Canada’s Involvement During World War TwoA Brief Introduction

Canada’s Initial Role

• Canadian Prime Minister MacKenzie King was “Isolationist”.

• He didn’t want Canada to get involved in the wars of Europe during the late 1930s

Franco and Mussolini

• Mussolini invaded Abyssinia (Ethopia) in 1935.

• The League of Nations wanted to impose sanctions but King said “no!”

• The Spanish Civil War erupted in 1936-39. Canada’s policy was not to stand up to either one of these Fascist dictators (Franco, Mussolini)

Bunito Mussolini

Franciso Franco

Norman Bethune

• Dr. Norman Bethune did get involved in the Spanish Civil War to “stop the fascists of Franco”.

• He aided the Communists in this war and would later become famous for inventing blood transfusions.

Famous Canadian Doctor, Dr. NormanBethune did get involved

The Invasion of Poland

• On Sept 1st, 1939, the German Army invades Poland.

• On Sept 3rd, France and Britain declare war on Germany

• Canada declares war one week later on Sept. 10th, 1939. Why?

The Blitz over Poland in 1939

German Troops march intoWarsaw, Poland

The Axis and the Allies

The Allies• Great Britain

(Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa too)

• France• Canada• Russia• The United States

(After 1941

British Prime Minister Winston Churchill,American President Franklin D. Roosevelt,And Russian President Joseph Stalin

The Axis and the Allies

The Axis Powers:

• Germany

• Italy

• Japan

Italian Leader Mussolini withGerman leader Adolf Hitler

The Battle of Hong Kong

• After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbour, they attacked Hong Kong (A British Colony)

• Many knew that Hong Kong was impossible to defend.

• More than 1,900 Canadians volunteered to defend Hong Kong. They were considered to be “Lambs to the Slaughter”

• More than 550 Canadians were killed. The rest were taken prisoner by the Japanese.

The Canadians defend Hong Kong in 1941

Dieppe

• Of the 5,000 Canadians who stormed the beaches at Dieppe, France:

• 900 Killed, 3,300 casualties

• 1,900 soldiers were taken prisoner.

• In a word, Dieppe was a disaster Churchill Tank never made

It off the beach

Dieppe

The steep cliffs and Beach at Dieppe, France

Dieppe

The Planned invasion of Dieppe

Dieppe

• Why was Dieppe a Disaster?

• Was there anything gained from this military disaster?

• Did Dieppe make D-Day a success?

The Italian Campaign

Canadian Forces Landed with AmericanAnd British Forces at Sicily and movedNorthward towards Ortona, Italy

The Battle of Ortona• In 1943, American,

Canadian and British forces landed on the Italian Island of Sicily.

• Canadian Troops moved North eventually making it to Italian city of Ortona where they met heavy German resistance.

• The Canadians fought well at Ortona. However, it was at a great cost:

• 502 dead and 1,873 wounded.

• In Italy, 6,000 Canadians died

The Battle of Ortona

Street Warfare: Typical“Guerilla” type battleConditions during theBattle of Ortona

D-Day

• D-Day was launched on June 6th, 1944

• 5,000 ships crossed the English Channel

• 107,000 troops stormed the beaches at Normandy, France.

• 14,000 Canadian troops landed at Normandy at Juno Beach.

• 110 Canadian warships took part

Troops Landing at Normandy, France

D-Day

D-Day

• Canadian Troops were the left flank of the coordinated Allied attack at Normandy.

• After securing the beachhead, Canadian troops advanced eastward and were eventually successful in liberating Holland in the Spring of 1945.

• Canadian war veterans are still honored in Holland for the essential role they played in the liberation of their country

Landing at D-Day

Canada’s Commitment: The Facts

• Over 1 Million Canadians served in World War Two

• 45,000 Canadians were killed

• 55,000 were seriously wounded