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The 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company was one of the tunnelling companies of the
Canadian Military Engineers The Canadian Military Engineers (CME; french: links=no, Génie militaire canadien) is the military engineering personnel branch of the Canadian Armed Forces. The members of the branch that wear army uniform comprise the Corps of Royal Canadian Eng ...
during
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
. The tunnelling units were occupied in offensive and defensive mining involving the placing and maintaining of mines under enemy lines, as well as other underground work such as the construction of deep dugouts for troop accommodation, the digging of subways, saps (a narrow trench dug to approach enemy trenches), cable trenches and underground chambers for signals and medical services.The Tunnelling Companies RE
, access date 25 April 2015


Background

By January 1915 it had become evident to the BEF at the Western Front that the Germans were
mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic ...
to a planned system. As the British had failed to develop suitable counter-tactics or underground listening devices before the war, field marshals French and
Kitchener Kitchener may refer to: People * Earl Kitchener, a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom ** Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener (1850–1916), British Field Marshal and 1st Earl Kitchener ** Henry Kitchener, 2nd Earl Kitchener (1846–1937) ...
agreed to investigate the suitability of forming British mining units. Following consultations between the Engineer-in-Chief of the BEF, Brigadier George Fowke, and the mining specialist John Norton-Griffiths, the
War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), Ministry of Defence (MoD ...
formally approved the tunnelling company scheme on 19 February 1915. Norton-Griffiths ensured that tunnelling companies numbers 170 to 177 were ready for deployment in mid-February 1915. In the spring of that year, there was constant underground fighting in the
Ypres Salient The Ypres Salient around Ypres in Belgium was the scene of several battles and an extremely important part of the Western front during the First World War. Ypres district Ypres lies at the junction of the Ypres–Comines Canal and the Ieperlee. ...
at Hooge, Hill 60, Railway Wood,
Sanctuary Wood Sanctuary Wood is an area east of Ypres, Belgium which was the site of fighting on the Ypres Salient in World War I. Memorials * Hill 62 Memorial * Sanctuary Wood Commonwealth War Graves Commission Cemetery * Sanctuary Wood Museum Hill 62 See al ...
, St Eloi and The Bluff which required the deployment of new drafts of tunnellers for several months after the formation of the first eight companies. The lack of suitably experienced men led to some tunnelling companies starting work later than others. The number of units available to the BEF was also restricted by the need to provide effective counter-measures to the German mining activities.Peter Barton/Peter Doyle/Johan Vandewalle, Beneath Flanders Fields - The Tunnellers' War 1914-1918, Staplehurst (Spellmount) (978-1862272378) p. 165. To make the tunnels safer and quicker to deploy, the British Army enlisted experienced coal miners, many outside their nominal recruitment policy. The first nine companies, numbers 170 to 178, were each commanded by a regular Royal Engineers officer. These companies each comprised 5 officers and 269 sappers; they were aided by additional infantrymen who were temporarily attached to the tunnellers as required, which almost doubled their numbers. The success of the first tunnelling companies formed under Norton-Griffiths' command led to mining being made a separate branch of the Engineer-in-Chief's office under Major-General S.R. Rice, and the appointment of an 'Inspector of Mines' at the GHQ
Saint-Omer Saint-Omer (; vls, Sint-Omaars) is a commune and sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department in France. It is west-northwest of Lille on the railway to Calais, and is located in the Artois province. The town is named after Saint Audomar, ...
office of the Engineer-in-Chief. A second group of tunnelling companies were formed from
Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...
miners from the 1st and 3rd Battalions of the
Monmouthshire Regiment The Monmouthshire Regiment was a Territorial infantry regiment of the British Army. Originating in units of rifle volunteers formed in Monmouthshire in 1859, the regiment served in the Second Anglo-Boer War and both World War I and World War ...
, who were attached to the 1st Northumberland Field Company of the Royal Engineers, which was a
Territorial A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or an ...
unit. The formation of twelve new tunnelling companies, between July and October 1915, helped to bring more men into action in other parts of the Western Front. Most British tunnelling companies were formed under Norton-Griffiths' leadership during 1915, and one more was added in 1916. On 10 September 1915, the British government sent an appeal to
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...
,
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...
, Australia and
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...
to raise tunnelling companies in the
Dominion The term ''Dominion'' is used to refer to one of several self-governing nations of the British Empire. "Dominion status" was first accorded to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Newfoundland, South Africa, and the Irish Free State at the 1926 ...
s of the
British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading post ...
. On 17 September, New Zealand became the first Dominion to agree the formation of a tunnelling unit. The
New Zealand Tunnelling Company The New Zealand Tunnelling Company (also ''New Zealand Engineers Tunnelling Company'') was a tunnel warfare unit of the Royal New Zealand Engineers during World War I which specialised in sapping and mining. The tunnelling companies were occupi ...
arrived at
Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymout ...
on 3 February 1916 and was deployed to the Western Front in northern France.Anthony Byledbal, "New Zealand Tunnelling Company: Chronology"
online
), access date 5 July 2015
The
Canadian Military Engineers The Canadian Military Engineers (CME; french: links=no, Génie militaire canadien) is the military engineering personnel branch of the Canadian Armed Forces. The members of the branch that wear army uniform comprise the Corps of Royal Canadian Eng ...
contributed three tunnelling companies to the British Expeditionary Force. One unit was formed from men on the battlefield, plus two other companies trained in Canada and then shipped to France. Three
Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal ...
tunnelling companies were formed by March 1916, resulting in 30 tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers being available by the summer of 1916.


