spain, France, and the Netherlands for supremacy in North America and the West Indies. With native and provincial assistance, the Army conquered New France in the North American theatre of the Seven Years War, the British Army suffered defeat in the American War of Independence, losing the Thirteen Colonies but holding on to Canada. The British Army was heavily involved in the Napoleonic Wars and served in campaigns across Europe. The war between the British and the First French Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte stretched around the world and at its peak, in 1813, the regular army contained over 250,000 men. A Coalition of Anglo-Dutch and Prussian Armies under the Duke of Wellington, the English had been involved, both politically and militarily, in Ireland since being given the Lordship of Ireland by the Pope in 1171. The campaign of the English republican Protector, Oliver Cromwell, involved uncompromising treatment of the Irish towns that had supported the Royalists during the English Civil War, the English Army stayed in Ireland primarily to suppress numerous Irish revolts and campaigns for independence. Having learnt from their experience in America, the British government sought a political solution, the British Army found itself fighting Irish rebels, both Protestant and Catholic, primarily in Ulster and Leinster in the 1798 rebellion. The Haldane Reforms of 1907 formally created the Territorial Force as the Armys volunteer reserve component by merging and reorganising the Volunteer Force, Militia, Great Britains dominance of the world had been challenged by numerous other powers, in the 20th century, most notably Germany
4.
Tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers
–
Royal Engineer tunnelling companies were specialist units of the Corps of Royal Engineers within the British Army, formed to dig attacking tunnels under enemy lines during the First World War. The stalemate situation in the part of the war led to the deployment of tunnel warfare. In February 1915, eight Tunnelling Companies were created and operational in Flanders from March 1915, by mid-1916, the British Army had around 25,000 trained tunnellers, mostly volunteers taken from coal mining communities. Almost twice that number of attached infantry worked permanently alongside the trained miners acting as beasts of burden, from the spring of 1917 the whole war became more mobile, with grand offensives at Arras, Messines and Passchendaele. There was no longer a place for a tactic that depended upon total stasis for its employment, the tactics and counter-tactics required deeper and deeper tunnelling, hence more time and more stable front lines were also required, so offensive and defensive military mining largely ceased. Underground work continued, with the tunnellers concentrating on deep dugouts for troop accommodation, in siege warfare, tunnelling is a long-held tactic for breaching and breaking enemy defences. Mining was a used in siege warfare in ancient China from at least the Warring States period forward. In 1215 during the First Barons War, John, King of England laid siege to Rochester Castle, eventually, he ordered his troops to dig a tunnel under the south tower, which they held up with pit props. After the tunnellers lit the props, the tower fell down, the Corps of Royal Engineers were formed in 1717. In 1770, the Company of Soldier Artificers formed a specialist tunnelling troop in Gibraltar to dig defensive positions into the Rock, during the Siege of Lucknow in 1857, Royal Engineers were asked to undertake counter-mining. By the end of May 1915, a continuous opposed pair of defence-in-depth trench earthworks with no vulnerable flanks, with both sides equally well dug-in and deploying comparable troop numbers and armaments, neither was to prove strong enough to force a decisive breakthrough. The resultant static warfare meant that tunnelling saw a resurgence as a military tactic. As in siege warfare, mining was possible due to the nature of the fighting, secondly, the ground on the Western Front was a prime candidate for underground warfare. Although the British were equipped with Royal Engineers who were trained in carrying out sapping, mining and tunnelling operations, there was no core team of specialist skills. Towards the end of 1914, the engineering company of Member of Parliament and British Army Major, John Norton-Griffiths, was working on sewerage renewal contracts in Liverpool. The relatively small-bore tunnels were being driven by a technique known as clay-kicking. Only useful in firm clay soils, the man doing the digging sat with his back supported by a wooden frame, with a spade-like tool he dug out the clay, passing the spoil over-head to one of his mates for disposal at the rear. He concluded by asking to be allowed to take a group of his moles to France where if the soil was right, they could quickly undermine enemy positions
5.
Military engineering
–
Military engineering is loosely defined as the art and practice of designing and building military works and maintaining lines of military transport and communications. Military engineers are responsible for logistics behind military tactics. Modern military engineering differs from civil engineering, in the 20th and 21st centuries, military engineering also includes other engineering disciplines such as mechanical and electrical engineering techniques. According to NATO, military engineering is that engineer activity undertaken, regardless of component or service, Military engineering does not encompass the activities undertaken by those engineers who maintain, repair and operate vehicles, vessels, aircraft, weapon systems and equipment. Military engineering is a subject taught in military academies or schools of military engineering. The construction and demolition tasks related to engineering are usually performed by military engineers including soldiers trained as sappers or pioneers. In modern armies, soldiers trained to perform such tasks while well forward in battle, the word engineer was initially used in the context of warfare, dating back to 1325 when engine’er referred to a constructor of military engines. In this context, engine referred to a machine, i. e. A mechanical contraption used in war, in its place, the term military engineering has come to be used. Modern military engineering can be divided into three main tasks or fields, combat engineering, strategic support, and ancillary support, combat engineering is associated with engineering on the battlefield. Combat engineers are responsible for increasing mobility on the front lines of war such as digging trenches, strategic support is associated with providing service in communication zones such as the construction of airfields and the improvement and upgrade of ports, roads and railways communication. Ancillary support includes provision and distribution of maps as well as the disposal of unexploded warheads, Military engineers construct bases, airfields, roads, bridges, ports, and hospitals. During peacetime before modern warfare, military engineers took the role of civil engineers by participating in the construction of civil-works projects, nowadays, military engineers are almost entirely engaged in war logistics and preparedness. Combat engineers clear routes, repair airfields and harbours, bridge rivers all at top speed, the first civilization to have a dedicated force of military engineering specialists were the Romans, whose army contained a dedicated corps of military engineers known as architecti. This group was pre-eminent among its contemporaries, such military engineering feats would have been completely new, and probably bewildering and demoralizing, to the Gallic defenders. The best known of these Roman army engineers due to his writings surviving is Vitruvius, alexander the Great also used engineers in his army. In ancient times, military engineers were responsible for warfare and building field fortifications, temporary camps. The most notable engineers of ancient times were the Romans and Chinese, the Romans were responsible for constructing fortified wooden camps and paved roads for their legions
6.
Tunnel warfare
–
A counter mine is a mine dug to allow defenders to attack miners, or destroy a mine threatening their fortifications. The Aetolians then countered the Roman mine with smoke from burning feathers with charcoal, eventually, when Philip V announced that large parts of the town-walls were undermined, the citizens surrendered without delay. Mining was a method used in ancient China from at least the Warring States period forward. When enemies attempted to dig tunnels under walls for mining or entry into the city, a well-preserved case of mining and counter-mining operations is in Dura Europos, during the siege in 256 AD during the Roman-Persian wars. In warfare during the Middle Ages, a mine was a tunnel dug to bring down castles, attackers used this technique when the fortification was not built on solid rock, developing it as a response to stone-built castles that could not be burned like earlier-style wooden forts. A tunnel would be excavated under the outer defenses either to access into the fortification or to collapse the walls. These tunnels would normally be supported by wooden props as the digging progressed. Later, explosives like gunpowder were used for greater effect. A tactic related to mining is sapping the wall, where engineers would dig at the base of a wall with crowbars, several methods resisted or countered undermining. Often the siting of a castle could make mining difficult, the walls of a castle could be constructed either on solid rock or on sandy or water-logged land, making it difficult to dig mines. A very deep ditch or moat could be constructed in front of the walls, as was done at Pembroke Castle, or even artificial lakes, as was done at Kenilworth Castle. This makes it difficult to dig a mine, and even if a breach is made. Defenders could also dig counter mines, from these they could then dig into the attackers tunnels and sortie into them to either kill the miners or to set fire to the pit-props to collapse the attackers tunnel. Alternatively they could under-mine the attackers tunnels and create a camouflet to collapse the attackers tunnels, finally if the walls were breached, they could either place obstacles in the breach, for example a cheval de frise to hinder a forlorn hope, or construct a coupure. During the Siege of Vicksburg, in 1863, Union troops led by General Ulysses S. Grant tunnelled under the Confederate trenches and detonated a mine beneath the 3rd Louisiana Redan on June 25,1863. The subsequent assault, led by General John A. Logan, gained a foothold in the Confederate trenches where the crater was formed, but the attackers were eventually forced to withdraw. A more famous instance occurred during the Siege of Petersburg, Union troops dug a tunnel under the Confederate lines at Elliotts Salient, when set off, the resulting explosion killed about 300 soldiers. The combat was known as the Battle of the Crater
7.
Battle of Messines (1917)
–
The Nivelle Offensive in April and May had failed to achieve its more ambitious aims, led to the demoralisation of French troops and the dislocation of the Anglo-French strategy for 1917. The offensive at Messines forced the Germans to move reserves to Flanders from the Arras and Aisne fronts, the 4th Army divisions of Gruppe Wijtschate held the ridge, which were later reinforced by a division from Gruppe Ypern. The battle began with the detonation of a series of mines beneath German lines and this was followed by a creeping barrage 700 yards deep, covering the British troops as they secured the ridge, with support from tanks, cavalry patrols and aircraft. The effectiveness of the British mines, barrages and bombardments was improved by advances in artillery survey, flash-spotting, British attacks from 8–14 June advanced the front line beyond the former German Sehnen line. The Battle of Messines was a prelude to the much larger Third Battle of Ypres campaign, in January 1916, General Sir Herbert Plumer recommended to Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig the capture of Messines Ridge before an operation to capture the Gheluvelt plateau further north. The Flanders campaign was postponed because of the Battle of Verdun in 1916, Haig intended to force the Germans to move troops away from the French armies on the Aisne front, where demoralisation amid the failure of the Nivelle Offensive had led to mutinies. The British would gain observation of the slope of Menin Ridge at the west end of the Gheluvelt plateau. The front line around Ypres had changed little since the end of the Second Battle of Ypres. The British held the city, while the Germans held the ground of the Messines–Wytschaete Ridge to the south, the lower ridges to the east. The Ypres front was a salient bulging into the German lines but was overlooked by German artillery observers on the higher ground, the British had little ground observation of the German rear areas and valleys east of the ridges. Gradients varied from negligible, to 1,60 at Hooge and 1,33 at Zonnebeke, underneath the soil was London clay, sand and silt. The area was considered by the British to be drier than Loos, Givenchy, the Second Army devised a centralised artillery plan of great sophistication, following the practice established at the Battle of Arras in April 1917. The use of survey, gun calibration, weather data. Target-finding became systematic, with the use of new sound-ranging equipment, better organisation of flash-spotting, Second Army counter-battery artillery bombardments increased from twelve in the week ending 19 April, to 438 in the last ten days before the attack. A survey of captured ground after the found that 90 percent of the German artillery positions had been plotted. The 2nd Field Survey Company also assisted the mining companies by establishing the positions of objectives within the German lines, using intersection and a special series of aerial photographs. The company surveyed advanced artillery positions, so that moving forward to them once the battle had begun could begin firing as soon as they arrived at the positions. The British had begun an offensive against the German-held Wijtschate salient in 1916
8.
Royal Engineers
–
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers, and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army. It is highly regarded throughout the military, and especially the Army and it provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is headed by the Chief Royal Engineer. The Regimental Headquarters and the Royal School of Military Engineering are in Chatham in Kent, the corps is divided into several regiments, barracked at various places in the United Kingdom and around the world. In Woolwich in 1716, the Board formed the Royal Regiment of Artillery and established a Corps of Engineers, the manual work was done by the Artificer Companies, made up of contracted civilian artisans and labourers. In 1782, a Soldier Artificer Company was established for service in Gibraltar, ten years later the Gibraltar company, which had remained separate, was absorbed and in 1812 the name was changed to the Corps of Royal Sappers and Miners. The Corps has no battle honours, in 1832, the regimental motto, Ubique Quo Fas Et Gloria Ducunt, was granted. The motto signified that the Corps had seen action in all the conflicts of the British Army. In 1911 the Corps formed its Air Battalion, the first flying unit of the British Armed Forces, the Air Battalion was the forerunner of the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force. In 1915, in response to German mining of British trenches under the then static siege conditions of the First World War, before the Second World War, Royal Engineers recruits were required to be at least 5 feet 4 inches tall. They initially enlisted for six years with the colours and a six years with the reserve or four years. Unlike most corps and regiments, in which the age limit was 25. They trained at the Royal Engineers Depot in Chatham or the RE Mounted Depot at Aldershot, the Royal Engineers Museum is in Gillingham in Kent. Britain having acquired an Empire, it fell to the Royal Engineers to conduct some of the most significant civil engineering schemes around the world, some examples of great works of the era of empire can be found in A. J. Smitherss book Honourable Conquests. The Royal Engineers, Columbia Detachment, commanded by Richard Clement Moody, was responsible for the foundation, the Royal Albert Hall is one of the UKs most treasured and distinctive buildings, recognisable the world over. Since its opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the leading artists from every kind of performance genre have appeared on its stage. The Hall was designed by Captain Francis Fowke and Major-General Henry Y. D. Scott of the Royal Engineers, the designers were heavily influenced by ancient amphitheatres, but had also been exposed to the ideas of Gottfried Semper while he was working at the Victoria and Albert Museum. Much of the British colonial era infrastructure of India, of which survive today, was created by engineers of the three presidencies armies and the Royal Engineers. In 1838 he designed and built sea defences for Vizagapatam and he masterminded the Godavery Delta project where 720,000 acres of land were irrigated and 500 miles of land to the port of Cocanada was made navigable in the 1840s
9.
