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Today in Military History

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1729:  King Louis XV authorizes a new issue of playing card money in New France; not enough printed bills or coinage to pay the troops; Governor at Quebec allowed to sign playing cards as specie.

1782:  Sir Guy Carleton is appointed commander of British forces in North America. He assumes his new post as the War of Independence (1775-76) is drawing to a close.

1943:   Battle of the Bismark Sea rages; Allied planes sink 12 Japanese ships carrying reinforcements to New Guinea, killing nearly 4,000.

1945:  Naik (Corporal equivalent) Fazal Din of the 10th Baluch Regiment conducted a lone attack on a Japanese bunker, which was pinning down his section.  Having eliminated its defenders, he then attacked a second, from which six Japanese charged forth.  A Japanese officer ran his sword through Fazal Din's chest, but as he pulled the blade out, the mortally wounded Naik wrestled it from his grip, and killed the officer with his own sword.  He then killed a second Japanese soldier with the sword, as his men advanced to capture the bunker.  Fazal Din managed to stagger back to report the success of the attack, before dying from his injuries.  He was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross.

Elsewhere in Burma, Gian Singh, a Naik of the 15th Punjab Regiment, single-handedly attacked a series of Japanese positions.  Despite being wounded, he cleared a series of trenches and a concealed anti-tank gun, then led his section forward to complete the reduction of the enemy position.  He received the Victoria Cross.

1949:  Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians) are redesignated "Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians)(2nd Armoured Regiment)."

1951:  National Defence publish first Canadian casualty list from Korea; six soldiers killed.

1956:  No. 4 Wing air display team "The Sky Lancers" crashes southwest of Strasbourg, Germany.  Four of the five Sabre pilots are killed.

1964:  439 Squadron, RCAF, is reformed as a 'reconnaissance/attack' squadron.

1991:  The first Canadian troops leave for home at the conclusion of Operation Desert Storm. No Canadians have been killed in the conflict between Iraq and the United Nations and all are relieved to be returning home safe.

1992:  MND the Honourable Marcel Masse announces that Canada will send another 100 CF personnel to Cambodia as part of the United Nations Advance Mission in Cambodia (UNAMIC).

 
1813:  Admiral Cockburn's squadron arrives in Lynnhaven Bay

1838:  British regulars and local militia from Fort Malden (Amherstberg, Ont.) attack William Lyon Mackenzie's rebels on Pelee Island, on Lake Erie. About 400 of Mackenzie's republican supporters planned to use the island as a starting point for their "liberation" of Canada. Following a spirited bayonet charge by the British, the rebels abandon the island and cross the frozen lake back to the United States.

1895: On the North West Frontier, India , word was brought to the garrison at Chitral Fort that an officer had been badly wounded some 1.5 miles distant.  Surgeon-Captain Whitchurch immediately set out with a rescue party.  They reached the wounded officer, but as they were carrying him back, they came under very heavy fire.  Three of the stretcher bearers were killed, whereupon Whitchurch hoisted the officer onto his back, and carried him the remainder of the way to the fort, all the time under fire.  Sadly, the officer's wounds proved fatal, but Whitchurch was awarded the Victoria Cross.

1901: Lieutenant Dugdale, 5th Royal Irish Lancers, earned the Victoria Cross for his rescue under fire of two wounded and unhorsed troopers during a Boer War skirmish.  He dismounted and put one of the men in his own saddle, then caught one of the riderless horses, mounted it and pulled the second casualty up behind him.  He then took both horses and the wounded back to the British lines.

1915:  The First Canadian Division replaces the Seventh British Division on 6400 yards of front south of Armentieres.

1921:  HMC Submarines CH-14 and CH-15 are commissioned into the Royal Canadian Navy

1942:  First combat flight of the Canadian-built Avro Lancaster bomber.

1942: Bomber Command launched its largest raid thus far of the war, in an attempt to conduct night low-level precision bombing against the large Renault factory at Boulogne-Billancourt, Paris, which was an important source of trucks for the German military.  Some 235 bombers attacked, in an hitherto unprecedented concentration over the target - 121 per hour - which demonstrated that the risk of collision at night was lower than feared, no accidents being suffered.  The raid's great success - 300 bombs fell directly on the factory, causing an estimated loss of production of 2,300 trucks - was marred by heavy casualties amongst the French civilian population; 367 were killed.

1945: During an attack by the Green Howards (British Army) on Japanese bunkers in Burma, Lieutenant Weston distinguished himself leading the charge on a number of strong-points.  In the attack on the last and most difficult bunker, Weston fell wounded in the entrance.  He deliberately pulled the pin from one of his grenades, and blew up himself and the bunker.  He was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross.

1980:  Hon. Gilles Lamontangne appointed Minister of National Defence (T0 11 Aug 1983).




 
1814:  Americans defeat British at Battle of Longwoods; between London and Thamesville.

