Major Battles of WWII

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Major Battles of WWII
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Battle of Britain

• Turning point of the war
• First major battle to be fought entirely with air
  forces
• The British had to prepare for the whole fury
  and might of the enemy Winston Churchill
• Hitler didnt think sending Naval forces in would
  be smart
• The German Air Force outnumbered the British 3 to
  1

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Battle of Britain- Cont

• Germans referred to the attack as Operation Sea
  Lion.
• Recently rescued British troops had little
  equipment and poor training, giving Canada a
  significant role
• In July 1940, Canadians joined the 7th British
  Army Corps
• Canadians served in squadrons consisting of
  Hurricanes and Spitfires

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Spitfires
Hurricane
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Battle of Britain- Cont

• August 12th, 1940- German Air Force attacks radar
  stations, airfields, and Forces
• Estimated 22 Aircrafts lost by RAF, 31 by Germans
• September 7th- Massive Air Raid on London by
  Germans
• RAF 27 GAF 37

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Battle of Britain- Postponed

• On September 17th, 1940, Hitler postponed
  Operation Sea Lion
• Bombings and other scuffles continued until
  October 31st
• On September 27th, Canadians and RAFs defeat the
  last major daylight attack
• Estimated total losses- RAF 930 GAF 1623

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Battle of Hong Kong
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Battle of Hong Kong

• While most Canadian soldiers fought the second
  world war on the European front, they were also
  involved in one of the most infamous battles of
  the Pacific.
• On December 8th 1941 the day after the attack on
  Pearl Harbor, the Japanese empire launched an
  attack on the British colony of Hong Kong, in an
  attempt to control all of southeast Asia.
• When Hong Kong was threatened, Canada was asked
  to dispatch troops to defend the island. Although
  many said the island would be difficult, if not
  impossible to protect, 1900 soldiers were sent
  across the Pacific to take up positions around
  Hong Kong.
• In the ensuing battle, the Royal Rifles of Canada
  and the Winnipeg Grenadiers (the first Canadian
  ground units to see action in the Second World
  War) fought heroically to defend the colony.

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The Invasion

• The Japanese attack did not take the garrison by
  complete surprise the defense forces were
  prepared. On the morning of December 8, the
  entire garrison was ordered to war stations. The
  Canadian force was ferried across from Kowloon to
  the island, and by 5 p.m. the battalions were in
  position. Fifteen hours before the Japanese
  attacked, all Hong Kong defense forces were in
  position.
• The invasion of the island came with nightfall
  on December 18th. The enemy launched four
  separate assaults across a three-kilometer front
  on the northern beaches of Hong Kong Island. They
  came ashore in the face of machine-gun fire from
  soldiers of the Rajput unit who were manning the
  pillboxes.
• The strength of the invasion force was
  overwhelming, and by early December 19, the
  Japanese had reached as far as the Wong Nei Chong
  and Tai Tam Gaps, again proving their
  effectiveness at night fighting.

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Defending The Island

• On the island, the defending forces were
  reorganized into an East and West Brigade. The
  West Brigade, commanded by Brigadier Lawson,
  consisted of the Royal Scots, the Winnipeg
  Grenadiers, the Punjab unit and the Canadian
  signalers. The East Brigade, under Brigadier
  Wallis, comprised the Royal Rifles of Canada and
  the Rajput unit.
• To soften the island's defenses, the Japanese
  directed heavy artillery bombardment at the
  island, mounted destructive air raids, and
  systematically shelled the pillboxes along the
  north shore.
• The Japanese demanded for surrender, it was
  refused, but the situation was very grim. With
  the sinking of two British relief ships off
  Malaya and the crippling of the United States
  fleet at Pearl Harbor, there was no hope of
  relief, and the Chinese armies were in no
  position to give immediate aid. The defenders
  awaited assault in complete isolation.