Dugout (shelter)
–
A dugout or dug-out, also known as a pit-house, earth lodge, is a shelter for humans or domesticated animals and livestock based on a hole or depression dug into the ground. Dugouts can be recessed into the earth, with a flat roof covered by ground. They can also be semi-recessed, with a wood or sod roof standing out. These structures are one of the most ancient types of housing known to archeologists. Dugouts may also be temporary shelters constructed as an aid to specific activities, e. g. concealment, first driven underground by enemies who invaded their country, the Berbers of Matmâta found underground homes the best defense against summer heat. Burra in South Australias Mid-North region was the site of the famous Monster Mine, census data from 1851 shows that nearly 80 percent of the workers living in the dugouts were miners, with probably the majority being Cornish. Floods and the Victorian gold rush ended the large scale use of dugouts in Burra. Coober Pedy is a small town in northern South Australia,846 kilometres north of Adelaide on the Stuart Highway. Most residents live in caves excavated into the hillsides to avoid the summer temperatures. White Cliffs, New South Wales is similar, in terms of climate, housing, in north China, especially on the Loess Plateau, caves called yaodongs dug into hillsides have been the traditional dwellings from early times. The advantage of a yaodong over a house is that it needs little heating in winter. An estimated 40 million people in northern China live in a yaodong, many people live in semi-recessed dugout houses in north-western China where hot summer and cold winters prevail. In the Early Jōmon period of Japanese pre-history complex pit houses were the most commonly used method of housing at the time, the well-preserved cave towns of Crimea are Mangup-Kale, Eski-Kermen, Inkerman and Chufut-Kale. The settlement of Mangup-Kale dates back to the 3rd century AD and was fortified by Justinian I in the mid 6th century and it was inhabited and governed primarily by Crimean Goths, and became the center of their autonomous principality. The last inhabitants, a community of Karaims, abandoned the site in the 1790s. In Iceland, since time immemorial and well into the 20th century, most houses were dug down, with turf or sod walls built up and roofs made of timber. Turf was used because timber was scarce and expensive, and stone not practical before the advent of concrete, Matera has gained international fame for its ancient town, the Sassi di Matera, which is UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993. The Sassi are houses dug into the rock itself, known locally as Tufo
10.
British Expeditionary Force (World War I)
–
The British Expeditionary Force or BEF was the British Army sent to the Western Front during the First World War. Planning for a British Expeditionary Force began with the Haldane reforms of the British Army carried out by the Secretary of State for War Richard Haldane following the Second Boer War. The term British Expeditionary Force is often used to only to the forces present in France prior to the end of the First Battle of Ypres on 22 November 1914. By the end of 1914—after the battles of Mons, Le Cateau, an alternative endpoint of the BEF was 26 December 1914, when it was divided into the First and Second Armies. B. E. F. remained the name of the British armies in France. Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany, who was dismissive of the BEF. The treacherous English and walk over General Frenchs contemptible little army, hence, in later years, the survivors of the regular army dubbed themselves The Old Contemptibles. No evidence of any such order being issued by the Kaiser has ever been found, in October 1914, 7th Division arrived in France, forming the basis of III Corps and the cavalry had grown to form the Cavalry Corps of three divisions. By December 1914, the BEF had expanded to such an extent that the First Army, the force was commanded by Field Marshal Sir John French until December 1915, when he was replaced by General Sir Douglas Haig. The BEFs Chief of Staff on mobilization was General Archibald Murray and he was replaced in January 1915 by General William Robertson. Lieutenant-General Launcelot Kiggell then served as Chief of Staff from December 1915 to January 1917 when he was succeeded by Lieutenant-General Herbert Lawrence, the two initial Army Corps were commanded by Douglas Haig and Horace Smith-Dorrien. As the Regular Armys strength declined, the numbers were made up, first by the Territorial Force, by the end of August 1914, he had raised six new divisions and by March 1915, the number of divisions had increased to 29. The Territorial Force was also expanded, raising second and third battalions and forming eight new divisions. The Third Army was formed in July 1915 and with the influx of troops from Kitcheners volunteers and further reorganisation, the Fourth Army and the Reserve Army, became the Fifth Army in 1916. The BEF grew from six divisions of British regular army and reserves in 1914, to encompass the British Empires war effort on the Western front in 1918 and some of its allies. Over the course of the war 5,399,563 men served with the BEF, the First Army was formed on 26 December 1914. Its first commander was Douglas Haig promoted from command of the I Corps, when Haig took over command of the BEF in 1915, the new commander was General Henry Horne. First Army remained in France until the end of the war, the Second Army was formed at the same time as the First Army on 26 December 1914
11.
Western Front (World War I)
–
The Western Front or Western Theater was the main theatre of war during World War I. Following the outbreak of war in August 1914, the German Army opened the Western Front by invading Luxembourg and Belgium, the tide of the advance was dramatically turned with the Battle of the Marne. Following the Race to the Sea, both sides dug in along a line of fortified trenches, stretching from the North Sea to the Swiss frontier with France. This line remained unchanged for most of the war. Between 1915 and 1917 there were several major offensives along this front, the attacks employed massive artillery bombardments and massed infantry advances. However, a combination of entrenchments, machine gun emplacements, barbed wire, as a result, no significant advances were made. In an effort to break the deadlock, this front saw the introduction of new technology, including poison gas, aircraft. But it was only after the adoption of improved tactics that some degree of mobility was restored, the German Armys Spring Offensive of 1918 was made possible by the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk that marked the end of the conflict on the Eastern Front. In spite of the stagnant nature of this front, this theatre would prove decisive. The terms of peace were agreed upon with the signing of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, belgiums neutrality was guaranteed by Britain under the 1839 Treaty of London, this caused Britain to join the war at the expiration of its ultimatum at 11 pm GMT on 4 August. Armies under German generals Alexander von Kluck and Karl von Bülow attacked Belgium on 4 August 1914, Luxembourg had been occupied without opposition on 2 August. The first battle in Belgium was the Siege of Liège, which lasted from 5–16 August, Liège was well fortified and surprised the German Army under von Bülow with its level of resistance. German heavy artillery was able to demolish the main forts within a few days. Following the fall of Liège, most of the Belgian field army retreated to Antwerp, leaving the garrison of Namur isolated, with the Belgian capital, Brussels, although the German army bypassed Antwerp, it remained a threat to their flank. Another siege followed at Namur, lasting from about 20–23 August, for their part, the French had five armies deployed on their borders. The pre-war French offensive plan, Plan XVII, was intended to capture Alsace-Lorraine following the outbreak of hostilities, on 7 August the VII Corps attacked Alsace with its objectives being to capture Mulhouse and Colmar. The main offensive was launched on 14 August with 1st and 2nd Armies attacking toward Sarrebourg-Morhange in Lorraine, in keeping with the Schlieffen Plan, the Germans withdrew slowly while inflicting severe losses upon the French. The French advanced the 3rd and 4th Armies toward the Saar River and attempted to capture Saarburg, attacking Briey and Neufchateau, before being driven back
12.
John French, 1st Earl of Ypres
–
Born in Kent to an Anglo-Irish family, he saw brief service as a midshipman in the Royal Navy, before becoming a cavalry officer. He achieved rapid promotion and distinguished himself on the Gordon Relief Expedition, French had a considerable reputation as a womaniser throughout his life and his career nearly ended when he was cited in the divorce of a brother officer whilst in India in the early 1890s. French became a hero during the Second Boer War. He won the Battle of Elandslaagte near Ladysmith, escaping under fire on the last train as the siege began and he then commanded the Cavalry Division, winning the Battle of Klip Drift during a march to relieve Kimberley. He later conducted Counter-insurgency operations in Cape Colony, during the Edwardian Period he commanded I Corps at Aldershot, then served as Inspector-General of the Army, before becoming Chief of the Imperial General Staff in 1912. During the Curragh incident he had to resign as CIGS after promising Hubert Gough in writing that the Army would not be used to coerce Ulster Protestants into a Home Rule Ireland. French’s most important role was as Commander-in-Chief of the British Expeditionary Force for the first year and he suffered an immediate personality clash with the French General Lanrezac. By summer 1915 French’s tenure of command was being criticised in London by Kitchener and other members of the government, and by Haig, Robertson. Haig, formerly his trusted subordinate and who had saved him from bankruptcy by lending him a sum of money in 1899. French was then appointed Commander-in-Chief, Home Forces for 1916–18 and this period saw the country running increasingly short of manpower for the Army. Frenchs family was related to the French/De Freyne family which had gone to Wexford in the century and had substantial estates at Frenchpark. French always regarded himself as Irish, although his branch of the family had lived in England since the eighteenth century. He was born the son of Commander John Tracey William French, RN, of Ripple Vale in Kent and his mother was Margaret Eccles from Glasgow. He was educated at a Harrow preparatory school and Eastmans Royal Naval Academy at Portsmouth before joining the Royal Navy in 1866 and he joined the Royal Navy because it gave him a chance to leave home four or five years earlier than the Army. From August 1866 he trained on board the three-decker battleship HMS Britannia at Dartmouth, in 1869, he served as a midshipman on HMS Warrior, commanded by Captain Boys, an old friend of Frenchs father. He resigned from the Royal Navy in November 1870, as he was discovered to be acrophobic, French joined the Suffolk Artillery Militia in November 1870, where he was expected to put in about two months a year with the regiment. He initially failed his exams for a commission, and had to hire a new tutor. He was posted to Aldershot Command, which contained a division under Sir Hope Grant
13.
Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener
–
His term as Commander-in-Chief of the Army in India saw him quarrel with another eminent proconsul, the Viceroy Lord Curzon, who eventually resigned. Kitchener then returned to Egypt as British Agent and Consul-General, in 1914, at the start of the First World War, Kitchener became Secretary of State for War, a Cabinet Minister. Kitchener died on 5 June 1916 when HMS Hampshire sank west of the Orkney Islands and he was making his way to Russia in order to attend negotiations when the ship struck a German mine. He was one of more than 600 killed on board the ship, Kitchener was born in Ballylongford near Listowel, County Kerry, in Ireland, son of army officer Henry Horatio Kitchener and Frances Anne Chevallier. His father had recently bought land in Ireland under a scheme to encourage the purchase of land after selling his commission. They then moved to Switzerland where the young Kitchener was educated at Montreux, then at the Royal Military Academy, pro-French and eager to see action, he joined a French field ambulance unit in the Franco-Prussian War. His father took him back to England after he caught pneumonia after ascending in a balloon to see the French Army of the Loire in action. Commissioned into the Royal Engineers on 4 January 1871, his service in France had violated British neutrality, and he was reprimanded by the Duke of Cambridge, the commander-in-chief. He served in Palestine, Egypt, and Cyprus as a surveyor, learned Arabic, Sir Walter Kitchener, had also entered the army, and was Governor of Bermuda from 1908 to 1912. In 1874, at age 24, Kitchener was assigned by the Palestine Exploration Fund to a mapping-survey of the Holy Land, replacing Charles Tyrwhitt-Drake, who had died of malaria. Conder and Kitchener’s expedition became known as the Survey of Western Palestine because it was confined to the area west of the Jordan River. The survey collected data on the topography and toponymy of the area, as well as local flora, the results of the survey were published in an eight-volume series, with Kitchener’s contribution in the first three tomes. This survey has had an effect on the Middle East for several reasons, The ordnance survey serves as the basis for the grid system used in the modern maps of Israel. The collection of data compiled by Conder and Kitchener are still consulted by archaeologists, the survey itself effectively delineated and defined the political borders of the southern Levant. For instance, the border between Israel and Lebanon is established at the point in upper Galilee where Conder and Kitchener’s survey stopped. In 1878 having completed the survey of Western Palestine, Kitchener was sent to Cyprus to undertake a survey of newly acquired British protectorate. Then in 1879 he became vice-consul in Anatolia, in 1883 Kitchener became a Freemason. On 4 January 1883 Kitchener was promoted to captain, given the Turkish rank bimbashi, Egypt had recently become a British puppet state, its army led by British officers, although still nominally under the sovereignty of the Khedive and his nominal overlord the Sultan of Turkey
14.
George Henry Fowke
–
Lieutenant General Sir George Henry Fowke KCB, KCMG was a British Army general, who served on the staff of the British Expeditionary Force during the First World War. Fowke joined the Royal Engineers in 1884, and saw service in the South African War at the Defence of Ladysmith, where he was mentioned in despatches. After the end of the war, he was appointed as Director of Public Works in the Transvaal and was a member of the Transvaal Legislative Council from 1902 to 1904. During the Russo-Japanese War he was an attached to the Japanese Army in Manchuria. He was appointed the Assistant Adjutant General for the Royal Engineers in 1910, on the outbreak of the First World War, he was appointed to the post of Brigadier-General Royal Engineers in the BEF, the senior engineering advisor. It was in position, that he agreed the formation of the Royal Engineer tunnelling companies. In February 1916 he was promoted to hold the post of Adjutant-General of the Expeditionary Force and he held this post until the end of the war, and retired from the Army in 1922
15.
