On Oct. 8, 1918, the Canadian Corps launched its attack on Cambrai, the French rail and road hub that German forces had held since 1914, and by that night the 2nd Canadian Division was preparing to cross the Canal de l’Escaut in the dark.
The operation came during the final months of the First World War, in the advance that historians call the Hundred Days. According to Legion Magazine, the Third Army’s plan had two phases. British XVII Corps was to take the Niergnies-Awoingt Ridge southeast of Cambrai, while the Canadian Corps shelled German positions as a diversion.
In the second phase, the 2nd Canadian Division would cross the canal between Ramillies and Morenchies, north of the city, and link up with the British at Escaudoeuvres. The 3rd Canadian Division would then cross and advance on Cambrai itself. Maj.-Gen. H.E. Burstall commanded the 2nd Division and planned a night crossing once XVII Corps reached its objective.
The ground was a worry. Legion Magazine reported that the west bank approaches to the canal had steep slopes that left infantry exposed to fire from the east bank. The 3rd Division had also been badly cut up a week earlier in a failed attempt to cross the same waterway.
The attack began on the morning of Oct. 8 with encouraging early reports, according to the magazine. Later in the day, Canadian commanders learned that XVII Corps was stalling short of its objective. Burstall decided to cross the canal and push on to Escaudoeuvres regardless.
The 2nd Division crossed in total darkness during blustery rain showers on the night of Oct. 8-9, Legion Magazine said. German troops, already in the middle of a withdrawal, were caught largely unprepared. Ramillies fell, and patrols found neighbouring villages abandoned in the early hours of Oct. 9.
Engineers seized canal bridges intact and removed demolition charges before they could be detonated, the magazine said. At Pont d’Aire, Capt. Coulson Norman Mitchell and three of his men repelled Germans trying to retake and destroy the main bridge. Mitchell received the Victoria Cross. The magazine noted that at least 10 Victoria Crosses went to Canadians between the Canal du Nord and Cambrai.
The 3rd Division then entered Cambrai. The city was largely deserted apart from small German rearguards, according to the Department of National Defence’s battle honours page, which said the rapid Canadian advance thwarted German attempts to burn Cambrai. Legion Magazine said engineers fought and extinguished blazes that retreating troops had set, limiting the damage, and described the city as “narrowly saved.”
Sources differ on the exact day the city was entered. Legion Magazine places the 3rd Division’s entry on the morning of Oct. 9. Wikipedia’s article on the battle says the 2nd Division entered Cambrai on Oct. 8 against light resistance and that the 3rd Division entered on Oct. 10 to find it deserted, with fewer than 20 casualties. The Department of National Defence records the battle honour for Oct. 8-9 without a day-by-day breakdown.
The Canadian Corps was commanded by Lt.-Gen. Sir Arthur Currie. According to the Department of National Defence, it had already broken through the Hindenburg Line, which the department called the strongest German fixed defences on the Western Front, and outflanked Cambrai on its northern side. Its task was to secure the crossings of the Canal de l’Escaut, which runs through the city.
The cost of the larger campaign was heavy. Legion Magazine put Canadian Corps losses from Aug. 22 to Oct. 11 at 1,544 officers and 29,262 other ranks killed, wounded or missing. The magazine did not give separate figures for Oct. 8 or Oct. 9, though it named four conscripts of the 25th Battalion, including Pte. Raymond Dujay, who died in the Cambrai attack on Oct. 9.
Cambrai is recorded as a battle honour for Canadian regiments under the name “Cambrai, 1918,” part of the Battles of the Hindenburg Line. The honour also covers the capture of Villers-Outreaux and the capture of Cambrai, according to the Department of National Defence. Numerous Canadian regiments and battalions were later awarded it.
The fighting that began on Oct. 8, 1918, was one of the last major Canadian operations before the Armistice, which came a little more than a month later.
If you find reporting like this useful, consider supporting Canada News Media, an independent Canadian newsroom with no corporate parent.
Sources: Legion Magazine, “The race to Cambrai”; Department of National Defence, “Cambrai, 1918” battle honour; Wikipedia, “Battle of Cambrai (1918)”.
