Arts and Humanities Commons^™

“In The Eye Of The Storm”: A Recollection Of Three Days In The Falaise Gap, 19–21 August 1944, Arthur Bridge

Canadian Military History

These are the memoirs of a Canadian infantryman who was involved in, and survived, the battle of the Falaise Gap, the final phase of the Normandy Campaign, in August 1944. He was a rifleman of 14 Platoon, “C” Company, the Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders of Canada. In the author’s own words this account, “is not intended to represent me as being heroic. Far from it. I was terrified most of the time in battle, and eventually ended up a couple of months after St. Lambert as a battle exhaustion casualty. There’s nothing heroic about that. It just happened that I …

Canada And The Korean War: Fifty Years On, Denis Stairs

Canadian Military History

In September 1998, the Canadian War Museum initiated a visiting speaker series to make available to the general public the latest research, debate and opinion on Canadian and international military history. Like the Museum’s highly popular film series, the talks were usually held on week nights and carried no admission fee. They have proven highly successful, both with Museum visitors and invited speakers. The latter have included eminent Canadian historians like Terry Copp, David Bercuson and Bill McAndrew, and international scholars like John Keegan, Paul Gough, and Christopher Pugsley. In the autumn of 2000, the Museum will welcome world-renowned First …

“Necessary Stepping Stones”: The Transfer Of Aurora, Patriot, And Patrician To The Royal Canadian Navy After The First World War, William Schleihauf

Canadian Military History

Canadians seem to have difficulty in understanding the importance of naval forces in the defence of their nation. Twice in the early years Canada took the first steps towards the creation of a useful fleet, but then lost interest. The acquisition of Niobe and Rainbow for training the nascent Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) in 1910 was a good beginning, but even before the First World War broke out in 1914, the government’s priorities changed. A second, more promising start was made immediately after the end of hostilities. In the spring of 1919, hesitant discussions began which led to the commissioning …

Bypassing The Chain Of Command: The Political Origins Of The Rcn’S Equipment Crisis Of 1943, Richard Oliver Mayne

Canadian Military History

At the behest of Angus L. Macdonald, the Minister of National Defence for Naval Services, John Joseph Connolly conducted a secret investigation in October 1943 into the state of equipment on Canadian warships. Connolly, who was Macdonald’s executive assistant, traveled to St. John’s, Londonderry and London where he discovered that the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) was far behind its allies in the modernization of its escort fleet. Canadian ships lacked gyroscopic compasses, hedgehog, effective radar and asdic, as well as other technical gear that was essential in the Battle of the Atlantic. These deficiencies should not have come as a …

Minefield: The Mining Of Hms Achates, 25 July 1941, Ronald Weyman

Canadian Military History

No abstract provided.

Soldier, Pow, Partisan: My Experiences During The Battle Of France, June–September 1944, Don Learment

Canadian Military History

The invasion of Festung Europa has been called many things, among them, die greatest military feat in history, the liberation of Europe’s downtrodden millions, and many other such high and mighty sounding phrases. But to those of us who were to take part in this operation the mouthings of the country’s great meant little. Truly we were impressed by the magnitude of the coming battle, but its true meaning to us who had waited so long was simply “action.”

Canvas Of War: Masterpieces From The Canadian War Museum, 1914–1918 And 1939–1945, Duncan Mcdowall

Canadian Military History

No abstract provided.

Snapshots From The South African War: The F.C. Cantrill Photograph Collection At The Canadian War Museum, Brendan Mccoy

Canadian Military History

The Canadian War Museum’s (CWM’s) Photographic Archives contains over 600 photograph collections or fonds. These include over 17,000 individual photographs, some with their original negatives, and more than 250 photo albums. This collection has been acquired from private sources, with the photographs for the most part representing the personal documentation of Canada’s military history by the participants. These have been brought together as part of the CWM’s mandate to collect, preserve and make available for research and exhibition the artifacts of the Canadian military experience. The collection of Frederick Charles Cantrill who served in the South African Constabulary from 1901 …

From Enlistment To The Grave: The Impact Of The First World War On 52 Canadian Soldiers, Mike Wert

Canadian Military History

Because they have clearly demarcated beginnings and endings, wars tend to be studied in isolation. Studies are made of the events leading up to wars, the wars themselves, and their aftermaths as though each could be easily pigeon-holed. The majority of work done on the First World War, for example, has concerned itself solely with the events of 1914-1918, as though the war ended with the Armistice. What this approach forgets is that wars exact a profound and lasting influence on those who live through them. For many—and in particular for many veterans—the Great War did not end with the …

The Royal City At War: The Military Mobilization Of Guelph, Ontario During The First 18 Months Of The Second World War, Jason R.H. Braida

Canadian Military History

The story of a country at war can be told at various levels. Traditional histories speak of generals and statesmen, of decisions made in cabinet rooms, war rooms, and dimly-lit clubs. Others choose to concentrate upon particular instances or groups, such as the impact of the war upon women, a particular military unit, or even a specific family. This article seeks to combine those two traditions by examining the manner in which international events and political decisions made at the national level affected the way in which the nation’s military mobilization was carried out in one particular Canadian community.

