Legion Magazine

12/18/2025

Canadian homeowners aged 55+ can access up to 55% of their home’s value without having to sell. As a proud partner of the Royal Canadian Legion, HomeEquity Bank offers Legion members $500 cash back* upon funding their CHIP Reverse Mortgage. Learn more at https://shorturl.at/jK1O0

12/18/2025

Historian Karl James on the Australian-Canadian wartime bond

“In Australia, just as in Canada,” explained Karl James, head of military history at the Australian War Memorial, “there has been much political and popular discussion surrounding the stability and reliability of our great and powerful allies. Many of the assumptions and defence assurances that the western Allies have taken for granted in the years since the Second World War are being tested.”

The author and editor cited the works of his Canadian colleagues, Marc Milner’sSecond Front (2025) and the late Tim Cook’s The Good Allies (2024), as prime examples of recent discourse on such topics, notably within the context of Canada’s relationship with the U.S. and U.K.

“In Australia, just as in Canada,” explained Karl James, head of military history at the Australian War Memorial, “there has been much political and popular discussion surrounding the stability and reliability of our great and powerful allies. Many of the assumptions and defence assurances tha...

12/15/2025

In 1967, a Canadian WW II veteran returned a captured katana to its original owner

George Suzuki watched as 1,500 Japanese soldiers surrendered their arms.

Though VJ-Day had come and gone, a new conflict—the Indonesian National Revolution—was already taking hold in Sumatra. There, British forces, under whose authority the Canadian Suzuki served within intelligence, scrambled to evacuate old enemies—and their weapons sought by anti-colonial nationalists.

Clambering aboard Royal Navy vessels, defeated Japanese troops stacked rifles and ceded swords, leaving them in piles. It was then that one blade, a katana traditionally wielded by samurai warriors, caught Suzuki’s eye.

In 1967, a Canadian WW II veteran returned a captured katana to its original owner

12/11/2025

Historian Allan Levine on how Canada’s business leaders helped win WW II

“We’re always looking back on the Second World War and seeing it as an important time in Canadian history,” said historian Allan Levine, “but this is one story that’s never really been told.”

It has now, however, in the award-winning author’s most recent book The Dollar a Year Men, published by Barlow Books.

Rather than any battle blow-by-blow or front-line testimony, Levine’s narrative largely remains within the confines of Canada at a time when the country needed to mobilize its industry to support the Allied cause. Civil engineer-turned-politician C.D. Howe, then serving as minister of munitions and supply—and nicknamed the Minister of Everything for his far-reaching influence—took on that challenge, enlisting dozens of business leaders from across the country, their task to bring about the “greatest economic metamorphosis” ever experienced in Canada.

“We’re always looking back on the Second World War and seeing it as an important time in Canadian history,” said historian Allan Levine, “but this is one story that’s never really been told.” It has now, however, in the award-winning author’s most recent book The Dollar a Year Men, pub...

12/10/2025

This holiday season, stay close to the people who matter most, no matter where they are.
This season, members can enjoy exclusive savings on phone plans that make it easy to stay connected across Canada and beyond.
✅Reliable service
✅Hassle-free activation
✅Unlimited calling, texting, and data with no overage charges
✅No Setup Fee
Only available at Red Wireless, your exclusive endorsed Legion partner and authorized Rogers dealer. Not available in stores.
Call us at 1-888-251-5488 or visit us at www.redwireless.ca/legion to get started.

https://www.redwireless.ca/legion?utm_source=Legion&utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=Dec-2025-social-post&utm_content=Dec-2025-social-post-facebook-link-en

12/10/2025

Remembering Stephen J. Thorne

“Stephen?”
“No, I’m Aaron,” I responded to the question from a Legionnaire at a hotel in Saskatoon in September 2025.

But I understood the confusion. After all, Legion Magazine’s senior staff writer Stephen J. Thorne was a regular, covering Royal Canadian Legion events across the country since he joined the publication in 2016. If there was a man with a camera roaming around, there was a good chance it was him.