1910:  Assent granted for creation of the portfolio of Minister of the Naval Service created by Statute 9 - 10 Edward VII.c 43.  The department of the Naval Service to be presided over by the Minister of Marine and Fisheries, who was to be the Minister of the Naval Service.

1910:  Hon. Louis-Phillippe Brodeur appointed Minister of the Naval Service (to 10 Aug 1911).

1918:  At 6:00 this morning German troops attack the Canadians holding Aloof Trench, at Lens. Although the German attackers gain a foothold on the Canadian line, counter-attacks drive the enemy from the trench, leaving behind many of their dead.

1941:  Five Royal Navy destroyers and two troop transports landed 500 British Commandos, Royal Engineers and Free Norwegian troops at dawn on the Lofoten Islands, in the first Commando raid, Operation Claymore.  In the eight hours they were ashore, the raiders took prisoner 200 Germans, and destroyed the oil factories on the islands.  However, perhaps the most significant haul was the capture of coding rotors for the Enigma cryptographic system, found aboard a German armed trawler.

1942:  The first Canadian 'Cruiser' tanks arrive in England.

1942:  The submarine HMS Torbay, under Commander Miers, followed an Axis convoy and succeeded in penetrating the heavily defended anchorage at Corfu.  Torbay proceeded to fire torpedoes at two large transports and a destroyer - both transports were reported sunk - then retreated out to sea under very heavy depth charge attack.  Torbay escaped successfully, and Miers was awarded the Victoria Cross for the exploit.

1943:  U-87 sunk west of Leixoes by the Canadian corvette HMCS Shediac and the destroyer HMCS St. Croix.

1945:  After five days of fierce fighting, German resistance in the Hochwald forest ends. The 2nd Canadian Division passes through the dense woods and emerges on its eastern edge to find abandoned German dead and equipment everywhere.

1946:  Communist MP Fred Rose and 13 others charged with spying for the Soviet Union; result of Gouzenko revelations.

1954:  First flight of the prototype Lockheed F-104A Starfighter.  This aircraft would be chosen in 1959 by the RCAF to replace the Sabre.

1964:  UN Security Council adopts resolution to appoint mediator and establish peace-keeping force in Cyprus.  United Nations Peace Keeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) authorized.

1966:  Liberal Justice Minister Cardin breaks news of the Munsinger Affair scandal, involving former Diefenbaker Associate Minister of National Defence Pierre Sevigny 1917- and his relationship with Gerda Munsinger, known to the RCMP as a prostitute with East German contacts.

1969:  RCMP to replace remaining dog teams with snowmobiles.

1991:  Saddam Hussein releases 6 US, 3 British and 1 Italian POW.

1991:  1 Canadian Field Hospital ceases operations in Saudi Arabia.

1993:  Two Somali infiltrators shot by the Canadian Airborne Regiment, one dies.

 
1814:  240 British and Canadian troops engage an American foraging party of 165 men at Longwood (about 30 km. south-west of modern London, Ont.) Although they try to dislodge the Americans, who are entrenched in a makeshift log breastwork, the Anglo-Canadian troops withdraw from the field, suffering 14 killed and 52 wounded.

1870:  Garnet Joseph Wolseley 1833-1913 chosen to lead military expedition to Red River; Deputy Quartermaster-General.

1919:  Canadian troops riot at Kimmel Park, England, over the slow pace of repatriation home.

1936:  Spitfire fighter plane unveiled for the first time.

1943:  British and Canadian bombers start Battle of the Ruhr; year-long bombing offensive against Germany.

1945:  18 of 185 Canadian aircrafts are lost in a raid on Chemnitz

1945:  Rifleman Bhanbhagta Gurung of the 2nd Gurkha Rifles successfully hunted down a Japanese sniper who had kept his section under fire at Snowdon East in Burma.  He then went forward alone and killed the defenders in four enemy positions, including a machine-gun team in a bunker.  Supported now by three other Gurkhas, he defended the captured bunker against a Japanese counter-attack, driving the enemy back with very heavy losses.  He was awarded the Victoria Cross.

1960:  Between 5 and 7 March a Royal Canadian Air Force transport aircraft, a North Star, flies 6,647 pounds of medical equipment and medical personnel to Agadir, Morocco, which had been struck by earthquakes.

1967:  Georges-Philias Vanier 1888-1967 dies at age 78; soldier, Royal 22ème Regiment; Canada's 19th Governor-General 1959-67, and the first French Canadian to hold the position.

1995:  Canadian Airborne Regiment officially disbanded at laying-up of the colors ceremony at Canadian Forces Base Petawawa.


BORN TODAY:  Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac 1658-1806
soldier, explorer, and French colonial Governor, born on this day at Les Laumets France in 1658; died 1730 in France. Cadillac arrived in Canada in 1683, fought against the Iroquois.
 
1814:  A British picket and several officers on the Niagara border capture an American deserter and the troops who had been sent to bring him back.

