Download Days of Despair: Canada 1939-1942

Days of Despair: Canada 1939-1942
Glossary
A glossary of key words, events and personalities. The Glossary is arranged
alphabetically and not in the order in which the items appear in the video. Please see the
Backgrounders section for an in-depth presentation of many of the items that are listed in
the Glossary. For example, the reference to Benito Mussolini in the Glossary has a
corresponding Backgrounder titled The Life of Benito Mussolini.
Annexation of Austria
At the conclusion of the First World War, the Treaty of
Versailles created the country of Austria from the remnants
of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The Treaty of Versailles
also forbade the Anschluss (union) of Austria and Germany
at any time in the future. Nonetheless, Hitler was
determined to annex Austria to Germany. He first tried to
negotiate a union, but was unable to convince the Austrian
leaders that Anschluss was desirable. Not to be denied his
prize, on March 11, 1938, the German army crossed the
common border and began the annexation of Austria to
Germany. The next day, Hitler, addressing a huge crowd in
the former Austrian capital of Vienna, informed the
Austrian people that their country had ceased to exist.
(Please see the Backgrounder titled The End of Austria for
further information.)
Alaska Highway
When Japanese troops landed in the Aleutian Islands in
1942, the United States and Canada feared that the
Japanese might use their new bases to attack Alaska.
Consequently, it was decided to construct an all-weather,
all-season supply road from Dawson Creek, British
Columbia to Fairbanks, Alaska. Known as the Alaska
Highway, the 2,500 km (1,550 mile) road was built in
record time across some of the roughest terrain in the
world. Working day and night, seven days a week, 17,000
Canadian and American construction workers and 10,000
American troops completed the Alaska Highway in nine
months.
Aleutian Islands
The Aleutian Islands stretch 2,500 km (1,550 miles) from
the southern coast of Alaska south-westward across the
Pacific Ocean. They are considered to be part of Alaska
and belong to the United States.
During 1942, the Japanese seized the islands of Attu and
Kiska located on the end of the Aleutian Island chain.
Concerned that the Japanese would leap-frog to Alaska,
Canada and the United States constructed a supply road,
known as the Alaska Highway, from Dawson Creek,
British Columbia to Fairbanks, Alaska in 1942-1943.
In May 1943, ships of the Royal Canadian Navy escorted
the convoy carrying the American troops who regained the
island of Attu. On August 15, 1943, a joint AmericanCanadian assault force landed on Kiska only to discover
that the Japanese had abandoned the island a week earlier.
Axis
The Axis, also known as the Axis Powers, was an informal
alliance between Germany, Italy and Japan for mutual
military and economic benefits. The Axis was formed in
1936 and ceased to exist after the defeat of Germany, Italy
and Japan in 1945.
Balloon Bombs
In an attempt to cause panic in Western Canada and to
undermine Canadian morale, the Japanese launched balloon
bombs that floated on the trade winds across the Pacific
Ocean to Canada. The balloon bombs contained packets of
explosives that were supposed to drop individually and
explode. Otherwise, the entire bomb was designed to
detonate when it encountered an object.
In 1945, 9,000 balloon bombs were directed against Canada
and the Northwestern United States. Eighty of the bombs
were discovered in British Columbia, Alberta and the
Yukon. No one in Canada was killed, but it was suspected
that a number of forest fires were started by the bizarre
devices. In the American state of Oregon, however, a
woman and five children died when a balloon bomb
detonated.
Battle of Britain
The Battle of Britain was an air battle between the Royal
Air Force and the German Luftwaffe during the summer of
1940 for control of the skies over England.
After the conquest of France, Germany was poised to
invade the British Isles. If Hitler could transport his
powerful army across the narrow English Channel, the
German conquest of Great Britain would be a certainty.
However, the German High Command knew that the
invasion force could only cross the English Channel safely
if the Luftwaffe had complete control of the skies.
Consequently, it was necessary to destroy the Royal Air
Force and achieve air superiority.
The Battle of Britain raged from July 10 until September
15, 1940. The Luftwaffe was three times the size of the
R.A.F., but British pilots, flying Hurricane and Spitfire
fighters, were able to retain control of the skies over
southern England. Their monumental victory was aided by
a new secret weapon, radar, and Fighter Command's ability
to use its aircraft with the utmost efficiency. . In two
months, 1,733 German aircraft, more than half the
resources of the Luftwaffe, were shot down. British losses
were also severe. 915 Spitfires and Hurricanes were
destroyed.
The Battle of Britain was one of the turning points of the
Second World War. Hitler's Germany suffered its first
defeat. Great Britain survived to fight another day. Four
years later, the British Isles would be utilized as the staging
ground for the re-invasion of continental Europe. (Please
see the Backgrounder titled The Battle of Britain for further
information.)
Blackouts
Throughout Europe during the Second World War,
governments imposed blackouts on their civilian
populations as a means of concealing cities from night time
air raids. From dusk to dawn, opaque curtains were drawn
in homes, streetlights were doused and interior lights were
turned off before exterior doors were opened.
In Canada, blackouts were utilized only in certain locations
and did not last for the duration of the war. While areas on
the West Coast and the Eastern Seaboard did experience
blackouts, the rest of Canada was educated in proper
blackout procedures and was prepared to introduce to
blackouts at a moment's notice. Each Canadian family
received a manual titled Blackout for Your Home and every
Canadian community appointed Air Raid Wardens and
trained civilians to fight fires started by incendiary bombs
and to carry out search and rescue operations in the wake of
an air raid. At times, there were weekly air raid drills when
the piercing sound of sirens sent city populations scurrying
to designated bomb shelters.