John Norton-Griffiths
–
Lieutenant-Colonel Sir John Norton-Griffiths, 1st Baronet, KCB, DSO was an engineer, British Army officer during the Second Boer War and the First World War, and a Member of Parliament. John Norton-Griffiths was born John Griffiths in Somerset on 13 July 1871 and he was the son of John Griffiths, a clerk of works at St Audries Manor Estate, West Quantoxhead. He had a youth and left home at the age of 17. After a generally wasted education he spent a year, in 1887–1888, before travelling to the colony of Natal and shortly on to Transvaal, where he worked as a sub-manager at a gold mine at the age of 17. In 1896 on the outbreak of the Second Matabele War he joined Lieut. -Colonel Edwin Aldersons Mashonaland Field Force, in the Second Boer War, he served briefly with Brabants Horse, then as Captain Adjutant to Lord Roberts bodyguard. In 1901, Norton-Griffiths married Gwladys Wood, Sir John was a keen supporter of Liverpool football club and was a director of Arsenal Football Club between 1928 and 1930. Norton-Griffiths was awarded contracts to carry out major engineering projects in Africa and these included work on the first 197 km of the Benguela Railway in Angola between 1903 and 1908. He was elected to Parliament in 1910 and was until 1918 the Conservative Partys MP for Wednesbury, from 1918 until 1924 he was the Conservative MP for the Wandsworth Central constituency, London. In 1914 at the start of the First World War, Norton-Griffiths raised the 2nd King Edwards Horse at his own expense and was commissioned major in the regiment, using the experience from a successful engineering career, Norton-Griffiths built many fortifications for the Entente on the Western Front. An enigmatic figure, Norton-Griffiths took to touring the trenches in a battered Rolls-Royce loaded with crates of fine wines, in early December 1914, Norton-Griffiths wrote to the War Office that his tunnelling workers could be useful for the war effort, but his letter was not acted upon. However, on 20 December 1914, German sappers placed eight mines beneath the positions of an Indian Brigade in Givenchy-lès-la-Bassée. The detonation and followup attack wiped out the company of 800 men. In late 1916 he was sent to sabotage the Romanian oil fields ahead of a German advance, colonel Norton-Griffiths used such techniques as dumping cement down the wells, filling tanks with nails, and emptying storage wells and then setting them on fire. He was able, almost single-handedly, to destroy seventy refineries and 800,000 tons of crude oil, general Ludendorff of the German army was later quoted as saying, We must attribute our shortages in part to him. German efforts later got some of the Romanian fields back online for the war effort, a more sceptical view of the activities of Empire Jack was expressed by career diplomat Lord Hardinge of Penshurst. He wrote, we had sent a mission to Roumania under Col. Norton-Griffiths M. P. to destroy both the oil wells and the supplies of grain. But the head of the mission received a K. C. B. for his efforts. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order in 1916 and he changed his name by deed poll in 1917, taking the additional surname Norton
16.
War Office
–
The name War Office is also given to the former home of the department, the War Office building located at the junction of Horse Guards Avenue and Whitehall in central London. During August 2013 it was announced that the former War Office building would be sold on the open market. The War Office developed from the Council of War, an ad hoc grouping of the King and his military commanders which managed the Kingdom of Englands frequent wars. It was equivalent to the Admiralty, responsible for the Royal Navy, and the Air Ministry, the department had several London homes until it settled at Horse Guards in Whitehall during 1722, where it was to remain until 1858. The first War Office Secretary at War is usually said to have been William Blathwayt and it was, however, a fairly minor government job which dealt with the minutiae of administration rather than grand strategy. Issues of strategic policy during wartime were managed by the Northern and Southern Departments, from 1704 to 1855, the job of Secretary was possessed by a minister of the second rank, although he was occasionally part of the Cabinet. Many of his responsibilities were transferred to the Secretary of State for War after the creation of more senior post during 1794. The job of Secretary at War was merged with that of the Secretary of State for War during 1855, during 1855 the Board of Ordnance was abolished as a result of its perceived poor performance during the Crimean War. This powerful independent body, dating from the 15th century, had directed by the Master-General of the Ordnance. The disastrous campaigns of the Crimean War resulted in the consolidation of all duties during 1855 as subordinate to the Secretary of State for War. He was not, however, solely responsible for the Army and this was reduced in theory by the reforms introduced by Edward Cardwell during 1870, which subordinated the Commander-in-Chief to the Secretary for War. His resistance to reform caused military efficiency to lag well behind that of Britains rivals, the management of the War Office was hampered by persistent disputes between the civilian and military parts of the organisation. The government of H. H. Asquith attempted to resolve this during the First World War by appointing Lord Kitchener as Secretary for War, making him the first, however, this was thought unsatisfactory, during his tenure, the Imperial General Staff was virtually dismantled. Its role was replaced effectively by the Committee of Imperial Defence, the War Office decreased greatly in importance after the First World War, a fact illustrated by the drastic reductions of its staff numbers during the inter-war period. On 1 April 1920, it employed 7,434 civilian staff and its responsibilities and funding were also reduced. During 1936, the government of Stanley Baldwin appointed a Minister for Co-ordination of Defence, when Winston Churchill became Prime Minister during 1940, he bypassed the War Office altogether and appointed himself Minister of Defence. Clement Attlee continued this arrangement when he came to power during 1945, during 1964, the present form of the Ministry of Defence was established, unifying the War Office, Admiralty, and Air Ministry. The records of the War Office are kept by The National Archives with the code WO and it contains about 1,000 rooms across seven floors, linked by 2½ miles of corridors
17.
Ypres Salient
–
The Ypres Salient is the area around Ypres in Belgium which was the scene of some of the biggest battles in World War I. Ypres lies at the junction of the Ypres–Comines Canal and the Ieperlee, the high point of the ridge is at Wytschaete,7,000 yd from Ypres, while at Hollebeke the ridge is 4,000 yd distant and recedes to 7,000 yd at Polygon Wood. Wytschaete is about 150 ft above the plain, on the Ypres–Menin road at Hooge, the rises are slight apart from the vicinity of Zonnebeke, which has a 1,33 gradient. From Hooge and to the east, the slope is 1,60 and near Hollebeke, it is 1,75, the heights are subtle but have the character of a saucer lip around Ypres. The main ridge has spurs sloping east and one is particularly noticeable at Wytschaete, which runs 2 mi south-east to Messines, with a slope to the east. Further south is the valley of the Douve river, Ploegsteert Wood. West of Messines Ridge is the parallel Wulverghem Spur, the Oosttaverne Spur, the general aspect south of Ypres is of low ridges and dips, gradually flattening to the north into a featureless plain. In 1914, Ypres had 2,354 houses and 16,700 inhabitants inside medieval earth ramparts, faced with brick, possession of the higher ground to the south and east of the city, gives ample scope for ground observation, enfilade fire and converging artillery-fire. An occupier also has the advantage of artillery deployments and the movement of reinforcements, the ridge had woods from Wytschaete to Zonnebeke, giving good cover, some being of notable size like Polygon Wood and those later named Battle Wood, Shrewsbury Forest and Sanctuary Wood. The woods usually had undergrowth, but the fields in gaps between the woods were 800–1,000 yd wide and devoid of cover, roads in this area were usually unpaved, except for the main ones from Ypres, with occasional villages and houses. The lowland west of the ridge was a mixture of meadow and fields, with high hedgerows dotted with trees, cut by streams and ditches emptying into the canals. The Ypres–Comines Canal is about 18 ft wide and the Yperlee about 36 ft, a salient in military terms is a battlefield feature that projects into an opponents territory. The salient is surrounded on three sides, making the occupying the salient vulnerable. The battles saved Ypres and the corner of Belgium around Veurne from German occupation, the few rises or hills became the objectives of the Second Battle of Ypres in 1915, which saw the first use of gas and the almost total destruction and evacuation of Ypres. During this battle, the Allied units were forced to back from Zonnebeke. This line was to define the Ypres Salient for over two years, during which Hooge lay in one of the eastern-most sectors of the salient and was much contested. This situation changed little despite British tunnelling prior to the Battle of Messines in June 1917, after the Third Battle of Ypres, the Ypres Salient was left relatively quiet until the Fourth Battle of Ypres, when the German Spring Offensive threatened to overwhelm the entire area. This offensive was stopped at the point the Allies were closest to being forced to abandon the salient, by August 1918, the Fifth Battle of Ypres pushed the German forces out of the salient entirely and they did not return
18.
Hooge in World War I
–
Within a 0.62 mi radius of Hooge are the sites of Château Wood, Sanctuary Wood, Railway Wood and Menin Road. There are four Commonwealth War Graves Commission war cemeteries in this area and several museums, Hill 62 and Mount Sorrel are further south, while the sites known to British and Commonwealth soldiers as Stirling Castle and Clapham Junction are further east. For much of the war, Hooge was one of the eastern-most sectors of the Ypres Salient, around the village, the opposing front lines were almost within whispering distance of each other. With its ruined village and a maze of battered and confusing trench lines, the area was regarded as an area for the infantry. Both sides saw Hooge as an important area and a key target for heavy artillery bombardment. The high point of the ridge is at Wytschaete,7,000 yd from Ypres, while at Hollebeke the ridge is 4,000 yd distant and recedes to 7,000 yd at Polygon Wood. Wytschaete is about 150 ft above the plain, on the Ypres–Menin road at Hooge, the rises are slight apart from the vicinity of Zonnebeke which has a 1,33 gradient. From Hooge and to the east, the slope is 1,60 and near Hollebeke, it is 1,75, the heights are subtle and resemble a saucer lip around the city. The main ridge has spurs sloping east and one is particularly noticeable at Wytschaete, which runs 2 mi south-east to Messines with a slope to the east. Further south is the valley of the Douve river, Ploegsteert Wood. West of Messines Ridge is the parallel Wulverghem Spur and the Oosttaverne Spur, also parallel, the general aspect south and east of Ypres is one of low ridges and dips, gradually flattening northwards beyond Passchendaele into a featureless plain. Possession of the ground to the south and east of Ypres gives ample scope for ground observation, enfilade fire. An occupier also has the advantage that artillery deployments and the movement of reinforcements, the ridge had woods from Wytschaete to Zonnebeke giving good cover, some being of notable size like Polygon Wood and those later named Battle Wood, Shrewsbury Forest and Sanctuary Wood. Roads in this area were usually unpaved, except for the ones from Ypres. The lowland west of the ridge was a mixture of meadow and fields, with high hedgerows dotted with trees, cut by streams, the main road to Ypres from Poperinge to Vlamertinge is in a defile, easily observed from the ridge. When the château was shelled by German forces on 31 October 1914, monro) were injured, as were several members of their staffs, and some British soldiers were killed and Lomax died of his wounds several months later. By the end of the battle in November 1914 the Germans had been driven back, on 21 February 1915, the Germans exploded the first mine beneath the trenches at Hooge. The British were forced to retreat from Zonnebeke, Veldhoek and the St Julien arc from 5–6 May 1915, from 24–25 May 1915, the Battle of Bellewaarde was fought in the area until the end of the German offensive
19.
Hill 60 (Ypres)
–
Hill 60 is a World War I battlefield memorial site and park in the Zwarteleen area of Zillebeke south of Ypres, Belgium. It is located about 4.6 kilometres from the centre of Ypres, before World War I the hill was known locally as Côte des Amants. The site comprises two areas of raised land separated by the line, the northern area was known by soldiers as Hill 60 while the southern part was known as The Caterpillar. The high ground of Hill 60, south of Zillebeke, was created in the 1850s by spoil dumped from the cutting for the line between Ypres and Comines. The line opened in March 1854 and formed part of the La Madeleine–Comines railway from the French Nord-Pas-de-Calais region into Belgian Flanders, the earth excavated during the building of the railway was dumped on either side of the embankment and formed hillocks. On the west side, a long irregular mound atop the ridge was called The Caterpillar, artillery-fire and mine explosions during the war changed the shape of the hill and flattened it considerably. Today the peak of Hill 60 is only about 4 metres higher than the vicinity, the ground south of Zillebeke rises for about 2,000 yards to a ridge between Zwarteleen and Zandvoorde. Roads run north-west to south-east through the area, from Ypres to Verbrandenmoelen and Hollebeke as well as from Zillebeke to Zwartelen, some 1.2 kilometres further south is The Bluff and some 2.4 kilometres south-west is St. Eloi. During the First Battle of Ypres in late 1914, Hill 60 was held by the Moussy Detachment, the French line was re-established from a bridge near Voormezeele to Verbrandenmolen and Zwarteleen, which was still only 3,000 yards from Ypres. The German account recorded that Hill 60 had been captured but Lieutenant-General Dubois, when British troops relieved the French in the area on the night of 1/2 February 1915, the hill was certainly held by the Germans. On 17 February 1915, British sappers blew a mine at Hill 60 which they had taken over from the French. The Germans retaliated with a mine at Zwarteleen, but were driven out of the British positions. On 21 February, however, they blew a mine nearby. In mid-March the Germans blew another large mine at Zwarteleen, creating a 9. 1-metre deep crater, after the Battle of Gravenstafel Ridge the British planned a local withdrawal to less exposed positions roughly 3 miles distant from Ypres. The new line was to run from Hill 60 northwards to Hooge on the Ypres–Menin road, thence to Frezenberg Ridge, Mouse Trap Farm, the 27th Division took over the area from just west of Hill 60, to about 0. 5-mile short of the Ypres–Roulers railway. In spring 1915, earlier French preparations to raid the hill were continued by the British 28th Division, which took over the line in February 1915 and then by the 5th Division. The Allied plan to attack Hill 60 was expanded into an attempt to capture the hill. A French 3 by 2 feet mine gallery under the hill was extended by experienced miners from Northumberland and Wales, after it was found that Hill 60 was the only place in the area not waterlogged
20.