Recipe For Victory: The Fight For Hill 677 During The Battle Of The Kap’Yong River, 24-25 April 1951, Brent Watson

Canadian Military History

During the night of 24–25 April 1951, the Second Battalion, Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry fought what became the most famous Canadian battle of the Korean War. Outnumbered and isolated, the Princess Pats repulsed wave after wave of attacking Chinese infantry from their positions atop Hill 677 overlooking the Kap’yong River Valley. Although a comparatively minor episode in the broader context of the Korean War, Canadian retention of Hill 677 made an important contribution to the Commonwealth victory at Kap’yong. More significantly, the fight for Hill 677 was clearly the most successful set-piece engagement fought by the Canadians in Korea. …

The 1999 Vimy Award: Acceptance Address By Ltd. General Charles Belzille, Charles Belzille

Canadian Military History

No abstract provided.

Bed And Breakfast: A Canadian Airman Reflects On The Food And Quarters During The Second World War, Bill Mcrae

Canadian Military History

Hollywood’s stereotyped version of an RAF fighter pilot—lounging about in a comfortable leather chair with a pint in one hand and Punch in the other—is not quite as I remember it. But what were “typical“ conditions? Using my log book and wartime letters as references, with war art to serve as illustrations, this is how I recollect RAF/RCAF living conditions during the Second World War.

Army Supplies In The Forward Area And The Tumpline System: A First World War Canadian Logistical Innovation, F.R. Phelan

Canadian Military History

Editor’s Note: In British Logistics on the Western Front, 1914–1919 (Praeger, 1998), Ian M. Brown documents the problems of maintaining an army in the field; throughout that war, supply lines were strained to get food, equipment and ammunition forward. Early problems of adequate supplies were replaced by an inability to get the items from depots to where they were required. Some of these latter problems were blamed on “establishments” and other force-structure problems caused by stripping logistical-support units to meet the manpower needs of the fighting units. The decision to dramatically reduce the size of the BEF divisions in France …

James Peters, Military Photography And The Northwest Campaign, 1885, Owen Cooke

Canadian Military History

In June 1884, the noted buffalo hunter Gabriel Dumont led a delegation of Métis from the Batoche settlement, in what is now Saskatchewan, to Montana in the United States to search out Louis Riel. He hoped to persuade Riel to lead them as he had in 1869–70 in their demands for the Canadian government to recognize their land claims and other grievances. Riel reluctantly returned to Canada. The situation worsened until March 1885, when a skirmish between Métis and North West Mounted Police at Duck Lake, near Prince Albert, cost seventeen dead on both sides. The government feared a general …

“The Boys Of Summer”: A Personal Account Of The Canadian Berlin Battalion, June–July 1945, Kurt Loeb

Canadian Military History

No abstract provided.

1st Canadian Parachute Battalion In The Ardennes: A Personal Account, 23 December 1944 To 26 February 1945, R.F. Anderson

Canadian Military History

No abstract provided.

Canada’S Peacekeepers Remember, Murray Johnston

Canadian Military History

Stopping wars, keeping them from restarting, and observing the implementation of cease-fires—various shades of “peacekeeping”—have always been dangerous work. It has become particularly so over the past decade as peacekeepers increasingly find themselves in high intensity, near-war situations. No longer are belligerents constrained by world power blocs as they were before the end of the Cold War.