Blitz (The)
Unable to destroy the Royal Air Force during the Battle of
Britain, in mid-September 1940, the Luftwaffe switched
from massive daylight raids against Southern England to
the indiscriminate night bombing of British cities. Known
as "The Blitz," the tactic was designed to undermine the
morale of the British people and to paralyze war
production. Many cities - London, Coventry, Portsmouth,
Glasgow - sustained terrible damage during the Blitz, but
the will of the British people remained unbroken and war
production actually increased. During the winter of 19401941, the night attacks gradually became less frequent until
they finally stopped in May 1941. (Please see the
Backgrounder on The Battle of Britain for further
information.)
Blitzkrieg
German military innovation changed the face of war during
the Second World War. The First World War style of
trench fighting was gone. The new German tactic,
blitzkrieg or lightning war, dispatched rapid storms of tanks
and aircraft to break through the enemy's front lines and
then surround and overwhelm less mobile forces. At the
core of blitzkrieg warfare was the panzer (tank) division - a
self-contained collection of 400 tanks and 3,000 additional
vehicles that transported soldiers, pulled artillery and
carried vital supplies. Because everything moved on
wheels, there was far greater mobility and the speed of war
increased remarkably.
An important component of blitzkrieg warfare was the coordination of air power with land power. By 1939, the
Luftwaffe (German air force) had developed fighters that
could approach speeds of 560 km.p.h. (350 m.p.h.) and
twin engine bombers that could devastate enemy positions
hundreds of kilometres behind the front lines. These
capabilities, when combined with the striking power of the
formidable panzer divisions, were militarily devastating.
(Please see the Backgrounder titled Blitzkrieg for further
information.)
British Commonwealth
Air Training Plan
From the outset of the Second World War, it was apparent
that air power would be crucial to the achievement of
victory. In Great Britain, concern was voiced that the air
forces of the British Commonwealth were insufficient to
counter the German Luftwaffe (air force). As a result, the
British Commonwealth Air Training Plan was announced
on December 17, 1939. Canada, with its safe skies and
varying terrain, was chosen to host the B.C.A.T.P.
Construction crews immediately began to build the 97
airports and 210 schools that were needed.
Soon,
prospective pilots, navigators, radio operators, bombardiers
and air gunners began to arrive from across the British
Commonwealth. One-tenth of Canada's national income in
1940 was devoted to getting the B.C.A.T.P. up and
running.
The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan was a
remarkable success. By the war's end, 131,560 airmen had
earned their wings. Of these, 70,000 were Canadian.
Graduates fought against the Axis Powers in every theatre
of the war. Because of its outstanding achievement,
Canada became known as the "aerodrome of democracy".
(Please see the Backgrounder titled The British
Commonwealth Air Training Plan for further information.)
Conscription
Conscription means the drafting of citizens of a country for
compulsory military service. During the Second World
War, the issue of conscription for overseas service
persistently confronted the Liberal government of
Mackenzie King. Keenly aware that the introduction of
conscription for overseas duty might split the country, King
skirted the issue until an increasing casualty rate and a
decline in the number of volunteers forced him to introduce
conscription for overseas service late in 1944. (Please see
the Backgrounder titled The Conscription Issue: 1939-1942
for further information.)
Convoy
To counter German U-boats that threatened the vital supply
link from North America to Great Britain during the
Second World War, the Allies adopted the convoy system.
For mutual protection, large concentrations of merchant
vessels protected by warships sailed across the Atlantic as a
group. Despite the presence of the escorting warships,
including those of the Royal Canadian Navy, convoys
experienced terrible losses during 1941-1942. (Please see
the Backgrounder titled The Royal Canadian Navy and the
Battle of the Atlantic: 1939-1942 for further information.)
Corvette
A corvette was a small warship ideally suited for the escort
of convoys in the North Atlantic Ocean during the Second
World War. Because corvettes could be built quickly and
cheaply, they were an ideal vessel for construction in
Canada's limited shipyards. As a result, hundreds of
corvettes were launched at shipyards on the east coast, the
St. Lawrence River valley, the Great Lakes and the west
coast. The corvette became the backbone of the Royal
Canadian Navy. Weighing only 1,200 tons, but capable of
30 km.p.h. (19 m.p.h.), it was patterned after a whaler and
could operate in heavy seas and outmanoeuvre a U-boat.
Its crew of 90 had a battery of weapons to deploy against
submarines including a 4 inch gun and 75 depth charges.
(Please see the Backgrounder titled The Royal Canadian
Navy and the Battle of the Atlantic: 1939-1942 for further
information.)
Crown Corporation
During the Second World War, C.D. Howe, the Minister of
Munitions and Supplies, created many Crown Corporations
to provide critical war goods that private industry could not
produce and to streamline the production of vital war
material.
Crown Corporations were owned by the
Canadian taxpayer and administrated through the federal
government. By the end of the war, there were 28 crown
corporations manufacturing everything from synthetic
rubber to refined uranium. With the coming of peace in
1945, most of the crown corporations were sold to the
private sector.
(Please see the Backgrounder titled
Canadian Industry Mobilizes for Total War for further
information.)
