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The Liberation of
Europe
The Canadians in Sicily and Italy
In the summer of 1943,
after 3 yrs. of training,
Canadians were sent to
Sicily
 They were to join Br. troops
under General
Montgomery.
 The plan was to trap the
Italian and Ger. soldiers
before they could escape to
the mainland.
 The next step would be to
attack Italy, the weakest of
the Axis powers.
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•The Canadians
(along with Br. and
U.S. forces) landed
on the Italian
mainland in late
1943.
•The Allies moved
towards Rome, but it
would be a difficult
campaign
The Canadians at Ortona
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The route to Rome was
blocked by the Germans
at Ortona and Cdn forces
were ordered to capture
the town.
The Germans had blown
up all the bridges in the
area and the steep
countryside gave them an
advantage.
On Dec. 27th the
Canadians captured
Ortona
German under fire in Ortona
Germans Defending a Street
The Canadians at Ortona
Can. casualties were high
– many had to be
evacuated because of
sickness and battle
fatigue.
 By June 1944. the Allies
captured Rome.
 Canadians continued
fighting until 1945 in
Italy, and then were reunited in north-western
Europe as the 1st
Canadian army.
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Canadian Infantry in Ortona
Italy surrendered
by the end of Sept.
(Mussolini was
deposed), but the
Germans had taken
over the country.
Mussolini, after
being killed he was
hung at a gas
station along with
15 other leading
fascists. People
were allowed to
desecrate his body
in order to take out
their frustrations
with his rule.
D-Day/The Normandy Invasion
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The “lessons of Dieppe” (?)
were taken into account in 1944
- better planning &
communications and a unified
command were in place
Supreme Allied
Commander =
The invasion was preceded by:
effective training – attention to
detail
- Meteorology/Geology
– Espionage/Disinformation (La
Resistance)
– Massive naval/aerial prelim.
bombardment
– Tech. improvements
("Funnies")...
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all were taken into acc't in
this ambitious plan that
sought to open a 2nd front
against Ger. in W. Europe
and therefore bring WW II
to an end.
The plan was to invade
Normandy w/ an invasion
force of 150 000 men, inc.
30 000 Cdns.
The Americans attacked on
the w. (Utah and Omaha
beaches), w/ the Br. and
Cdns. taking the e. (Gold,
Sword, and Juno beaches.
7000 ships played a role
here too, and all the allied
air forces participated in
this largest invasion in
world history.
After all the planning,
the invasion (Op.
Overlord) - surprise
intact - took place on
June 6, 1944.
 There were still sig.
probs. - American
forces at Omaha beach
were hard hit, and Cdn.
forces were delayed
b/c of high seas and
reefs.
 But beach heads were
established that first
week
 by August, Paris would
be liberated.
 Ger. was on the run on
3 fronts now - in
France, Italy, and E.
Europe...
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At this point, the Allies
began to plan for the
end of the war,
scheduling the Yalta
Conference for Feb.
1945
 FDR, Churchill, and
Stalin planned for
postwar Europe,
deciding that Ger.
would be demilitarized
and de-nazified,
as well as divided
into 4 occupation
zones.
 The groundwork
for the United
Nations was
also set out here.
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The final events of the war:
Winter 1944-1945 - The Battle of
the Bulge – it was Hitler's last
counteroffensive, intended to stop
the W. Allies from crossing the
Rhine River into Ger.
it delayed them until March, but
the result was inevitable by this
time...
Soviet forces were in Berlin by
April, and on April 30, Hitler
committed suicide in his bunker.
Command of the 3rd Reich passed
to Adm. Doenitz, who surrendered
on May 8,1945
(V-E Day)
Cdn. troops during this period
were charged w/ the job of
liberating the Netherlands, under
the command of Gen. Harry Crerar.
(Battle of the Scheldt, Antwerp)
The Atomic Bomb and Victory in the Pacific
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kamikaze
Manhattan Project
 August 6,1945
 Enola Gay
 "Little Boy”
 VJ Day
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