Why Dieppe?

Posted on by CBF Students - Étudiants FCCB

Why Dieppe? This is a question that I have often heard asked about the Dieppe raid. There are different variations of the question: Why did the Allies choose this particular location to launch a raid? Why 19 August? What was the purpose of the raid? Why was it the Canadians who carried out the raid? These questions are often asked in light of knowing the result of the Dieppe raid, and with the assumption that Dieppe was a massive failure in all regards.

During our visit to Dieppe today, we were encouraged to cast aside the privilege of hindsight and consider the information the Allies had at the time that went into the decision making process. For example there were only a few locations along the French coast that were close enough to England for transporting the troops and to allow for the provision of air support. There were also considerations to be made for weather conditions, tides (to be able to land and then withdraw once objectives were reached), and moon phase (at new moon, so the landing craft would not be seen in the moonlight by the Germans). Each of these factors contributed to narrowing the window of opportunity and where a raid could be launched. The original plan was also altered to a frontal attack on the main beaches rather than from the rear because of anticipated difficulties with constructing bridges to cross the rivers along the way.

We also discussed that there was an increasing need for Britain to relieve pressure from Russia in the east by opening up a second front in the west. There was also pressure on the home front to see our troops in action at this point in the war. In many cases people are not satisfied with these explanations and are searching for a single purpose for the raid. However, it is only by considering all of these factors regarding what decision makers knew at the time that we can begin to understand why Dieppe happened.

I presented at Dieppe today on the Essex Scottish regiment that fought as part of the landing at Red Beach. I was shocked when I read there were 75% casualty rates with the regiment by the time they withdrew at 11am. I found doing research on the experiences of the Essex Scottish on August 19 to be a helpful exercise in expanding my knowledge of the operational side of Dieppe, rather than just a focus on how we remember the raid more broadly. Despite an examination of secondary sources and excerpts of the war diaries, contributing to what I thought was a thorough understanding of what happened at Red Beach, I found the conceptions I had crafted in my head to be entirely different when I saw the landscape before me. This is what I think is the greatest value of this trip – the experiential learning, viewing the landscape in real life alongside the maps and text. As our leaders began to explain what occurred for other regiments surrounding the Essex Scottish, I was able to situate them within the larger context of the raid while trying to imagine what Dieppe looked like when the Canadians landed almost 75 years ago.

Sara Karn

Remembering the Dead

Posted on by CBF Students - Étudiants FCCB

We began our day by visiting the Irish War Cemetery in Guillemot. It saddens me to look upon their graves and ponder about lives of the men who lay before me. Did they have a wife or girlfriend; children or siblings; someone to remember them once they died? It’s hard to know for sure, but I like to think that someone came by this cemetery and wept for the dead.

On this tour, we have visited 2 to 3 cemeteries a day. Sometimes they blur together, and other times they distinctly stand out. Regardless of their nationality, French, British, Irish, Canadian, German, or Austrian, they fought and died for a set of ideals. My real concern is, who comes to visit these men after 100 years? I can’t stress it enough how much this battlefield tour means to me. We are not just studying the First and Second World Wars, but we are physically experiencing the sacrifice these men made. Who they were, where they were born, and what they believe matters little. For me, I am proud to say that I can at least offer these men some comfort in death. It’s a rather morbid though, but other than tourists passing by, who takes the time to stand at a grave just sitting there in silence.

By taking a little bit of time out of this tour, I can say that these men will be remembered. They gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country. If I can make a small contribution to make sure these men are never forgotten by sitting beside their graves crying, reading, or thinking, then I will happily.

By visiting the cemeteries and the battlefields, I think us as a tour group can grasp the sacrifice these men made. I can’t even imagine Canadian soldiers from the Second World War running up the beaches at Dieppe and being shot at with machine guns. Both sides were doing their job, and protecting an ideal that they believed in. That last statement can definitely be contested, but the fact remains, that these men regardless of their nationality, gave up their lives in service of their country.

