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Gérard Pelletier (1919-1943): tracing his story
In November 2022, Catherine Dion-Gagnon and her mother Louise travelled to Italy to visit the resting place of their uncle Gérard Pelletier. Enlisted in the Canadian forces at the start of the Second World…
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How Canada Helped Finance the Chinese Revolution
At the beginning of the 20th century, China experienced numerous periods of insurrection that led to the advent of the Republic on January 1, 1912. Through the international actions of three major players -…
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Tommy Prince – Sergeant for the First Special Service Force
Tommy Prince is Canada’s most decorated Indigenous Veteran with impressive service in Europe and Asia during the Second World War and the Korean War. Now celebrated across the country, it was a long time…
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Len and Cub: An Uncovered 2SLGBTQ+ History of the First World War
The early 20th century was a time of severe persecution for 2SLGBTQ+ individuals. Homosexuality wasn’t decriminalized until 1969 and same-sex couples hid their affection in public in fear of being jailed or persecuted. For…
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Anti-Semitism in Canada during the Second World War (1933-1945)
On 7 November 2017, the Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, made an official apology for the Jewish refugees who had been refused entry to Canada a few months before the outbreak of the…
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Life for the Endicott family under Japanese bombardments (1937-1945)
Many Canadian families went to China at the beginning of the 20th century to preach Christianity or to do business. However, with the outbreak of hostilities between Japan and China, these families also faced…
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Chrononyms of the Second World War (1937-1945)
For most people, the study of history means memorizing names and dates. In reality, it is more like a debate, sometimes calm and sometimes extremely violent, that begins with names and dates, but culminates…
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The Canadian Siberian Expeditionary Corps (1918-1919)
In 1919, with the outbreak of the Bolshevik revolution in Russia, Canada sent a large force of soldiers to combat this new perceived threat. However, the mission did not turn out as expected, as…
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Cree Code Talkers units of the Canadian Army during World War II
During the Second World War (1939-1945), many members of Aboriginal nations served in the Canadian army. From 1942 until the end of the war, many Aboriginal soldiers were recruited into Cree Code Talkers units.
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Black soldiers during the French regime
Did you know that many black people enlisted as soldiers during the French regime in the 17th and 18th centuries? It was indeed common in the French colonies for Black people—whether free or enslaved—to…
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Call of Duty: A portrayal of U.S. interventions in the Middle East
The Call of Duty video game franchise has become an iconic part of popular culture. However, with its use of historical periods and conflicts as backdrops, these games have spread ideas that need to…
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Food and the First World War
Have you ever heard the old saying “an army marches on its stomach”? During the First World War, Canada produced millions of pounds of food that was sent to the warfront. But how did…
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Canada and LGBT purge of the Cold War
In the 1950s and 1960s, Canada set up a security council to avoid the risks of infiltration by Russia. This security council targeted certain risks, notably the presence of homosexuals in various federal services.
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A short overview of the historiography of war and the military
Military history is as old as war itself! For hundreds of thousands of years, historians have described war in myriad ways. From Ancient times until the starts of history as a scientific field, our…
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Harry H. Dinning (1890-1916): The Legacy of an Irish-Canadian Soldier from Chaudière-Appalaches
Harry H. Dinning, originally from the Township of Ireland in Quebec, enlisted in the army in 1916 before tragically disappearing during the Battle of Ancre Heights. A memorable figure in Maple Grove, Harry H.…
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Passing the Time in German Prison Camps (1939-1945)
Passing the time was a very big part of a soldier’s life – almost as big as the war itself. To cope with the boredom, soldiers interred at German prison camps had to show…
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Conscientious objectors in Canada during the First World War
Did you know that there were more than 10,000 conscientious objectors in Canada during World War I? Thousands of people enlisted in the Canadian Army as soon as the war began. However, that wasn’t…
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When the World Revolution Converged in Montreal
The “Hemispheric Conference to End the Vietnam War” was held in Montreal from November 29 to December 2, 1968 and attended by a delegation from the Black Panther Party, representatives from North Vietnam, and…
