Digital Commons Network^™

Through The Eyes Of A Guard: Watson Kirkconnell And Great War Internment In Canada, Daniel R. Meister

Canadian Military History

Histories of internment in Canada have paid much attention to internees’ experiences but far less to those of the guards. Correcting this trend, this article offers a detailed case study of one soldier, Watson Kirkconnell, who worked at the Fort Henry and Kapuskasing internment camps. Drawing on his valuable but heretofore unutilised archive of material, this article provides a vivid social history of the camps through Kirkconnell’s eyes. Nuancing the historiography of wartime internment, this article demonstrates how commandants determined the experiences of both internees and guards alike and, at the same time, that staff could sometimes mitigate their superior’s …

The Fear Of Being Unknown: First World War Identification Discs In The Canadian War Museum’S Collection, Brittany Dunn

Canadian Military History

Abstract : The Canadian War Museum holds nearly 250 identification discs from Canadian soldiers and nurses of the First World War. Identification discs were objects of bureaucracy, designed to ensure accurate record keeping of the dead and their places of burial. But these discs were more than just an administrative tool, they represented the hopes and fears of soldiers and their loved ones—the hope of being identified in death and the fear of being one of the missing. Military authorities understood the importance of a known grave to soldiers and their families so burial policy evolved over the war to …

Review Of "Enduring Alliance: A History Of Nato And The Postwar Global Order" By Timothy Andrews Sayle, Jean-Michel Turcotte

Canadian Military History

Review of Enduring Alliance: A History of NATO and the Postwar Global Order by Timothy Andrews Sayle

Review Of "Atrocity On The Atlantic: Attack On A Canadian Hospital Ship During The Great War" By Nate Hendley And "Asleep In The Deep: Nursing Sister Anna Stamers And The First World War" By Dianne Kelly, Craig Leslie Mantle

Canadian Military History

Review of Atrocity on the Atlantic: Attack on a Canadian Hospital Ship During the Great War by Nate Hendley and Asleep in the Deep: Nursing Sister Anna Stamers and the First World War by Dianne Kelly

Review Of "The Hardest Battle: The Canadian Corps And The Arras 1918 Campaign" By William F. Stewart, David Borys

Canadian Military History

Review of The Hardest Battle: The Canadian Corps and the Arras 1918 Campaign by William F. Stewart

Review Of "Combat Stress In Pre-Modern Europe" Edited By Owen Rees, Kathryn Hurlock And Jason Crowley, Matthew Barrett

Canadian Military History

Review of Combat Stress in Pre-modern Europe edited by Owen Rees, Kathryn Hurlock and Jason Crowley

“We Are Now Getting A Canadian Occupation”: Liberators And The Liberated In The Nijmegen Salient, 1944-45, Eric Mcgeer

Canadian Military History

Liberation came at a high price to the already devastated city of Nijmegen during Operation Market Garden. It remained a frontline city for nearly seven months, during which time Nijmegen and the surrounding area came to be “occupied” by 1st Canadian Army. The presence of a friendly but foreign army was welcome but proved to be a mixed blessing as the local inhabitants sought to resume control of their lives in a time of shortages, suspension of normal morality and conflict between the Dutch themselves. The protracted stay of the Canadians after the war was frustrating for both the liberators …

The 2024 Defence Policy Update And Its Predecessors: Why The Caf Is In A “Death Spiral”, Allan English

Canadian Military History

In March 2024 the Minister of National Defence characterised the Canadian Armed Forces’ (CAF) inability to attract new members as a “death spiral” for the force. While the latest defence policy update, Our North, Strong and Free: A Renewed Vision for Canada’s Defence, recognises the seriousness of the CAF’s personnel crisis, it provides no concrete actions to solve it. However, this defence policy update is just the latest in a series of actions used by the CAF to manage perceptions of its personnel problems rather than addressing their root causes. This article examines the latest defence policy in the …

On National Defence: A Contemporary Evaluation Of The Canadian Armed Forces, Kyle Pritchard, Paul Esau

Canadian Military History

This article examines the contemporary history of the Department of National Defence (DND) and the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) from peacekeeping to the most recent update to Canadian defence policy, highlighting their historical roles and contemporary challenges. It discusses the evolving purpose of the CAF, which has shifted from conventional defence to supporting and reinforcing a western-led international order. It explores issues such as defence spending, procurement challenges, peacekeeping endeavors, veterans’ support, diversity and inclusion within the CAF. Moreover, it explores emerging threats in cyber, space and Arctic domains, including the rise of artificial intelligence threats, and emphasises the need …

Review Of “Part Of Life Itself: The War Diary Of Lieutenant Leslie H. Miller, Cef” Edited By Graham Broad, Gary Sheffield

Canadian Military History

Review of Part of Life Itself: The War Diary of Lieutenant Leslie H. Miller, CEF edited by Graham Broad.