This is reflected in the list of the 107 Canadian soldiers who have been killed worldwide since 1950 while serving as peacekeepers, including 22 killed since 1992. The Peacekeeping Memorial in Ottawa reflects Canada’s tribute to this sacrifice and the nation’s pride in …

A Nightmare Revisited: The Resotration Of The Canadian War Museum’S 8.8 Cm Flak Gun, Michael H. Miller

Canadian Military History

The German 8.8 cm Flugabwehrkanone (flak) gun is one of the most famous weapons of the Second World War. It was greatly feared by Allied soldiers and airmen alike. Just as every tank they encountered was a Tiger, so too was every German gun an “88.” In December 1998, the Canadian War Museum set out to restore the 88 in the museum’s collection and return to public view one of the few such artifacts in Canada. The museum’s gun was in extremely poor condition, and needed major work. Its components had been disassembled before it had come to the museum …

“A Question Of Relevance”: The Establishment Of A Canadian Parachute Capability, 1942–1945, Bernd Horn

Canadian Military History

“The great trouble with starting anything new,” argued Brigadier-General William Mitchell, “is to break away from the conservative policy of those who have gone before.” His observation was born from his own experience as a result of the inertia which existed in the interwar years. Not surprisingly, Canada did little during this period to ensure that it was capable of participating in a modern war. The vacuum of peace was insufficient to overcome the vacillation of military and political decision makers. It was only the stunning German victories of 1939–1940, which provided the catalyst for change and a template of …

The Burlington Races Revisited: A Revised Analysis Of An 1813 Naval Battle For Supremacy On Lake Ontario, Robert J. Williamson

Canadian Military History

From the safety of the Lake Ontario shore near Burlington, military and civilian observers witnessed the jockeying for position for many sailing vessels during the afternoon of Tuesday, September 28, 1813. They likened the event to a yacht race. Thus, a pivotal naval engagement that would determine the outcome of the War of 1812 was facetiously labelled, "The Burlington Races." The facts of this important piece of Canadiana, have, like so many significant historical events, been cloaked by myth and misconception until recently. The discovery in the US National Archives of the log of the British flagship of the Lake …

D-Day At Bernieres-Sur-Mer: The 5th Bn, Royal Berkshire Regiment, Gordon Blight

Canadian Military History

Editor’s Note: Canadian visitors to Bernieres-sur-Mer are frequently puzzled by the name of the main street leading from the beach to the village church. The signs reach “Rue Royal Berkshire Regiment.” Who were the Berkshires and why such prominence in a Canadian landing area? C.P. Stacey’s official history has no listing for the regiment. Copp and Vogel ignore them in Maple Leaf Route: Caen as does Reg Roy in 1944: The Canadians in Normandy.

The British official history is almost as silent except for a single chart on “Initial Beach Organisation” which lists “8 Kings and 5 R Berks” …

Bombs Away: The First Mission On A Coastal Command Liberator, D. Joseph Matthews

Canadian Military History

No abstract provided.

The End Of Hmcs St. Croix, William Fisher

Canadian Military History

The following story tells of the end of HMCS St. Croix and HMS Itchen. It was written by the sole survivor of St. Croix, a stoker. The story which follows originally appeared in the Royal Canadian Navy Monthly Review in August 1944. It is printed without embellishments or alterations.

The Gardeners Of Vimy: Canadian Corps’ Farming Operations During The German Offensives Of 1918, S.F. Wise

Canadian Military History

“The Gardeners of Salonika” was Georges Clemenceau’s jibe at the French and British divisions tied down in entrenchments round the Greek port for a good part of the First World War, because all they seemed to do was dig, rather than launch a Balkan offensive. The Canadian Corps, from Field Marshal Haig’s perspective, was similarly removed from the war when Lieutenant-General Sir Arthur Currie, strongly supported by the Canadian government, refused to accept the piecemeal breakup of the Corps to help shore up the British line during the great German offensive which began in March 1918. Haig never forgave this …

The Canadian Role In Operation “Charnwood,” 8 July 1944: A Case Study In Tank/Infantry Doctrine And Practice, David A. Wilson

Canadian Military History

On the morning of 8 July 1944, soldiers of the 9th Canadian Infantry Brigade (9 CIB) left their startlines near the Norman village of Vieux Cairon heading for Buron and Gruchy; two villages nearly 2,000 yards across open ground to the south. Their advance was part of Operation “Charnwood,” British I Corps’ final assault on Caen. By the end of the day most objectives were secured, and on 9 July Caen north of the Orne River and Canal was captured. General Dempsey, General Officer Commanding (GOC) British 2nd Army expressed his satisfaction, saying that the operations of 8 and 9 …

(‘Cat On Spec’), Nina Zammit-Zorn

SPECS journal of art and culture

No abstract provided.

Joissance D’Ennui, Craig Saper

SPECS journal of art and culture

No abstract provided.

Gelatin Prints, Lizette Wanzer

SPECS journal of art and culture

No abstract provided.

The Moscow Linguistic Circle (Not To Be Confused With The Prague Linguistic Circle), Christophe Casamassina

SPECS journal of art and culture

No abstract provided.