Czechoslovakia
At the conclusion of the First World War, the Treaty of
Versailles created the state of Czechoslovakia from the
remnants of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Bordered by
Germany, Austria, Hungary, Romania and Poland,
Czechoslovakia was comprised of variety of ethnic groups
including three and one-half million Germans who lived in
the mountainous Sudetenland adjacent to Germany.
By most standards, Czechoslovakia was a success story. In
1938, it was the only remaining democracy in Central
Europe. It had a modern, thriving industrial sector.
Despite its ethnic diversity, its fourteen million people were
generally tolerant of each other's customs and language.
In the autumn of 1938, however, Hitler demanded that the
Sudetenland be annexed to Germany. Despite the Czechs
willingness to prevent Hitler from partitioning their
country, Great Britain and France, attempting to appease
the Nazi dictator, agreed to the dismemberment of their
country at the famous Munich Conference. Six months
later, the German army occupied the rest of the country and
the former Czechoslovakia became a protectorate of
Hitler's Third Reich. (Please see the Backgrounder titled
Appeasement and the Munich Conference for further
information.)
Dieppe Raid
On August 19, 1942, 5,000 Canadian troops carried out an
ill-fated, one-day raid on the German-controlled port of
Dieppe located on the fortified coast of France. The
success of the Dieppe Raid relied entirely on the element of
surprise and the deployment of the assault troops during the
dim light of early dawn. Otherwise, the entrenched
German defenders would slaughter the attackers as they
emerged from their landing craft.
Unfortunately, everything that could go wrong did. As the
silent armada of assault ships carefully crept towards the
French coast during the night, it encountered a small
German convoy. A fierce firefight ensued during which the
German ships were sunk or driven off, but not before much
of the coastline surrounding Dieppe was alerted. As a
result, the crucial element of surprise was lost. Amid the
confusion of the sea battle, many of the landing craft were
scattered and precious time was lost before they could
regroup and resume course toward their target beaches.
Consequently, the Canadian assault forces landed in broad
daylight instead of under the cover of darkness.
The Dieppe Raid quickly became a disaster. The assault
troops met a wall of fire and were immediately pinned
down. The Germans, who occupied the lofty cliffs
surrounding the beaches, raked the exposed Canadians with
deadly machine gun fire and mortar bombs. The tanks, that
were supposed to destroy the German machine gun nests,
arrived late and then proved inoperable on the peculiar
Dieppe beach shale. Only a few Canadians managed to
reach the streets of Dieppe. In most cases, withdrawal to
the safety of the assault ships was impossible.
The Canadians who participated in the Dieppe debacle paid
a terrible price. Of the 4,963 Canadians who left England
the night before, only 2,210 returned the next day, many of
whom were wounded. 907 Canadians were killed. A
further 1,946 became prisoners of war. Seventy percent of
the assault force was killed, badly wounded or captured.
(Please see the Backgrounder titled The Raid on Dieppe for
further information.)
"East Coast Port"
The need for wartime secrecy led to the use of the generic
term "East Coast Port" to designate first Halifax and later
other ports on Canada's East Coast such as Sydney, Nova
Scotia and Saint John, New Brunswick. As a result, the
word "Halifax" and the names of other ports disappeared
from news broadcasts on radio and the pages of newspapers
for the duration of the war. (Please see the Backgrounder
titled The Royal Canadian Navy and the Battle of the
Atlantic: 1939-1942 for further information.)
Election of 1940
On March 26, 1940, the Liberals, under the leadership of
Mackenzie King, won the largest majority in a Dominion
election since Confederation. The principal election issues
were conscription for overseas service and leadership
competence. Voters strongly endorsed King's "middle of
the road" approach to the war and his promise that there
would be no conscription for duty overseas. The final
results also reflected the public's belief that King and his
Cabinet offered the best wartime leadership:
Liberal
Conservative
Social Credit
C.C.F.
Independents
178 seats
39 seats
10 seats
8 seats
10 seats
(Please see the Backgrounder titled The Election of 1940
for further information.)
End of the Prairie Drought During the years from 1929 to 1939, Canada's Prairie
Provinces experienced severe drought conditions. In some
areas, the parched earth turned to desert and yielded no
crop at all. To make matters worse, the constant prairie
winds picked up the parched topsoil and carried it in huge
dust clouds that darkened the noon day sun. Farmers
watched helplessly as the precious topsoil was deposited
like banks of snow along fences and road embankments.
As a result, the West became known as the "dust bowl".
In 1939, however, the drought of ten long years ended.
Grain production on the Prairies soared. Once again, the
West became Canada's "bread basket".
(Please see
Backgrounder titled The End of the Ten Year Drought on
the Prairies for further information)
Great Depression
Between 1929 and 1939, Canada, like most industrialized
countries, experienced a period of unprecedented economic
depression. The Great Depression was characterized by
economic stagnation, factory closures, high rates of
unemployment, falling prices for goods and services, and a
lower standard of living for most Canadians.
While historians have identified a number of long-term
causes of the Great Depression, the most notable short-term
cause was the disastrous collapse in the price of shares on
the New York, Montreal and Toronto Stock Exchanges on
"Black Tuesday," October 29, 1929. With the grim
economic news, Canadians lost confidence in the economy
and curtailed their purchases of goods and services. Thus,
a vicious downward cycle began as the slump in sales
created greater unemployment that in turn lessened the
demand for goods and services. Conditions were at their
worst in 1932 when one in three Canadians was out of
work. Although economic conditions improved slightly
during the late 1930s, Canada remained mired in the Great
Depression until the beginning of the Second World War in
1939. (Please see Backgrounder titled The Lingering
Effects of the Great Depression for further information.)
