As a proud Canadian, and a former member of the Canadian Armed Forces, I have created this website to honour the history of Canada's military from the War of 1812 until the present day. It is still very much a work in progress, and I am attempting to add new content and photos as often as possible.
Canadian Boer War monument, London, Ontario,
Photo by J. Gray
Canada can proudly trace our military roots to the days of the early militia's, citizen soldiers who trained part time and fought alongside the British Army during the American invasion in 1812. Those same militia troops defended Canada during the invasions of the Fenian brotherhood in the 1860s, and were prepared to help defend Canada again when the threat of American invasion came again during the Civil War, and during the Oregon Crisis. When Great Britain went to war in South Africa at the turn of the 20th Century, Canadian troops were there, proud of Canada's role as senior dominion, fighting alongside the troops of the mother country. When the First World War erupted across Europe in 1914, thousands of Canadians served in the army, with the Royal Navy, and in the air as part of the Royal Flying Corps. The population of the nation at that time was only seven million people. By the time the war had ended, neary 65,000 Canadians were dead, more than 150,000 wounded, and seventy men had been awarded theVictoria Cross, the British Empire's highest award for valour in the face of the enemy. The First World War also claimed the first casualties in the newly formed Royal Canadian Navy, when four midshipmen died on board a British cruiser in the Battle of Coronel near South America.
Sherman Tank, 6th Canadian Armoured Regiment,
Victoria Park, London, Ontario.
Photo by J. Gray
In 1939, when Europe was again at war, Canada answered the call to service. By the end of this second conflict, 45,000 Canadians had died on land, at sea and in the air. Canadian naval ships escorted thousands of tonnes of goods across the ocean to help save Great Britain from starvation, as well as escorting supplies to Russia, helping them defeat Germany on the eastern front. Canadian troops stormed the shores of Dieppe, a costly raid that taught the Allies valuable lessons; lessons that saved many lives two years later in Normandy. Canadian troops also played a signficant role in the Italian Campaign, fighting the bloody battle of Ortona, where they faced and defeated elite German paratroops. Of the five beaches stormed by the allies at Normandy, one was taken by Canadian troops. The Royal Canadian Air Force also trained thousands of allied pilots, flew fighters with the RAF during the Battle of Britain, and participated in thousands of bombing sorties over Germany, suffering heavy casualties. When the war ended, sixteen Canadians had been awarded the Victoria Cross.
When war in Korea came, in the early 1950s, thousands more Canadians from the army, navy and air force served alongside American and British troops. More than five hundred Canadian soldiers and sailors paid the ultimate sacrifice in that conflict, and our contribution seems forgotten, with many believing Korea was an American war.
Monument to Canadians killed in Korea, Lindsay, Ontario,
Photo by J. Gray
Often, Canadians will serve in wars that our government has not officially become involved with. Canada's first Victoria Cross was awarded to Lieutenant Alexander Dunn of Toronto, who was serving with the British Army during the Crimean War. Another Victoria Cross winner, Private George Richardson, won his while also serving in the British Army during the India Mutiny of 1857. During the U.S. Civil War, for various reasons, thousands of Canadian men, and a few women, served in both the Union and Confederate armies and navies. A hundred years later, during the Vietnam war, thousands more Canadians crossed the border, serving in all branches of the U.S. military. One Canadian born soldier, serving in the US Army, was awarded the Medal of Honor. Sadly, Canada is thought of as a "haven" for draft dodgers.... yet more Canadians crossed into the United States to join the armed forces than draft dodgers were given asylum here.
In modern times, Canadian forces have served in countless peacekeeping missions around the globe, more than any other nation. These incude the civil war in Bosnia, the genocide in Rwanda, peacekeeping in Cyprus, and in Haiti. Canada was a member of the coalition who fought Saddam Hussein's troops when they invaded Kuwait in the early 1990s, providing army, navy and air force assistance, as well as establishing a field hospital which cared for both allied and enemy troops. Following the terrorist attacks on New York City in 2001, Canadian troops deployed to Afghanistan, where they have assisted the British and Americans in their war against the Taliban and terrorism, and suffering more than 150 combat deaths to date.
I am proud to be a Canadian, and to have served in Canada's armed forces. This pride is the reason for the creation of this website, which is a personal and un-official recording of Canada's military history, and in no way associated with the Department of Defence. The research is my own, and, as such, any errors are also mine. The majority of photographs on these pages are my own work, or public domain from Library and Archives Canada. My site also includes some wonderful military art, and I would like to thank the artists who have all given me permission to use their works.
I hope you enjoy visiting my site, and feel free to contact me at canadianmilitary@yahoo.ca
My Personal Background
Born in Toronto, I am proud to come from a lengthy military family. During my school years, I was a member of the Royal Canadian Sea Cadets and, upon graduation, enlisted in the Royal Canadian Navy. I completed basic training, served on the west coast, and returned to Ontario where I remained in the reserve, this time with the army. My father had also served in the RCN, as a signalman onboard minesweepers and gate vessels.
Sergeant Robert Holmes, British Army
As a first generation Canadian, many of my family members had served in the armed forces of Great Britain. During the Second World War, my grandfather, Robert Holmes, was in the British Army, reaching the rank of sergeant, and serving with the Mountain Corps and fighting at the Battle of the Bulge. My grandmother, Margaret Holmes, also served during the war, as a corporal in the Royal Air Force, stationed at a base in Scotland. My grandmother had two brothers, David, who served in the Royal Navy, including a tour onboard HMS Hood, and Joe, who was also a member of the navy. Her brother in law, Sam Gillen, served in the Royal Navy as well, before coming to Canada and joining the Canadian Navy, where he reached the rank of Chief Petty Officer, and served aboard one of Canada's few aircraft carriers, the HMCS Bonaventure. Locating information on my fathers side of the family has been more difficult, but a recent geneological search has un-covered information on James Gray, a British army private who was killed in the First World War who is buried in France.