Review Of “French Generals Of The Great War: Leading The Way” Edited By Jonathan Krause And William Philpott, Roy A. Prete

Canadian Military History

Review of French Generals of the Great War: Leading the Way edited by Jonathan Krause and William Philpott.

Review Of “Four Colour Combat: Canadian Forces In War Comics” By Cord A. Scott, Matthew Barrett

Canadian Military History

Review of Four Colour Combat: Canadian Forces in War Comics by Cord A. Scott

A Canadian Civil Affairs Officer In Italy: Lieutenant-Colonel H. S. Robinson, Provincial Commissioner For Brescia In 1945, Janet Sanders, Rolando Anni, Maria Paola Pasini

Canadian Military History

This article provides an overview of one Canadian Civil Affairs Officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Homer Smiley Robinson, and his contribution to the rebuilding of the province of Brescia in north Italy and its eponymous capital after liberation from Nazi occupation. Robinson, as Provincial Commissioner, led the Civil Affairs team from April to October 1945 as the first Canadian to be appointed to the position. Traditionally, Civil Affairs has been studied predominantly as a bureaucratic structure. The human element in terms of staff and stakeholders has been almost entirely neglected. It is hoped that this account of a soldier-turned-governor will prove to be …

Preaching Peace, Selling Arms: The Evolution Of Canadian Military Export Policy, 1946-49, Paul Esau

Canadian Military History

Recent sales of Canadian military equipment to Saudi Arabia have highlighted a contradiction between Canadian military export policy on paper and in practice. This contradiction is rooted in a series of policy decision made between 1946 and 1949, just after the Second World War. During this period Canadian policymakers accepted that military exports were economically and strategically necessary, and become an opportunistic exporter of military equipment to the non-communist world. The military export policies adopted during these years were flexible, pragmatic, and reactive; they incentivised risk-aversion and commercial competitiveness, but not internally consistency. Consequently, the defining principle of Canadian military …

From Zombie To Martyr: The Short Military Service Of Private Hector Sylvestre, Paul Marsden

Canadian Military History

This article outlines the brief military service of Private Hector Sylvestre, a young Franco-Ontarien paratrooper executed by the SS. His career began as a conscript in the Active Army, serving nine months prior to enlisting in the Canadian Active Service Force. From this point forward he made a series of fateful decisions, which ultimately led to his death as a member of the French Resistance. His path from Zombie to “martyr” is unique for a Canadian soldier during the Second World War.

The Vernon Military Camp And The Imperial Training Archipelago, 1939-45, Megan Hamilton

Canadian Military History

The Vernon Military Camp was one of the many interwoven institutions that fed trained soldiers into the vast armies of the British Empire in the Second World War. Beginning the war as a barren hill that lacked modern equipment, it was eventually developed into a professional training centre that both served and benefitted from national, Imperial and Allied war efforts. Taking a ground-level view of Canadian Army training and inter-theatre learning, this article argues that army training camps, even those in the periphery, played a vital role in strengthening Imperial and Allied interoperability by facilitating knowledge transfer away from active …

Review Of "Armies In Retreat: Chaos, Cohesion And Consequences" Edited By Timothy G. Heck And Walker D. Mills, Jake Gasson

Canadian Military History

Review of Armies in Retreat: Chaos, Cohesion and Consequences edited by Timothy G. Heck and Walker D. Mills

Review Of "The North Star: Canada And The Civil War Plots Against Lincoln" By Julian Sher, Tim Cook

Canadian Military History

Review of The North Star: Canada and the Civil War Plots against Lincoln by Julian Sher

Review Of "Pulp Vietnam: War And Gender In Cold War Men’S Adventure Magazines" By Gregory A. Daddis, Matthew Barrett

Canadian Military History

Review of Pulp Vietnam: War and Gender in Cold War Men’s Adventure Magazines by Gregory A. Daddis

“It Is Always Tomorrow In Korea”: The Letters And Photographic Record Of Major Brian Meredith, 1950-1951, Andrew Burtch, Sarah L. Hart

Canadian Military History

This article sheds light on the important textual and photographic archives of Major Roderick Brian Meredith who was present for key events in the early phases of the Korean War. As an eyewitness during this pivotal period, his letters, broadcasts, and photographic diary offer contemporary interpretations of the war, the mission of the United Nations in Korea, and above all the plight of Korean citizens caught in the crossfire of the first hot war of the Cold War. The authors then describe what sets the Meredith collection apart from other photograph albums held at the Museum, and the recent efforts …

A Documentary History Of The Badge Of The Canadian Army, Brittany Dunn

Canadian Military History

The general badge of the Canadian Army has undergone a number of changes over the years in response to changes in the status of the land forces of Canada. The most significant of these changes was the disestablishment of the Army as an independent service with unification in 1968. An impressive amount of documentation records the decisions taken with respect to the badge of Mobile Command, a design unlike its predecessor, which had been based on that of the British Army. The demise of Mobile Command saw a return to patterns based on the original design with crossed swords.

