Editing Battle of Vimy Ridge (section)

===German defences===

[[File:GermanDispositionsatVimy9April1917.jpg|thumb|German dispositions at Vimy Ridge on the first day of the battle{{imagefact|date=December 2022}}]]
The experience of the [[Battle of the Somme]] led the German command to conclude that the policy of rigidly defending a trench position was no longer effective against the firepower that the Entente armies had accumulated.{{sfn|Nicholson|1962|p=239}} Ludendorff published a new defensive doctrine in December 1916, in which deeper defences were to be built, within which the garrison would have room to manoeuvre, rather than rigidly holding successive lines of trenches.{{sfn|Nicholson|1962|p=240}} Along Vimy Ridge, the German forces had spent two years constructing fortifications designed for rigid defence. An extensive network of tunnels and trenches south of Neuville St Vaast was known as "The Labyrinth". Little reconstruction based upon the new [[defence-in-depth]] doctrine had been accomplished by April 1917 because the terrain made it impractical.{{sfn|Wynne|1976|pp=170–171}}

The ridge was {{cvt|700|m}} across at its narrowest point, with a steep drop on the eastern side, all but eliminating the possibility of counterattacks if the ridge was captured.{{sfn|Turner|2005|p=29}}{{sfn|Sheldon|2008|pp=ix, 252}} The Germans were apprehensive about the inherent weakness of the Vimy Ridge defences. Their defensive scheme was to maintain a front line defence of sufficient strength to withstand an initial assault and move operational reserves forward, before the enemy could consolidate their gains or overrun the remaining German positions. The German defence at Vimy Ridge relied largely on the firepower of machine guns.{{sfn|Sheldon|2008|p=252}}

Three divisions, comprising seven infantry regiments were responsible for the immediate defence of the ridge.{{sfn|Godefroy|2007b|p=229}} The paper strength of each division was approximately 15,000 men but their actual strength was significantly lower. In 1917, a full-strength German rifle company was 264 men; at Vimy Ridge, each rifle company contained approximately 150 men.{{sfn|Turner|2005|pp=20–22}} Each German regiment held a zone approximately {{cvt|1000|m|order=flip}} wide, as far back as the rear area. When the Canadian Corps attacked, each German company faced two or more battalions of approximately 1,000 men each.{{sfn|Turner|2005|p=22}} Reserve divisions were kept about {{cvt|15|mi}} back instead of assembling close behind the second line according to the defence-in-depth theory.{{sfn|Nicholson|1962|p=267}}