1. EUROPEAN CAMPAIGNS
Lesson 3

2. Review
Describe the significance of the following and whether it was a success or failure
Battle of Britain
Hong Kong
Dieppe
Battle of the Atlantic

3. Did Canadians play an important role in liberating Europe?
By 1943, the Allies were preparing an all-out drive to win back the European countries occupied by the Germans.
Canadian troops played a vital role in this drive.

4. The Italian Campaign
In July 1943, Canadian, American, and British troops caught the Germans and Italians by surprise when they landed in Sicily.
The Allies had placed a corpse where they knew the Germans would find it.
On the body were fake papers saying the Allies were planning to invade Greece.
Sicily fell after 38 days of fierce fighting.

5. The Italian Campaign
In September, the Allies landed in southern Italy.
When this happened, Italians turned against Benito Mussolini, and he was eventually executed.
The Italians surrendered, but Adolf Hitler sent German troops to occupy Italy and keep fighting.

6. The Italian Campaign
Tommy Prince, an Ojibwa from Manitoba, was a sergeant in the First Special Services Force, a crack Canadian-American commando unit.
German Soldiers in Italy feared this unit so much that they called it the Devil’s Brigade.
The unit was renowned for its fighting skill – and its’ members ability to sneak behind German lines.
Prince was one of the best at this.

7. The Italian Campaign
Here’s how Prince’s commanding officer described his skills
“Tom was a superb marksman with tracking skills that he’d picked up on the reserve … No one could match him for some of the stuff he pulled.
He’d slip away at night and get behind the German lines all by himself. The Germans thought he was a ghost of a devil because they could never figure out how he passed the sentries. He moved with absolute quiet because of a pair of moccasins he’d wear. Sometimes, instead of killing the Germans, he’d steal something form them, like the shoes off their feet. Or he’d leave one of our stickers behind [the stickers said things like “The Worst Is Yet To Come”], just to let them know he’d been there … He was a lovely, quiet guy, one of the best Devils.

8. The Italian Campaign
Ortona is located along the Adriatic coast and is a natural fortress
It’s ancient narrow, twisting streets made it impossible to use tanks

9. The Italian Campaign
Gradually, the Allied forces, including the Canadians, fought their way northward.
One of the Canadians’ fiercest battles was for the port of Ortona, which finally fell after 1375 Canadians had lost their lives.

10. The Italian Campaign
The Canadians had to move on foot and clear the city house to house.
They used a technique, which is still used today, called “mouseholing”
Soldiers blasted a hole in an outer wall at the end of a street, cleared the room with grenades, then worked their way up the house to the attic.
They would then repeat the process for the next house moving from the attic downwards

11. The Italian Campaign It took the Canadians a week to clear the city
2300 officers and soldiers died taking Ortona
The fight to liberate Italy was long, hard, and costly - about Canadians fought in Italy.
Around were killed or wounded.

12. TLS Worksheet 3.1.8
Complete the first two rows – Sicily and Ortona

13. The Invasion of Normandy
By June 1944, the Germans knew an invasion of occupied France was coming - but not where or when it would happen.
The Allies fooled the Germans again. The Allies made it look as if they were planning to attack the French port of Calais. They pitched empty tents and built fake tanks and airplanes on the British side of the English Channel across from, Calais. German planes and spies reported the buildup - and the trick worked.

14. The Invasion of Normandy
The Germans were surprised when the Allies launched the biggest invasion in history on June 6, D-Day km west of Calais on the beaches of the French province of Normandy.
The invasion force included American, British, and Canadian troops with tanks, trucks, and other equipment, as well as ships and aircraft. The invasion struck the Normandy beaches at five different points that were codenamed Sword, Juno, Gold, Omaha, and Utah beaches. The Canadians landed at Juno Beach.

15. The Invasion of Normandy
Though the Germans were surprised, their defenses were strong. On D-Day, 359 Canadian soldiers were killed and more than 700 were wounded. By the end of the day, however, the Allies had taken the beaches and begun marching inland.
By the end of the first day the Canadians were the only group to achieve all of their day 1 objectives.

16. TLS Worksheet 1.3.8
Complete the third row – Juno Beach

17. The Liberation of the Netherlands
After landing in Normandy, Canadian troops advanced northeastward across northern France and Belgium and into the Netherlands.
Along the way the Canadians captured and liberated the port of Antwerp, Belgium. A strategically important port that allowed the Allies to resupply easier. This quickened the invasion of Germany and the end of the war.

18. The Liberation of the Netherlands
There, they were involved in some of the toughest fighting of the war as they pushed the German army farther and farther back.
Finally, on May 5, 1945, the Germans in the Netherlands surrendered. This surrender marked the beginning of the end of World War II.

19. TLS Worksheet 1.3.8 Complete the final row – Netherlands
When finished, which one would you pick as the location for the Canadian World War II Memorial. Explain why.
Search on the internet for images of Canadian World War 2 monuments in Europe

20. Monument Assignment Create a poster for the monument you would create.
Location
Create a poster for the monument you would create.
The monument must be unique
The poster must fill the page and be completed in colour
Location at the top, the reason for choosing the location at the bottom, with the image in the middle
A rough draft must be okayed by me before beginning the final copy
Image of Memorial
Reason for choosing the location