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Surrender

• With both brigades isolated, it was only a matter
  of time before the island would fall. Still, the
  Canadian defenders fought on in the face of the
  relentless Japanese assault.
• Finally, on Christmas Day, the Canadians were
  forced to surrender. Over 500 were dead and those
  who survived would become prisoners of war. Many
  of which would be tortured or starved by their
  Japanese captors.

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The Battle of Dieppe

• The raid on Dieppe, aka Operation Jubilee
• August 19, 1942
• Allied attack on German-occupied Port of Dieppe
  on the Northern coast of France
• American idea, thought to be ridiculous and
  impossible by British authorities
• Plan put through to prove to Americans that
  their idea was unrealistic
• Over 6,000 infantrymen (allies)
• Mostly Canadian soldiers instead of the British
  themselves
• The raid was undertaken without the approval of
  the Combined Chiefs
• Germans were not expecting the attack and their
  troops were outnumbered by about 31

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Objectives of the Raid

• Seize and hold a major port for a short period,
  both to prove it was possible and to gather
  intelligence from prisoners and captured
  materials while assessing the German responses.
• Assess the Germans new technologies and learn
  the techniques required to take over Hitlers
  Atlantic Wall

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Results of the Battle

• No major objectives of the raid were accomplished
• 3,623 of the 6,086 men who made it ashore were
  either killed, wounded, or captured, while the
  Germans only suffered 311 casualties
• Allies lost 119 planes, Germans lost 46 of the 58
  tanks used in the battle
• Utter failure, biggest embarrassment of the war

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Lessons Learned

• I have no doubt that the Battle of Normandy was
  won on the beaches of Dieppe. For every man who
  died in Dieppe at least ten more must have been
  spared in Normandy in 1944. Louis Mountbatten,
  Chief of Combined Operations
• Following the Battle of Dieppe, the British
  created a whole new range of armoured vehicles,
  allowing engineers to do many of their tasks
  while protected
• Improvements were made in shore-to-sea
  communications for future battles

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? German tanks on the beach
Dead Allies at the beach ?
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Map of Dieppe
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Lessons learned at Dieppe help in planning for
Juno Beach

• http//archives.cbc.ca/war_conflict/second_world_w
  ar/topics/1317/

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Canada in North Africa
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• In North Africa, Canada provided no infantry.
  Instead the Canadians to see action in North
  Africa with the Royal Air Force. (RAF)
• North Africa was a three year campaign from June
  10, 1940 to May 16, 1943.
• At the end of this long battle the invasion of
  Sicily and the Italian Campaign was prepared and
  the Canadian infantry would the fore-front.

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Sicily and the Italian Campaign

• The invasion of Sicily started July 9, 1943 and
  ended August 17 of the same year.
• The Canadians who were unprepared for the
  Mediterranean heat and were relatively untested.
• Days into the operation the Canadians were halted
  days into the operation.

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The Italian Campaign

• During the Italian Campaign the Canadians acted
  as the Vanguard of the Commonwealth Forces.
• Canadas biggest involvement in the campaign was
  at the Moro River.

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Moro River

• The Moro River was strategically important as it
  was a key point in the German Winter line.
• The Canadians created multiple bridgeheads across
  the river.
• There were three main locations during taking of
  the Moro Villa Rogatti, San Leonardo, and San
  Donato.
• The Canadians broke the German line through San
  Leonardo on the ninth of December.

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The Gully

• This became the German line after the Canadians
  broke the line at the Moro River.
• The Canadians opened the fighting at the Gully by
  taking Vino Ridge yet further advance was halted
  for many days.
• The Gully would only be taken once the Germans
  retreated to Ortona.

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Ortona

• Dubbed Little-Stalingrad by the Germans it was
  one the bloodiest battle for the Canadians in
  Italy.
• The battle was an eight day nightmare that cost
  1375 soldiers.
• The Canadians developed a new strategy for going
  house to house during the battle called
  Mouse-Holing

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Juno Beach

• Canadas D-Day Victory June 6, 1944
• Aka the Battle for Normandy
• Situated between Sword Beach and Gold Beach
• Known as the Canadian Beach assigned to the 3rd
  Canadian Infantry Division
• Divided into three sections
• Love (West sector)
• Mike (Middle section, controlled by the 7th
  Brigade and supported by the 6th Canadian
  Armoured Regiment)
• Nan (East section, controlled by the 8th brigade
  and supported by the 10th Canadian Armoured
  Regiment)
• 9th Brigade was in reserve

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Objectives of the Battle

• Main objective was to assault the coast from
  Graye-sur-Mer to Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer
• Intended to later meet up with the British forces
  who would land on Sword Beach and take control of
  Caen

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The Battle

• Canadian forces suffered about 50 casualty rates
  in the first hour
• Advanced inland quickly after clearing the
  seawall (approximately one hour into battle)
• By noon, the entire 3rd Canadian division was
  ashore and had pushed several kilometres inland
  to capture bridges over the Seulles River
• By 6pm they had seized the town of
  Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer
• Before nightfall the Queens Own Rifles of
  Canada and the 6th Canadian Armoured Regiment
  had reached their objective by gaining 15km of
  land and crossing the Caen-Bayeux Highway
• By the end of D-Day the 3rd Canadian Division had
  moved farther into France than any other allied
  force
• By the end of the next day, the Canadian forces
  had linked up with the British who had landed at
  Sword Beach

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Allied Forces at Juno Beach

• 3rd Canadian Infantry Division- Juno Beach
• Mike Sector
• The Royal Winnipeg Rifles
• The Regina Rifle Regiment
• The Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary's)
  (Victoria)
• 6th Armoured Regiment (1st Hussars) (London,
  Ontario)
• The Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa
• Nan Sector
• The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada (Toronto)
• The North Shore (New Brunswick) Regiment (New
  Brunswick)
• Le Régiment de la Chaudière (Quebec)
• 10th Armoured Regiment (The Fort Garry Horse)
  (Winnipeg)
• The Highland Light Infantry of Canada (Galt,
  Ontario)
• The Dundas, Stormont and Glengarry Highlanders
• The North Nova Scotia Highlanders
• 27th Armoured Regiment (The Sherbrooke Fusiliers
  Regiment)
• Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa

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After the Battle

• 340 dead, 574 wounded
• Canadian 3rd Division were able to land 22 000
  men with equipment on D-day

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Fun Fact !

• As Canadian soldiers landed on Juno Beach, each
  was given a bicycle to carry ashore, the idea
  being that once ashore they would cycle down the
  road to Caen! If only it was so easy..Obviously
  the bicycles were soon discarded when they
  realised just how dangerous the situation was.

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Allied troops head for the shore
German prisoners captured at Juno
Allied troops march through France
Canadian soldiers head for the beach
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Canada and the Netherlands

• Canada had an important role in liberating the
  Netherlands
• Canadas role was to open a supply route through
  Arnhem, and to clear enemy troops in the
  North-eastern, Western, and coastal areas
• 1st Canadian Corps. transferred to Northwest
  Europe

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Northeast

• The Canadians gained momentum
• Key areas cleared in the campaign included
  Almelo , Groningen, Ijssel River, Zutphen,
  Deventer, Zwolle and Leeuwarden
• Liberated Dutch were enthusiastic towards
  Canadians

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Western

• Responsible for liberating area North of the Mass
  River
• Area was coming out of the Hunger Winter
• A two day battle at Arnhem started on April 12th
• Liberated Apledoorn April 17th
• On April 28th, Fighting stopped in Western
  Holland
• 9 Days later, the war was over in Europe

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Diversity

• Gender and ethnicity based barriers were removed
• By the end of the war, over 45,000 women enlisted
• African Canadians were more widely accepted into
  the military and were given roles in which they
  could fight.
• Natives could fight but they had to give up their
  status as registered Indians
• More French Canadians than first world war.

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Home Life

• Canadas GDP doubled
• Wage and price controls, rationing, increased
  taxation
• Women benefited from economic changes.
• Baby Boomers