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CANADAS ROLE IN WORLD WAR II

The next 75 minutes of your life


Big Question (BQ) Why did WW II start? What was the fighting like in this war? What you could learn Hitlers rise to power and take overs Technology and weapons used in this war How the fighting was different and simlar to WW I What youll do with what youve learned Reflect on the differences and similarities between the types of fighting

Axis Powers

World War II Overview


Germany Hitler Italy Mussolini Japan Tojo, Emperor Hirohito

Allies
Britain - Chamberlain, Churchill USSR Stalin USA Roosevelt

Canada Mackenzie King Others: France, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa

Appeasement
CRAMP CUP

1. Conscription & rearmament 2. Rhineland 3. Austrian Anschluss 4. Munich Pact (Sudetenland) 5. Czechoslovakia 6. USSR-Nazi Pact 7. Poland

WWII Breaks Out


September 1, 1939 Canada Sept. 10, 1939

Poland invaded Phony War Norway, Denmark, Belgium, France France falls
Dunkirk Evacuation

Britain (and colonies) Stands alone vs. Nazi Germany, Italy, and Japan

Hitler needs to take out threat of Britain so that he can turn his attention to USSR.

Canadas Contribution to WW II
Big Question: Evaluate the significance of Canadas contribution to WW II.

Canadians at Hong Kong


In the Pacific Japan attacked Pearl Harbour in December of 1941 and hours later took over the British colony of Hong Kong which had 1975 Canadians protecting it. All of these soldiers were either killed or taken prisoner and held for the rest of the war in horrible conditions. Significance: First major action for Canadian troops in the war. Sent a message to Canadians at home.

Battle of Britain Germany attacks Britain by air and is ultimately defeated a turning point in the war Canada helped by training most of the pilots through the Commonwealth Air Training Program Some Canadian pilots flew for the RAF

Bomber Command
Britains and Canadas air force combined to fly bombing missions into Germany throughout the war. Throughout the war they targeted German war production Later in the war they also bombed German cities Over 10,000 Canadians were killed as part of Bomber Command Significance: Successfully disrupted German war production which made a big difference in the long run

Dieppe
August 19, 1942 CEF lands 5,000 troops on beach at Dieppe. Bad planning, bad luck, and late changes to the plan lead to 900 dead, 1,000 wounded, 1,900 captured.major failure ISSUES: Conscription Expendability Lessons for D-Day?

The Italian Campaign


By 1943 the allies were ready to push back the Germans from the South and they invaded Italy with Canadians playing a major role. They first took Sicily and then landed on the Italian mainland eventually pushing the Germans (who were defending Italy) further North. Significance: Was an important step towards the liberation of Europe and kept many German troops away from France making the landing there easier for the allies.

The Battle of the Atlantic 1940-1944


Germans were trying to cut off supplies to Britain from North America and did so very successfully using submarines (U-Boats) until 1941. By 1941 the allies began sailing in convoys (groups of ships protected by destroyers). The Canadian Navy helped a lot by using small warships called corvettes. They also started using sonar (like underwater radar) to find the German U-boats. By 1943 the allies had won the battle of the Atlantic in large part due to Canadas contribution by the end of the war Canada had 370 ships and 100000 personal in the navy. Many Canadians also served on the merchant ships which was dangerous work. Significance: With their contribution to the Battle of the Atlantic, Canadians ensured supplies for Britain and the ultimate invasion of mainland Europe.

D-DAY Normandy Invasion


By 1944 the Allies were ready to gain France back from the Germans. After planning for over a year they launched a huge attack using naval and aerial bombardment of the Normandy region of France eventually capturing five beaches. One of the beaches, Juno beach, was captured by the Canadians (14000 soldiers) The Canadians continued to push the Germans back through France and liberated Holland by May 1945 Significance: The Normandy Invasion was the final turning point in the war after which the Germans were in constant retreat. Canadians made a significant contribution to it although in the big picture it was minor (14,000 Canadians 1,000,000 Allied soldiers in total for this operation).

Americans Land at Omaha

Other Canadian Contributions


Liberation of Holland Farmers Munitions Commonwealth air training plan

Production (The Arsenal of Democracy)


The war ended the depression because Britain needed supplies and weapons Because Canada was a safe place with lots of natural resources we supplied the war be creating bombs, bullets, ships, planes, amoured cars. This was a major contribution to the war effort. As in WW I, the govt took an active role in increasing production through the War Supply Board Food was rationed (gas, coffee, tea, butter, milk, sugar and meat)

Commonwealth Air Training Plan


Canada trained over 130,000 pilots, navigators, air gunners, flight engineers and wireless operators. More than any other country Canada chosen because of safety, access to raw materials.

Canadas Contribution to WW II
Big Question: Evaluate the significance of Canadas contribution to WW II.

Thought journal prompts


If you wish, you may use these questions to get you going on your thought journal or not. How do you know real? What does it mean to be insane? Sane? Wheres the line between them? What is this movie saying about love? What questions do you have about schizophrenia? What is this movie saying about the meaning of life?

WW II on the Homefront
Big Question: Evaluate the impact of WW II on Canada.

