GB Films. Bloody Arras. Unusually I set our drama on the day after the famous and highly successful attack at Vimy and Arras, the 9th April This was so we could challenge the myths around that success in context - otherwise we'd have be trying to make that analysis during a flurry of rolling successful actions, which would have just put Mickey in a corner moaning away as everything was going well. Vimy Ridge was the name given to the northern end of a bigger front attacked on Easter Monday at Arras.
The whole attack was made by the British Army supporting the 'real' attack going in further south by the French Army. That old favourite. Pictures on this page a bit bigger than normal as they're mostly underground in the Vimy Tunnels. The British put a huge and controlled effort into this operation before, during and after. Huge: finally the right amount of artillery, physical preparation, planning, Intel and training went into the attack.
Controlled: more difficult to explain. Try this - for the Somme, they shelled the enemy's defences, and then went over the top. Before, during and after: never before had a British attack been scaled to provide a coherent service to the men in the line. Previously everyone did their bit as hard as they could. Now they were acting together. Pausing only to say this is exactly in line with Mickey's thinking, the attack involved no less than three British Armies, the First, Third and Fifth, and incorporated within them Australian, Canadian, New Zealand and South African troops.
Let us consider the northern end of the attack, which as I said above was effectively the lump of Vimy Ridge. The Canadians were tasked with the main body of the 'lump', with 1 and 17 Corps at the top and bottom.
For this reason, Vimy Ridge is seen by the Canadians as 'theirs' and the attack as an important step in nationhood the Canadian Memorial at Vimy is second only in size to the one at Thiepval.
