The Canadian Military Heritage Project

WW2

Historical Timeline

By Brian Lee Massey

August 26th 1939	Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King sends peace appeals to Hitler and Mussoline
September 1st 1939	Germany invades Poland
September 3rd 1939	Britain and France declare war with Germany
September 3rd 1939	10 year old Margaret Hayworth of Hamilton Ontario dies when German U-boat sinks British liner. Canada's first casualty of war
September 9th 1939	Canada declares war
December 10th 1939	The first Canadian Division sails for Britain 7400 strong
June 8th, 1940	Canadian troops land in Brest France
June 16th 1940	Canadian troops evacuated from St. Malo France
June 17th 1940	Corporal R.J. Creighton is captured by the Germans, becoming Canadas longest serving prisoner of war
June 16th 1940	Canadian troops land in Iceland
June 25th 1940	HMCS Fraser sunk in collision with British ship - 47 men lost
August 1941	Canadians take part in the raid on Spitzbergen
November 16th 1941	Canadian troops land in Hong Kong 1,973 strong
December 8th 1941	Japanese troops attack mainland Hong Kong
December 11th 1941	Canadian troops engage the Japanese
December 25th 1941	Canadian troops in Hong Kong surrender. Aproximately 300 killed 500 wounded
April 1942	The people of Canada vote yes in a Conscription Plebiscite held by Canadian Government
August 19th 1942	The raid on Dieppe. Aproximately 900 killed 1200 wounded 1900 captured
August 15-16 1943	Canadian and American troops land on the island of Kiska in the Aleutians
July 9-10th 1943	Canadian troops take part in the invasion of Sicily
July 22nd 1943	Canadian troops capture the town of Assoro in Sicily
July 28th 1943	Canadian troops capture the town of Agira in Sicily
September 3rd 1943	Canadian troops take part in the invasion of Italy
September 20th 1943	HMCS St. Croix sunk by German torpedo
December 21-28th 1943	Canadian troops attack and capture the town of Ortona in Italy
December 1943	McNaughton resigns his command of the First Canadian Army
Jan 1944	Henry Crerar takes command of the First Canadian Army
April 1944	HMCS Athabaskan sunk in English Channel by German torpedo 128 crew lost
May 23rd 1944	Canadian troops attack and brech the Hitler Line in Italy
June 6th 1944	Canadians take part in the D-Day landings (the invasion of Europe)
October 1st 1944	Canadian troops begin the task of clearing the Scheldt
October 22nd 1944	HMCS Margaree sunk in collision with merchant ship - 142 crew lost
Febuary 8th 1945	Canadian troops begin their push into the Rhineland
April 16th 1945	HMCS Esquimalt sunk by German U-boat - 39 men lost
May 5th 1945	German forces in the Netherlands surrender to the Canadian Corps
May 7th 1945	Germany surrenders

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Ancestry.com Databases
1851 Census of Canada East, Canada West, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia
1901 Census of Canada
1906 Canada Census of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta
The Naval Service of Canada: Its Official History
Ontarian families : genealogies of United-Empire loyalists and other pioneer families of Upper Canada
Rebellion of 1837, Upper Canada
War of 1812: Miscellaneous Canadian Records
Smith's Canadian gazetteer
The Canadian biographical dictionary
Find Military Ancestors
Soldiers of the First World War (CEF) searchable database
Courts-martial of the First World War
War Diaries of the First World War
Soldiers of the South African War, 1899 - 1902
Second World War Service Files: Canadian Armed Forces War Dead
Soldiers of the South African War, 1899 - 1902
Second World War Service Files: Canadian Armed Forces War Dead

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