Hitler, Adolf
Adolf Hitler (1889-1945) overcame a life as a drifter during
his youth to become the Führer - the absolute leader of
Germany from 1933 to 1945.
After serving with distinction on the Western Front during
the First World War, Hitler joined the fledgling National
Socialist German Workers' Party (Nazi Party) in 1919 and
transformed it into a powerful force in German politics. An
accomplished orator, he offered bold solutions to the hard
times of the Great Depression and was subsequently
appointed Chancellor in early 1933. Once in power, Hitler
moved quickly to end Germany's democratic system of
government. In its place, he established a brutal totalitarian
regime based on German racial superiority and the
oppression of so-called inferior peoples, especially Jews.
Hitler's aggressive foreign policy, however, led to his
downfall. In 1936, he embarked on a series of conquests
calculated to make Germany the dominant power in
Europe. At first, his foreign policy adventures were
exceedingly successful. His armies easily overran Poland,
Western Europe, the Balkans and much of North Africa.
But his planned invasion of the British Isles was foiled by
Germany's inability to establish air superiority over
England and his massive assault on the Soviet Union failed
to deliver the quick, knock-out blow that he had predicted.
Confronted by the Grand Alliance of the British
Commonwealth, the Soviet Union, and the United States,
Germany slowly lost a war of attrition. As the military
setbacks mounted, Hitler became increasingly irrational
and bitterly blamed others for Germany's military collapse.
Faced with capture by the approaching Soviets, the Führer
committed suicide on April 30, 1945. (Please see the
Backgrounder titled The Life of Adolf Hitler for further
information.)
Home Defence Forces
At the beginning of the Second World War, Prime Minister
Mackenzie King was keenly aware that the conscription
crisis of the First World War had split the country and that
most French Canadians remained opposed to compulsory
military service. Hoping to preserve national unity and
avoid another divisive conscription debate, King had
announced, even before Canada entered the war, that he
would never introduce conscription for overseas service.
The unexpected success of the Axis Powers in the early
years of the Second World War, however, forced King to
re-evaluate his stance on conscription. The German
conquest of continental Europe and the Japanese victories
in Asia and the Pacific suddenly threatened the very safety
of Canada. To assure Canadians that Canada had the
wherewithal to defend itself, the King government
introduced a program of compulsory training for home
defence in 1940. Initially, conscripts were required to
undergo a 30-day crash course on soldiering. The
government gradually extended the 30-day training period
to match the increasing Axis threat. In 1941, it announced
that "home defence" draftees would serve indefinitely.
Canada was now in the odd position of having two
categories of soldiers. On the one hand, there were the
volunteers who were willing to go to the battlefronts and
fight. On the other hand, there were conscripts or home
defence forces who would fight, but only on Canadian soil
defending Canada against an invasion. The conscripts soon
came to be known by the derisive term "zombie".
Collectively, newspapers called the home defence forces
the "zombie army". (Please see the Backgrounder titled
The Conscription Issue: 1939-1942 for further
information.)
Hong Kong
In 1941, Hong Kong, located on the south coast of China,
was a British colony. Confronted with the possibility of a
Japanese attack, Great Britain asked Canada to send troops
to help defend the colony. Responding to the British
request, the Canadian government sent two inadequately
trained and poorly equipped battalions, the Royal Rifles of
Canada and the Winnipeg Grenadiers, to Hong Kong. It
was expected that there would be sufficient time to
complete their training, but 50,000 Japanese troops
attacked the colony without warning on December 7, 1941.
As there was no possibility of reinforcement or evacuation,
there was little the 12,000 defenders could do except put up
a determined defence. After 18 days of vicious fighting,
the Allied forces were forced to surrender. Of the 1,973
Canadians who landed at Hong Kong six weeks before the
surrender, 290 were dead and 465 were badly wounded.
For many Canadians, however, the ordeal was about to
start.
The Japanese refused to follow the Geneva
Convention pertaining to the proper treatment of prisoners
of war. Canadian POWs were beaten, tortured and starved.
(Please see the Backgrounder titled The Canadians at Hong
Kong for further information.)
Howe, Clarence Decatur
C.D. Howe (1886-1960), known during the Second World
War as "the Minister of Everything," was responsible for
the Department of Munitions and Supply. As such, he
shaped and controlled the wartime "economic miracle" that
transformed Canada into a major industrial power and a
producer of sophisticated products. Under his leadership,
Canada's Gross Domestic Product tripled during the 19391945 years. (Please see the Backgrounder titled Canadian
Industry Mobiles for Total War for further information.)
King George VI
King of Great Britain from 1936 to 1952, father of Queen
Elizabeth II, and leader of the Commonwealth and British
Empire. As such, George VI was the titular head of
Canada's constitutional monarchy. George VI came to the
throne during the abdication crisis of 1936 when his older
brother, Edward VIII, renounced the throne in order to
marry the American divorcée, Mrs. Wallis Simpson.
In the spring of 1939, with Europe on the verge of war,
George VI, and his queen, Elizabeth, made an historic visit
to Canada. Riding on a special train, the King and Queen
toured the Dominion amid pomp and ceremony. Huge
crowds turned out everywhere to cheer the royal visitors.
In his speeches, the King reminded Canadians of their
traditional loyalty to Great Britain and of the need to
protect their democratic way of life from the threat of
foreign dictatorships. (Please see Backgrounder titled The
Royal Tour of Canada in 1939 for further information)
King, William Lyon Mackenzie
When the Second World War began in 1939,
Mackenzie King had been Prime Minister of Canada since
1921 except for a few months in 1926 and the years from
1930 to 1935. He was to remain Prime Minister until his
retirement from the office in 1948. During the war, King
and his Liberal Party won two national elections: the first in
1940 and the second in 1945. Canadians turned to King as
their wartime leader not only because of his considerable
political experience, but also because his "middle of the
road" policies seemed a wise approach towards achieving
victory.
Throughout the war, King wrestled with the issue of
conscription.
He was very aware that the 1917
"conscription crisis" had split the country during the First
World War and that most French Canadians were opposed
to compulsory military service. As a result, King's
government relied on volunteers to fill the ranks of
Canada's armed forces throughout most of the war.
Increasing battlefield casualties and a decline in the number
of volunteers, however, forced King to adopt overseas
conscription in late 1944.
Mackenzie King proved to be an effective wartime leader.
Under his leadership, a unified Canada emerged from the
war with the second highest standard of living in the world.
(Please see Backgrounder titled Mackenzie King and the
Second World War for further information.)
League of Nations
The League of Nations was born out of the terrible carnage
of the First World War. When the victorious nations met at
Versailles in 1919 to design the post-war world, it was
agreed by all that the First World War had been "the war to
end all wars" and that such slaughter would never be
permitted again. Consequently, it was decided to establish
an international body known as the League of Nations
where nations could settle their disputes by negotiation
rather than resorting to war as a solution.
On paper, the League was an impressive organization that
promised a new era of peace. The Charter of the League
even had a clause, Article X, whereby the members of the
League promised to bind together and oppose any nation
deemed an "aggressor".
In reality, however, the League of Nations turned out to be
a "paper tiger" that was incapable of stopping aggressor
countries. When confronted with Japanese, Italian and
German expansionism during the 1930s, the League failed
to act decisively and stop the aggressors. The League's
failure to defend weaker nations against their more
powerful neighbours hastened the arrival of the Second
World War. (Please see the Backgrounder titled The
Failure of the League of Nations to Prevent the Second
World War for further information.)
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is the German word for the German air force
during the Second World War. (Please see the
Backgrounder on titled Blitzkrieg for further information.)
Miracle of Dunkirk
During Germany's massive attack on the Netherlands,
Belgium and France during May 1940, Allied commanders
suddenly found their armies surrounded by German forces.
They had no choice but to fall back to the small French port
of Dunkirk on the English Channel. The 400,000 soldiers
of the British Expeditionary Force and the French Army
who converged on Dunkirk appeared to be trapped with
their backs to the sea and no way out of their dilemma. The
Allied troops established a defensive perimeter around the
town and then spread out along the wide sandy beaches to
await their fate.
What followed was one of the most audacious feats in
naval history. The new Prime Minister of Great Britain,
Winston Churchill, urged the British people to muster
every vessel that would float off the beaches of Dunkirk. A
great armada of 890 ships and boats of all sizes and
descriptions set sail across the English Channel to save the
stranded army. During the nine-day rescue operation,
366,000 Allied troops were snatched from the beaches and
transported safely to Britain by the hastily improvised
flotilla of ships. The "Miracle of Dunkirk" inspired the
British people and gave them courage to resist the
threatened German invasion of their island. (Please see the
Backgrounder titled The Miracle of Dunkirk for further
information.)
Munich Conference
In the autumn of 1938, Adolf Hitler demanded that a
German-speaking section of Czechoslovakia known as the
Sudetenland be annexed to Germany. The Czechs refused
and mobilized their army to defend their country. As the
crisis unfolded, Europe teetered on the brink of war.
In an attempt to defuse the tense situation, Neville
Chamberlain, the British Prime Minister, met with Hitler in
the German city of Munich. Edouard Daladier, the Premier
of France, and Benito Mussolini, the Italian dictator, also
attended the Munich Conference. Willing to appease the
German dictator at any cost and avert a war, Chamberlain
and Daladier agreed to the immediate transfer of the
Sudetenland to Germany despite Czechoslovakia's
opposition. As part of the bargain, Hitler declared that this
would be his last territorial claim in Europe. A delighted
Chamberlain proclaimed that the Munich Agreement meant
"peace in our time".
Six months later, however, Hitler seized the rest of
Czechoslovakia and exposed the hollowness of Hitler's
promise. Today, the term "remember Munich" is still
widely used to denote a situation where a failure to stand
one's ground and face a threat headlong will result in
further, more serious problems in the future. (Please see the
Backgrounder titled Appeasement and the Munich
Conference for further information.)
Mussolini, Benito
Benito Mussolini (1883-1945) rose from a humble
background to become Il Duce - the leader of Italy's Fascist
dictatorship. Supported by his "Black Shirt" followers,
Mussolini seized power in the early 1920s and established
the world's first totalitarian state. Although he suppressed
individual rights, he greatly improved the standard of living
for the average Italian during the early years of his regime.
However, the onslaught of the Great Depression during the
1930s caused ballooning unemployment. To distract the
Italian people from the hard times, Mussolini announced
that he would establish a new Roman Empire and
embarked on a series of military conquests.
Mussolini's aggressive foreign policy proved to be his
downfall. His ill-fated partnership with Germany and
Japan during the Second World War led to disaster. Italy
was stripped of its overseas possessions and then invaded
in 1943. In the wake of the military setbacks, Mussolini
was forced from power and arrested. He was rescued by
his friend, Adolf Hitler, and once again became Il Duce,
but was dependent on German military support. During the
final days of the war in Europe, Mussolini attempted to flee
to Switzerland, but was caught and subsequently shot by
Italian partisans. Il Duce's body was hung by the heels
from a meat hook in a public square - an ignominious end
to a man who portrayed himself as a modern Roman
emperor. (Please see Backgrounder titled The Life of
Benito Mussolini for further information.)
National War Memorial
Located at the centre of Ottawa's Confederation Square
near the Parliament Buildings, the National War Memorial
commemorates all of Canada's war dead. The cenotaph is
constructed of granite and is adorned with bronze
sculptures. Among the figures are 22 members of the First
World War's Canadian Expeditionary Force who pass
through an arch in the centre of the monument. Bronze
numerals positioned on the cenotaph list the years of the
First and Second World Wars and the Korean War. King
George VI officially dedicated the National War Memorial
in 1939 less than four months before the beginning of the
Second World War.
Nazi
Nazi is the acronym for National Socialist German
Workers' Party. Adolf Hitler was the party's leader.
Members of the party and followers of Hitler were known
as Nazis.
Ogdensburg Agreement
During August 1940, President Roosevelt of the United
States and Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King met at
Ogdensburg, New York and signed an accord that
dramatically altered the relationship between the two
countries. The Ogdensburg Agreement provided for a
Permanent Joint Board of Defence that would oversee the
defence of all of North America. As a result of the historic
Ogdensburg Agreement, the door was opened to full co-
operation between the United States and Canada for the
protection of North America. (Please see the Backgrounder
titled Military and Economic Co-operation with the United
States for further information.)
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor is a large American naval base located on the
island of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands chain. On the
morning of Sunday, December 7, 1941, 365 Japanese
aircraft launched from six aircraft carriers made a surprise
attack on the American fleet anchored in Pearl Harbor and
inflicted severe damage. Eight U.S. battleships were either
sunk or badly damaged and hundreds of military aircraft
were caught on the ground and reduced to smoldering
wrecks. The next day, the United States formally declared
war against Japan. (Please see the Backgrounder titled
Japan Attacks the United States at Pearl Harbor for further
information.)
Plebiscite of 1942
A plebiscite is a direct "yes" or "no" vote by all the citizens
of a country on a specific issue of national importance.
During April 1942, Prime Minister Mackenzie King held
the first plebiscite in Canadian history. The issue was the
festering question of conscription for overseas duty. At the
outset of the war, King had pledged that his government
would not introduce overseas conscription, but the
unexpected success of the Axis Powers had created a strong
lobby for the drafting of men for overseas duty. King
thought the results of a plebiscite might help him out of his
dilemma.
On April 27, 1942, 4,000,000 Canadians from coast-tocoast marked a "yes" or a "no" on their secret ballots in
response to the question: "Are you in favour of releasing
the government from any obligation arising out of any past
commitments restricting the methods of raising men for
overseas service?"
Overall, 64 percent of all voters approved removing the no
overseas conscription restrictions. But, the plebiscite
results also revealed the deep division between Quebec and
the rest of Canada over conscription.
While the
predominately English-speaking provinces voted 80
percent in favour of freeing King from his promise not to
conscript for overseas service, Quebec voted 72 percent
against removing the pledged restrictions. King, alarmed
that irreparable damage might be done to Canadian unity if
he followed the wishes of the majority, announced to
Canadians that the results of the plebiscite meant "not
necessarily conscription, but conscription if necessary". He
then proceeded to follow the same "no overseas
conscription" policy that had existed prior to the plebiscite.
(Please see the Backgrounder titled The Conscription Issue:
1939-1942 for further information.)
Policy of Appeasement
During the late 1930s, Neville Chamberlain, Prime
Minister of Great Britain, created the policy of
appeasement in the belief that it would satisfy Adolf
Hitler's territorial demands and avert a major war. He
believed that Hitler's aggressiveness stemmed from the
harsh terms that the Treaty of Versailles had imposed on
Germany in 1919. Therefore, he reasoned, if Great Britain
acquiesced to some of Hitler's demands, the Nazi dictator
would be content and end his aspirations to acquire even
more territory.
The policy of appeasement was put to the test during the
Czechoslovakian crisis. In the autumn of 1938, Hitler
demanded that a predominately German-speaking section
of Czechoslovakia known as the Sudetenland be annexed to
Germany. The Czechs refused and mobilized their army to
defend their country. As the crisis unfolded, Europe
teetered on the brink of war. In an attempt to defuse the
tense situation, Chamberlain met with Hitler in the German
city of Munich. Willing to appease the German dictator at
any cost, Chamberlain agreed to allow the Sudetenland to
be transferred to Germany despite Czechoslovakia's
opposition. As part of the bargain, Hitler declared that this
would be his last territorial claim in Europe. A beaming
Chamberlain proclaimed that the Munich Agreement meant
"peace in our time".
When Germany suddenly seized the rest of Czechoslovakia
six months later, however, the hollowness of the policy of
appeasement was clearly exposed for everyone to see.
Thereafter, there were no more attempts to appease Hitler.
Instead, Great Britain and its allies threatened war if
Germany demanded any further territory that belonged to
its neighbours. (Please see the Backgrounder titled
Appeasement and the Munich Conference for further
information.)
Rationing
Rationing is used by governments in a time of crisis, such
as wartime, to distribute scarce resources so that everyone
receives an equal amount of an item.
In 1942, rationing was introduced in Canada. Each of
Canada's 11,000,000 people regularly received a ration
book that contained coupons limiting the amount of scarce
goods that could be purchased. Rationed items included
meat, butter, gasoline, sugar, tea, coffee and liquor. While
Canadians had to put a great deal of thought into their
purchases, no one suffered severe privation. (Please see the
Backgrounder titled Wartime Controls for further
information.)
Rhineland
The Rhineland was a German province approximately 50
km wide (30 mi) bordered by Belgium and France to the
west and the Rhine River to the east. The Treaty of
Versailles (1919) had forbidden Germany to build frontier
defences or station troops in the Rhineland in order to
protect France and Belgium against a sudden German
attack. In 1936, Hitler boldly ordered German troops into
the Rhineland without warning. Although the occupation
of the Rhineland was a clear violation of the terms of the
Treaty of Versailles and threatened France's common
frontier with Germany, neither France, nor its ally Great
Britain, acted to expel the German troops. (Please see the
Backgrounder titled Remilitarization of the Rhineland for
further information.)
Roosevelt, Franklin
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882-1945) was President of
the United States of America from 1932 until his death in
1945. He is the only American President to be elected to a
third and fourth term. By all accounts, his presidency was
one of great accomplishment. Not only did Roosevelt
implement legislation that revolutionized the social and
economic policies of the American federal government, but
he also led the United States to the pinnacle of world power
during the Second World War. (Please see the
Backgrounder titled The Life of Franklin Roosevelt for
further information.)
Soviet-German NonAggression Pact
On August 22, 1939, Germany and the Soviet Union
concluded a non-aggression pact by which both parties
promised not to fight each other. The Soviet-German NonAggression Pact also contained a secret proviso. In the
event of a German conquest of Poland, the Soviet Union
would be awarded one-third of Poland.
The Soviet-German Non-Aggression Pact sealed the fate of
Poland. Hitler was now free to invade the hapless country
without fear of Soviet intervention. On September 1, 1939,
Germany attacked Poland and the Second World War
began. (Please see the Backgrounder titled The SovietGerman Non-Aggression Pact for further information.)
Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.), also
known as the Soviet Union, was created in 1924 from the
remnants of the old Russian Empire that had collapsed
during the Revolution of 1917. The Soviet Union was first
ruled by the Communist, Nikolai Lenin. After Lenin's
death in 1924, a power struggle among his subordinates
ensued. By the late 1920s, Joseph Stalin had emerged as
the new leader of the Soviet Union. Stalin ruled with an
iron grip and established a totalitarian dictatorship. After a
series of major setbacks, Stalin led the Soviet Union to
victory in the Second World War.
"Russia" is used often as a synonymous name for the Soviet
Union. (Please the Backgrounders titled The Life of Joseph
Stalin and The German Invasion of the Soviet Union for
further information.)
Spitzbergen
The Norwegian island of Spitzbergen, located within the
Arctic Circle, was occupied by German forces after the
conquest of Norway in 1940. Spitzbergen proved to be a
valuable asset for Nazi Germany. It had very productive
coal mines and a weather station that provided vital
meteorological information to U-boat wolf packs. In
August 1941, a large force of Canadians landed on
Spitzbergen. The coal mines were destroyed, huge stores
of coal were burned, the weather station was demolished
and hundreds of Norwegian and Russian coal miners were
evacuated. The Spitzbergen Raid was the first action that
Canadian troops had experienced since their arrival in the
British Isles months earlier.
Stalin, Joseph
Joseph Stalin (1879-1953) was the autocratic leader of the
communist Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (Russia)
from the late 1920s until his death in 1953. During his
dictatorship, he oversaw the industrialization of the USSR,
repelled the German invasion of Russia during the Second
World War, and challenged the United States and its
western allies for global supremacy during the post-World
War II years. At the same time, he established a police
state that denied the Soviet people fundamental human
rights and condemned millions to death by starvation or
death from exhaustion in forced labour camps. (Please see
the Backgrounder titled The Life of Joseph Stalin for
further information.)
Statute of Westminster
Although the Dominion of Canada was created in 1867 by
the British North America Act, it was not a completely
autonomous nation. Great Britain still retained the right to
determine Canada's foreign policy. Throughout the 1920s,
however, Canada refused to automatically follow all British
foreign policy initiatives. The Canadian government
believed that Canada's significant participation in the First
World War and the growing strength of the Canadian
nation legitimized Canada's right to make all decisions
independent of Great Britain. This point of view was also
held by the other British Dominions: Australia; New
Zealand and South Africa.
At an Imperial Conference in London in 1926, it was
decided that the Dominions would be "autonomous
communities within the British Empire, equal in status, in
no way subordinate to one another in any aspect of their
domestic or external affairs". The decision was given the
force of law when the British Parliament passed the Statute
of Westminster in 1931.
The Statute of Westminster recognized Canada as an equal
partner of Great Britain within the British Commonwealth.
