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A remarkable story about the Canadian trenches concerns the preparations for the attack on Vimy Ridge in April 1917. The Canadian divisions used an underground quarry and created additional corridors towards the front. These tunnels and trenches played a crucial role in the success of the attack, with the Canadians managing to retake the strategically important ridge in just three days.

A remarkable story about the Vimy Memorial concerns its unveiling in 1936. More than 50,000 people, including 6,200 Canadians, attended the ceremony. The presence of so many veterans and survivors underscored the profound impact of the war and the enduring bond between Canada and France. The memorial has since become a symbol of Canadian courage and sacrifice.

The Mémorial national du Canada à Vimy is an impressive war memorial, commemorating the members of the Canadian Expeditionary Force who died during the First World War. The memorial, designed by Walter Seymour Allward, was unveiled on 26 July 1936 by King Edward VIII. It commemorates the 11,169 Canadian soldiers who died in France and have no known grave.

Within the 107 hectares of the Vimy Ridge National Historic Site of Canada, near the grandiose memorial erected in honor of the 66,000 Canadian soldiers who died in the Great War, a more modest building is dedicated "to the memory (...) of the officers, non-commissioned officers, and soldiers of the Moroccan Division who fell gloriously here on May 9, 10, and 11, 1915." Before the Canadians captured Vimy Ridge from the Germans in April 1917, other soldiers had already set foot there but were unable to hold their ground due to a lack of reinforcements and sufficient artillery support. These "forerunners" were the Moroccan Zouaves and riflemen, wearing red chechias and baggy trousers, accompanied in the Moroccan Division by Foreign Legion volunteers from 52 countries. To the men of the Moroccan Division who set out to assault Vimy Ridge On the morning of May 9, 1915, they broke through the German lines, crossed Folie Wood, and approached Vimy Ridge. To monitor their advance and adjust artillery fire, squares of white cloth were sewn to their backs, making them prime targets for the Germans on their flank. Furthermore, the artillery was running low on ammunition, and reinforcements were not forthcoming: the order to withdraw came with the evening. The Moroccan soldiers were forced to abandon the conquered ground at the cost of heavy losses. The riflemen of the Moroccan Division were among the approximately 820,000 men mobilized in the French colonies or protectorates during the First World War, including 636,000 sent to France as soldiers or laborers. Among the 449,000 engaged in the fighting, the majority came from Algeria (150,000) and the others from sub-Saharan Africa (135,000), Indochina (43,000), Tunisia (39,000), Morocco (34,000). 70,000 of them died on French soil.

The Vimy Memorial is the most prestigious Canadian monument in Europe. It is located on the very site of the 1917 fighting near Vimy in the Pas-de-Calais region of France. Erected on the highest point of the hill, Hill 145, the objective of the operations that began on April 9, 1917, it overlooks the Douai Plain. In 1921, architect and sculptor Walter S. Allward (1875-1955) won the competition from the Canadian Battlefield Memorials Commission. The significance of the battles at the site and the favorable location at the top of the hill allowed Vimy to receive the most prestigious work.

I went there late one evening, a calm that does you good, a great panorama night and day

beautiful journey, beautiful scenery

Did you know that you can be on Canadian territory in Northern France? The Mémorial de Vimy is located between Lens and Arras. An area of 110 hectares that France lent to Canada shortly after WWI. It is the place where Canadian troops reclaimed a ridge from the Germans in 1917. An unexpected and spectacular victory. But also a precious one. Because in 3 days 3,600 Canadians died and 7,000 men were injured.