1858:  Lance-Corporal Goat of the 9th Lancers (British Army) won the Victoria Cross for his persistent efforts to recover the body of an officer killed in combat during the Indian Mutiny.  To do so, Goat had to dismount and work under enemy fire to hoist the body over his horse.  His first attempt had to be abandoned due to the approach of enemy cavalry, but he finally succeeded in retrieving the body for proper burial.

1902:  Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service was established.

1915:  2nd Canadian Division begin to land in England, the last part of it arriving in August, 1915.

1916:  During fierce fighting near the formidable Hohenzollern Redoubt on the Western Front, a shell blast severed the leg of Corporal Cotter, East Kent Regiment (British Army), just below the knee.  He was also wounded in both arms.  Despite his appalling injuries, Cotter managed to make his way to a large crater some fifty yards distant occupied by men from his battalion, and took charge of them, organising the successful defence of the crater against a German counter-attack.  For two hours he controlled the defenders' fire, changed their positions to deal better with fresh attacks, and only allowed his wounds to receive the most improvised of dressings.  It was fourteen hours before he could be safely evacuated to a dressing station, and he soon afterwards died of his wounds.  He was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross.

1929:  Death of Major-General Sir William Otter, KCB.

1940:  Founding of the wartime Agricultural Supplies Board.

1943:  Seventy-seven bombers from 6 Group, RCAF, join the 442-aircraft raid against Essen, Germany. The target for tonight is the Krupp factory in that city, which continues to turn out war material -- tanks, bombs, and artillery -- despite being hit twice already. The raid destroys large portions of the target factory.

1944:  U-744 sunk in the North Atlantic by HMS Icarus, the Canadian frigate HMCS St. Catherines, corvettes Fennel and Chilliwack and destroyers Chaudiere and Gatineau and the British corvette HMS Kenilworth Castle.

1945:  VEEN, effective dates for battle honour begin (to 10 Mar 45).






 
1719:  Michel-Philippe Isabeau starts to build Louisbourg on Cape Breton Island; engineer under director of fortifications Jean-François de Verville, who recommended the site in 1716. The fortress takes 25 years to build.

1862:  "The 9th Battalion Volunteer Militia Rifles, Canada (or 'Voltigeurs of Quebec')" are authorized, the Regiment will become Les Voltigeurs de Quebec, Force A Superbe Mercy A Foible (Violence to the strong, mercy to the weak).

1866:  Canada puts 10,000 militia on alert after Fenians hold meeting in New York and threaten invasion; as precaution against anticipated attacks on St. Patrick's Day.

1866:  10,000 Militia placed under arms against anticipated St. Patrick's Day outrages (Fenians).

1900:  Second (Special Service) Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment in action at Poplar Grove (Boer War).

1917:  A river crossing operation in Mesopotamia involving the King's Own Royal Lancaster Regiment (British Army) came under very heavy fire, and the first two boats were lost with their occupants.  The third boat was also raked by fire, and every man aboard killed or wounded, save only Private White, a signaller.  Unable to control the boat on his own, he improvised a towing line from a supply of field telephone cable he was carrying, then dived overboard, and slowly towed the heavy pontoon back to shore despite a continuing barrage of fire, saving the lives of all the wounded aboard, as well as a large quantity of equipment.  White was awarded the Victoria Cross.

1945:  U-1302 sunk in St. George's Channel, by depth charges from the Canadian frigates HMCS La Hulloise, Strathadam and Thedford Mines.

1945:  Allied forces cross the Rhine River south of Cologne, and take the city.

1951:  Two companies from Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry are involved in the fighting for control of Hill 532 in Korea. The assault is difficult for the Canadians, as the Chinese are entrenched on the crest of the hill and the weather -- wet snow -- slows their uphill progress. Six Patricias are killed today; another 28 are wounded. Hill 532 will be captured tomorrow after the Chinese evacuate their position.

1954:  Prime Minister St. Laurent arrives in Korea aboard an RCAF aircraft.  He will lay a wreath at the Korean War memorial on 8 March and visit with Brigadier Allard and representatives of the Commonwealth Forces.

1963:  FLQ starts campaign of violence by hurling Molotov cocktails at three Canadian Army armories.

1968:  Canadian External Affairs Minister Paul Martin says Canada to participate with US in developing airborne radar system to replace DEW Line.

 
1666:  A French strike force, decimated by exposure and harrying Iroquois attacks, reaches Fort St. Louis (later Fort Chambly, east of Montreal) having lost 100 of its original force of 500 men.

1901:  Samuel Benfield Steele 1849-1919 commanding Lord Strathcona's Horse, arrives back in Halifax with his regiment after fighting the Boers in South Africa.

1916:  In an action in Mesopotamia, a battalion of the Manchester Regiment (British Army) succeeded in capturing a section of the Turkish lines.  However, a vigorous Turkish counter-attack threw the Manchesters back again.  Their safe withdrawal was made possible by the gallantry of one individual, Private Stringer, who had been posted on the extreme right of the line.  He held his ground as the rest of the battalion fell back, and, well supplied with hand grenades, single-handedly broke up the Turkish pursuit until all his grenades had been used up.  Only then did he retire to join his colleagues, who had been able to consolidate a defensive position a little way back.  Stringer was awarded the Victoria Cross.

