The Battle of Passchendaele

In World War I, Lieutenant-General Arthur Currie, Commander of the Canadian Corps, was reluctant to send Canadian troops into the Battle of Passchendaele. He was horrified at the sight of the battlefield, which a destroyed drainage system and the worst rains in 30 years had turned into a sea of mud. Currie predicted that the number of casualties would approach 16,000, and he was right. These historic pictures of the Battle of Passchendaele show the horrendous conditions of the battlefield on which more than 15,000 Canadians were wounded or killed. Many of them drowned in the mud.

Photo: Canadians Lay Trench Mats Over the Mud at Passchendaele
William Rider-Rider / Canada Dept. of National Defence / Library and Archives Canada / PA-002156

More About Canada in World War I
Battle of Ypres 1915
Pictures of the Battle of Vimy Ridge
Canadian World War I Posters
Canada in World War I