Unit history

3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company was established at St Marie Cappel in January 1916 when the original Canadian mining sections operating as part of
1st First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
and
2nd Canadian Division The 2nd Canadian Division (2 Cdn Div; french: 2e Division du Canada) is a formation of the Canadian Army in the province of Quebec, Canada. The present command was created 2013 when Land Force Quebec Area was re-designated. The main unit housed ...
were withdrawn from their positions south of Ypres, and were reformed into this new company.


Messines 1916/17

As part of the preparations for the Battle of Messines, the 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company began work at
Spanbroekmolen Spanbroekmolen is a small group of farms in Heuvelland, a municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The hamlet is sited on one of the highest points of the Messines Ridge, in between the villages of Kemmel, Wijtschate and Wul ...
and other places facing the Messines ridge. These activities formed part of the mines that were dug by the British 171st, 175th, 250th, 1st Canadian, 3rd Canadian and 1st Australian Tunnelling companies as part of the prelude to the Battle of Messines (7–14 June 1917), while the British 183rd, 2nd Canadian and 2nd Australian Tunnelling companies built deep dugouts (underground shelters) in the Second Army area. In January 1916, 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company took over work on the
Spanbroekmolen Spanbroekmolen is a small group of farms in Heuvelland, a municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The hamlet is sited on one of the highest points of the Messines Ridge, in between the villages of Kemmel, Wijtschate and Wul ...
mine from the 250th Tunnelling Company which had already dug a shaft there, and handed Spanbroekmolen over to the
171st Tunnelling Company The 171st Tunnelling Company was one of the tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers created by the British Army during World War I. The tunnelling units were occupied in offensive and defensive mining involving the placing and maintaining of ...
in April 1916. By the end of January 1916, 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company also took over digging deep mines at Kruisstraat from 182nd Tunnelling Company. In April 1916, work at Kruisstraat was passed on to
175th Tunnelling Company The 175th Tunnelling Company was one of the tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers created by the British Army during World War I. The tunnelling units were occupied in offensive and defensive mining involving the placing and maintaining of ...
. 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company worked at The Bluff in early 1916 and Hill 60 during summer 1916. Deep mining under the German galleries beneath Hill 60 had begun in late August 1915 with the
175th Tunnelling Company The 175th Tunnelling Company was one of the tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers created by the British Army during World War I. The tunnelling units were occupied in offensive and defensive mining involving the placing and maintaining of ...
which had started a gallery behind the British front line and passed beneath the German positions. The British underground works consisted of an access gallery (nicknamed ''Berlin Tunnel'') leading to two mine chambers called ''Hill 60 A'' (beneath Hill 60) and ''Hill 60 B'' (beneath The Caterpillar). The 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company took over in April 1916 and completed the galleries, ''Hill 60 A'' being charged with explosives in July 1916 and the ''Hill 60 B'' branch gallery in October. By October 1916, ''Hill 60 A'' had been charged with of explosives and ''Hill 60 B'' with of high explosive, despite water-logging and the demolition by a
camouflet A camouflet, in military science, is an artificial cavern created by an explosion. If the explosion reaches the surface then it is called a crater. The term was originally defined as a countermine dug by defenders to prevent the undermining of ...
of of German gallery above the British diggings, which endangered the British deep mines. 1st Australian Tunnelling Company took over in November 1916 and maintained the completed mines beneath Hill 60 and The Caterpillar over the winter and months of underground fighting until June 1917, when they were fired at the beginning of the Battle of Messines. 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company meanwhile took over the tunnelling operations at the southern end of the Messines ridge, continuing work already begun on the forked tunnels at '' Trench 127'', ''Trench 122'' (''Ultimo'' and ''Factory Farm'') and ''Birdcage'' close to Ploegsteert Wood. Although it was eventually decided not to detonate the mines at the ''Birdcage'' position, the 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company successfully ignited their other mines at the appointed time. When the mines at Messines were detonated on 7 June 1917, they created craters.


Spring Offensive

After the German spring offensive in April 1918, when the enemy broke through the Lys positions, the 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company were put on duties that included digging and wiring trenches over a long distance from
Reningelst Reningelst is a rural village in the Belgian province of West Flanders, and a "deelgemeente" of the municipality Poperinge. The village has about 1405 inhabitants. The deelgemeente of De Klijte used to be a part of Reningelst (then independen ...
to near
Saint-Omer Saint-Omer (; vls, Sint-Omaars) is a commune and sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department in France. It is west-northwest of Lille on the railway to Calais, and is located in the Artois province. The town is named after Saint Audomar, ...
. The operation to construct these fortifications between Reningelst and Saint-Omer was carried out jointly by the British 171st, 173rd, 183rd, 184th, 255th, 258th, 3rd Canadian and 3rd Australian Tunnelling Companies.


Armistice

After the Armistice, the 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company repaired the town waterworks at Roubaix.


See also

* Mine warfare


Notes

An overview of the history of 3rd Canadian Tunnelling Company is also available in Robert K. Johns, ''Battle Beneath the Trenches: The Cornish Miners of 251 Tunnelling Company RE'', Pen & Sword Military 2015 (), p. 23
see online


References

* * *


Further reading

* * * *{{cite book, editor-last=Stockwin , editor-first=Arthur, title=Thirty-odd Feet Below Belgium: An Affair of Letters in the Great War 1915–1916 , publisher= Parapress, location=Tunbridge Wells, year=2005, isbn=978-1-89859-480-2 , url= https://books.google.com/books?id=2aFqTxWh5hQC&dq=Railway+Wood+boothby&pg=PA123


External links


Guide to sources relating to units of the Canadian Expeditionary Force: Tunnelling Companies and Canadian Engineers
Tunnelling companies of the Royal Engineers Tunnel warfare in World War I