1917:  After the disastrous attempt to cross the Dialah River in Mesopotamia on 7 March which had already seen the award of a VC to Signaller White, only Captain Reid of the King's Regiment (British Army) was left on the enemy side of the river, with a small number of troops.  For over 30 hours, Reid and his men held off constant Turkish efforts to eliminate them, with no ammunition or supplies able to reach them, and no possibility of escape.  Their continuing presence on the enemy banks proved the necessary advantage when, finally on 10 March, a successful crossing was made by the main force.  Reid was awarded the Victoria Cross.

1917:  In France, troops from the Rifle Brigade (British Army) were digging to repair a newly captured trench, when an unexploded bomb was unearthed, and its fuze was seen to activate.  Second Lieutenant Cates immediately threw himself on the bomb, and his body absorbed the blast, saving the lives of his men.  Cates' self-sacrifice was recognised by a posthumous Victoria Cross.

1918:  In Belgium, Lance Corporal Robertson, Royal Fusiliers (British Army), commanded a Lewis Gun team.  They succeeded in repelling a German attack, but Robertson realised that more enemy troops were mustering.  He therefore sent his men back with a warning to the main British positions, remaining behind with only one man and the Lewis Gun.  The two of them broke up a second German attack, causing large casualties, but Robertson then decided to withdraw some way, no reinforcements having reached him.  He continued fighting off further attacks, despite the death of his comrade, and finally reached the British lines severely wounded with all his ammunition used up.  He was awarded the Victoria Cross.

1919:  AFFAIRS ROUND VISTAVKA, effective dates for battle honour begin (to 10 Mar 19).

1922:  First session of 14th Parliament meets until June 28; passes National Defense Act

1945:  Canadian forces begin their advance on the western suburbs of Xanten. This town represents the last large urban obstacle to crossing the Rhine. The Canadians reach their objectives by midday and clear the town by the following morning.

1945:  Hon. Colin William George Gibson appointed Minister of National Defence for Air (to 11 Dec 1946).

1945:  Colonel the Honourable Colin Gibson is appointed Minister of National Defence for Air.

1945:  XANTEN, effective dates for battle honour begin (to 9 Mar 45).

1954:  Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent visits Canadian brigade in Korea during world tour.

1984:  First US cruise missile tested over western Canada; unarmed missile stays attached to B-52 bomber.

1993:  Canadian Navy supply ship HMCS Preserver heads home after three-month tour of Somalia; her three Sea King helicopters airlifted 430 tonnes of supplies into Mogadishu.
 
1815:  Treaty of Ghent proclaimed at Quebec; end of War of 1812.

1831:  King Louis Philippe founds the French Foreign Legion, with headquarters in Algeria.

1858:  At Lucknow, Lieutenant Butler of the 1st European Bengal Fusiliers swam across the Goomtee River under enemy fire to conduct a reconnaissance of the mutineers' positions.  Meanwhile, Lieutenant Farquharson of the Black Watch (British Army) led an assault on an artillery position which threatened the British advance.  Both officers were awarded the Victoria Cross.

1862:  Ironclads Monitor (Union) & Merrimack (Confederate) do battle. US Civil War.

1864:  Abraham Lincoln appoints General Ulysses S. Grant commander-in-chief of the Union armies.  US Civil War.

1866:  7 Toronto Regiment (RCA)

1873:  John A Macdonald's government proposes establishment of a Mounted Police force for the North West Territories; act passed May 23.

1885:  This is the final day of the contract signed by Canadian voyageurs to serve on the Nile River. Almost 400 of the rivermen volunteered to move British troops and supplies upriver to the relief of Khartoum. With the fall of the city and the expiration of their agreement, most will return to Canada to resume their lives in the timber trade.

1916:  The 48th Battalion, CEF, commences service as the "3rd Canadian Pioneer Battalion (48th Canadians)", with the 3rd Canadian Division.

1916:  Mexican General Francisco Pancho Villa invades US, 17 killed.

1916:  Germany declares war on Portugal; accuses Portugal of seizing German shipping in Lisbon harbor.

1944:  The German town of Veen falls to 4th Canadian Division, as the Battle of the Rhineland begins to wind down.

1945:  Cruiser HMCS Uganda arrives in Sydney, Australia, to join the British Pacific Fleet.

1945:  Incendiary raid on Tokyo kills 84,000.

1945:  US 1st Army captures Bonn.

1991:  United Nations Iraq-Kuwait Observation Mission (UNIKOM) authorized.





 
1813:  Six companies of the 104th Regiment of Foot, plus 4th New Brunswick Regiment, start 52-day march overland to the St. Lawrence in winter; travel on snowshoes, pulling supplies on toboggans, lose only one man, arriving in Kingston April 12.