RE Grave, Railway Wood
–
RE Grave, Railway Wood is a Commonwealth War Graves Commission memorial and war grave located in the Ypres Salient on the Western Front. It is located on the Bellewaerde Ridge near Zillebeke, about 4 kilometres east of Ypres, the area of the Cambridge Road sector, halfway in between Wieltje and Hooge, was the site of intensive underground fighting in the First World War. The Liverpool Scottish Memorial, Railway Wood is located nearby, the men were trapped underground and their bodies not recovered, and after the war, the memorial was erected on the hill. The site is unusual for being both a cemetery and a memorial, because the bodies remain underground, the cemetery has no individual gravestones, and the names of the twelve men who died are inscribed on the Cross of Sacrifice instead. When 177th Tunnelling Company arrived at Hooge in November 1915, underground warfare in the area was at its height, one of the busiest areas for the miners on both sides was Railway Wood, an area at Hooge where the old Ypres-Roeselare railway crossed the Ypres-Menen road. The 177th Tunnelling Company continued mining in the Hooge sector until August 1917, fighting in the area continued until 1918, with the craters frequently changing sides. The officer mentioned in the inscription on the Cross of Sacrifice was Second Lieutenant Charles Geoffrey Boothby, service number 147252 and he first attended Clayesmore School, then Christ College, Brecon, between 1909 and 1913. In the autumn of 1913, he entered Birmingham University, and he was just short of his 20th birthday when he applied for a commission in December 1914. A year later he was seconded from 8th Battalion, South Staffordshire Regiment to the Royal Engineers, also in 1915, when he was twenty-one, Boothby had just met eighteen-year-old Edith Ainscow. The letter exchange between Boothby and Ainscow survived the war and was published by Ediths son, University of Oxford professor Arthur Stockwin, in 2005. Arthur Stockwin, Thirty-odd Feet Below Belgium, An Affair of Letters in the Great War 1915-1916, Parapress, detailed photos of the site Biographies of the 12 soldiers R. E
21.
Sint-Elooi
–
Sint-Elooi is a small village, about 5 km south of Ypres in the Flemish province of West-Vlaanderen in Belgium. The former municipality is now part of Ypres, though Sint-Elooi is the Dutch and only official name, the villages French name, St. Eloi, is most commonly used in English due to its role in World War I. The village and the locations of Voormezele and Hollebeke were merged into Zillebeke in 1970. The village takes its name from Saint Eligius (also Eloy or Loye, French, Éloi, in World War I, like other parts of the Ypres Salient, the village was the site of the Battles of Ypres between German and Allied forces. From the spring of 1915, there was constant underground fighting in the Ypres Salient at Hooge, Hill 60, Railway Wood, Sanctuary Wood, The Bluff, the Germans built an extensive system of defensive tunnels and were actively mining against the British trenches at the intermediate levels. A month later, on 14 April 1915, the Germans fired another mine producing a crater over 20 m in diameter, counter-mining by the tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers began at St Eloi in spring 1915. Much of the mining in this sector was done by the 177th Tunnelling Company, the geology of the Ypres Salient featured a characteristic layer of sandy clay, which put very heavy pressures of water and wet sand on the underground works and made deep mining extremely difficult. This constituted a major achievement in mining technique and gave the Royal Engineers a significant advantage over their German counterparts. After German successes at The Bluff, the British decided to use the deep mines created by 172nd Tunnelling Company at St Eloi in a local operation and six charges were fired. However, the accompanying British infantry operation was a failure, the lay in the Allied inability to hold crater positions after they had been captured. The Canadian HMCS St. Eloi was later named after the battle, after the Actions of St Eloi Craters, mining and counter-mining at St Eloi continued at a pace. In preparation of the Battle of Messines in 1917, the British began an offensive against the German lines to the south of Ypres. Twenty-six deep mines were dug by Tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers, most of which were detonated simultaneously on 7 June 1917. The largest of these mines was at St Eloi, dug by the 1st Canadian Tunnelling Company. The work was begun with a deep shaft named Queen Victoria, building preparations had started on 16 August 1915 and the mine was completed on 11 June 1916. When the large St Eloi deep mine was fired by the 1st Canadian Tunnelling Company on 7 June 1917, it destroyed some of the craters from 1916. The successful detonation allowed the capture of the German lines at St Eloi by the British 41st Division, the area was fought over again during the Second World War. On a small square in the centre of Sint-Elooi stands the Monument to the St Eloi Tunnellers which was unveiled on 11 November 2001
22.
Actions of the Bluff, 1916
–
The Actions of the Bluff were local operations carried out in Flanders during the First World War by the German 4th Army and the British Second Army in 1916. The Bluff is a mound near St Eloi, south-east of Ypres in Belgium, the BEF was at a tactical disadvantage against the German army, on low boggy ground, easily observed from German positions. The Germans had better weapons and could move troops and equipment along the Western Front easier than the Franco-British, the German army still had many pre-war trained officers NCOs and soldiers. Capturing a portion of the front line was possible but holding it depended on the opponent. When the Bluff was captured, the British retook it, Mount Sorrel and Tor Top were retaken by the Canadians and British gains at St Eloi and Vimy Ridge were lost to German attacks. Had the British occupied the front less densely, more training could have taken place and the wisdom of each policy was debated at the time and since. The high point of the ridge is at Wytschaete,7,000 yd from Ypres, while at Hollebeke the ridge is 4,000 yd distant and recedes to 7,000 yd at Polygon Wood. Wytschaete is about 150 ft above the plain, on the Ypres–Menin road at Hooge, the rises are slight apart from the vicinity of Zonnebeke, which has a 1,33 gradient. From Hooge and to the east, the slope is 1,60 and near Hollebeke, it is 1,75, the heights are subtle but have the character of a saucer lip around Ypres. The main ridge has spurs sloping east and one is particularly noticeable at Wytschaete, which runs 2 mi south-east to Messines with a slope to the east. Further south is the valley of the Douve river, Ploegsteert Wood. West of Messines Ridge is the parallel Wulverghem Spur, the Oosttaverne Spur, the general aspect south of Ypres is of low ridges and dips, gradually flattening to the north into a featureless plain. Possession of the ground to the south and east of Ypres gives ample scope for ground observation, enfilade fire. An occupier has the advantage of artillery deployments and the movement of reinforcements, the ridge had woods from Wytschaete to Zonnebeke, giving good cover, some being of notable size like Polygon Wood and those later named Battle Wood, Shrewsbury Forest and Sanctuary Wood. The woods usually had undergrowth but the fields in gaps between the woods were 800–1,000 yd wide and devoid of cover, roads in this area were usually unpaved, except for the main ones from Ypres, ribboned with occasional villages and houses. The lowland west of the ridge was a mixture of meadow and fields, with high hedgerows dotted with trees, cut by streams, the main road to Ypres from Poperinge to Vlamertinge is in a defile, easily observed from the ridge. Spoil banks had created during the digging of the Ypres–Comines Canal. The canal cutting runs through a low point between Messines Ridge and the higher ground south-east of Ypres, about 1.5 miles east of St Eloi and near Voormezele
23.
Spring R. Rice
–
Major General Sir Spring Robert Rice KCMG, CB was a British Army general who served on the staff of the British Expeditionary Force during the First World War. He entered the Royal Engineers in 1877, and was promoted to captain in 1888 and he was appointed the adjutant of the School of Military Engineering in 1892, and promoted major in 1896. During the South African War he commanded 23rd Field Company RE, deployed to Ladysmith, during the Siege of Ladysmith, in 1901, he designed a simple and inexpensive blockhouse, which saw extensive use. He left the School of Military Engineering in 1905, and was appointed the engineer in charge of coastal defences for Southern Command in 1909. In 1911 he was appointed as the engineer of Aldershot Command. On the outbreak of the First World War, he was appointed to the post of Brigadier-General Royal Engineers in I Corps, the senior engineering officer of the corps. He was promoted to general in 1915 for distinguished service. He picked up the project to form the Royal Engineer tunnelling companies. He was transferred to the Forts Garrison Command in 1917, a posting he held for the remainder of the war and he was a first-class cricket player and played for the Royal Engineers in 1878 and 1879. Sir Spring Robert, in Who Was Who
24.
Saint-Omer
–
Saint-Omer is a commune in France. It is a commune and sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department 68 km west-northwest of Lille on the railway to Calais, the town is named after Saint Audomar, who brought Christianity to the area. The canalised portion of the river Aa begins at Saint-Omer, reaching the North Sea at Gravelines in northern France, below its walls, the Aa connects with the Neufossé Canal, which ends at the River Leie. Saint-Omer first appeared in the writings during the 7th century under the name of Sithiu, Omer, bishop of Thérouanne, in the 7th century established the Abbey of Saint Bertin, from which that of Notre-Dame was an offshoot. In the 9th century, the village grew up round the monasteries took the name of St Omer. The Normans laid the place waste about 860 and 880, ten years later the town and monastery had built fortified walls and were safe from their attack. Situated on the borders of territories frequently disputed by French, Flemish, English and Spaniards, St Omer for most of its history continued to be subject to sieges and military invasions. In 932 Arnulf of Flanders conquered the County of Artois and Saint-Omer became part of the County of Flanders for the three centuries. Along with its industry, St-Omer flourished in the 12th and 13th century. In 1127 the town received a charter from the count, William Clito. Later on the city lost its position in the textile industry to Brugge. After the mysterious death of Count Baldwin I, the County of Flanders was weakened, in 1214 Philip II of France captured Baldwins daughter Joan and her husband Ferdinand, Count of Flanders and forced them to sign the Treaty of Pont-à-Vendin, in which Artois was yielded to France. Ferdinand did not take this lying down, and allied with Emperor Otto IV and John, King of England, he battled Philip II at Bouvines, despite the political separation for the next 170 years, the city remained part of the economic network of Flanders. In 1340 a large battle was fought in the suburbs between an Anglo-Flemish army and a French one under Eudes IV, Duke of Burgundy, in which the Anglo-Flemish force was forced to withdraw. From 1384, St-Omer was part of the Burgundian Netherlands, from 1482 of the Habsburg Netherlands, the French made futile attempts against the town between 1551 and 1596. During the Thirty Years War, the French attacked in 1638, finally in 1677, after a seventeen day siege, Louis XIV forced the town to capitulate. The peace of Nijmegen signed in the fall of 1678 permanently confirmed the conquest, in 1711, St-Omer was besieged by the Duke of Marlborough. The College of Saint Omer was established in 1593 by Fr Robert Persons SJ, after the Protestant Reformation, England had established penal laws against Catholic education in the country
25.
Wales
–
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, and it had a population in 2011 of 3,063,456 and has a total area of 20,779 km2. Wales has over 1,680 miles of coastline and is mountainous, with its higher peaks in the north and central areas, including Snowdon. The country lies within the temperate zone and has a changeable. Welsh national identity emerged among the Celtic Britons after the Roman withdrawal from Britain in the 5th century, Llywelyn ap Gruffudds death in 1282 marked the completion of Edward I of Englands conquest of Wales, though Owain Glyndŵr briefly restored independence to Wales in the early 15th century. The whole of Wales was annexed by England and incorporated within the English legal system under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542, distinctive Welsh politics developed in the 19th century. Welsh Liberalism, exemplified in the early 20th century by Lloyd George, was displaced by the growth of socialism, Welsh national feeling grew over the century, Plaid Cymru was formed in 1925 and the Welsh Language Society in 1962. Established under the Government of Wales Act 1998, the National Assembly for Wales holds responsibility for a range of devolved policy matters, two-thirds of the population live in south Wales, mainly in and around Cardiff, Swansea and Newport, and in the nearby valleys. Now that the countrys traditional extractive and heavy industries have gone or are in decline, Wales economy depends on the sector, light and service industries. Wales 2010 gross value added was £45.5 billion, over 560,000 Welsh language speakers live in Wales, and the language is spoken by a majority of the population in parts of the north and west. From the late 19th century onwards, Wales acquired its popular image as the land of song, Rugby union is seen as a symbol of Welsh identity and an expression of national consciousness. The Old English-speaking Anglo-Saxons came to use the term Wælisc when referring to the Celtic Britons in particular, the modern names for some Continental European lands and peoples have a similar etymology. The modern Welsh name for themselves is Cymry, and Cymru is the Welsh name for Wales and these words are descended from the Brythonic word combrogi, meaning fellow-countrymen. The use of the word Cymry as a self-designation derives from the location in the post-Roman Era of the Welsh people in modern Wales as well as in northern England and southern Scotland. It emphasised that the Welsh in modern Wales and in the Hen Ogledd were one people, in particular, the term was not applied to the Cornish or the Breton peoples, who are of similar heritage, culture, and language to the Welsh. The word came into use as a self-description probably before the 7th century and it is attested in a praise poem to Cadwallon ap Cadfan c. 633. Thereafter Cymry prevailed as a reference to the Welsh, until c.1560 the word was spelt Kymry or Cymry, regardless of whether it referred to the people or their homeland. The Latinised forms of names, Cambrian, Cambric and Cambria, survive as lesser-used alternative names for Wales, Welsh
26.
