Canadian Controversy in World War IIApril 7th, 2015

Canadian propaganda poster encouraging troops to enlist

Canadian propaganda poster. What is the image portraying to Canadians?

Japanese poster given to English speaking soldiers.

The Royal Rifles and Winnipeg Grenadiers

Sent two infantry battalions, the Royal Rifles of Canada from eastern Quebec and the Winnipeg Grenadiers, to aid in the defense of Hong Kong.

Gin Drinkers Line: The British military

defensive line against Japanese

invasion

Canada’s Contribution

Arrived in Hong Kong on the 16 November 1941, 3 weeks before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

On 18 December the assault on Hong Kong began and both Canadian battalions were involved in difficult and costly battles.

290 Canadians were killed with almost 500 wounded. During the long years of deprivation and slave labour in prisoner of war camps another 264 died including four men executed for trying to escape.

A Victoria Cross awarded to Sergeant-Major J. R. Osborn

Osborn’s Victoria Cross

During one action involving the Winnipeg Grenadiers Sergeant-Major John Robert Osborn led a bayonet charge to secure a hilltop. When the enemy counterattacked with hand grenades Osborn caught several and threw them back until one grenade fell where he could not reach it. Shouting a warning he threw himself upon it as it exploded, giving his life for his comrades. Osborn was subsequently awarded the Victoria Cross for his self-sacrifice and heroism.

What’s the Controversy?

Discuss for 5 minutes with a partner why the defense of Hong Kong might be controversial and upsetting for Canadians.

What’s the Controversy?

Canadian soldiers were poorly trained, unprepared and underestimated the power of the Japanese forces in Hong Kong.

Some believe that it was not the responsibility of Canada to provide soldiers to defend the British colony of Hong Kong

264 men were taken by Japanese as POWs (Prisoners of War) Japan has made a formal apology to Canadian veterans and their families for the unlawful forced labor, abuse and slavery of these brave men.

Of the 1,975 Canadians who went to Hong Kong, more than 1,050 were either killed or wounded. This was a casualty rate of more than 50%, arguably one of the highest casualty rates of any Canadian theatre of action in the Second World War.

Battle of Hong Kong 1941

Personal accounts of the Battle of Hong Kong from Canadian Veterans.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KoNbYkEUDzc

Canadian POWs

Captured prisoners of war were sent to POW camps where they were physically and emotionally abused, starved and forced into slave labour.

Japan has since apologized for the treatment of Canadian soldiers in POW Camps.

What was the purpose of this apology? Do you think it made a difference to the POWs?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqrG_yinyC4

How did Canada respond?

Japanese-Canadian Internment Camps

Over a 9 month span, 22 000 Japanese-Canadians were taken from their homes and placed in various internment camps across British Colombia.

Labour Camps, Work Camps, Road Camps

Terrible housing, refused to educate young Japanese-Canadians

In 1943 the Canadian "Custodian of Aliens" liquidated these worldly possessions without the owner's permission. The Custodian of Aliens held auctions for these items.

What other events in World War II might be seen as controversial?