World War II

Germany goes to war  On September 1 st, Germany declares war and attacks Poland  Claims that the Germans living in Poland have been harassed and that Polish forces had attacked Germany  Great Britain and France declare war on September 3 rd, Canada follows on September 9 th  Nobody is in a position to help Poland  Modern German forces quickly overrun the Polish forces  Warsaw surrenders on September 23rd

 Germany offers peace terms but they are rejected by the UK  Soviet Union forces the Baltic states to allow it to station troops there. Finland refuses and the USSR invades in Nov  In 1940, Germany invades Denmark and Norway  the British please PM Chamberlain with Neville Churchill

The Phony War  The period between the invasion of Poland and France is sometimes called the Phony War  German forces stayed behind the Siegfried Line, French behind the Maginot Line  Huge line of fortifications, km deep in places  Constructed in the 1930s, at the cost of 30B francs  So expensive, other areas of the military were underfunded

 While the British Expeditionary Force settled in to help defend France, the first Canadian Forces arrived in Britain  The 1 st Canadian Infantry Division arrived on Jan. 1, 1940  The Hastings and Prince Edward regiment are deployed in June, 1940  May 1940  Germany launches their attack, cutting through neutral Belgium and Luxembourg  Bypasses the Maginot Line through the Ardennes forest

 The allies are completely ovewhelmed by the German blitzkrieg (lightning war)  This tactic involved the use of tanks and aircraft rushing ahead of the infantry and punching a hole in enemy lines, cutting deep into enemy territory  The French and British retreated to Dunkirk, on the English Channel and were caught against the water  The British Expeditionary Force and French troops are completely vulnerable to German aircraft  In order to consolidate their territorial gains and to allow the infantry to catch up with the tanks, German tanks stop advancing for 3 days

 As a result of this break, the British request help from any sea-worthy vessel available  Operation Dynamo  May 27 th – June 4 th  Fishing boats, merchant marine ships, pleasure craft took part ferrying troops from shore to the larger ships  338, 226 soldiers saved as a result