“Oh, sorry,” said the Legionnaire. The apology, however, felt as though it had double meaning—sorry for the mistake; but also, a tinge of regret that I wasn’t actually Stephen. I get that, too.

After a sudden illness, Stephen died on Dec. 5, 2025, at age 66.

“Stephen?” “No, I’m Aaron,” I responded to the question from a Legionnaire at a hotel in Saskatoon in September 2025. But I understood the confusion. After all, Legion Magazine’s senior staff writer Stephen J. Thorne was a regular, covering Royal Canadian Legion events across the country...

12/08/2025

The Royal Canadian Legion extends its heartfelt condolences on the passing of Stephen J. Thorne, an esteemed writer and contributor with Legion Magazine. Stephen’s thoughtful journalism and unwavering commitment to sharing the stories of Canada’s military community left a lasting impact on readers across the country. We honour his work and legacy, and we hold his family, friends, and the team at Canvet Publications in our thoughts during this difficult time.

12/04/2025

How C.D. Howe became Canada’s first minister of everything—and helped win WW II

After the passenger ship Western Prince was torpedoed by a U-boat on Dec. 14, 1940, in the middle of the North Atlantic, 154 survivors scrambled into lifeboats.
Taking his turn bailing and rowing was Clarence Decatur (C.D.) Howe, leader of a Canadian delegation heading to Britain to discuss wartime supplies for the beleaguered country.

Howe, said Lord Beaverbrook, British minister of aircraft production, was “one of a handful of men of whom it can be said, ‘But for him the war would have been lost.’” The British ensured a safer return trip, sending Howe home aboard the battleship King George V.

How C.D. Howe became Canada’s first minister of everything—and helped win WW II

12/04/2025

Author and journalist Linden MacIntyre on the life of a disgraced British officer

History will forever judge the judgeable, no matter where they’re laid to rest.

Such was the case of British Major-General Hugh Tudor, a once-hero of the Great War turned co-architect of some of the worst atrocities in the struggle for Irish Independence. While his enemies never exacted revenge upon him after he sought sanctuary in Newfoundland, the enigmatic former officer—who could have prevented much of 1920’s Bloody Sunday—failed to escape his tarnished reputation.

History will forever judge the judgeable, no matter where they’re laid to rest. Such was the case of British Major-General Hugh Tudor, a once-hero of the Great War turned co-architect of some of the worst atrocities in the struggle for Irish Independence. While his enemies never exacted revenge up...

12/03/2025

11 iconic weapons of the Second World War

M1 Garand rifle

The M1 Garand was the standard U.S. service rifle during the Second World War and the Korean War and saw limited use during the Vietnam War. Named for its Canadian-born designer John Garand, the weapon was the first standard-issue semi-automatic military rifle; replacing the bolt-action M1903 Springfield rifle.

The .30 caliber gas-operated rifle weighs around 9.5 pounds and is just over a metre long. It has an eight-round clip which ejects from the rifle when empty, creating a distinctive metallic “pinging” sound.

Roughly 5.4 million of these rifles were made during the Second World War and were used by all branches of the United States military.

M1 Garand rifle   The M1 Garand was the standard U.S. service rifle during the Second World War and the Korean War and saw limited use during the Vietnam War. Named for its Canadian-born designer John Garand, the weapon was the first standard-issue semi-automatic military rifle; replacing the bolt-...

12/01/2025

Test your knowledge of Canadian military history with a Trivia Challenge!
Plus! You could WIN a Trivia Challenge Prize of an exclusive one Canadian All-Stars Mug and one Two-Toned Toque in Charcoal. Contest ends Monday December 15, 2025. One winner will be chosen at random on Wednesday December 17, 2025. Click the link below to play.

This giveaway is in no way sponsored, administered, or associated with Facebook. By entering, participants confirm that they are 18+ years of age, release Facebook of responsibility, and agree to Facebook’s terms of use.

Prize Pack consists of: Canada’s Ultimate Story O Canada: 5-Volume Set; one personalized signed copy of On War: Exploring why and how we fight; one History Connects Us tote bag