ww2

• The Battle of the Atlantic:

  Britain depended upon North America for supplies
• The Battle of the Atlantic:

  • The Royal Canadian Navy escorted groups of supply ships (convoys), across the Atlantic. 
• The Battle of the Atlantic:

  • Starting on September 3rd, 1939 Hitler dispersed many U-boats into the Atlantic.
• The Battle of the Atlantic:

  • U-boats traveled in “wolf-packs”
• The Battle of the Atlantic:

  • The objective of the German U-boats was to destroy convoys 
• The Battle of the Atlantic:

  Canada used two types of defences.

  • corvette
  • RCAF
• The Battle of the Atlantic:

  • There was a continual threat from German U-boats throughout the war
• The Battle of the Atlantic:

  • Many Canadian convoys were destroyed by U-boats and came very close to Canada.
• The Battle of the Atlantic:

  • U-boats sank at least 21 ships in the gulf of the St. Lawrence
• Dieppe Raid (August 1942):

  Also known as Operation Jubilee was the first Canadian Army engagement in the European theatre of the war
• Dieppe Raid (August 1942):

  It was designed to test the Allies' ability to launch amphibious assaults against Adolf Hitler's “Fortress Europe”
• Dieppe Raid (August 1942):

  The raid was a disaster, more than 900 Canadian soldiers were killed, and thousands more were wounded and taken prisoner
• Dieppe Raid (August 1942):

  Despite the bloodshed, the raid provided valuable lessons for subsequent Allied amphibious assaults on Africa, Italy and Normandy
• Normandy Invasions (Summer 1944):

  Canadian sailors, soldiers and airmen played a critical role in the Allied invasion of Normandy, also called Operation Overlord
• Normandy Invasions (Summer 1944):

  Nearly 150,000 Allied troops landed or parachuted into the invasion area on D-Day, including 14,000 Canadians at Juno Beach
• Normandy Invasions (Summer 1944):

  Allied casualties on D-Day reached more than 10,000, including 1,074 Canadians, of which 359 were killed
• Normandy Invasions (Summer 1944):By the end of the Normandy Battles over 5,000 Canadian soldiers died
• Normandy Invasions (Summer 1944):

  It was one of the pivotal events of the Second World War and the scene of some of Canada's greatest feats of arms.
• The Italian Campaign (1943-1945):

  Canada’s longest Second World War army campaign was in Italy
• The Italian Campaign (1943-1945):

  Canada's Italian campaign started in July, 1943 when the 1st Canadian Infantry Division and the 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade began Operation Husky
• The Italian Campaign (1943-1945):

  With the Italian army’s rapid collapse, several German divisions hurriedly established a series of defensive lines
• The Italian Campaign (1943-1945):

  Of the 92,757 Canadians who served in Italy, there were 26,254 casualties and over 5,700 deaths by the spring of 1945
• The North African Campaigns (1940-1943):

  WWII was also fought in North Africa, where the Allies and Axis across fought 
• The North African Campaigns (1940-1943):

  In September 1940, the Italian forces invaded 

  Egypt, which then was part of the British Empire
• The North African Campaigns (1940-1943):

  As the Italians were pushed back by Allied forces,

  the German forces, eager to expand their 

  influence into the Middle East, sent troops to 

  continue the fight
• The North African Campaigns (1940-1943):

  Canadian involvement in the North African Campaign was largely through the Navy and the Airforce supporting Allied troops
• Liberation of the Netherlands:

  In the final months of the Second World War, Canadian forces were given the important and deadly task of liberating the Netherlands from Nazi occupation. 
• Liberation of the Netherlands:

  More than 7,600 Canadian soldiers, sailors and airmen died fighting in the Netherlands. They are buried today in official war cemeteries across the country.
• Liberation of the Netherlands:

  The Netherlands has sent thousands of tulips to Ottawa every year since the wars end, in appreciation for Canada's role in liberating 

  the Netherlands and for providing the Dutch royal 

  family asylum in Canada during the war.
• Liberation of the Netherlands:

  Today, Canada is fondly remembered by the Dutch 

  for ending their oppression under the Nazis.
• The Fall of the Third Reich:

  As the Allies advanced and Germany began to retreat in 1945, Hitler’s commanded that old men and young boys enlist as the Volkssturm (People’s Storm Troop), to continue the battle and protect Germany, only delaying the inevitable defeat.
• The Fall of the Third Reich:

  In late April 1945, Hitler, along with many of the top Nazi leaders, commited suicide in a bunker in Berlin. 
• The Fall of the Third Reich:

  Most of the other Nazi leaders were captured by the Allies and subsequently tried for war crimes at the Nürnberg trials.
• The Fall of the Third Reich:

  Dönitz, Hitler’s appointed successor, attempted to negotiate terms, but the Allies insisted upon an unconditional surrender, which was signed on May 7, 1945
• End of the Japanese Empire:

  Once the Allied powers had defeated Germany in Europe, Japan vowed to continue to fight to the bitter end in the Pacific.
• End of the Japanese Empire:

  The United States responded to Japan’s refusal to surrender by detonating two atomic bombs over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945.
• End of the Japanese Empire:

  Almost 200,000 civilians died as a result of the atomic bombs, including those killed instantly and those killed from radiation and other effects afterwards.
• End of the Japanese Empire:

  Imperial Japan’s surrender was announced on August 1945 and formally signed on September 2, 1945, officially ending WWII.
• “Little Boy”

  The nickname for the first nuclear weapon used in a war.

  Dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945.

  Fuel:  Highly enriched uranium
• “Fat Man”

  The nickname for the second nuclear weapon used in a war.

  Dropped on the Japanese city of Nagasaki on August 9, 1945.

  Fuel:  Highly enriched plutonium