British Doctrine and Canadian Guns: The Evolution of Canadian Artillery Tactics in the First World War
Date
2018-04-03
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Abstract
During the First World War, artillery was an integral component of military operations on the Western Front. The Canadian Corps, as part of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF), relied heavily on the power of the artillery to support offensive operations. The Canadian Corps has been substantially analyzed by military historians, but the role of the artillery in the success of the Canadian Corps has been insufficiently studied. There is also considerable debate about the extent to which the Canadian Corps possessed a uniquely Canadian way of fighting. This raises the question: to what extent did Canadian artillery differ from prevailing British practice? By using archival documents and secondary sources, this thesis compares the Canadian usage of artillery on the Western Front with the development of artillery tactics and doctrine by the BEF. Through key decisions made before the war and from experience gained during difficult fighting on the Western Front, the BEF led the way in the development of artillery tactics. The Canadian Corps then effectively adapted and employed the tactics pioneered by the BEF during the Corps’ own battles, like Mount Sorrel, Vimy Ridge, and the Hundred Days offensives. Analyzing the tactics and doctrine of British and Canadian artillery on the Western Front demonstrates that the employment of the artillery by Canadian gunners did not differ substantially from the tactics and doctrine of the wider BEF.
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Canadian Corps, Western Front, Artillery, First World War, British Expeditionary Force (BEF)
Citation
Torkelson, C. M. (2018). British Doctrine and Canadian Guns: The Evolution of Canadian Artillery Tactics in the First World War (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/31767