1868:  The first contingent of Canadian Pontifical Zouaves arrives in Rome early this afternoon. There are 36 volunteers from Quebec in this group; in time, they will be joined by almost 500 more recruits. The troops have offered to serve Pope Pius IX in his defence of the Papal States against Garibaldi and the forces of Italian unification. Only two will be wounded in the fighting.

1900:  Second (Special Service) Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment in action at Driefontein (Boer War).

1915:  Canadians see action in Battle of Neuve Chapelle.

1915:  Royal Flying Corps aircraft conducted early interdiction operations against railway facilities at Courtrai and Menin, in an attempt to disrupt German efforts to reinforce their front-line as the British offensive at Neuve Chapelle began.  On the ground, two VCs were won.  Private Buckingham, of the Leicestershire Regiment (British Army), was decorated for his repeated efforts to rescue wounded men from No Man's Land.  And Gobar Sing Negi of the 39th Garhwal Rifles was killed leading a bombing party along the German trenches; each time, he was the first man around a corner, the most dangerous manoeuvre, which eventually cost him his life.  The British offensive initially made good progress, but Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria's Sixth Army then stabilised their defences and held the line.

1917:  In the Atlantic, the merchant steamer Otaki, commanded by Lieutenant Smith, Royal Naval Reserve, ran into a disguised German raider.  The raider demanded that Otaki surrender, but Smith fought back, although his ship only had a single elderly 4.7" gun, against the raider's heavy armament of four modern 5.9" and one 4.1" weapons.  Despite the disparity in firepower, Otaki badly damaged her opponent before Smith ordered his crew to abandon ship.  He himself went down with the Otaki, and was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross.

1918:  In Egypt, Turkish forces mounted heavy counter-attacks on British troops who had successfully advanced.  Private Whitfield of the King's Shropshire Light Infantry (British Army), attacked alone a Turkish machine-gun team that had set up in a dangerous position, and having eliminated them, turned the machine-gun on the rest of the Turkish force.  He then led a successful raid by a bombing party armed with grenades which helped further establish the security of the British position.  He was awarded the Victoria Cross.

1941:  No. 2 Canadian Tunneling Company, Royal Canadian Engineers, arrives at Gibraltar.

1944:  A Sunderland aircraft from No.422 Squadron attacks and destroys the German submarine U-625.

1944:  HMC Ships St. Laurent, Owen Sound and Swansea assist Royal Navy warships sink the German submarine U-845 in the North Atlantic.

1945:  First Canadian Army forces Germans across Rhine opposite Wesel, ending month-long campaign west of the Rhine

1945:  Canadian forces begin their advance on the western suburbs of Xanten. This town represents the last large urban obstacle to crossing the Rhine. The Canadians reach their objectives by midday and clear the town by the following morning.

1945:  USAF sends 300 B-29 bombers to firebomb Tokyo; Great Tokyo Air Raid kills 100,000 people.

1992:  Operation Harmony - MND Marcel Masse announces Canada will send 1,200 peacekeepers to Yugoslavia and Croatia as part of the UN Protection Force (UNPROFOR).

2000:  Two CF Airbus flights leave Trenton to transport relief supplies to victims of the flooding in Mozambique.


 
1666:  A French strike force, decimated by exposure and harrying Iroquois attacks, arrives in Montreal after having lost 100 men from an original force of 500.

1779:  US Army Corps of Engineers established.

1858:  During the assault on the rebel-held city of Lucknow, no less than four Victoria Crosses were won.  Captain Wilmot of the Rifle Brigade led his company in fierce street fighting, and at one point found himself with only four men, facing a heavy Mutineer counter-attack.  One of his men fell badly wounded in the legs, whereupon Corporal Nash and Private Hawkes (himself badly wounded) managed to carry the casualty slowly back to safety, whilst Captain Wilmot used their rifles to cover the retreat.  Wilmot, Nash and Hawkes all received the VC.  The fourth VC was won by Lieutenant McBean of the 93rd Regiment, who killed eleven men in hand-to-hand fighting whilst storming a breach in the walls of the Begum Kothi, one of the main strong-points in Lucknow's defences.

1885:  Leif Newry Fitzroy Crozier 1847-1901 warns Ottawa of danger of rebellion in Saskatchewan; NWMP Superintendent at Fort Carlton

1908:  Laurier government creates National Battlefields Commission; partly to save Quebec's Plains of Abraham from property development.

1917:  British, Indian and ANZAC forces captured Baghdad, having broken the Turkish defences along the Dialah River.

1938:  German troops enter Austria.

1941:  US Congress approves Lend Lease to British; FDR's signature opens way for full aid to Britain, so she can buy food and arms.

1942:  The Canadian Parliament passes legislation for full conscription for home defence.

1942:  General Douglas MacArthur leaves Corregidor for Australia, vowing "I shall return."

1944:  In Burma, Nand Singh, a Naik with 1/11th Sikh Regiment, led his section in a counter-attack after the Japanese had succeeded in taking a British position on a ridge-line.  He led his men up a very steep and exposed hillside, in the face of heavy machine-gun fire, and despite being repeatedly wounded in the leg, face and shoulder, did not rest until all three trenches had been taken.  He was awarded the Victoria Cross.