Monmouthshire Regiment
–
The Monmouthshire Regiment was an infantry regiment of the British Army and the Territorial Army. Units of rifle volunteers were formed throughout Great Britain in 1859 and 1860 in response to a threat of invasion by France following the Orsini affair. The raising of such units was to be authorised by lieutenants of counties in England, Wales, the first corps in Monmouthshire was raised on 9 September 1859. By 1880 the various corps in the county had been consolidated into three battalion-sized units, the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Monmouthshire Rifle Volunteer Corps. In the following year the Childers Reforms of line infantry saw the three Monmouthshire corps becoming volunteer battalions of the regular South Wales Borderers, in 1885 they were redesignated as the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Volunteer battalions of the South Wales Borderers. Reserve forces were reorganised under the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907, among other provisions the act abolished the Volunteer Force and replaced it with a new Territorial Force. Units were transferred, with changes in nomenclature, to the new force on 1 April 1908, the three Monmouthshire volunteer battalions were redesignated as battalions of a new territorial-only Monmouthshire Regiment, 1st Battalion. Based at Newport and formed from the 2nd Volunteer Battalion 2nd Battalion, based at Pontypool and formed from the 3rd Volunteer Battalion 3rd Battalion. With the outbreak of war in August 1914 the Territorial Force was mobilised, transferred to 84th Brigade of the newly formed 28th Division in France in February 1915, they quickly saw service in the Second Battle of Ypres, suffering severe casualties. In May 1915 they were amalgamated with the 1/2nd and 1/3rd Battalions at Vlamertinghe in Flanders to form a composite unit. Brought up to strength with replacements, the 1/1st resumed its own identity in August 1915, in September 1915 they were assigned to the 46th Division as a pioneer battalion. They remained with the division for the rest of the war, 2/1st Battalion, formed as a second-line duplicate of the 1st Battalion in Newport in September 1914. It did not move outside the United Kingdom, performing home defence duties, mostly in Suffolk, as part of the 53rd and they were disbanded at Lowestoft in March 1918. 3/1st Battalion, formed as a duplicate of the 1st Battalion in February 1915. They remained in the United Kingdom, in April 1916 they were redesignated as the 1st Battalion. 1/2nd Battalion, redesignation of 2nd Battalion in September 1914 on formation of second-line 2/2nd Battalion, transferred to the 12th Brigade, 4th Division in France in November 1914. They spent the winter taking part in trench warfare near Armentières and they subsequently took part in the Second Battle of Ypres in April and May 1915, fighting alongside the 1/1st and 1/3rd Monmouths in the 28th Division. Such were the losses that the three battalions were temporarily amalgamated, by July 1915 the 1/2nd had been brought up to strength and resumed its own existence
27.
Army Reserve (United Kingdom)
–
The Army Reserve is the active-duty volunteer reserve force and integrated element of the British Army. Most Volunteer infantry units had unique identities, but lost these in the reorganisation, only one infantry unit, the London Regiment, has maintained a separate identity. Reservists in the past also served as constables or bailiffs, even holding positions of civic duty as overseer of their parish, the more modern Yeomen of the 18th century were cavalry-based units, which were often used to suppress riots. Several units that are now part of the Army Reserve bear the title militia, after the Second World War, for example, the Army Reserve - or Territorial Army as it was known then - was not demobilised until 1947. All Army Reserve personnel have their jobs protected to a limited extent by law should they be compulsorily mobilised. There is, however, no protection against discrimination in employment for membership of the Army Reserve in the normal course of events. As part of the process, remaining units of militia were converted to the Special Reserve. The TF was formed on 1 April 1908 and contained fourteen infantry divisions and it had an overall strength of approximately 269,000. The individual units that made up each division or brigade were administered by County Associations, the other members of the association consisted of military members, representative members and co-opted members. Associations took over any property vested in the volunteers or yeomanry under their administration, each regiment or battalion had a Regular Army officer attached as full-time adjutant. In August 1914, after the outbreak of the First World War, territorial units were given the option of serving in France and, by 25 August, in excess of seventy battalions had volunteered. This question over the availability of territorial divisions for service was one of Lord Kitcheners motivations for raising the New Army separately. The first fully Territorial division to join the fighting on the Western Front was the 46th Division in March 1915, with divisions later serving in Gallipoli and elsewhere. As the war progressed, and casualties mounted, the character of territorial units was diluted by the inclusion of conscript. Following the Armistice all units of the Territorial Force were gradually disbanded, New recruiting started in early 1920, and the Territorial Force was reconstituted on 7 February 1920. On 1 October 1920, the Territorial Force was renamed the Territorial Army, the 1st Line divisions were reconstituted in that year. However, the composition of the divisions was altered, with a reduction in the number of infantry battalions required, there was also a reduced need for cavalry, and of the 55 yeomanry regiments, only the 14 most senior retained their horses. The remaining yeomanry were converted to artillery or armoured car units or disbanded, the amalgamation of 40 pairs of infantry battalions was announced in October 1921
28.
Canada
–
Canada is a country in the northern half of North America. Canadas border with the United States is the worlds longest binational land border, the majority of the country has a cold or severely cold winter climate, but southerly areas are warm in summer. Canada is sparsely populated, the majority of its territory being dominated by forest and tundra. It is highly urbanized with 82 per cent of the 35.15 million people concentrated in large and medium-sized cities, One third of the population lives in the three largest cities, Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Its capital is Ottawa, and other urban areas include Calgary, Edmonton, Quebec City, Winnipeg. Various aboriginal peoples had inhabited what is now Canada for thousands of years prior to European colonization. Pursuant to the British North America Act, on July 1,1867, the colonies of Canada, New Brunswick and this began an accretion of provinces and territories to the mostly self-governing Dominion to the present ten provinces and three territories forming modern Canada. With the Constitution Act 1982, Canada took over authority, removing the last remaining ties of legal dependence on the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Canada is a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy, with Queen Elizabeth II being the head of state. The country is officially bilingual at the federal level and it is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many other countries. Its advanced economy is the eleventh largest in the world, relying chiefly upon its abundant natural resources, Canadas long and complex relationship with the United States has had a significant impact on its economy and culture. Canada is a country and has the tenth highest nominal per capita income globally as well as the ninth highest ranking in the Human Development Index. It ranks among the highest in international measurements of government transparency, civil liberties, quality of life, economic freedom, Canada is an influential nation in the world, primarily due to its inclusive values, years of prosperity and stability, stable economy, and efficient military. While a variety of theories have been postulated for the origins of Canada. In 1535, indigenous inhabitants of the present-day Quebec City region used the word to direct French explorer Jacques Cartier to the village of Stadacona, from the 16th to the early 18th century Canada referred to the part of New France that lay along the St. Lawrence River. In 1791, the area became two British colonies called Upper Canada and Lower Canada collectively named The Canadas, until their union as the British Province of Canada in 1841. Upon Confederation in 1867, Canada was adopted as the name for the new country at the London Conference. The transition away from the use of Dominion was formally reflected in 1982 with the passage of the Canada Act, later that year, the name of national holiday was changed from Dominion Day to Canada Day
29.
South Africa
–
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa, is the southernmost country in Africa. South Africa is the 25th-largest country in the world by land area and it is the southernmost country on the mainland of the Old World or the Eastern Hemisphere. About 80 percent of South Africans are of Sub-Saharan African ancestry, divided among a variety of ethnic groups speaking different Bantu languages, the remaining population consists of Africas largest communities of European, Asian, and multiracial ancestry. South Africa is a multiethnic society encompassing a variety of cultures, languages. Its pluralistic makeup is reflected in the recognition of 11 official languages. The country is one of the few in Africa never to have had a coup détat, however, the vast majority of black South Africans were not enfranchised until 1994. During the 20th century, the black majority sought to recover its rights from the dominant white minority, with this struggle playing a role in the countrys recent history. The National Party imposed apartheid in 1948, institutionalising previous racial segregation, since 1994, all ethnic and linguistic groups have held political representation in the countrys democracy, which comprises a parliamentary republic and nine provinces. South Africa is often referred to as the Rainbow Nation to describe the multicultural diversity. The World Bank classifies South Africa as an economy. Its economy is the second-largest in Africa, and the 34th-largest in the world, in terms of purchasing power parity, South Africa has the seventh-highest per capita income in Africa. However, poverty and inequality remain widespread, with about a quarter of the population unemployed, nevertheless, South Africa has been identified as a middle power in international affairs, and maintains significant regional influence. The name South Africa is derived from the geographic location at the southern tip of Africa. Upon formation the country was named the Union of South Africa in English, since 1961 the long form name in English has been the Republic of South Africa. In Dutch the country was named Republiek van Zuid-Afrika, replaced in 1983 by the Afrikaans Republiek van Suid-Afrika, since 1994 the Republic has had an official name in each of its 11 official languages. Mzansi, derived from the Xhosa noun umzantsi meaning south, is a name for South Africa. South Africa contains some of the oldest archaeological and human fossil sites in the world, extensive fossil remains have been recovered from a series of caves in Gauteng Province. The area is a UNESCO World Heritage site and has termed the Cradle of Humankind
30.
Australia
–
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands. It is the worlds sixth-largest country by total area, the neighbouring countries are Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and East Timor to the north, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu to the north-east, and New Zealand to the south-east. Australias capital is Canberra, and its largest urban area is Sydney, for about 50,000 years before the first British settlement in the late 18th century, Australia was inhabited by indigenous Australians, who spoke languages classifiable into roughly 250 groups. The population grew steadily in subsequent decades, and by the 1850s most of the continent had been explored, on 1 January 1901, the six colonies federated, forming the Commonwealth of Australia. Australia has since maintained a liberal democratic political system that functions as a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy comprising six states. The population of 24 million is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard, Australia has the worlds 13th-largest economy and ninth-highest per capita income. With the second-highest human development index globally, the country highly in quality of life, health, education, economic freedom. The name Australia is derived from the Latin Terra Australis a name used for putative lands in the southern hemisphere since ancient times, the Dutch adjectival form Australische was used in a Dutch book in Batavia in 1638, to refer to the newly discovered lands to the south. On 12 December 1817, Macquarie recommended to the Colonial Office that it be formally adopted, in 1824, the Admiralty agreed that the continent should be known officially as Australia. The first official published use of the term Australia came with the 1830 publication of The Australia Directory and these first inhabitants may have been ancestors of modern Indigenous Australians. The Torres Strait Islanders, ethnically Melanesian, were originally horticulturists, the northern coasts and waters of Australia were visited sporadically by fishermen from Maritime Southeast Asia. The first recorded European sighting of the Australian mainland, and the first recorded European landfall on the Australian continent, are attributed to the Dutch. The first ship and crew to chart the Australian coast and meet with Aboriginal people was the Duyfken captained by Dutch navigator, Willem Janszoon. He sighted the coast of Cape York Peninsula in early 1606, the Dutch charted the whole of the western and northern coastlines and named the island continent New Holland during the 17th century, but made no attempt at settlement. William Dampier, an English explorer and privateer, landed on the north-west coast of New Holland in 1688, in 1770, James Cook sailed along and mapped the east coast, which he named New South Wales and claimed for Great Britain. The first settlement led to the foundation of Sydney, and the exploration, a British settlement was established in Van Diemens Land, now known as Tasmania, in 1803, and it became a separate colony in 1825. The United Kingdom formally claimed the part of Western Australia in 1828. Separate colonies were carved from parts of New South Wales, South Australia in 1836, Victoria in 1851, the Northern Territory was founded in 1911 when it was excised from South Australia
31.
New Zealand
–
New Zealand /njuːˈziːlənd/ is an island nation in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The country geographically comprises two main landmasses—the North Island, or Te Ika-a-Māui, and the South Island, or Te Waipounamu—and around 600 smaller islands. New Zealand is situated some 1,500 kilometres east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and roughly 1,000 kilometres south of the Pacific island areas of New Caledonia, Fiji, because of its remoteness, it was one of the last lands to be settled by humans. During its long period of isolation, New Zealand developed a distinct biodiversity of animal, fungal, the countrys varied topography and its sharp mountain peaks, such as the Southern Alps, owe much to the tectonic uplift of land and volcanic eruptions. New Zealands capital city is Wellington, while its most populous city is Auckland, sometime between 1250 and 1300 CE, Polynesians settled in the islands that later were named New Zealand and developed a distinctive Māori culture. In 1642, Dutch explorer Abel Tasman became the first European to sight New Zealand, in 1840, representatives of Britain and Māori chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi, which declared British sovereignty over the islands. In 1841, New Zealand became a colony within the British Empire, today, the majority of New Zealands population of 4.7 million is of European descent, the indigenous Māori are the largest minority, followed by Asians and Pacific Islanders. Reflecting this, New Zealands culture is derived from Māori and early British settlers. The official languages are English, Māori and New Zealand Sign Language, New Zealand is a developed country and ranks highly in international comparisons of national performance, such as health, education, economic freedom and quality of life. Since the 1980s, New Zealand has transformed from an agrarian, Queen Elizabeth II is the countrys head of state and is represented by a governor-general. In addition, New Zealand is organised into 11 regional councils and 67 territorial authorities for local government purposes, the Realm of New Zealand also includes Tokelau, the Cook Islands and Niue, and the Ross Dependency, which is New Zealands territorial claim in Antarctica. New Zealand is a member of the United Nations, Commonwealth of Nations, ANZUS, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Pacific Islands Forum, and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation. Dutch explorer Abel Tasman sighted New Zealand in 1642 and called it Staten Landt, in 1645, Dutch cartographers renamed the land Nova Zeelandia after the Dutch province of Zeeland. British explorer James Cook subsequently anglicised the name to New Zealand, Aotearoa is the current Māori name for New Zealand. It is unknown whether Māori had a name for the country before the arrival of Europeans. Māori had several names for the two main islands, including Te Ika-a-Māui for the North Island and Te Waipounamu or Te Waka o Aoraki for the South Island. Early European maps labelled the islands North, Middle and South, in 1830, maps began to use North and South to distinguish the two largest islands and by 1907, this was the accepted norm. The New Zealand Geographic Board discovered in 2009 that the names of the North Island and South Island had never been formalised and this set the names as North Island or Te Ika-a-Māui, and South Island or Te Waipounamu
32.
