You couldn't see anything
First World War Audio Archive
You couldn't see anything
Transcript
Hill 62 Memorial Belgium.
you couldn’t see anything for a few minutes. It was snow. I think just about the time the first gun fired was about when the snow started. The guns were wheel to wheel for miles.Courtrai Memorial Belgium.
The whole front was approximately 14 miles. Actually our partLe Quesnel Memorial Belgium.
was only four but then you see we had the 51st hound division to our right again and there was other... Actually, when youGueudecourt Memorial France.
come to think of it, we got all the glory for Vimy. We were only a small part of it. Four miles roughly is approximately theDury Memorial France.
extent of our front line. There was snow coming from the west,Monchy Memorial France.
you see, blowing towards east where the Germans were facing the west, you see. Well it may have had some effect on it.Passchendaele Memorial Belgium.
I know when the snow storm let up our machine gunnersMasnières memorial France.
had a field day because the Germans were running, had left the front, would pour out of their dugouts and started running down towards Givenchy. There was a draw down throughBourion Wood Memorial France.
the, you know, like a drainage system. You’d call it a ravineCourcelette Memorial France.
here, but it wasn’t very deep and that’s where they were takingBeaumont-Hamel Memorial France.
shelter and burrowing down through this and their dugouts were dug in from the sides of this little bit of a draw. I don’t knowSt. Julien Memorial Belgium.
what you’d call it. And they were running down towards Givenchy. My God, one of our machine gunners come up there. Must haveCanadian National Vimy Memorial France.
sprayed 25 to 30 of them. Just sprayed it, you know.Description
Mr. MacLeod describes in general his assault at Vimy and in particular how the snow helped them surprise the enemy. Describes an incident where many fleeing Germans are machine gunned.
James Neil MacLeod
James Neil MacLeod was born on November 12, 1899. Left school to enlist in Sherbrooke, Quebec, on December 10, 1915. Mr. MacLeod was a member of the 117th Battalion in Canada and England, joining the 24th Battalion for his tour of duty in Europe. He participated in many major battles: Arras, Vimy, Amiens, Somme and Michael Offensive. He was wounded in the elbow August 27, 1918. After his discharge, Mr. MacLeod lived in Quebec, moved to New York state to work for the New York Central Railroad. Married Mae R. Mulvaney in 1927. Mr. MacLeod died June 8, 1981.
Meta Data
- Medium:
- Video
- Owner:
- Veterans Affairs Canada
- Duration:
- 1:35
- Person Interviewed:
- James Neil MacLeod
- War, Conflict or Mission:
- First World War
- Location/Theatre:
- Europe
- Battle/Campaign:
- Vimy
- Branch:
- Army
- Units/Ship:
- 117th Battalion
- Rank:
- Private
- Occupation:
- Infantryman
Attestation
Related Videos
The tanks were feasible
Mr. MacLeod describes the relative effectiveness of newer tracked tanks in the Amiens offensive, both as a troop transport and as a weapon against German machine gun emplacements.
Cavalry charge
Mr. MacLeod describes the impressive sight of a full cavalry charge and the high mortality of the horses because of well-positioned German machine gunners. He questions why the cavalry would have been chosen to attack heavy gun emplacements in Batume-Peronne Wood.
Gas masks
Mr. MacLeod gives a good comparison between the original respirator and newer gas masks used by Canadian soldiers.
Biplanes collide
Mr. MacLeod describes a mid-air collision between two Allied observation aircraft, and seeing one airman tumbling to earth without a parachute.
Bicycle Courier
Mr. MacLeod describes in humorous detail some of the risks of being a bicycle courier.
Captain’s orders
Mr. MacLeod describes a retaliatory ambush on No Man’s Land in which the C.O.’s orders are overruled by Mr. MacLeod, and a German patrol is neutralized by his section’s pre-emptive attack.
I never got a scratch
Mr. MacLeod describes the more specific details of his personal experience at Vimy; the sudden death of his partner while he remained unscathed through the assault.
- Date modified: