# Why was there a Canadian force on D-Day? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 6, 2014, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203 "2014-06-06T14:45:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Mr.Kobayashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4af34b/32.png) [@Mr.Kobayashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Kobayashi)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2014, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/81 "2014-06-08T13:00:08Z")
The only exclusively [Aussie airborne](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1st_Parachute_Battalion_%28Australia%29) unit was still training back home during the war, although that doesn’t mean that Australians didn’t take the initiative and serve with other Commonwealth units - they tended to be rather more fluid about those things back then. No combat drops on the Adriatic coast though, if memory serves, so doubt they were airborne. 1st Airborne headed up to Foggia but for training went back to England. The place was bombed and [strafed](http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=GuuOyzdx1UAC&pg=PA77&lpg=PA77&dq=Pescara+ww2&source=bl&ots=xFBhH1x-Hv&sig=-7AwlR5MtDGf8i9xkCXsQ8RnS90&hl=en&sa=X&ei=Pl2UU43OMou7PZj4gNgI&ved=0CGAQ6AEwCzgK#v=onepage&q=Pescara%20ww2&f=false) in the war as the site of a Luftwaffe air field, so maybe a crewman bailing out? Aussies certainly served in bombers. ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2014, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/82 "2014-06-08T13:31:11Z")
> [@bob\_2](#): > > Just a nitpick: [http://www.hnsa.org/ships/u505.htm](http://www.hnsa.org/ships/u505.htm) > > We already had many enigma machines and had broken the code by D day. whoosh! ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2014, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/83 "2014-06-08T15:14:21Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > The command structure was actually very similar in both wars. In WWI, the British had wanted the Dominions to supply troops, who would simply be added to the British Army, in the way envisaged by the OP. > > The Dominions objected and insisted on keeping their troops under their own organization. Sir Robert Borden, the Prime Minister of Canada, was particularly insistent that the Canadian troops be kept together, in what eventually became the Canadian Corps with four divisions. The Canadian Corps fought under British command, but as a separate Allied force, not part of the British Army. The other Dominions insisted on similar arrangements. > > During WWII, the same pattern was followed. The Dominion each insisted on their troops being kept together as Canadian/Australian/New Zealand etc. armies, but under Allied command. > > Thus, what happened to the Newfoundlanders at Beaumont-Hamel, and to the ANZAC at Gallipoli, was not the outcome of a different command structure. In both wars, the Dominion troops were under the command of either the British, or the Allied command, which could ultimately be an American or a Briton, depending on the theatre. Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2014, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/84 "2014-06-08T15:30:10Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > [QUOTE=Northern Piper] > > In both wars, the Dominion troops were under the command of either the British, or the Allied command, which could ultimately be an American or a Briton, depending on the theatre. That was certainly true during World War II. But were there multi-national forces under American commanders during World War I? It seems unlikely. The Americans were a relatively small and inexperienced force in World War I and there was the issue of their associate status. [/QUOTE] Sorry, posting late at night and didn’t make myself clear: “In both wars, the Dominion troops were under the command of either the British [in WWI], or [in WWII], the Allied command, which could ultimately be an American or a Briton, depending on the theatre.” Basic point is that the Dominions insisted on keeping their troops under their own organizational structure, but then agreed to them being placed under the overall command, whether that was British in WWI, or the Allied command structure in WWII. It was the Canadian Corps / Canadian Army, as part of the Allied effort, not Canadians being slotted into British regiments. ---
**Author:** ![Mavis\_Topholese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7feea3/32.png) [@Mavis\_Topholese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mavis_Topholese)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2014, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/85 "2014-06-08T16:59:39Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > You may be right. I’d like to read a book about the Canadian contributions, however, if anybody knows a good one. Farley “Never Cry Wolf” Mowat (RIP) wrote a great book about his experiences in WWII; his outfit was in the game from the fall of France and shed a lot of blood in Italy. > **[The Regiment: Farley Mowat: 9780771066948: Amazon.com: Books](https://www.amazon.com/Regiment-Farley-Mowat/dp/0771066945)** > > The Regiment \[Farley Mowat\] on Amazon.com. \*FREE\* shipping on qualifying offers. The Regiment ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2014, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/86 "2014-06-08T17:10:21Z")
Mowat actually wrote two books covering hos war-time experiences: “The Regiment”, mentioned above, and then 30 years later, another one: “And No Birds Sang.” Both cover the Italian campaign, when his regiment, the Hastings & Prince Edward (nicknamed the “Hasty Pees” 🙂 ) was fighting in Sicily and up the boot. The difference between them is that The Regiment was written by a much younger Mowat, and is more of the traditional “Going off to war, chaps!” kind of book. What he doesn’t deal with is that he was badly affected by the war: PTSD. That is the theme is “And No Birds Sang” - the absolute horror of war and what it does to soldiers. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2014, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/87 "2014-06-08T18:13:40Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Sorry, posting late at night and didn’t make myself clear: > > “In both wars, the Dominion troops were under the command of either the British [in WWI], or [in WWII], the Allied command, which could ultimately be an American or a Briton, depending on the theatre.” > > Basic point is that the Dominions insisted on keeping their troops under their own organizational structure, but then agreed to them being placed under the overall command, whether that was British in WWI, or the Allied command structure in WWII. It was the Canadian Corps / Canadian Army, as part of the Allied effort, not Canadians being slotted into British regiments. The British never did have colonials slotted into British regiments. Units and as much as possible formations consisted of locals and or settlers, with maybe regular British officers. However, the reletive paucity of Canadian troops meant the units and formations were often attached and augmented British formations. The 3rd Canadian Division which landed in Normandy was part of the British I Corps. It did not revert to Canadian command until July. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 9:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/88 "2014-06-09T09:40:37Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > The British never did have colonials slotted into British regiments. Units and as much as possible formations consisted of locals and or settlers, with maybe regular British officers. Australians were British at the time. They could vote in either country, as could Britishers. They didn’t need to be ‘slotted in’: they could join up at any recruiting station. Even in the 70’s, when I was at school, going to London was a rite of passage for young Australians ([Margret Roadnight](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6e9BAyMyzo)), so there were many young Aussies in Britain when the war broke out. ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 10:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/89 "2014-06-09T10:06:52Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Sorry, posting late at night and didn’t make myself clear: > > “In both wars, the Dominion troops were under the command of either the British [in WWI], or [in WWII], the Allied command, which could ultimately be an American or a Briton, depending on the theatre.” You know, not that I harbour imperial German sympathies or anything, but I could see how they might have figured they were the good guys when they were told “Men, tomorrow we face the soldiers of… The Dominion”. There’s an in-built scare chord to that word. ---
**Author:** ![Isilder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/cc9497/32.png) [@Isilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isilder)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/90 "2014-06-09T10:19:40Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > The British never did have colonials slotted into British regiments. Units and as much as possible formations consisted of locals and or settlers, with maybe regular British officers. > . Oh they did have colonials slotted into the British regiments, in special slots like Air Force, or Navy, but if you mean ‘consume the colonies regiments … integrate them into ours’ , no. (You might have misused “slot”.) The existence of the colonial regiments was on purpose. 1. helps promote identity for the colony nations… eg the “ANZAC” identity for Australia… 2. Provides cannon fodder. eg Australians… send them to Gallopili … ---
**Author:** ![UDS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecae2f/32.png) [@UDS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UDS)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/91 "2014-06-09T10:26:44Z")
> [@Melbourne](#): > > Australians were British at the time. They could vote in either country, as could Britishers. They didn’t need to be ‘slotted in’: they could join up at any recruiting station. _Anybody_ could join up at any recruiting station. You didn’t need to be a British subject; they weren’t about to turn anyone away. A fair number of Australian-born, Canadian-born, etc people did join up. But when people talk about Australian troops in the context of either WWI or WWII, they are not talking about individual Australian-born British subjects serving in the British forces, although there were many such. They are talking about military units formed by the Australian government, recruited and trained in Australia, paid by the Australian government and under its direction (units which, of course, included many UK-born members). ---
**Author:** ![Dervorin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Dervorin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dervorin)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/92 "2014-06-09T11:55:14Z")
> [@Malacandra](#): > > In England too. I’ve said before – and I’ve never tested this theory, but I think the odds are good – that if you had to meet someone in a random English village known to neither of you, you could arrange to meet by the War Memorial, on the grounds that (i) there would be one, and (ii) it would not be hard to find even if you were in the village for the first time. Unless, of course, you were in one of the 53 [Thankful Villages](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thankful_Villages) that lost no one in WW1. There are also a smaller set of Doubly Thankful villages that lost no one in either World War, and it’s always amused me that one of them is called Upper Slaughter. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/93 "2014-06-09T12:50:13Z")
Before the US entered the war formally, there were also enough Yanks who had gone over and joined up to form three entire “Eagle Squadrons” in the RAF or RCAF. It was easy enough to go to Canada, pretend to have lost one’s birth certificate if asked, and remember to say Eh? Although most transferred to the USAAF later on, there were some Americans who chose to stay in the RAF throughout the war. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/94 "2014-06-09T13:23:00Z")
> [@Isilder](#): > > 1. Provides cannon fodder. eg Australians… send them to Gallopili … WWI was a meat-grinder. I’ve never seen anything which suggests the British command used Dominion troops in a way that put them at greater risk than British troops. Casualty rates were horrific for all. ---
**Author:** ![Suicide](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Suicide](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suicide)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/95 "2014-06-09T15:42:41Z")
Could the Canadian military by itself beat any major country in a war today? ---
**Author:** ![doorhinge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a5b964/32.png) [@doorhinge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doorhinge)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/96 "2014-06-09T15:57:41Z")
> [@Suicide](#): > > Could the Canadian military by itself beat any major country in a war today? Mexico. The war would take a lot longer than necessary, what with the Canadian’s saying, “Sorry”, after firing every shot. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Kobal2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kobal2/32/20_2.png) [@Kobal2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kobal2)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/97 "2014-06-09T16:05:45Z")
> [@doorhinge](#): > > Mexico. The war would take a lot longer than necessary, what with the Canadian’s saying, “Sorry”, after firing every shot. 😃 I dunno, Mexico’s military itself seems to run into big problems trying to hold Mexico 🙂 Canada could probably take Iceland over though, easy peasy. Of course Iceland doesn’t have a military, so that helps. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/98 "2014-06-09T16:26:53Z")
> [@Kobal2](#): > > I dunno, Mexico’s military itself seems to run into big problems trying to hold Mexico 🙂 > > Canada could probably take Iceland over though, easy peasy. Of course Iceland doesn’t have a military, so that helps. Oh, come on. You’re going to have them take over Iceland? Give them someplace warm to vacation. Have them take out Saint Vincent and the Grenadines - they’d never see it coming (and they also have no military, except a coast guard). ---
**Author:** ![Grey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grey)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/99 "2014-06-09T16:41:41Z")
> [@Suicide](#): > > Could the Canadian military by itself beat any major country in a war today? The Canadian military is designed around participating in multinational operations, not as a stand alone “let’s go invade Denmark” military force. Offensively Canada don’t have a large troop lifting capacity so they aren’t going anywhere quickly in force. Defensively no country other than the US can stage a cross ocean invasion and American’s don’t actually have to. Or want to - we’ve weaponized Celine Dion and put her in Vegas. ---
**Author:** ![Clark\_Cello](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58f4c7/32.png) [@Clark\_Cello](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clark_Cello)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2014, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203/100 "2014-06-09T16:50:24Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > We are coming out of a long, self-serving time when Americans were educated that we won the war, with a little help from the oppressed nations we saved. While you’re correct about your points, I don’t think it hurts to serve up a little humility in these discussions. > Much in the spirit of the above comment, “Avro Arrow.” That is all. I do agree with this in theory. I remember laughing as a teenager in the 80s when I heard that in Russia they were taught that WWII was mainly a Soviet-German war. “Those silly Russians”, I thought, “They’ll take credit for anything.” It was a few years later before I learned that they were in very many ways correct in their view. Having said that, I don’t think it is necessary to replace one set of inaccuracies (“USA won the ward by ourselves!”) with an equally ludicrous set (“America was a small part of D-Day”). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-was-there-a-canadian-force-on-d-day/690203.md?page=6)