1945:  1,000 allied bombers harass Essen, dropping 4,662 ton bombs.

1949:  HMCS Crescent arrives at Nanking at 5:00 this evening. The warship has made the journey up the Yangtze River in case Canadian nationals need to be evacuated from mainland China. (Chinese Nationalist and Communist forces are at war.) The vessel's stay in these waters will be uneventful.

1949:  Canada helps draft North Atlantic Security Treaty with Britain, USA, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Norway; leads to creation of NATO.

1968:  410 Squadron is reformed, after a four year disbandment, as an 'all weather operational training' squadron. 







 
1879:  Zulu forces surprised a wagon train escorted by men of the 80th Regiment (British Army) at the Ntombe River.  The commanding officer, Captain Moriarty, was killed in the first rush, and the other officer, Lieutenant Hayward, abandoned his men and fled.  The situation was only saved by Sergeant Booth, who rallied a few men and covered the retreat of the main party for more than three miles before the Zulus broke off their pursuit.  His action having saved at least fifty lives, Booth was awarded the Victoria Cross.  Hayward was tried by court martial for cowardice.

1915:  No less than seven VCs were won in a single day at the height of the British offensive at Neuve Chapelle.  Corporal Anderson, Yorkshire Regiment, repelled an enemy attack with grenades and rifle fire.  Guardsman Barber, Grenadier Guards, used grenades in a lone attack so effectively that large numbers of Germans surrendered to him; he was killed in action later in the day.  Lance Corporal Fuller, also Grenadier Guards, achieved a similar feat, taking 50 prisoners single-handed.  Company Sergeant Major Daniels and Corporal Noble of the Rifle Brigade cut paths through heavy barbed wire entanglements, fully exposed to enemy fire.  Both were wounded, Noble fatally.  Captain Foss, Bedfordshire Regiment, led just eight men to recapture a trench and take prisoner 52 Germans, who had previously wiped out a much larger British attack.  And Private Rivers, Sherwood Foresters, twice broke up German counter-attacks on his own ; he was killed on the second occasion.

Further north, in Belgium, Lieutenant Martin, Royal Engineers, despite already being wounded, led a small bombing party armed with large numbers of grenades in an attack on a difficult section of German trenches.  He and his men took the position, then held it for well over two hours against German counter-attacks, before being ordered to retire due to lack of progress elsewhere in the attack.  Martin received the eighth Victoria Cross of the day.

1919:  The '43rd Canadian Infantry Battalion' leaves Liverpool, England, for Canada aboard S.S. Baltic.

1930:  World War I air ace Billy Barker killed in a plane crash at Rockcliffe; shot down 53 enemy planes during the war, won Victoria Cross for a single-handed combat against some 60 German aircraft.

1940:  Ernest Frost of the RCAF is awarded the George Cross for his actions at R.A.F. Station, West Raynham, England.

1941:  James Garfield Gardiner cuts wartime wheat quotas to 65% of 1940 acreage.

1945:  An aircraft from No. 6 Squadron shoots down a Japanese fire balloon near Rupert Arm, B. C..

2000:  Official end of operations for members of the Royal 22e Regiment with the UN force in East Timor.



 
1756:  William Johnson is granted a royal commission as "Colonel, Agent and Sole Superintendent of the affairs of the Six Nations, and other Northern Indians".

1858:  As British troops slowly penetrated deeper into the defences at Lucknow, Mutineer artillery shells set fire to a British sandbagged position.  Able Seaman Robinson, a member of the Royal Naval brigade serving ashore at the siege, leapt onto the sandbags, and despite heavy fire from enemy only fifty yards away, proceeded to beat out the flames or throw blazing sandbags clear.  He was seriously wounded in the process, but survived to receive the Victoria Cross.

1884: Major-General Sir Gerald Graham advanced from Suakin as the situation in Sudan worsened, encountering Mahdist forces at Tamai.  A ferocious Mahdist assault succeeded in breaking one of the two British squares, but the other held firm, and eventually prevailed.  Private Edwards of the Black Watch (British Army) won the Victoria Cross for his lone defence of a gun, despite a serious spear wound during a bayonet fight.  Lieutenant Marling, serving with the Mounted Infantry, was similarly decorated for saving the life of a wounded soldier at very close range with the enemy.

1892: During an expedition in the Gambia to suppress slavery, troops from the West India Regiment attacked a fortified gate at Toniataba.  As a major and twelve men worked to batter down the gate, several muskets suddenly appeared at a row of loopholes only a few feet away.  The major's back was turned and in the direct line of fire, but he was saved by Lance Corporal Gordon, who threw himself forward, pushed the officer clear, but took the full blast of the volley himself.  Gordon was shot through the lungs, but survived to receive the Victoria Cross.  His medal is proudly displayed in the Jamaican Defence Force Museum.

