Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Canadian troops took part in Korea as it was a UN action.
Korea was a UN action only in the technical sense. In reality, the US was directing the armed response as an extension of US geo political interests. My guess is that Canada sent troops because to some extent, they shared the geo political interests of the United States.
As a side note, for nearly all of WWII, Canada had a policy where one had to "double volunteer" for combat (volunteer for the Canadian military, then volunteer specifically for combat positions). This led to a smaller number of Canadian units deployed, but they had an earned reputation for being motivated and lethal.
I would not be surprised if Canada kept this same policy for Korea where one had to volunteer for the Canadian military, then volunteer for a deployable combat unit.
With regard to Korea....Besides the US, 16 other nations also contributed troops, tanks, artillery and engineer units , air force squadrons, and naval ships. Six other nations sent medical teams and base hospital staff. It was not JUST a US war, it was a international mission.
In terms of the Canadian contribution....About 70 percent of the soldiers that we sent to Korea were WW2 veterans, who had all ready served in combat. They volunteered AGAIN to serve in Korea. Because of that fact, they were the most experienced ground units there. The same goes for the Canadian armoured units and artillery batteries.
The RCAF sent six fighter squadrons, flying the F 86 Sabre Jet. built in Montreal by Canadaire, plus two air transport squadrons. The RCN sent six destroyers, and they contributed greatly, by close inshore gunnery, against North Korean trains, running along the coastal railway lines. Two of those ships made history, by destroying the most trains by naval gunfire.
A simple explanation, re draft resisters/draft dodgers.....
Canada has no such a thing as a draft, so we didn't consider that to be a negative factor when some body APPLIED to be considered as a immigrant. If the applicant met our requirements, they could move to Canada and get a job and live here. Some of them never left, and are still here today.
To the OP, do some research about how many Canadians served in the US military, and IN Viet Nam...Because the US Defense Department required the Canadians to put a US "hometown" on their DD214, it is hard to get an accurate figure. But the accepted number of Canadian citizens who served in that time period is between 30 and 40 thousand. 107 of them died in Viet Nam, and hundreds more were wounded there. The 107 are listed on the "North Wall" memorial located in Windsor , Ontario, across the river from Detroit. One Canadian, John Lemon fro Toronto was awarded the Medal Of Honor, for his actions as a US Marine in Viet Nam.
Re Iraq. We did not actively serve there as a country, but individual members of the Canadian Forces, who were attached to US military units, on exchange, did. BTW, by tradition the second in command of the US Army's third Division... Is a Canadian General. We also make up about 30 percent of the staff at NORAD.
How much of that did you know ?
Jim B.
I actually knew about Canadians in the US military during the Vietnam War. Canadians living in the US were subject to the US draft.
A simple explanation, re draft resisters/draft dodgers.....
Canada has no such a thing as a draft, so we didn't consider that to be a negative factor when some body APPLIED to be considered as a immigrant. If the applicant met our requirements, they could move to Canada and get a job and live here. Some of them never left, and are still here today.
To the OP, do some research about how many Canadians served in the US military, and IN Viet Nam...Because the US Defense Department required the Canadians to put a US "hometown" on their DD214, it is hard to get an accurate figure. But the accepted number of Canadian citizens who served in that time period is between 30 and 40 thousand. 107 of them died in Viet Nam, and hundreds more were wounded there. The 107 are listed on the "North Wall" memorial located in Windsor , Ontario, across the river from Detroit. One Canadian, John Lemon fro Toronto was awarded the Medal Of Honor, for his actions as a US Marine in Viet Nam.
Re Iraq. We did not actively serve there as a country, but individual members of the Canadian Forces, who were attached to US military units, on exchange, did. BTW, by tradition the second in command of the US Army's third Division... Is a Canadian General. We also make up about 30 percent of the staff at NORAD.
How much of that did you know ?
Jim B.
Well said, Jim. Throughout the 20th century there were always some Canadians who helped fight American wars, and Americans who helped Canadians fight their wars.
The bonds between our nations are strong and old. While both nations are their own and each has its own culture, we have always shared many similarities and always have.
As a side note, for nearly all of WWII, Canada had a policy where one had to "double volunteer" for combat (volunteer for the Canadian military, then volunteer specifically for combat positions). This led to a smaller number of Canadian units deployed, but they had an earned reputation for being motivated and lethal.
Wasent this done to placate Quebeckers, many of whom openly sympathized with the Axis? You know, it is widely believed that future Canadian PM Pierre Trudeau was pro-Nazi during the WW2 years.
Alot of people don't realize that Canada has a very long and proud military history from the War of 1812 to Afghanistan today. I wonder how many of my fellow Americans know that the Canadian Army's Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry was awarded one of the very rare Presidential Unit Citations to a foreign unit for the Battle of Kapyong in 1951? Many people believe that Kapyong was the Canadian Army's finest hour.
Canada is a larger nation than the United States, but has only less than 1/3 of our population. 90% of Canadians live within 100 miles of our shared border, so there's still lots and lots of empty space to populate there. That, in part, is why Canadians are so willing to take immigrants from distressed nations.
It's more stark than that, Canada actually has just 1/10 of the US population in a slightly larger area than the US (3.8 million square miles vs. 3.6 million for the US)
What is the correct side and how would you then define Canada's role in Korea, Afhiganistan, the first gulf war, Somalia, and on and on....?
My answer would be that those are all different situations. A course of action that is appropriate in one situation is not necessarily the right course of action for a different situation. Case by case basis.
Canada's military relationship with UK has been complicated. Read Armageddon, Max Hastings - Canadian PM King (I think it was) in the 1940s had enormous political pressure from the French Canadian population - they didn't want to contribute to a repeat of the bloodletting of WWI. Nor were they enthusiastic about fighting what they considered to be UK's/British Empire's war. & so Canadian troops had to volunteer to get to UK, & I believe their service during WWII was limited to the ETO. Also, once D-Day took place in June 1944, the losses piled up very fast, & Canada had real problems replacing riflemen (most of the casualties) with similar skills & training (so did the UK, for that matter, & the US).
In Vietnam - I haven't read anything specifically about Canada's military experience in Vietnam. The US got involved mostly to prop up France (to cultivate their political support in Europe, & to thwart Communist progress in Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, SW Asia in general). Even @ the time, I didn't see any strategic US interests in danger in Vietnam.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
A Gallic shrug