Dominion
–
Dominions were semi-independent polities under the British Crown, constituting the British Empire, beginning with Canadian Confederation in 1867. They included Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland, South Africa, and the Irish Free State, and then from the late 1940s also India, Pakistan, and Ceylon. The Balfour Declaration of 1926 recognised the Dominions as autonomous Communities within the British Empire, earlier usage of dominion to refer to a particular territory dates to the 16th century and was used to describe Wales from 1535 to 1801 and New England between 1686 and 1689. At the outset, a distinction must be made between a British dominion and British Dominions, all territories forming part of the British Empire were British dominions but only some were British Dominions. At the time of the adoption of the Statute of Westminster, there were six British Dominions, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Newfoundland, at the same time there were many other jurisdictions that were British dominions, for example Cyprus. The Order in Council annexing the island of Cyprus in 1914 declared that, from 5 November, Dominion, as an official title, was conferred on the Colony of Virginia about 1660 and on the Dominion of New England in 1686. These dominions never had full self-governing status, the creation of the short-lived Dominion of New England was designed—contrary to the purpose of later dominions—to increase royal control and to reduce the colonys self-government. Under the British North America Act 1867, what is now eastern Canada received the status of Dominion upon the Confederation of several British possessions in North America. However, it was at the Colonial Conference of 1907 when the colonies of Canada. Two other self-governing colonies—New Zealand and Newfoundland—were granted the status of Dominion in the same year and these were followed by the Union of South Africa in 1910 and the Irish Free State in 1922. The Statute of Westminster 1931 converted this status into legal reality, following the Second World War, the decline of British colonialism led to Dominions generally being referred to as Commonwealth realms and the use of the word dominion gradually diminished. Nonetheless, though disused, it remains Canadas legal title and the phrase Her Majestys Dominions is still used occasionally in legal documents in the United Kingdom. The phrase His/Her Majestys dominions is a legal and constitutional phrase that refers to all the realms and territories of the Sovereign, thus, for example, the British Ireland Act,1949, recognised that the Republic of Ireland had ceased to be part of His Majestys dominions. The later sense of Dominion was capitalised to distinguish it from the general sense of dominion. The word dominions originally referred to the possessions of the Kingdom of England, oliver Cromwells full title in the 1650s was Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland, and the dominions thereto belonging. In 1660, King Charles II gave the Colony of Virginia the title of dominion in gratitude for Virginias loyalty to the Crown during the English Civil War, the Commonwealth of Virginia, a State of the United States, still has the Old Dominion as one of its nicknames. Dominion also occurred in the name of the short-lived Dominion of New England, in all of these cases, the word dominion implied no more than being subject to the English Crown. The foundation of Dominion status followed the achievement of internal self-rule in British Colonies, Colonial responsible government began to emerge during the mid-19th century
33.
British Empire
–
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It originated with the possessions and trading posts established by England between the late 16th and early 18th centuries. At its height, it was the largest empire in history and, for over a century, was the foremost global power. By 1913, the British Empire held sway over 412 million people, 23% of the population at the time. As a result, its political, legal, linguistic and cultural legacy is widespread, during the Age of Discovery in the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal and Spain pioneered European exploration of the globe, and in the process established large overseas empires. Envious of the great wealth these empires generated, England, France, the independence of the Thirteen Colonies in North America in 1783 after the American War of Independence caused Britain to lose some of its oldest and most populous colonies. British attention soon turned towards Asia, Africa, and the Pacific, after the defeat of France in the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, Britain emerged as the principal naval and imperial power of the 19th century. In the early 19th century, the Industrial Revolution began to transform Britain, the British Empire expanded to include India, large parts of Africa and many other territories throughout the world. In Britain, political attitudes favoured free trade and laissez-faire policies, during the 19th Century, Britains population increased at a dramatic rate, accompanied by rapid urbanisation, which caused significant social and economic stresses. To seek new markets and sources of raw materials, the Conservative Party under Benjamin Disraeli launched a period of imperialist expansion in Egypt, South Africa, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand became self-governing dominions. By the start of the 20th century, Germany and the United States had begun to challenge Britains economic lead, subsequent military and economic tensions between Britain and Germany were major causes of the First World War, during which Britain relied heavily upon its empire. The conflict placed enormous strain on the military, financial and manpower resources of Britain, although the British Empire achieved its largest territorial extent immediately after World War I, Britain was no longer the worlds pre-eminent industrial or military power. In the Second World War, Britains colonies in Southeast Asia were occupied by Imperial Japan, despite the final victory of Britain and its allies, the damage to British prestige helped to accelerate the decline of the empire. India, Britains most valuable and populous possession, achieved independence as part of a larger movement in which Britain granted independence to most territories of the empire. The transfer of Hong Kong to China in 1997 marked for many the end of the British Empire, fourteen overseas territories remain under British sovereignty. After independence, many former British colonies joined the Commonwealth of Nations, the United Kingdom is now one of 16 Commonwealth nations, a grouping known informally as the Commonwealth realms, that share a monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. The foundations of the British Empire were laid when England and Scotland were separate kingdoms. In 1496, King Henry VII of England, following the successes of Spain and Portugal in overseas exploration, Cabot led another voyage to the Americas the following year but nothing was ever heard of his ships again
34.
New Zealand Tunnelling Company
–
The New Zealand Tunnelling Company was a tunnel warfare unit of the Royal New Zealand Electrical and Mechanical Engineers during World War I which specialised in sapping and mining. The unit is known for its role at Carrière Wellington. By January 1915 it had become evident to the BEF at the Western Front that the Germans were mining to a planned system, Norton-Griffiths ensured that tunnelling companies numbers 170 to 177 were ready for deployment in mid-February 1915. The lack of experienced men led to some tunnelling companies starting work later than others. The number of available to the BEF was also restricted by the need to provide effective counter-measures to the German mining activities. To make the tunnels safer and quicker to deploy, the British Army enlisted experienced coal miners, the first nine companies, numbers 170 to 178, were each commanded by a regular Royal Engineers officer. These companies each comprised 5 officers and 269 sappers, they were aided by additional infantrymen who were attached to the tunnellers as required. The success of the first tunnelling companies formed under Norton-Griffiths command led to mining being made a branch of the Engineer-in-Chiefs office under Major-General S. R. Rice, and the appointment of an Inspector of Mines at the GHQ Saint-Omer office of the Engineer-in-Chief, the formation of twelve new tunnelling companies, between July and October 1915, helped to bring more men into action in other parts of the Western Front. Most British tunnelling companies were formed under Norton-Griffiths leadership during 1915, on 10 September 1915, the British government sent an appeal to Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand to raise tunnelling companies in the Dominions of the British Empire. On 17 September, New Zealand became the first Dominion to agree the formation of a tunnelling unit, the Royal Australian Engineers formed four mining units for the British Expeditionary Force, all of which were operational by March 1916. Three were specialist companies of tunnellers, while the Australian Electrical Mechanical Boring and Mining Company was tasked with carrying out related repairs, on 11 October, specialist tunnellers training began on the Avondale racecourse near Auckland. On 18 December 1915, the men of the New Zealand Tunnelling Company left Auckland on board the SS Ruapehu, after stop-overs in Montevideo and Dakar, the ship arrived at Plymouth on 3 February 1916. After further training in England, the unit was deployed to northern France, on 10 March 1916, the New Zealand tunnellers arrived in Le Havre, becoming the first New Zealand soldiers on the Western Front. Five days later they relieved the French 7/1 compagnie dingénieurs territoriaux in the Labyrinth sector of the Western Front between Roclincourt and Écurie in northern France, the German Labyrinth stronghold was located near Neuville-Saint-Vaast, between Arras and Vimy and not far from Notre Dame de Lorette. On 29 March 1916, the New Zealand Tunnelling Company exchanged position with the 185th Tunnelling Company and moved to Roclincourt-Chantecler, on 7 April, the tunneling units of the German Army carried out their first underground offensive against the New Zealand Tunnelling Company. On 5 May, the New Zealanders responded by firing four mines under the German lines, during summer and much of autumn 1916, the unit further developed and expanded its mining to create an effective underground defence at Roclincourt-Chantecler. On 15 November 1916, the New Zealand Tunnelling Company ended its offensive mining operations, henry Armytage Sanders was sent to France and met up with the New Zealand Tunnelling Company on 8 April 1917
35.
Plymouth
–
Plymouths early history extends to the Bronze Age, when a first settlement emerged at Mount Batten. This settlement continued as a trading post for the Roman Empire, until it was surpassed by the prosperous village of Sutton founded in the ninth century. In 1620, the Pilgrim Fathers departed Plymouth for the New World, during the English Civil War the town was held by the Parliamentarians and was besieged between 1642 and 1646. The combined town took the name of Plymouth which, in 1928, the citys naval importance later led to its targeting and partial destruction during World War II, an act known as the Plymouth Blitz. After the war the city centre was rebuilt and subsequent expansion led to the incorporation of Plympton. The city is home to 262,700 people, making it the 30th most populous area in the United Kingdom. It is governed locally by Plymouth City Council and is represented nationally by three MPs, Plymouths economy remains strongly influenced by shipbuilding and seafaring including ferry links to Brittany and Spain, but has tended toward a service-based economy since the 1990s. It has the largest operational base in Western Europe – HMNB Devonport and is home to Plymouth University. An unidentified settlement named TAMARI OSTIA is listed in Ptolemys Geographia and is presumed to be located in the area of the modern city, at the time this village was called Sutton, meaning south town in Old English. The name Plym Mouth, meaning mouth of the River Plym was first mentioned in a Pipe Roll of 1211, the name Plymouth first officially replaced Sutton in a charter of King Henry VI in 1440. See Plympton for the derivation of the name Plym, during the Hundred Years War a French attack burned a manor house and took some prisoners, but failed to get into the town. In 1403 the town was burned by Breton raiders, on 12 November,1439, the English Parliament made Plymouth the first town incorporated. The castle served to protect Sutton Pool, which is where the fleet was based in Plymouth prior to the establishment of Plymouth Dockyard. In 1512 an Act of Parliament was passed for further fortifying Plymouth, defences on St Nicholas Island also date from this time, and a string of six artillery blockhouses were built, including one on Fishers Nose at the south-eastern corner of the Hoe. This location was further strengthened by the building of a fort in 1596, during the 16th century locally produced wool was the major export commodity. According to legend, Drake insisted on completing his game of bowls on the Hoe before engaging the Spanish Armada in 1588. In 1620 the Pilgrim Fathers set sail for the New World from Plymouth, during the English Civil War Plymouth sided with the Parliamentarians and was besieged for almost four years by the Royalists. The last major attack by the Royalist was by Sir Richard Grenville leading thousands of soldiers towards Plymouth, the civil war ended as a Parliamentary win, but monarchy was restored by King Charles II in 1660, who imprisoned many of the Parliamentary heroes on Drakes Island
36.
Canadian Army
–
The Canadian Army is one of three environmental commands within the unified Canadian Armed Forces. As of September 2013 the Army has 21,600 regular soldiers, about 24,000 reserve soldiers, the Army is supported by 5,600 civilian employees. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is responsible for the Army Reserve. The Commander of the Canadian Army and Chief of the Army Staff is Lieutenant-General Paul Wynnyk, the name Canadian Army only came into official use beginning in 1940, from before Confederation until the Second World War the official designation was Canadian Militia. On 1 April 1966, as a precursor to the unification of Canadas armed services, Mobile Command was renamed Land Force Command in the 1993 reorganization of the Canadian Armed Forces. In August 2011, Land Force Command reverted to the title of the Canadian Army. Some current regiments of the Canadian Army trace their origins to these pre-Confederation militia, Regular Canadian troops participated in the North West Rebellion in 1885, the South African War in 1899, and, in much larger numbers, constituted the Canadian Expeditionary Force in First World War. In 1940, during Second World War, the Permanent Active Militia was renamed the Canadian Army, supplemented by the non-permanent militia, the Army participated in the Korean War and formed part of the NATO presence in West Germany during the Cold War. Despite Canadas usual support of British and American initiatives, Canadas land forces did not directly participate in the Vietnam War or the Iraq War, Command of the Army is exercised by the Commander of the Canadian Army within National Defence Headquarters located in Ottawa. It serves as a headquarters to command a divisional-level deployment of Canadian or allied forces on operations. It includes a number of schools and training organizations, such as the Combat Training Centre at CFB Gagetown, New Brunswick, the position was renamed Chief of the Land Staff in 1993. Following the reversion of Land Forces to the Canadian Army in 2011, officers are selected in several ways, The Regular Officer Training Plan, where candidates are educated at the Royal Military College of Canada or at civilian Canadian universities. Direct Entry officer Plan, for those who hold a university degree or technology diploma. Candidates complete their degrees while serving in the Army, university Training Plan, designed to develop selected serving non-commissioned members for service as career officers in the Regular Force. Normally, candidates selected for this plan will attend RMC or a university in Canada. Special Requirements Commissioning Plan, is designed to meet the needs of the officer occupations, subsidized special education, which includes the Medical Officer Training Plan or Dental Officer Training Plan. In addition there were other commissioning plans such as the Officer Candidate Training Plan, Canadian infantry and armoured regimental traditions are strongly rooted in the traditions and history of the British Army. Many regiments were patterned after regiments of the British Army, other regiments developed independently, resulting in a mixture of both colourful and historically familiar names
37.