1900: Following the British victory at Paardeberg 18-27 February, Lord Roberts' troops managed to push through Boer delaying actions and took Bloemfontein, capital of the Orange Free State on 13 March.  As part of the operation, a cavalry raid behind enemy lines north of the town destroyed a section of railway to hinder Boer efforts at relief.  As the raiders headed back towards the British lines, under close pursuit, one of the horses, ridden by a Royal Engineer, failed to climb a very steep bank.  Sergeant Engleheart of the 10th Hussars turned back, despite heavy enemy fire, and used his expertise as a horseman to help the sapper and his horse up the slope and away to safety.  Engleheart was awarded the Victoria Cross.

1909:  Donald Alexander Smith, Lord Strathcona 1820-1914 sets up Strathcona Trust, a fund for military training and cadet corps in schools.

1915:  No. 2 General Hospital crosses the English Channel to France. There are already 35 nursing sisters from the Dominion working with the wounded from the Western Front. The care given by these women will be a welcome relief to many allied troops.

1917: An attack by the 7th Battalion of the Bedfordshire Regiment (British Army) was met by very heavy machine-gun and artillery fire, and ground to a halt in No Man's Land, with the survivors seeking what shelter they could in craters.  Private Cox, a stretcher bearer, went out into the barrage, and worked tirelessly to rescue casualties.  On four occasions, he managed to carry back wounded men on his own.  Once all the wounded from the Bedfordshires had been recovered, he made his way over to a flanking battalion and assisted their medical orderlies in clearing their wounded.  He continued in similar fashion for the next two days, and was awarded the Victoria Cross.

1940:  An agreement is reached for the Canadian army to provide coastal guns to protect Bell Island, Newfoundland.

1943:  U-163 sunk in the North Atlantic by depth charges from the Canadian corvette HMCS Prescott.

1944:  U-575 sunk in the North Atlantic by depth charges from the Canadian Armed Merchant Cruiser HMCS Prince Rupert, the US destroyer USS Hobson and destroyer escort Haverfield and depth charges from British Wellington and Fortress aircraft and aircraft of the US escort carrier USS Bogue.

1944: In Burma, Lieutenant Cairns of the Somerset Light Infantry, but attached to the South Staffordshire Regiment (British Army), led his platoon in an attack on a Japanese position on a hill.  As they closed the enemy, a Japanese officer attacked Cairns with a sword, severing his left arm.  Cairns, however, managed to kill his opponent, then seized the sword and continued to lead the attack, killing several Japanese with it before he collapsed from his wounds.  The ferocity of his courage induced the Japanese troops to turn and run - almost unheard of at that stage of the war.  Cairns died of his wounds, and was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross.

1961:  Major-General Allard the first Canadian to command a British army division.

1964:  Between 13 and 23 March Royal Canadian Air Force Yukon transport aircraft deliver troops and supplies to the newly-created peacekeeping force on the island of Cyprus as part of Operation "SNOWGOOSE".

1964:  Canada agrees to contribute to UN peacekeeping force in Cyprus.

1978:  Death of Brigadier, The Honourable Milton F. Gregg, VC, MC, CD (The RCR).

1992:  300 Canadian engineers arrive in Duravar, Croatia. A brutal civil war has been tearing apart Yugoslavia and the Canadians are present to clear away minefields and build shelters for U.N. troops.

 
1649:  Iroquois attack and destroy St. Ignace; Jesuit mission near Coldwater, ON..

1862:  "The 10th Battalion Volunteer Militia Rifles, Canada" is authorized, to become The Royal regiment of Canada, "Ready, Aye Ready" and "Nec Aspera Terrant" (Difficulties do not daunt).

1915:  ACTION AT ST. ELOI, effective dates for battle honour begin (to 15 Mar 15).

1944:  Canadian aircrew from No.6 Group, RCAF, join two RAF bomber groups in destroying 800 freight cars and 15 locomotives at a railyard in Le Mans. The aircrew involved have been handed a safer job than flying into the heart of Germany, and casualty rates drop considerably in the squadrons involved in these short strikes across the Channel.

1946:  Labor-Progressive MP Fred Rose arrested for conspiracy to transmit wartime secrets to the Soviet Union; sentenced to 6 years in prison for spying; result of Gouzenko revelations.

1951:  United Nations forces recaptured Seoul during the Korean War.

1974:  The Canadian Forces officially adopt the 'Total Force' concept where Regular and Reserve armed forces units combine duties and equipment where possible


 
1744:  France declares war on Britain, in War of the Austrian Succession; called King William's War in North America; to Oct. 14, 1748.

1900:  Canadian troops in South Africa enter Bloemfontein, the capital of the Orange Free State.

1918:  Troops from the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles carry out a "successful" raid against the German defences near Mericourt. For the loss of 32 men, Canadians kill 35 of the enemy and take 19 prisoners.

1919:  American Legion formed.

1920:  The Victoria Independent Squadron (British Columbia Horse), which was originally authorized as the "Victoria Independent Squadron," is amalgamated with the 30th Regiment, British Columbia Horse, through various redesignations the regiment will become "The British Columbia Dragoons" in 1958.

