One of the official War Diaries of the First Infantry Division of the 16th Battalion (The Canadian Scottish), Canadian Expeditionary Force that cover from the time the Regiment went overseas at the start of the First World War to the time it returned to Canada in April 1919. War diaries are official records kept by the Battalions during a one month period. The diary provides a daily summary of events, actions, activities, etc. This diary begins on the front line, a heavy barrage from the enemy after a rocket was sent up that split into two reds and the Company suffering heavy casualties, moving to the Brigade Reserve at Cité Saint-Pierre, Seaforth Highlanders, moving to the Coupigny Huts, practicing co-operation with tanks at Marqueffles Farm, musketry, wire, and live-bomb throwing training, leave increasing for all ranks, gas shells being dropped around Lens by the enemy, moving to Les Brebis and Bully-Les Mines then to Fosse 10 and Sains en Cohelle, cancelling training after getting immediate orders to move to trenches near Vendin and Chateau de la Haie, attack on Telegraph Hill, and taking shelter in the Ronville Caves with guides from the New Zealand Tunneling Coy.. The diary ends with a list of decorations, a tally of casualties, Operation Orders and a Special Order dated March 27th, 1918 from Lieut.-General Currie about the Canadians helping the British Army who have fallen back hard.

In Collection:

• Military History Collection

Creator

• Canada. Canadian Army. Battalion, 16th

Subject

• Trenches
• Military camps
• Canada. Canadian Army. Battalion, 16th
• Soldiers--Conduct of life
• Soldiers--Training
• Intrenchments
• Drill and minor tactics
• Military hygiene
• World War (1914-1918)
• Soldiers--Training of
• Soldiers--Billeting
• War diaries
• Battle casualties
• Military decorations
• War
• Military supplies
• Weather
• War casualties
• Military history
• Soldiers
• Soldiers--Health and hygiene
• Soldiers--Social conditions
• Canada. Canadian Army
• Fortification, Field

Language

• eng

Date created

• March 1, 1918 to March 31, 1918

Resource type

• Text

Rights statement

• No Copyright - Non-Commercial Use Only

Extent

• 16 pages ; 21 x 34 cm

Geographic Coverage

• France--Arras
• Western Front (World War (1914-1918))
• France--Bully-les-Mines
• France--Cité Saint-Pierre

Coordinates

• 50.2893, 2.7809
• 50.44194, 2.72444
• 50.4912, 2.74299

Additional physical characteristics

• The 1918 diaries are 12 months in one bundle with a blue cover and with sub-bundles inside. Most diary pages are handwritten on template pages made of lightweight vellum paper or heavier bond (rag?) paper; some are typewritten; some leaves are not on template pages, size varies.

Physical Repository

• University of Victoria (B.C.). Library

Collection

• Military History Collection

Provenance

• Transferred to UVic Special Collections and Archives from BC Archives, May 2006.

Provider

• University of Victoria (B.C.). Library

Genre

• diaries
• typescripts
• journals (accounts)
• manuscripts (documents)
• personal narratives

Archival item identifier

• Accession Number: 2006-011

Fonds title

• 16th Battalion (The Canadian Scottish) fonds

Fonds identifier

• SC338

Is referenced by

• Special Collections Finding Aid: https://uvic2.coppul.archivematica.org/16th-battalion-canadian-scottish-fonds

Date digitized

• March 2025

Technical note

• Scanned on Plustek Opticbook A-300 600 DPI tiffs (gamma 1.20, no color correction) by PD. Metadata by KD.

Rights

• Contact Special Collections and University Archives for access to the original. This material is made available on this site for research and private study only.

DOI

•  https://doi.org/10.58066/4wr5-ba85

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