Basic training was an important part of every soldier’s preparation for going overseas. It provided them with skills in whichever field they were involved in and gave a great deal of fitness training to new recruits. In Canada the Canadian Officers Training Corps was in charge of preparing recruits for their mission abroad as well as to life in the military.

The largest training camp in Canada was constructed in 1914 at Valcartier, Quebec. It was hurriedly built in two weeks to accommodate the influx of volunteers. Within two weeks plumbing had been installed, electricity was available, and drainage had been built. Only weeks after Canada joined the First World War, 32,000 men arrived at Valcartier Camp to receive training.

Although the camp was intended as a training center, most of the new soldiers time was spent getting organised. The overwhelming number of new recruits had to be sorted into groups which took up much of the time allotted for preparation. However much was done to get the men prepared for the battle they would join in only a few months’ time. The following is an actual list of the soldiers’ activities for training at the time just before the Vimy Ridege offensive:

The Schedule of daily training for Canadian Regiment

Bombers:

9-10 am -throwing of bombs
10-10:30 am -physical training
10:30-11:15 am -the use of smoke bombs
11:15 am-12 noon -bayonet fighting
2-3 pm -the clearing of a trench
3-4 pm -the defence of a trench with rifle grenades

Lewis Gunners:

9-10 am - drill and snapshooting
10-10:30 am - physical training
10:30-11:15 am - gun stoppages
11:15 am-12 noon - grenades
2-3 pm - gun drill
3-4 pm - care of gun

Rifle Grenadiers:

9-10 am - Mills rifle grenades
10-10:30 am - physical training
10:30-11:15 am - smoke bombs
11:15 am-12 noon - bayonet fighting
2-3 pm - throwing bombs
3-4 pm - trench defence by rifle grenades and bombs

Riflemen:

9-10 am - drill and snapshooting
10-10:30 am - physical training
10:30-11:15 am - smoke bombs
11:15 am-12 noon - clearing a trench
2-3 pm - physical training
3-4 pm - bayonet fighting

Scouts:

9-10 am - observation
10-12 noon - physical training
2-3 pm - lecture
3-4 pm - ceremonial drill with companies

Runners:

9-10 am - how to find north without a compass
10-10:30 am - physical training
10:30-11:30 am - sense of direction
11:15 am-12 noon - lecture
2-3:15 pm - ceremonial drill with companies

Sports were also used as a means of physical conditioning and fostering a “team attitude” in the soldiers. Tug-o-war was especially used for training in a way that was both fun and constructive. Teams from different divisions would battle each other in hard fought matches that brought the entire section together as a whole. Jack Turner caught the camaraderie and intensity of these tug-o-war matches in several of his photographs.