Second Battle of Ypres (1 abr 1915 año – 1 mayo 1915 año)

Descripción:

The second battle of Ypres happened soon after the Canadians had arrived in Europe. They were integrated into the British army and were sent to Ypres to support the French and British troops. It was in this battle that the Germans first released chlorine gas, this hit the French troops hard and the Canadians were sent in as reinforcements. Chlorine gas was very deadly and the Canadians were initially pushed back but the line held and stopped the German advance. This battle was also significant because it was one of the first battles that the Canadians were assigned to and they quickly proved their worth and showed their strength. One soldier by the name of Frederick Fisher, a Canadian gunner was the first Canadian soldier to win the Victoria Cross, The British Empire's highest medal for bravery. He won this award for his bravery when he held his ground against the German soldiers after they had released the Chlorine gas, Fisher fought until he was killed in Ypres. Another Canadian; Captain Scrimger found a creative solution to the chlorine gas attacks, he ordered soldiers to urinate on a piece of cloth and place it over their face (nose and mouth) to form a makeshift gas mask to neutralize the gas.

As a result of what happened at Ypres there were 6000 Canadian casualties however there were some positive results as well. One example is that gas masks were created to counter the gas attacks, this led to chlorine gas being less devastating to out soldier because they were better prepared against it. Also, as a result of the Canadians holding their ground against the Germans until reinforcements could arrive they successfully stopped the German forces from reaching the English Channel ports which would have given the Germans an advantage against Britain. All of this was due to the Canadian soldiers' bravery at Ypres and their strength in holding back the German forces. This was the first battle the Canadians took part in and due to their amazing success, it jump started their reputation as a strong and reliable force in the war.

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