|
Batoche | Gulf
of Georgia Cannery |
Signal Hill |
Craigellachie | Fur
Trade Lachine |
National
Battlefields Park | Vimy
Ridge | Dieppe Dieppe is a city on
the channel coast of France. For a few hours on a August
morning in 1943 it became the focal point of the Second
World War when a raid by Canadian troops hit the beaches
in an attempt to test the German defences and capture
German encryption devices. The raid was a bloody failure
for the Canadians as they were bogged down on the beach
and slaughtered or capture by German forces. Only a
lucky few escaped back onto the vessels that brought
them in.
A visit to Dieppe
today will quickly reveal why the raid was faced
with powerful obstacles. The beach is made up of larger
pebbles which are difficult to walk on much less run.
The city itself is in a ravine with elevated points at
either end of the beach which had German pill boxes and
are still there today.
This is the site of
Canada's first major combat in the European theatre and
one which tested the Canadian troops to extremes.
Although the raid was considered a failure from the
point of view of the results of the fighting and
casualties, the lessons learned proved to be invaluable
for the planning and execution of the Normandy
invasions.
|