Canal du Nord & Bourlon Wood Memorial

Posted on by CBF Students - Étudiants FCCB

Today, we went to the site of the Canal du Nord. The Canal du Nord is where Arthur Currie led the Canadians across the then empty canal basin in September 1918 as part of the Battle of Arras. Before the attack, the Canadians hid in the local woods and the town before attacking the village. The Canadians needed to be fast to breech the canal and to subsequently cross it. After the canal was taken, the engineers needed to build bridges for the artillery to cross the bridge.

Our tour groups leaders showed us a map from 1918 which depicts the objectives and explained to us the direction of the Canadians, the 1st Division heading left, the 4th Division headed to Bourlon Wood, the 3rd Division going toward Cambrai, all while the 2nd Division is in reserve. These soldiers here fought alongside a British Core who were to go South of Bourlon Wood. A memorable moment was when one leader demonstrated where the troops went using que cards and marks in the sand along the bank of the canal. This proved to be helpful in clarifying the direction of the troops.

One of the most interesting parts of this trip is having the opportunity of experienced tour guides who know are extremely knowledgeable on both of the world wars. The insight that our leaders provide us with about tactics, logistics, facts about the battles, and information about the soldiers. This is definitely an important aspect of this trip.

Today was interesting for me particularly because I had the opportunity to finally see the Canal du Nord as well and Bourlon Wood, the latter of which I had a presentation on today. Being at the location of the battle and listening to the tour leaders describe the finer details of the battle really is an emotional experience. Standing at the exact location where 100 years ago at that very spot was war and carnage all around allows me to reflect on the sacrifice they gave for the freedom we enjoy today.

 

Brandee Blanchard

All is not quiet on the Western Front

Posted on by CBF Students - Étudiants FCCB

In the 1930’s film adaptation of All Quiet on the Western Front, there is a scene in which soldiers discuss the causes of the war. The first cause they come up with is that counties offended one another, which begs the question of what German mountain offended which French hill. The soldiers then amend their statement to say that people offended one another, prompting one soldiers pipes up that he isn’t offended in the least, and is therefor ready to head home. The soldiers continue to joke back and forth, never answering the question of what caused the war.

Having watched the movie only last night, this scene from the film resonated with me this morning when we arrived at the Australian National Memorial in Villers-Bretonneux, and our discussion turned to 1918 and the unanticipated early end of the war. Few military leaders expected the War to end in 1918, and it’s probably fair to say that soldiers were even more skeptical about the likelihood of a quick end. Still today, many historians still struggle to explain every facet and answer every question about the 100 days campaign, and the way in which the Great War was finally brought to a close.

As I walked through the cemetery at Villers-Bretonneux, my thoughts and emotions were very much framed by the contrast of these two questions—what caused the war in the first place, and why did it end when it did? As it took in the names of 10, 773 Australian soldiers with no known graves killed in France between 1916 and 1919, I was immensely dissatisfied with the lack of answers that still seem to prevail when we consider the causes and cessations of war.

My sense of frustration returned later in the day when I had the opportunity to walk through the South African Memorial in Delville Wood, which commemorates the South African contribution to the Great War in a location where the South African 1st Infantry Brigade suffered an almost 80% casualty rate. Across the road from the South African Memorial is the Delville Woods Cemetery, in which 5,523 soldiers are buried (3, 593 unknown).  Walking through these memorials and cemeteries, reading the names of the South African, British, Australian, New Zealanders, Canadian, Scottish, Irish—the list could go on—soldiers who died in these same fields I’m walking through today makes not having all the answers a hard pill to swallow.

 

To just wrap up, while I felt a strong sense of frustration at the inability of history to provide me with answers that I sought, I was also reminded why I chose to study history. In his book on the Dieppe Raid, Brian Villa states that the truth is perhaps the most significant form of respect we can give to the dead. As a young historian still finding my way in the field, this is one idea that continues to propel me forward, even if it means addressing some difficult questions, and sometimes accepting that I don’t know how to find the answers I seek. As I reflect on my day and the trip up to this point, I think this is one of those times that I have to accept that questions are going to be difficult and answers are often going to be unsatisfactory. But I also need to keep in mind that even if I’m struggling with these questions, looking for and (hopefully) finding the answers is one of the best ways to ensure that the fallen receive the remembrance, dignity, and respect they so deserve.