Please join us on Tuesday, April 11, 2017 to welcome our guest speaker Keith Maxwell, a member of our Society. He will address our Society on the 100th Anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.
To note the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge, the Churchill Society of British Columbia is sponsoring an historical presentation of this notable achievement by the Canadian Corps in April 1917. The presentation will cover the mobilization and development of Canada’s Army in the First World War and the training and experience that prepared it for such a notable achievement. The presentation will look at the Vimy Ridge operation in the larger context of the British Army Spring Offensive of 1917, known as Second Battle of Arras. It will also look at how the battle tied in to the coordinated Allied strategy for the spring of 1917 that culminated in the disastrous Nivelle Offensive by the French Army later in the month.
Vimy was the only time that all four Canadian Divisions attacked simultaneously and virtually every one of the 48 Battalions in the Corps saw action. The Corps captured a large swath of France including Vimy Ridge itself, providing observation and dominance of the Douai Plain, the heartland of France’s coal and iron mining area that could no longer be exploited by the occupying Germans. The role of a number of British Columbians, both in senior posts and as notable fighting soldiers will be emphasised to bring the personal aspects of the battle into focus.
Colonel (Retired) Keith Maxwell, OMM, CD is the presenter for this event. Colonel Maxwell retired from a 41 year military career in 2009 and spent his last sixteen years in Belgium assigned to NATO.
Date/Time: Tuesday, April 11, 2017; Wine & Cheese starts at 5:00 pm, Program from 5:50 – 7:00 pm
Location: Main Ballroom, The Vancouver Club, 915 Hastings Street West, Vancouver, B.C.
Cost: $25 each for a Member of the Society, $35 each for a non-Member, $40 for a Member accompanied by either a spouse, partner or an immediate family member
(The ticket cost includes one beverage ticket per attendee for 1 glass of wine or beer, or for 2 soft drinks. Additional drinks can be purchased from the bar)
To register for the event, please click on the following link, www.winstonchurchillbc.org