Australian Army
–
The Australian Army is Australias military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force along with the Royal Australian Navy, while the Chief of the Defence Force commands the ADF, the Army is commanded by the Chief of Army. The CA is therefore subordinate to the CDF, but is directly responsible to the Minister for Defence. Although Australian soldiers have been involved in a number of minor and major conflicts throughout its history, Australias largest peacekeeping deployment began in 1999 in East Timor, while other ongoing operations include peacekeeping on Bougainville, in the Sinai, and in the Solomon Islands. Humanitarian relief after 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake in Aceh Province, Indonesia, Operation Sumatra Assist, the 1st Division comprises a deployable headquarters, while 2nd Division under the command of Forces Command is the main home-defence formation, containing Army Reserve units. 2nd Divisions headquarters only performs administrative functions, the Australian Army has not deployed a divisional-sized formation since 1945 and does not expect to do so in the future. 1st Division carries out training activities and deploys to command large-scale ground operations. It does not have any combat units permanently assigned, Forces Command controls for administrative purposes all non-special-forces assets of the Australian Army. It is neither an operational nor a deployable command,1 Brigade – Multi-role Combat Brigade based in Darwin and Adelaide. 3 Brigade – Multi-role Combat Brigade based in Townsville,6 Brigade – Mixed brigade based in Sydney. 7 Brigade – Multi-role Combat Brigade based in Brisbane,16 Aviation Brigade – Army Aviation brigade based in Enoggera, Brisbane. 17 Combat Service Support Brigade – Logistic brigade based in Sydney, 2nd Division administers the reserve forces from its headquarters located in Sydney. 4 Brigade – based in Victoria,5 Brigade – based in New South Wales. 8 Brigade – based in New South Wales,9 Brigade – based in South Australia and Tasmania. 11 Brigade – based in Queensland,13 Brigade – based in Western Australia. Special Operations Command comprises a command formation of equal status to the commands in the ADF. It includes all of Armys special forces assets, the force will be known as the Amphibious Ready Element and will be embarked on the Navys new Canberra-class amphibious assault ships. Infantry, and some combat units of the Australian Army carry flags called the Queens Colour
38.
250th Tunnelling Company
–
The 250th Tunnelling Company was one of the tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers created by the British Army during World War I. By January 1915 it had become evident to the BEF at the Western Front that the Germans were mining to a planned system, Norton-Griffiths ensured that tunnelling companies numbers 170 to 177 were ready for deployment in mid-February 1915. The lack of experienced men led to some tunnelling companies starting work later than others. The number of available to the BEF was also restricted by the need to provide effective counter-measures to the German mining activities. To make the tunnels safer and quicker to deploy, the British Army enlisted experienced coal miners, the first nine companies, numbers 170 to 178, were each commanded by a regular Royal Engineers officer. These companies each comprised 5 officers and 269 sappers, they were aided by additional infantrymen who were attached to the tunnellers as required. The success of the first tunnelling companies formed under Norton-Griffiths command led to mining being made a branch of the Engineer-in-Chiefs office under Major-General S. R. Rice, and the appointment of an Inspector of Mines at the GHQ Saint-Omer office of the Engineer-in-Chief, the formation of twelve new tunnelling companies, between July and October 1915, helped to bring more men into action in other parts of the Western Front. Most tunnelling companies were formed under Norton-Griffiths leadership during 1915, on 10 September 1915, the British government sent an appeal to Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand to raise tunnelling companies in the Dominions of the British Empire. On 17 September, New Zealand became the first Dominion to agree the formation of a tunnelling unit, the New Zealand Tunnelling Company arrived at Plymouth on 3 February 1916 and was deployed to the Western Front in northern France. A Canadian unit was formed from men on the battlefield, plus two other companies trained in Canada and then shipped to France, three Australian tunnelling companies were formed by March 1916, resulting in 30 tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers being available by the summer of 1916. 250th Tunnelling Company was formed in Rouen in October 1915 and it was then moved into the Ypres Salient, where it relieved 177th Tunnelling Company, which at that time was stationed in a wide area facing Wijtschate. 250th Tunnelling Companys role prior to the Battle of Messines was to dig the mines at Petit Bois, Peckham, the mines at Messines were detonated on 7 June 1917, creating 19 large craters. Despite counter-mining by German units, three charges were placed and fired. The mine consisted of three chambers with a shared gallery and it was placed around the German strongpoint Günther between Wijtschate and Voormezele, not far from the Bayernwald trenches in Croonaert Wood. The logic behind the placing of the charges at Hollandscheschur Farm was to take out a small German salient that protruded into the British lines. In December 1915, 250th Tunnelling Company began work on the mine at Petit Bois. The mine consisted of two chambers with a shared gallery, Tunnelling began about 170 m behind the British forward lines and first went down over 30 metres
39.
3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company
–
The 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company was one of the tunnelling companies of the Canadian Military Engineers during World War I. By January 1915 it had become evident to the BEF at the Western Front that the Germans were mining to a planned system, Norton-Griffiths ensured that tunnelling companies numbers 170 to 177 were ready for deployment in mid-February 1915. The lack of experienced men led to some tunnelling companies starting work later than others. The number of available to the BEF was also restricted by the need to provide effective counter-measures to the German mining activities. To make the tunnels safer and quicker to deploy, the British Army enlisted experienced coal miners, the first nine companies, numbers 170 to 178, were each commanded by a regular Royal Engineers officer. These companies each comprised 5 officers and 269 sappers, they were aided by additional infantrymen who were attached to the tunnellers as required. The success of the first tunnelling companies formed under Norton-Griffiths command led to mining being made a branch of the Engineer-in-Chiefs office under Major-General S. R. Rice, and the appointment of an Inspector of Mines at the GHQ Saint-Omer office of the Engineer-in-Chief, the formation of twelve new tunnelling companies, between July and October 1915, helped to bring more men into action in other parts of the Western Front. Most British tunnelling companies were formed under Norton-Griffiths leadership during 1915, on 10 September 1915, the British government sent an appeal to Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand to raise tunnelling companies in the Dominions of the British Empire. On 17 September, New Zealand became the first Dominion to agree the formation of a tunnelling unit, the New Zealand Tunnelling Company arrived at Plymouth on 3 February 1916 and was deployed to the Western Front in northern France. The Canadian Military Engineers contributed three tunnelling companies to the British Expeditionary Force, one unit was formed from men on the battlefield, plus two other companies trained in Canada and then shipped to France. Three Australian tunnelling companies were formed by March 1916, resulting in 30 tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers being available by the summer of 1916. As part of the preparations for the Battle of Messines, the 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company began work at Spanbroekmolen, by the end of January 1916, 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company also took over digging deep mines at Kruisstraat from 182nd Tunnelling Company. In April 1916, work at Kruisstraat was passed on to 175th Tunnelling Company, 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company worked at The Bluff in early 1916 and Hill 60 during summer 1916. The British underground works consisted of a gallery leading to two mine chambers called Hill 60 A and Hill 60 B. The 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company took over in April 1916 and completed the galleries, Hill 60 A being charged with explosives in July 1916 and the Hill 60 B branch gallery in October. Although it was decided not to detonate the mines at the Birdcage position. When the mines at Messines were detonated on 7 June 1917, after the Armistice, the 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company repaired the town waterworks at Roubaix
40.
171st Tunnelling Company
–
The 171st Tunnelling Company was one of the tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers created by the British Army during World War I. By January 1915 it had become evident to the BEF at the Western Front that the Germans were mining to a planned system, Norton-Griffiths ensured that tunnelling companies numbers 170 to 177 were ready for deployment in mid-February 1915. The lack of experienced men led to some tunnelling companies starting work later than others. The number of available to the BEF was also restricted by the need to provide effective counter-measures to the German mining activities. To make the tunnels safer and quicker to deploy, the British Army enlisted experienced coal miners, the first nine companies, numbers 170 to 178, were each commanded by a regular Royal Engineers officer. These companies each comprised 5 officers and 269 sappers, they were aided by additional infantrymen who were attached to the tunnellers as required. The success of the first tunnelling companies formed under Norton-Griffiths command led to mining being made a branch of the Engineer-in-Chiefs office under Major-General S. R. Rice, and the appointment of an Inspector of Mines at the GHQ Saint-Omer office of the Engineer-in-Chief, the formation of twelve new tunnelling companies, between July and October 1915, helped to bring more men into action in other parts of the Western Front. Most tunnelling companies were formed under Norton-Griffiths leadership during 1915, on 10 September 1915, the British government sent an appeal to Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand to raise tunnelling companies in the Dominions of the British Empire. On 17 September, New Zealand became the first Dominion to agree the formation of a tunnelling unit, the New Zealand Tunnelling Company arrived at Plymouth on 3 February 1916 and was deployed to the Western Front in northern France. A Canadian unit was formed from men on the battlefield, plus two other companies trained in Canada and then shipped to France, three Australian tunnelling companies were formed by March 1916, resulting in 30 tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers being available by the summer of 1916. 171st Tunnelling Company was formed between February and March 1915 of a number of specially enlisted miners, with troops selected from the Monmouthshire Siege Company of Royal Engineers. 171st Tunnelling Company was first employed in March 1915 in the Hill 60/Bluff areas at Ypres, the early underground war in the area had involved both the 171st and 172nd Tunnelling Company. In July 1915, 171st Tunnelling Company moved to Ploegsteert and commenced mining operations near St Yves at the end of the Messines ridge. In December 1915, 171st Tunnelling Company began work on the mine at Trench 127 at St Yves. The mine consisted of two chambers with a shared gallery, the name indicates the British lines where the initial shaft was dug, not where the mine was placed under the German positions. A new attempt was made, and by April 1916 the Trench 127 mine was ready, at the end of January 1916, 171st Tunnelling Company began mining operations at La Petite Douve Farm. The farm, located next to the road from Messines to Ploegsteert Wood, was enclosed by a German trench system known as ULNA
41.
175th Tunnelling Company
–
The 175th Tunnelling Company was one of the tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers created by the British Army during World War I. By January 1915 it had become evident to the BEF at the Western Front that the Germans were mining to a planned system, Norton-Griffiths ensured that tunnelling companies numbers 170 to 177 were ready for deployment in mid-February 1915. The lack of experienced men led to some tunnelling companies starting work later than others. The number of available to the BEF was also restricted by the need to provide effective counter-measures to the German mining activities. To make the tunnels safer and quicker to deploy, the British Army enlisted experienced coal miners, the first nine companies, numbers 170 to 178, were each commanded by a regular Royal Engineers officer. These companies each comprised 5 officers and 269 sappers, they were aided by additional infantrymen who were attached to the tunnellers as required. The success of the first tunnelling companies formed under Norton-Griffiths command led to mining being made a branch of the Engineer-in-Chiefs office under Major-General S. R. Rice, and the appointment of an Inspector of Mines at the GHQ Saint-Omer office of the Engineer-in-Chief, the formation of twelve new tunnelling companies, between July and October 1915, helped to bring more men into action in other parts of the Western Front. Most tunnelling companies were formed under Norton-Griffiths leadership during 1915, on 10 September 1915, the British government sent an appeal to Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand to raise tunnelling companies in the Dominions of the British Empire. On 17 September, New Zealand became the first Dominion to agree the formation of a tunnelling unit, the New Zealand Tunnelling Company arrived at Plymouth on 3 February 1916 and was deployed to the Western Front in northern France. A Canadian unit was formed from men on the battlefield, plus two other companies trained in Canada and then shipped to France, three Australian tunnelling companies were formed by March 1916, resulting in 30 tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers being available by the summer of 1916. 175th Tunnelling Company was formed at Terdeghem in April 1915, in the grounds of the Château de Hooge was a German strongpoint which was proving particularly troublesome to the British forces defending the area. The redoubt had in fact been started by the British but had fallen into German hands. We hold one half and the job is to get the G out of the other, failing that they may get us out and so obtain another hill top from which to overlook the land. In order to break the stalemate, the 175th Tunnelling Company dug a tunnel about 66 yards long under the German position and this occurred during a time of relative quiet on the British part of the Western Front, when few major assaults were made. Nonetheless, the casualty rate for the British and Commonwealth forces was around 300 per day. The officer in charge of laying the mine at Hooge was Lieutenant Geoffrey Cassels and he wrote, was a small village in ruins on top of the ridge, Hooge meaning height, astride the Menin Road. On the north side of the road was a chateau with a separate annex standing in its own grounds by a large wood, behind the chateau was Bellewarde Lake
42.
