From 1914 to 1918, the First World War brought about a
level of destruction previously unseen.
Much of the fighting took place in northern France and
Belgium, the area known as the Western Front.
Here, soldiers clashed from opposing trenches
separated only by several hundred meters of
scarred terrain.
To advance, troops had to go "over the top" and into this
no-man's land.
They waded through mud, crossed barbed wire, and
faced lethal machine-gun and artillery fire.
Under these conditions, a breakthrough was impossible.
Deadlock remained unbroken for nearly four years, while
casualties climbed into the millions.
By the spring of 1918, innovative tactics and new
weapons emerged that made armies more mobile.
First, the Germans went on the attack with offensives
that came close to succeeding. But the Allies,
including the Canadian Corps, held on.
In August 1918, they initiated their own
major offensives.
Between August 8th and November 11th, the
Canadian Corps, 100,000 strong, fought at Amiens,
Arras,
at the Drocourt-Quéant Line
and the Canal du Nord,
at Cambrai,
Valenciennes,
and finally, at Mons.
This period of continuous victories became known after
the war as the Last Hundred Days.
In these battles, the Allies gathered tanks in numbers
never before seen on the Western Front.
They benefited from better communications to
coordinate men, artillery, and aircraft more effectively.
As a result, they broke through German lines and
advanced more swiftly than at any time since 1914.
Germany was overwhelmed on the battlefield and faced
social and political turmoil at home.
The German government decided to initiate
negotiations for a cease-fire, otherwise known
as an armistice.
It came into effect on the 11th hour of the 11th day
of the 11th month, 1918.
Casualties were heavy on both sides during the
Last Hundred Days.
More than 45,000 Canadians were killed, wounded,
reported missing, or taken prisoner.
This accounted for almost one in five of all Canadian
casualties during the First World War.
Their sacrifice helped to defeat the German army and
secure an Allied victory.
To better understand what happened in the
Last Hundred Days, and why and how events unfolded
as they did, historians rely on different sources of
historical evidence.
These include primary sources such as letters, films
maps, artifacts, official documents,
photographs, and many others.
Primary sources are the "raw materials" of
historical investigation.
They are created at or near to the time of the event.
Historians analyze primary sources to construct a
picture of the past-- a narrative --and respond to the
historical question they are investigating.
The "Think Like a Historian" Series helps educators and
students learn how to analyze and interpret
primary sources.
Building these skills helps to develop historical
interpretations and understand the past.
In this series, we use a soldier's Personnel Record and a
veteran's account of his unit's war history to explore the
Last Hundred Days of the First World War.