Legion Magazine

09/15/2025

A fearless Canadian woman was in command, but the Japanese soldiers who worked for her were in control.

Women have always played a part in Canada’s wars. Initially employed mainly as nurses, their role began to change during the First World War, when women known as VADs (Voluntary Aid Detachments) served not only as nurses’ aides, but as ambulance drivers, cooks and clerical staff.

During the Second World War, the role of women expanded exponentially, as the three separate services each created their own female components. By the end of the war, almost 46,000 women had enrolled in more than 160 occupations; 41 of them died on active service.

A fearless Canadian woman was in command, but the Japanese soldiers who worked for her were in control.

09/15/2025

Test your knowledge of Canadian military history with a Trivia Challenge!
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09/13/2025

Heroes and Villians: Gouzenko vs Zarubin

IGOR GOUZENKO The Second World War ended on Sept. 2, 1945, with Japan’s official surrender. Three days later, a 26-year-old cipher clerk who had been posing as a junior diplomat at the Soviet Embassy in Ottawa slipped out of his apartment with his wife and young son. Lieutenant Igor Sergeievich Go...

09/10/2025

The British Home Children who fought for Canada

Arthur Theodore Clarkson’s trauma began long before the trenches.

Labelled incorrigible for skipping school in order to care for his widowed mother, the boy had been removed from his family, sent to a group home, and shipped off to Canada on Feb. 25, 1909, at age 11. From there, the British Home Child—one of more than 100,000 such children consigned to life in the Dominion against their will between the 1860s and 1940s—was housed by a Tilbury, Ont., farmer.

Arthur Theodore Clarkson’s trauma began long before the trenches. Labelled incorrigible for skipping school in order to care for his widowed mother, the boy had been removed from his family, sent to a group home, and shipped off to Canada on Feb. 25, 1909, at age 11. From there, the British Home C...

09/10/2025

Remembering Mynarski: A marker and a broken treeline at VR-A’s crash site

Nestled in a nondescript corner at the intersection of two pathways in the commune of Gaudiempré, southwest of Arras in northern France, there lies a stone marker commemorating the night in June 1944 that a Lancaster crashed in what is now the tree-lined cornfield behind it.

There were 7,377 Avro Lancasters built during the Second World War, 430 of them in Canada; 3,932 were lost. But this Lancaster, VR-A of 419 (Moose) Squadron, Royal Canadian Air Force, Tail No. KB726, was, as the stone notes, Andrew Mynarski’s Lancaster.

Nestled in a nondescript corner at the intersection of two pathways in the commune of Gaudiempré, southwest of Arras in northern France, there lies a stone marker commemorating the night in June 1944 that a Lancaster crashed in what is now the tree-lined cornfield behind it. There were 7,377 Avro L...

09/04/2025

🇨🇦 The Canadian National Vimy Memorial — one of the world’s most magnificent war monuments — stands on the very ridge where 100,000 Canadian troops fought together for the first time in April 1917.

Between April 9-12, 1917, Canada secured a defining victory at Vimy Ridge, staking its place on the world stage. But victory came at a cost — over 10,000 casualties, including 3,598 killed in action.

Today, this towering memorial of limestone, concrete, and steel honors the 11,285 Canadians killed in France whose remains were never identified.

Designed by Toronto sculptor Walter Seymour Allward, the memorial isn’t just about victory — it’s a monument to peace, an anti-war statement carved in stone.

Even Adolf Hi**er was captivated by its power. During WWII, he ordered German troops to guard and protect the Vimy Memorial — one of the few left untouched amid the devastation.

Standing atop Vimy Ridge today, overlooking the Douai Plains, you’re reminded not only of Canada’s sacrifices but also of the futility and tragedy of war itself.

📍 Canadian National Vimy Memorial — where history, sacrifice, and hope converge.
📸 Photo credits: Stephen J. Thorne

09/04/2025

The nation grows

Manitoba became a province of Canada in 1870, though at the time it didn’t extend much past the Red River Valley (it wasn’t until 1912 that it expanded to its current boundaries). In 1871, B.C. became a province. Between them, was a vast area then known as the North-West Territories.

The West was rapidly changing; buffalo were disappearing, and settlers were slowly populating the region. Too slowly, though, from the federal government’s perspective.

Manitoba became a province of Canada in 1870, though at the time it didn’t extend much past the Red River Valley (it wasn’t until 1912 that it expanded to its current boundaries). In 1871, B.C. became a province. Between them, was a vast area then known as the North-West Territories. The West wa...

09/03/2025

Canadian veteran talks service at home and in Ukraine

Retired corporal Kate MacEachern understands the true meaning of service. To the Ballantynes Cove, N.S., native, it meant joining the Canadian Armed Forces in 2005, training as a tanker with Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Royal Canadians) until an accident left her with critical head and spinal cord injuries that transformed her military career. Her service, however, continued through to her medical release in 2014, although not even discharge papers could end her dedication to the uniform.

Retired corporal Kate MacEachern understands the true meaning of service. To the Ballantynes Cove, N.S., native, it meant joining the Canadian Armed Forces in 2005, training as a tanker with Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Royal Canadians) until an accident left her with critical head and spinal cord inj...

09/03/2025

Vimy today: A photoessay

As far as war monuments go, the Canadian National Vimy Memorial is widely regarded to be among the most magnificent, if not the most.

It is set on the ridge where all four Canadian divisions—100,000 troops—fought together for the first time, won a great victory, and thus staked their country’s place at the table and in the world.

As far as war monuments go, the Canadian National Vimy Memorial is widely regarded to be among the most magnificent, if not the most. It is set on the ridge where all four Canadian divisions—100,000 troops—fought together for the first time, won a great victory, and thus staked their country’s...

08/29/2025

Has the 150-plus year friendly relationship between Canada and the U.S. really come to an end?

08/28/2025

How Canada’s Second World War rationing was done by the book

After Britain was cut off from European supplies in 1940, her people and her fighting men were saved from starvation by Canadian food,” declared Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King in a September 1942 radio address.

Certainly, Britain’s plight had galvanized citizens across the agricultural Dominion. Food production had thus accelerated to support the Empire and Canada’s own armed forces, heeding the age-old axiom that an army marches on its stomach.

How Canada’s Second World War rationing was done by the book

08/27/2025

Persian Gulf War veterans’ fight for “past due” recognition

“What is a war—and what does Canada consider a war?”

Such questions, and many more, come from former serviceman Mike McGlennon. Rhetorical though they might appear, they’re nevertheless questions that the vice-president of the Persian Gulf Veterans of Canada Association expects the federal government to address—and soon. Already, he adds, answers are well “past due.”

“War” is not in the organization’s name for a reason. Despite the deployment of at least 4,458 Canadian service personnel after Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait on Aug. 2, 1990, and despite those same military members later earning battle honours prior to the Feb. 28, 1991, ceasefire, none were legally recognized as “wartime service” veterans, instead attaining a “special duty area” designation.

“What is a war—and what does Canada consider a war?” Such questions, and many more, come from former serviceman Mike McGlennon. Rhetorical though they might appear, they’re nevertheless questions that the vice-president of the Persian Gulf Veterans of Canada Association expects the federal g...