1st Canadian Tunnelling Company
–
The 1st Canadian Tunnelling Company was one of the tunnelling companies of the Canadian Military Engineers during World War I. By January 1915 it had become evident to the BEF at the Western Front that the Germans were mining to a planned system, Norton-Griffiths ensured that tunnelling companies numbers 170 to 177 were ready for deployment in mid-February 1915. The lack of experienced men led to some tunnelling companies starting work later than others. The number of available to the BEF was also restricted by the need to provide effective counter-measures to the German mining activities. To make the tunnels safer and quicker to deploy, the British Army enlisted experienced coal miners, the first nine companies, numbers 170 to 178, were each commanded by a regular Royal Engineers officer. These companies each comprised 5 officers and 269 sappers, they were aided by additional infantrymen who were attached to the tunnellers as required. The success of the first tunnelling companies formed under Norton-Griffiths command led to mining being made a branch of the Engineer-in-Chiefs office under Major-General S. R. Rice, and the appointment of an Inspector of Mines at the GHQ Saint-Omer office of the Engineer-in-Chief, the formation of twelve new tunnelling companies, between July and October 1915, helped to bring more men into action in other parts of the Western Front. Most British tunnelling companies were formed under Norton-Griffiths leadership during 1915, on 10 September 1915, the British government sent an appeal to Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand to raise tunnelling companies in the Dominions of the British Empire. On 17 September, New Zealand became the first Dominion to agree the formation of a tunnelling unit, the New Zealand Tunnelling Company arrived at Plymouth on 3 February 1916 and was deployed to the Western Front in northern France. The Canadian Military Engineers contributed three tunnelling companies to the British Expeditionary Force, one unit was formed from men on the battlefield, plus two other companies trained in Canada and then shipped to France. Three Australian tunnelling companies were formed by March 1916, resulting in 30 tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers being available by the summer of 1916, the unit patch of the 1st Canadian Tunnelling Company was a red square with a large black capital letter T on it. 1st Canadian Tunnelling Company was formed in eastern Canada, then moved to France, shortly afterwards, in March 1916, it relieved 182nd Tunnelling Company near Armentières. 1st Canadian Tunnelling Company then moved to The Bluff in May 1916, from spring 1916 onwards, the Germans drove long galleries beneath The Bluff, and on 25 July 1916 the 1st Company of the 24th Pioneers blew a mine under the ridge. The 1st Canadian Tunnelling Company had, however, anticipated the blow so casualties were minimized, 1st Canadian Tunnelling Company next took over the tunnelling operations at Hill 60 in preparation for the Battle of Messines. The deep mine at St Eloi was the largest of the mines in the Battle of Messines. The work was begun with a deep shaft named Queen Victoria, building preparations had started on 16 August 1915 and the mine was completed on 11 June 1916. 1st Canadian Tunnelling Company saw the tunnelling operations at St Eloi through to 1917, when the mines at Messines were detonated, they created 19 large craters
43.
1st Australian Tunnelling Company
–
The 1st Australian Tunnelling Company was one of the tunnelling companies of the Royal Australian Engineers during World War I. By January 1915 it had become evident to the BEF at the Western Front that the Germans were mining to a planned system, Norton-Griffiths ensured that tunnelling companies numbers 170 to 177 were ready for deployment in mid-February 1915. The lack of experienced men led to some tunnelling companies starting work later than others. The number of available to the BEF was also restricted by the need to provide effective counter-measures to the German mining activities. To make the tunnels safer and quicker to deploy, the British Army enlisted experienced coal miners, the first nine companies, numbers 170 to 178, were each commanded by a regular Royal Engineers officer. These companies each comprised 5 officers and 269 sappers, they were aided by additional infantrymen who were attached to the tunnellers as required. The success of the first tunnelling companies formed under Norton-Griffiths command led to mining being made a branch of the Engineer-in-Chiefs office under Major-General S. R. Rice, and the appointment of an Inspector of Mines at the GHQ Saint-Omer office of the Engineer-in-Chief, the formation of twelve new tunnelling companies, between July and October 1915, helped to bring more men into action in other parts of the Western Front. Most British tunnelling companies were formed under Norton-Griffiths leadership during 1915, on 10 September 1915, the British government sent an appeal to Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand to raise tunnelling companies in the Dominions of the British Empire. On 17 September, New Zealand became the first Dominion to agree the formation of a tunnelling unit, the New Zealand Tunnelling Company arrived at Plymouth on 3 February 1916 and was deployed to the Western Front in northern France. The Royal Australian Engineers formed four mining units – initially grouped into the Australian Mining Corps – for the British Expeditionary Force, three were specialist companies of tunnellers, while the Australian Electrical Mechanical Boring and Mining Company was tasked with carrying out related repairs. In early 1915, while the Royal Australian Engineers were deployed in Egypt, soon after arriving in western Europe in May 1916, the battalion was split into three tunnelling and one repairs company, and the corps headquarters dissolved. Shortly after its formation, the 1st Australian Tunnelling Company relieved the British 175th Tunnelling Company in May 1916 in the Railway Wood-Hooge-Armagh Wood area of the Ypres Salient. On 7 November 1916, the 1st Australian Tunnelling Company took over the mines at Hill 60 from the 1st, the mines placed under the German lines by the 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company had already been charged with explosives by the time the Australians arrived in the area. The first mine contained 53,000 pounds of ammonal explosive, at the same time, listening posts had to be maintained to detect enemy action. These posts were only a few metres underground and therefore susceptible to collapse during bombardments, in April 1917, German infantry conducted a raid into the British lines in an attempt to find the entrances to the British mine galleries but failed to do so. On 25 April 1917, a detonator exploded in the Australian underground HQ, the Official Australian History states that at Hill 60, underground warfare reached a tension which was not surpassed anywhere else on the British front. It is estimated that approximately thirty Australian tunnellers were killed at Hill 60
44.
2nd Australian Tunnelling Company
–
The 2nd Australian Tunnelling Company was one of the tunnelling companies of the Royal Australian Engineers during World War I. By January 1915 it had become evident to the BEF at the Western Front that the Germans were mining to a planned system, Norton-Griffiths ensured that tunnelling companies numbers 170 to 177 were ready for deployment in mid-February 1915. The lack of experienced men led to some tunnelling companies starting work later than others. The number of available to the BEF was also restricted by the need to provide effective counter-measures to the German mining activities. To make the tunnels safer and quicker to deploy, the British Army enlisted experienced coal miners, the first nine companies, numbers 170 to 178, were each commanded by a regular Royal Engineers officer. These companies each comprised 5 officers and 269 sappers, they were aided by additional infantrymen who were attached to the tunnellers as required. The success of the first tunnelling companies formed under Norton-Griffiths command led to mining being made a branch of the Engineer-in-Chiefs office under Major-General S. R. Rice, and the appointment of an Inspector of Mines at the GHQ Saint-Omer office of the Engineer-in-Chief, the formation of twelve new tunnelling companies, between July and October 1915, helped to bring more men into action in other parts of the Western Front. Most British tunnelling companies were formed under Norton-Griffiths leadership during 1915, on 10 September 1915, the British government sent an appeal to Canada, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand to raise tunnelling companies in the Dominions of the British Empire. On 17 September, New Zealand became the first Dominion to agree the formation of a tunnelling unit, the New Zealand Tunnelling Company arrived at Plymouth on 3 February 1916 and was deployed to the Western Front in northern France. The Royal Australian Engineers formed four mining units – initially grouped into the Australian Mining Corps – for the British Expeditionary Force, three were specialist companies of tunnellers, while the Australian Electrical Mechanical Boring and Mining Company was tasked with carrying out related repairs. In early 1915, while the Royal Australian Engineers were deployed in Egypt, soon after arriving in western Europe in May 1916, the battalion was split into three tunnelling and one repairs company, and the corps headquarters dissolved. The 2nd Australian Tunnelling Company relieved the 172nd Tunnelling Company in May 1916 in the Neuville-Saint-Vaast/Vimy area, in this sector was the German Labyrinth stronghold, located between Arras and Vimy and not far from Notre Dame de Lorette. On 29 March 1916, the 185th Tunnelling Company had been relieved at Roclincourt-Chantecler by the New Zealand Tunnelling Company, in January 1917, the company relieved the 1st Canadian Tunnelling Company at The Bluff in the Ypres Salient. They moved to Nieuport in the month, to construct subways as part of Operation Hush. On 10 May 1917, the took over the 1st Canadian Tunnelling Companys workings at the Lock Hospital position. The Lock Hospital position was located at Lock 6 on the Ypres-Comines canal, the final approach gallery beneath no-mans land to the German trenches was to be completed by the silent clay-kicking method. In the end, problems with the machinery and the led to this project being abandoned
45.
Second Army (United Kingdom)
–
The British Second Army was a field army of the British Army active during both World War I and World War II. During the First World War the army was active on the Western Front throughout most of the war, during the Second World War the army was the core element in the British contribution in the D-Day landings in Normandy and subsequent advance across Europe. The Second Army was part of the British Army formed on 26 December 1914, the army controlled both III Corps and IV Corps. Second Army spent most of the war positioned around the Ypres salient, in 1919 it was reconstituted as the British Army of the Rhine. Two of its formations, I Corps and XXX Corps took part in the D-Day landings of Operation Overlord, the third corps to land, VIII Corps, entered the line during late June to add its weight to the assault, in particular for the launching of Operation Epsom. The main British objective during the stages of the campaign was to capture the French city of Caen. However, due to various factors the city was not captured until mid-July during Operation Atlantic, by the end of July, American forces had broken out of Normandy. As they swept east, the German Seventh Army was pinned by the Second Army, the German formation was subsequently annihilated during the battle of the Falaise pocket. The Second Army then commenced a dash across France in tandem with the Americans on its right, during the interim, I Corps was transferred from Second Armys control, and assigned to the First Canadian Army. Due to the casualties sustained by the army during the Normandy campaign. Second Army entered Belgium quickly, and cleared much of the country and its captures included the capital Brussels and the port city of Antwerp. Second Armys highest profile operation in 1944, apart from Operation Overlord, was providing the force for Operation Market Garden. Second Army spent the rest of 1944 exploiting the salient in the German line that it had created during Operation Market Garden, to advance on the Rhine and Meuse rivers in the Netherlands. The final part of this took place in mid-January 1945. This enabled the completion of the advance on the River Roer, during February,1945, Second Army entered a holding phase. Second Army crossed the Rhine on 23 March in an attack codenamed Operation Plunder and it then headed across the North German Plain towards Osnabrück, with the First Canadian Army on its left wheeling to clear the north of the Netherlands and the area of Lower Saxony west of Oldenburg. The US Ninth Army on its right turned south-east towards Lippstadt to trap the German Army Group B, under General Walther Model, with Army Group B trapped, the last major German formation in the west had been neutralized. Second Army reached the Weser on 4 April, the Elbe on 19 April, by 7 May the Soviet Army had met up with the British forces
46.
Battle of Vimy Ridge
–
The Battle of Vimy Ridge was a military engagement fought primarily as part of the Battle of Arras, in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France, during the First World War. The main combatants were the Canadian Corps, of four divisions, the battle, which took place from 9 to 12 April 1917, was part of the opening phase of the British-led Battle of Arras, a diversionary attack for the French Nivelle Offensive. The objective of the Canadian Corps was to control of the German-held high ground along an escarpment at the northernmost end of the Arras Offensive. This would ensure that the southern flank could advance without suffering German enfilade fire, supported by a creeping barrage, the Canadian Corps captured most of the ridge during the first day of the attack. The town of Thélus fell during the day of the attack. The final objective, a fortified knoll located outside the village of Givenchy-en-Gohelle, the German forces then retreated to the Oppy–Méricourt line. Recent historical research has called this patriotic narrative into question, showing that it developed in the part of the twentieth century. The nation-building story only emerged fully formed after most of those who experienced the Great War directly or indirectly had passed from the scene, a 100-hectare portion of the former battleground serves as a memorial park and site of the Canadian National Vimy Memorial. Vimy Ridge is an escarpment 8 km northeast of Arras on the edge of the Douai Plain. The ridge rises gradually on its side, and drops more quickly on the eastern side. At approximately 7 km in length, and culminating at an elevation of 145 m or 60 m above the Douai Plains, the ridge provides a natural unobstructed view for tens of kilometres in all directions. The ridge fell under German control in October 1914 during the Race to the Sea as the Franco-British and German forces continually attempted to outflank each other through northeastern France. The French Tenth Army attempted to dislodge the Germans from the region during the Second Battle of Artois in May 1915 by attacking their positions at Vimy Ridge and Notre Dame de Lorette. The French 1st Moroccan Division managed to capture the height of the ridge but was unable to hold it owing to a lack of reinforcements. The French made another attempt during the Third Battle of Artois in September 1915, the Vimy sector calmed following the offensive with both sides taking a largely live and let live approach. In all, the French suffered approximately 150,000 casualties in their attempts to control of Vimy Ridge. The British XVII Corps, commanded by Lieutenant-General Sir Julian Byng, relieved the French Tenth Army in the sector in February 1916, the Royal Engineers immediately deployed specialist tunnelling companies along the front to combat the German mining operations. In response to increased British mining aggression, German artillery and trench mortar fire intensified in early May 1916, the Germans captured several British-controlled tunnels and mine craters before halting their advance and entrenching their positions
United Kingdom
British Army