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Large regimental bands first came to Canada in the late 18th century. By 1869, there were some 46 bands in the Canadian militia. The first regular armed forces bands in Canada were formed in 1899. Their main purpose has been to provide music for military or public functions. As of 2023, there were a total of 73 bands in the Canadian Armed Forces: 53 in the Army, 12 in the Air Force, and 8 in the Navy.
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Article
The Battle of Hudson Bay took place on 5 September 1697 during King William’s War, the North American theatre of the Nine Years’ War between England and France. Throughout the conflict, French forces tried to capture enemy forts in and around Hudson Bay. One of these was York Factory, a lucrative and important trading post the Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) built in 1684. The French captured York Factory in 1694, only to have the English take it back a year later. Then, in 1697, a naval battle ensued in Hudson Bay between English and French forces. Captain Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville succeeded in taking York Factory for the French. The fort was later transferred back to the British after the Treaty of Utrecht of 1713. (See also Fur Trade in Canada.)
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Article
From the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in the summer of 1990 (see Persian Gulf War) until the withdrawal of forces from Afghanistan in 2014, the waters of South-West Asia were the operational focus of the Canadian navy. In that quarter-century, practically every major surface ship and the large majority of sailors deployed into the region at some point in their service. In many ways, it was the defining experience for a generation of Canadian sailors.
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Article
Canada’s first purpose-built warship, the Canadian Government Ship (CGS) Canada, was launched in 1904, several years before the Naval Service of Canada was established in 1910. However, it was not the first ship commissioned into the navy (see HMCS Niobe and HMCS Rainbow). Canada was delivered to the Fisheries Protection Service before the Canadian navy existed. But from the time it was ordered, it was intended for a military function. Canada was commissioned into the Royal Canadian Navy in 1915 and served as an antisubmarine patrol vessel during the First World War. The ship was retired in 1920 and sank in 1926 in the Florida Keys. Its wreck is a designated element of the US Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.
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Article
The Battle of Normandy was one of the most important operations of the Second World War. It began the campaign to free Western Europe from Nazi occupation. Canadians played a key role in the Allied invasion of Normandy (called Operation Overlord). The campaign began on D-Day (6 June 1944) and ended with the battle of the Falaise Pocket (7–21 August 1944). Thousands of Canadians fought on D-Day and in the Normandy campaign and over 5,000 were killed. (This article is a plain-language summary. If you are interested in reading about this topic in more depth, please see our full-length entry, D-Day and the Battle of Normandy.)
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Memory Project Archive
Al Bacon served with the Norwegian Merchant Service in the Second World War. Read and listen to Al Bacon’s testimony below. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.
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Memory Project Archive
Alan May was in the Merchant Navy in the Second World War. Read and listen to Alan May’s testimony below. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.
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Memory Project Archive
Alan Shard served in the Merchant Navy during the Second World War. Read and listen to Alan Shard’s testimony below. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.
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Memory Project Archive
Basil Winter Charman served in the Merchant Navy during the Second World War. Read and listen to his testimony below. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.
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Memory Project Archive
"The women had never had jobs like this before and we wanted to prove ourselves. I think that’s part of it. And the men accepted us." Beatrice Mary Geary served in the Women's Royal Naval Service during the Second World War. See below for Mrs. Geary's entire testimony. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.
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Memory Project Archive
"So I told him, you want to know what’s going on? Get up off your butt and come on up here and take my place and I’ll take yours." Bill Hawryluk served in the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War. See below for Mr. Hawryluk's entire testimony. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.
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Memory Project Archive
Bill Hollahan served in the Merchant Navy during the Second World War. Read and listen to his testimony below. Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.
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Memory Project Archive
Mr. Wunder served in the Merchant Navy during the Second World War.Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.
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Memory Project Archive
"They just swung the gun on him and was ready to fire when he swerved off over our bow, came back on the other side, dropped the torpedo and the Liberty ship blew up. There were no survivors."Don Wildon Bauerlein served in the Merchant Navy during the Second World War. See below for his full testimony.Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.
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Memory Project Archive
Mr. Cameron served in the Navy during the Second World War. See below for his full testimony.Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada.
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