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First Canadian Division
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First Canadian Division

Canadian military unit
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The First Canadian Division was established in October 1914 with an initial contingent of 33,000 troops. This division saw its first major action in April 1915 during the Second Battle of Ypres in Belgium, where German forces first employed poison gas. As more volunteers joined, Canada expanded its military force. By the spring of 1917, four Canadian divisions formed the Canadian Corps, with a fifth division in Britain. The corps fought together for the first time in April 1917, notably capturing Vimy Ridge in France. A military division is typically the smallest formation capable of independent operations, usually comprising 12,000 to 20,000 soldiers.12

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3 Britannica Sources
  1. division
  2. Canada - World War I
  3. Canada - Multilateral commitments

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