Valour at Vimy Ridge by Tom Douglas

Author:Tom Douglas
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: HISTORY / Military / Canada, HISTORY / Canada / General
Publisher: Lorimer
Published: 2011-03-03T16:00:00+00:00

The Pimple

Because of the change in plans, the Canadian Corps was given 24 hours to regroup and take a breather before launching a final attack on the Pimple, an action that would put the entire Vimy Ridge area in Canadian hands. Reserve battalions — British Columbia’s 47th and the 46th from Saskatchewan — were brought forward to back up the battle-weary troops from the 50th Battalion who had hardly been given a chance to catch their breath from their ordeal two days earlier. With the prize almost within their grasp, the Canadians experienced a surge of optimism and pride at the realization that a horrible task had all but been completed. Even an overnight snowfall that covered men, equipment, horses, wagons, and weapons was taken in stride. The snow would undoubtedly turn to slush and make the upcoming assault that much more difficult, but there was still a sense that the worst was over — at least for the time being.

However, as ineffectual as its name might sound, the Pimple was a formidable target. The 120-metre-high escarpment was a maze of dugouts, tunnels, and trenches that earlier Allied attacks had failed to capture. And with the Germans tenuously holding on to this last scrap of land on the ridge, the Canadians were well aware that the enemy’s last-ditch efforts would be stubborn and murderous.

One well-respected member of the 50th Battalion, Lance Corporal Henry Norwest, a Metis of French-Cree descent from Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, was taking advantage of the brief lull in hostilities by paying particular attention to his rifle and the telescope attached to it. “Ducky,” as he was known to his mates, was the battalion’s sniper and he had racked up more than 100 confirmed enemy kills so far.

At dawn on April 12, the troops of the three designated battalions emerged from their trenches and slowly followed the creeping barrage as it made its deadly march up toward the Pimple. Another snowstorm had hit, but the Canadians welcomed it since it was at their backs and therefore blowing into the faces of the enemy. It was almost as effective as a smokescreen in hiding the advancing troops, giving them an advantage that would help offset the fact that the Germans had also made use of the lull in fighting to bring in reinforcements. The new defenders were members of the elite Prussian 5th Grenadier Guards – all of them over six feet tall and formidable adversaries in hand-to-hand combat.

Nevertheless, within two hours, Hill 120 had fallen to the Canadians — but at a heavy cost. Nearly half of the troops who took part in the assault were either killed or wounded by the intense resistance put up by the enemy. The body count might well have gone higher except for the handiwork of Corporal Norwest, who felled a number of German troops during the assault on the Pimple. Norwest was awarded the Military Medal for his sharpshooting that day.

Brigadier General Edward Hilliam, a former Alberta rancher, had led the 10th Brigade in its assault against Hill 120.

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