It withdrew all authority that Great Britain still retained
over Canada. Canada could now pass its own laws
pertaining to foreign policy, make its own treaties,
determine its own tariffs and appoint its own diplomatic
representatives to other nations.
In 1931, few Canadians fully appreciated the importance of
the Statute of Westminster. Eight years later, however, its
significance became thoroughly apparent to most
Canadians. On September 3, 1939, Great Britain, reacting
to Hitler's invasion of Poland, declared war against
Germany. Unlike the similar situation in 1914, Canada was
not automatically at war with Germany. In 1939, Prime
Minister Mackenzie King summoned Parliament which
made the momentous decision on behalf of all Canadians to
go to war. As a result, Canada entered the war against
Germany a full week after Great Britain had declared war.
(Please see the Backgrounder titled Canada Enters the War
against Germany for further information.)
Total War
"Total War," a term that was used increasingly in Canada
after the fall of France in 1940, meant the mobilization of
all of the country's resources - material and human - to
achieve victory against the Axis Powers. (Please see the
Backgrounders titled Canadian Industry Mobilizes for
Total War, Canadian Women at War and Wartime Controls
for further information.)
Totalitarian Government
In the wake of the First World War, a new kind of
government that came to be known as the totalitarian state
appeared in Europe. A totalitarian state is characterized by
a single party dictatorship that controls every facet of the
daily lives of its citizens. There is usually an all-powerful
leader at the head of the government. Benito Mussolini's
Italy, Joseph Stalin's Soviet Union, and Adolf Hitler's
Germany exemplify the totalitarian state.
Totalitarian governments ruthlessly suppress civil liberties
and demand absolute obedience of all government decrees.
Those who oppose the government are brutally silenced. A
pervasive network of secret police prevents the
development of any organized opposition.
Totalitarian governments differ significantly from the
absolute monarchies that proceeded them. Dictators like
Hitler employed new technologies and mass propaganda to
overcome resistance to their rule. Radio broadcasts, a
phenomenon that developed during the 1920s, and cinema
with sound, a form of entertainment that became popular in
the 1930s, proved ideal instruments for propagating
government policies. Totalitarian governments rigidly
controlled what was heard on radio, what was written in
newspapers and what people saw when they went to the
movies. Utilizing these new technologies, totalitarian
governments were able to exert far greater control over
their people than any previous type of government. (Please
see Backgrounders titled The Life of Benito Mussolini, The
Life of Joseph Stalin, and The Life of Adolf Hitler for
further information.)
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles officially ended the First World
War. In January 1919, representatives of the 32 victorious
nations, including Canada, gathered at the Palace of
Versailles near Paris to decide the fate of Germany, to
redraw the map of Europe, and to design the post-First
World War world. The final wording of the Treaty was
determined primarily by the four Great Powers: France,
Great Britain, Italy and the United States. Germany was
not permitted to participate in the peace conference.
While the Treaty of Versailles created new countries in
Europe like Czechoslovakia and Poland and made
provision for the creation of the League of Nations, most of
its clauses pertained to Germany. The Treaty imposed a
harsh settlement on the German people. Not only did the
Treaty of Versailles require Germany to acknowledge sole
responsibility for causing the First World War, but it also
required Germany to pay massive reparations to the
victorious Allies for war damage. In addition, it rendered
Germany almost defenceless by severely reducing the size
of the German army and denying Germany the right to have
an air force, submarines and frontier fortifications. (Please
see the Backgrounder titled The Significance of the Treaty
of Versailles for further information.)
U-boat
Unterseebooten or U-boats were German submarines.
During the Second World War, either in singly or in groups
known as wolf packs, they attacked Allied shipping in the
Atlantic Ocean. Throughout the war, the Royal Canadian
Navy battled the U-boats and was instrumental in keeping
the vital convoy routes to Great Britain open. In 19411942, the deadly U-boats came close to severing Great
Britain's supply links to North America, a development that
would have forced the British to submit to Hitler in a
matter of months. (Please see the Backgrounder titled The
Royal Canadian Navy and the Battle of the Atlantic: 19391942 for further information.)
Victory Gardens
During the Second World War, the Canadian government
encouraged people to create "Victory Gardens" as a means
of supplementing the nation's vital food supply. Victory
Gardens were garden plots located on people's front lawns,
side yards and backyards that primarily grew vegetables.
Often public areas, like city parks, were turned over to
Victory Gardeners. People in apartment buildings had
Victory Gardens on their balconies or in flower pots on
window sills. Cold storage and root cellar facilities
extended the nutritional life of some vegetables; other
vegetables were preserved in mason jars for late winter and
spring consumption.
Wolf Pack
"Wolf packs" was the name given to groups of German Uboats that systematically attacked Allied convoys in the
North Atlantic. The wolf packs would attack on the surface
at night. Their low silhouettes made them almost invisible
to the defending warships and their superior surface speed
allowed them to weave in and out of the long lines of
merchant ships and sink them almost at will. The convoy,
restricted to a speed of 10 to 14 km.p.h. (6 to 9 m.p.h.),
could do little but endure the multiple attacks. During
1941-1942, the new German tactic tipped the scales
decisively in favour of the U-boats and threatened the very
survival of Great Britain. (Please see the Backgrounder
titled The Royal Canadian Navy and the Battle of the
Atlantic: 1939-1942 for further information.)
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