Operational Research And Counter-Battery Fires In The Canadian Corps, 1917-18, Brendan Hogan

Canadian Military History

This article examines the operational research conducted by the counter-battery staff office (CBO) in the headquarters of the Canadian Corps during the First World War. It challenges the argument presented by most historians of operational research, who contend that the discipline originated with the 1935 Tizard Committee and came to fruition during the Second World War and expands upon the initial inquiry performed by scholars J.S. Finan and W.J. Hurley in a 1997 journal article. While the staff of the CBO never used the term “operational research” to describe their scientific studies, they were undoubtedly its practitioners through their innovating, …

Review Of "Prisoners Of War And Local Women In Europe And The United States, 1914–1956. Consorting With The Enemy" Edited By Matthias Reiss And Brian K. Feltman, Jean-Michel Turcotte

Canadian Military History

Review of Prisoners of War and Local Women in Europe and the United States, 1914–1956. Consorting with the Enemy edited by Matthias Reiss and Brian K. Feltman

Review Of "War Memories: Commemoration, Recollections And Writings On War" Edited By Stephanie A.H. Bélanger And Renée Dickason, Bradley Shoebottom

Canadian Military History

Review of War Memories: Commemoration, Recollections and Writings on War edited by Stephanie A.H. Bélanger and Renée Dickason

Review Of "The Facemaker: A Visionary Surgeon’S Battle To Mend The Disfigured Soldiers Of World War I" By Lindsey Fitzharris, Teresa Iacobelli

Canadian Military History

Review of The Facemaker: A Visionary Surgeon’s Battle to Mend the Disfigured Soldiers of World War I by Lindsey Fitzharris

Review Of "The Forgotten Front: The Eastern Theater Of World War I, 1914-1915" Edited By Gerhard P. Gross, Benjamin Hughes

Canadian Military History

Review of The Forgotten Front: The Eastern Theater of World War I, 1914-1915 edited by Gerhard P. Gross

Canada’S Most Decisive Victory: An Analysis Of Canada’S Role In The Hundred Days Offensive, 8 August - 11 November 1918, Ryan Goldsworthy, J.L. Granatstein

Canadian Military History

Of Canada’s long military history, Vimy is the one battle that most Canadians will know. Some will be familiar with Passchendaele, D-Day or the disasters at Hong Kong and Dieppe. Canadians should know the Hundred Days because the battles that constitute that offensive were almost certainly the most important victories ever won by Canadian soldiers. This article analyses the various reasons for the stunning Canadian successes of that war-winning offensive: chiefly the Canadian experience and doctrine; the state of the enemy and the Allies; artillery and counter-battery fire (the most important tactical arm); and logistics and administration. Ultimately, as the …

Bearing Witness To Sacrifice: Death, Grief And Memorialisation In The Collections Of The Canadian War Museum, Teresa Iacobelli

Canadian Military History

This article presents a selection of artworks, archival material and artifacts from the Canadian War Museum (CWM) that illuminate how Canadians—soldiers and civilians— have experienced and endured war. By focusing on the themes of death, grief and memorialisation, these items convey how Canadians have borne the sacrifice of war, and the way in which those losses have been memorialised in ways both public and private.

Cet article présente une sélection d’oeuvres d’art, de documents d’archives et d’artefacts du Musée canadien de la guerre (MCG) qui illustrent la façon dont les Canadiens – soldates et civils – ont vécu et enduré …

Indigenous Veterans Of The First World War And Their Families In The Prairie West, William John Pratt

Canadian Military History

This study of forty-five military pension files of Indigenous First World War veterans of the Treaty 4, 6 and 7 regions shows that the racist perspectives and structures of settler colonialism on the Prairies could prevent just administration of benefits. Pension files of Indigenous veterans expose the tragedy of their lives during and after the First World War. Many soldiers had lingering pains and ailments as a result of the war, as well as continuing problems shaking the gaze of settler colonialism, which seemed unable to view them as both Indigenous and veterans. Despite the numerous legal and cultural obstacles …

Review Of "The Secret History Of Rdx: The Super-Explosive That Helped Win World War Ii" By Colin F. Baxter, Alex Souchen

Canadian Military History

Review of The Secret History of RDX: The Super-Explosive that Helped Win World War II by Colin F. Baxter