The Role of Women


During WW II Canada created womens branches in the army and 46000 women served overseas as cooks, nurses, pilots, mechanics, radar operators and welders. At home women again worked in factories to help supply the war. They were encouraged to work through tax breaks and day care. Still they were paid less than men for doing the same jobs and expected to go back to being housewives after the war.

Production (The Arsenal of Democracy)


The war ended the depression because Britain needed supplies and weapons Because Canada was a safe place with lots of natural resources we supplied the war be creating bombs, bullets, ships, planes, amoured cars. This was a major contribution to the war effort. As in WW I, the govt took an active role in increasing production through the War Supply Board Food was rationed (gas, coffee, tea, butter, milk, sugar and meat)

Conscription Crisis # 2
1940 Kings govt passed the National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) which gave them special emergency powers to mobilize all the resources of the nation to defeat the enemy 1942 King held a plebiscite (vote on an issue) asking Canadians to release his govt from their promise not to invoke conscription. 1944 Although King had tried to avoid sending conscripts overseas, 13000 were sent but only 2000 made it to the front lines. 80% of English Canada supported conscription while over 70% of French Canadians did not. This strained French-English relations again but not as badly as during WW I

Propaganda
Just like in WW I the government created posters and films to convince Canadians of the importance of the war and the evil nature of the enemy.

Japanese Internment
After Pearl Harbour, people in Canada feared that Japanese Canadians might supply Japan with secret information or even help them invade Canada Starting in 1942 all Japanese Canadians were stripped of their rights and required to carry ID cards at all times. They were given a choice to go back to Japan or to relocate away from the West coast. 22000 Japanese Canadians were sent to internment camps, 14000 of whom were born in Canada All of their possessions were sold cheaply and the money went to pay for storage and handling charges. After the war they were released from the camps. In 1988 the federal govt apologized and gave $21,000 to each survivor.

Other Enemy Aliens and Discrimination during WW II


German Canadians and Italian Canadians had to register as well and a small percentage were interned. There was significant prejudice against Jews during this time. Jewish refugees were refused entry and some Canadians refused to hire Jewish judges, lawyers, professors and teachers.

Effects of WW II on Canada
Economic The war got Canada out of the depression Shifted the nature of Canadas economy towards more industrial production and manufacturing. Political Canada gained an international reputation as a middle power. Our troops were recognized for their contributions. Social Blacks and aboriginal peoples contributed to the war and hence progressed in status. Women achieved greater recognition. Canada became more tolerant (less racist) and accepted more refugees. Canada experienced a baby boom and lots of new immigrants (including war brides) from Europe.

WW II on the Homefront
Big Question: Evaluate the impact of WW II on Canada.

The War in Europe at a Glance


1938 Germany annexes (made part of Germany) Austria Allies did nothing. 1938 Germany takes over the German speaking part of Czechoslovakia with the permission of the Allies but promises to leave the rest alone. 1939 Germany takes over the rest of Czechoslovakia. 1939 September 1st Germany invades Poland using Blitzkrieg tactics official beginning of WW I. France and Britain immediately declared war on Germany.

WWII Issues
Essay Questions?

Internment of Japanese-Canadians Conscription Immigration Atomic Bomb Hiroshima Nagasaki Holocaust St. Louis Incident Nuremberg Trials

The Blitzkrieg in Poland

One Key aspect of Blitzkrieg was to target the transportation infrastructure of the enemy

The War in Europe at a Glance

1940 Not much happens for six months and then the Germans take over France in 6 weeks forcing the Allies to flee from the European mainland.

The War in Europe at a Glance

1940 Battle of Britain British win after initially losing. 1941 Germany attacks the USSR (same as Soviet Union and Russia). They do really well at first but eventually get stopped and by early 1943 they surrender and the Russians start pushing back towards Germany.

The picture below is of two British Air Force Pilots. What do you see in this picture? What inferences can you make?

The War in Europe at a Glance


1943 Allies (including Canadians) attack Italy and start pushing back the Germans. 1944 D-Day Allies gain ground on the coast of France and start pushing back the Germans. 1945 VE Day May 7 Germany surrenders.

Learning Log

WW II Posters
Look carefully at the following posters from WW II
1. 2.

Describe the main purposes of the posters (point form is ok) Do you think they qualify as propaganda? Why or why not? Definition: Propaganda is a concerted set of messages aimed at influencing the opinions or behavior of large numbers of people. Instead of impartially providing information, propaganda in its most basic sense presents information in order to influence its audience. The most effective propaganda is often completely truthful, but some propaganda presents facts selectively to encourage a particular synthesis, or gives loaded messages in order to produce an emotional rather than rational response to the information presented.

Learning Log

WW II Posters
Look carefully at the following posters from WW II
1. 2.

Describe the main purposes of the posters (point form is ok) Do you think they qualify as propaganda? Why or why not? Definition: Propaganda is a concerted set of messages aimed at influencing the opinions or behavior of large numbers of people. Instead of impartially providing information, propaganda in its most basic sense presents information in order to influence its audience. The most effective propaganda is often completely truthful, but some propaganda presents facts selectively to encourage a particular synthesis, or gives loaded messages in order to produce an emotional rather than rational response to the information presented.

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