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Vol. 3 – The Canadians at Vimy, April, 1917

SiteAdmin — Tue, 09 Dec 2014 19:03:30 +0000

THE CANADIANS AT VIMY, APRIL 1917
For King & Empire, Vol. 3 (Revised Edition 2002)

This volume deals with the development of the Canadian Corps, from a devastated force after the Somme, to a well-oiled machine ready to take on the strongest German position on the Western Front, Vimy Ridge. On April 9th, 1917 the Canadians struck, and won a fantastic, if improbable, victory at Vimy where they knocked out the Germans before they even knew the fight was on. It was a legendary performance, of International and National significance.

This volume includes an historical Overview of the Battle; a Battlefield Tour of 9 Points (plus a Tour of the Arleux and Fresnoy Battlefields); a list of 24 Cemeteries and memorials where the Canadians killed in Battle are commemorated or buried. Asides in the book include: Mining Warfare, The Vimy Memorial, Notre Dame de Lorette, and the Pilgrimage to Vimy 1936. Profusely illustrated with maps, photos and drawings, and includes a fold-out Tour map at the back of the book.

This volume was included in the TV series, For King & Empire, Eps 3. The DVD covers the battle like the book, and is literally a walking tour.

by Norm Christie

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Battery Action

SiteAdmin — Thu, 20 Nov 2014 21:31:18 +0000

There cannot be a book with a more tragic history than Battery Action! It was started by Hugh Kay at Christmas, 1916, to serve as a record of the 43rd Howitzer Battery, Canadian Field Artillery. Kay recorded the characters in the unit, and the entertainments of The Boys. Unfortunately Kay was killed at Passchendaele in 1917. His manuscript was found in his backpack, and the project was continued by George Magee. Magee died of wounds in September 1918. Once again others continued the work, and in 1920 the book was finally finished.

Yet the book is far from tragic. It is full of humourous anecdotes, details of daily life, and serves as a testament to the character and courage of the men of the 43rd Howitzer Battery. There is no indication the authors were working with the shadow of death hanging over them. Battery Action! gives an exceptional view into the lives of the artilleryman on the Western Front, and is a unique contribution to the literature of the period.

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Unknown Soldiers by One Of Them

SiteAdmin — Sun, 19 Oct 2014 20:56:06 +0000

Unknown Soldiers by One of Them was published anonymously by Vantage Press, NY, in 1959. It is a uniquely Canadian story, and unusual in several ways. It is the only memoir by a Canadian Engineer, and one of very few that cover the war period completely from Valcartier in 1914 until demobilization in 1919.

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Pounding the Enemy; The Diary of the 13th Battery, C.F.A.

SiteAdmin — Sat, 06 Sep 2014 22:21:57 +0000

Limited Edition Reprint Series

Pounding the Enemy is a unique book that weaves the story of the 13th Battery C.F.A. in with the letters Napoleon Gagne sent home. The 13th Battery was one of the original units that went to France in 1915. It fought in all the major engagements of the Canadian Corps. It included in its numbers the famous actor, Raymond Massey, and a 40 year-old painter and father of eight, Napoleon Gagne. Napoleon wrote home religiously to his loving family. His letters follow the War Diary of the 13th as they go from Ypres to the Somme to Vimy to Passchendaele into 1918. Though the unit suffered heavy casualties, Napoleon came through unscathed. In the Hundred days the Battery fought at Amiens, Arras and Cambrai. And it was after the crossing of the Canal du Nord that the explosion of an overhead shell sent a small fragment towards the 41 year father of eight and killed him. Pounding the Enemy is an interesting addition to the Canadian literature of the Great War.

by L. Gagne

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Shrieks and Crashes

SiteAdmin — Sat, 06 Sep 2014 22:13:46 +0000

The Memoir of Wilfred Kerr, Canadian Field Artillery, 1917. In "Shrieks and Crashes" Wilfred Kerr recalls his first year of war, 1917. As a member of an artillery battery in the Canadian Expeditionary Force he fought in Canadaâ€™s great victory at Vimy Ridge and through the horrors of Passchendaele. An exceptionally detailed account of war, originally published in 1929.

by Wilfrid Kerr

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