1920:  The 95th Saskatchewan Rifles, originally the 95th Regiment, is amalgamated with the 60th Rifles of Canada to form "The South Saskatchewan Regiment."

1920:  The South Alberta regiment, an antecedent of the South Alberta Light Horse is authorized.  The latter regiment, however, takes it date of origin from an older antecedent, the 15th Light Horse.

1920:  The 6th Regiment, 'The Duke of Connaught's Own Rifles' is amalgamated with the 104th Regiment, Westminster Fusiliers of Canada and is redesignated the "1st British Columbia Regiment."

1939:  Hitler occupies the remnants of Czechoslovakia.

1942:  Japanese begin an intensive bombardment of forts guarding Manila Bay.

1943:  Canadian Pacific steamer, Empress of Canada, torpedoed by German U-Boat and sunk off the coast of West Africa, with the loss of 400 lives.

1944:  Abbey of Monte Cassino destroyed by Allied bombing.

1945:  The First Canadian Corps takes over the sector along the Waal River in Holland upon its arrival from the Italian theatre of war. As a result, both Canadian corps now form part of the First Canadian Army.

1945:  1st Canadian Corps HQ operational near Nijmegen.

1979:  In the Cabot Strait the British tanker Kurdistan breaks in two in heavy seas and ice. A Canadian Coast Guard vessel,Sir William Alexander,  rescues 40 seamen from the sinking ship.

1990:  Solicitor General Pierre Cadieux announces that Sikhs in the RCMP can wear turbans and other religious garb while in uniform.
 
1606:  Samuel de Champlain c1570-1635 sets out on abortive expedition, reaching only as far as Port aux Coquilles on the Ste-Croix River; he returns to Port Royal when his party meets dangerous Indians.

1649:  Twelve hundred Iroquois warriors make a dawn raid on the French mission at St. Ignace (just south-east of Midland, Ont.). The Hurons lose 400 men, women, and children for 10 Iroquois killed.

1704:  A French-Indian force attacks and massacres the Massachusetts settlement of Deerfield, resulting in 47 killed and 111 taken prisoner.

1802:  U.S. Military Academy is established at West Point.

1855:  George-Etienne Cartier passes his Militia Act, constitutes all males between the ages of 18 and 60 as military forces of Canada; all men under 40 to be mustered once a year; Governor-General to be the Commander in Chief of the militia.

1900:  The Third Canadian Contingent, Lord Strathcona’s Horse leaves Canada for South Africa during the Boer War.  Samuel Benfield Steele commanding Lord Strathcona's Horse, embarks troops for South Africa; the regiment consists of 537 mounted troops recruited in Manitoba, BC and the NWT.

1915:  Second Canadian Division begins to arrive in England for service in World War I.

1943:  Climax of the Battle of the Atlantic: 38 U-boats attack two convoys, sinking 21 merchant ships (to 20 Mar 43).

1943:  In New Guinea, an aircraft from 22 Squadron Royal Australian Air Force flown by Flight Lieutenant Newton suffered multiple hits from anti-aircraft fire while making a bombing run on a Japanese target.  Despite the damage, Newton held the aircraft on course and conducted a successful attack.  He then nursed the stricken aircraft safely back to base.  The following day, however, his aircraft was shot down.  He and a crew member survived the crash but were executed by the Japanese.  Newton was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross.

1959:  870 and 871 Squadrons, Royal Canadian Navy, amalgamate to form '871 Squadron'.

1964:  Canada's first peacekeepers arrive in Cyprus to help calm tensions between hostile Greek Cypriots and the Turkish minority.

1993: Shidane Arone, a Somali, beaten to death by soldiers of the Canadian Airborne Regiment, an incident which leads to the disbanding of the Regiment.

2000:  Sheila Copps, the Heritage Minister, announces plans to build a new home for the Canadian War Museum.


 
PRINCESS PATRICIA'S BIRTHDAY - Regimental Day of the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI)

1649:  Jesuits burn Ste-Marie mission to prevent it falling into the hands of the Iroquois.

1666:  Daniel de Remy de Courcelle returns to Quebec; lost over 60 men from exposure and hunger over winter campaign against the Iroquois.

1765:  First Canadian St. Patrick's Day celebrated by Irish troops serving in the British Army at Quebec.

1776:  British forces leave Boston for Halifax after General George Washington seizes Dorchester Heights in a night attack.

1814:  An American invasion force of 4000 troops leaves Plattsburg, New York for an attack on Lower Canada. The entire army will march into Quebec, make a half-hearted attempt against the British stronghold at LaColle Mills, and return to New York without achieving anything. It will be the last American threat to Montreal.

1858: Major Keatinge of the Bombay Artillery suffered two severe wounds leading an attack through murderous fire on the mutineer-held fortifications at Chundairee.  He was awarded the Victoria Cross.

1861:  The Kingdom of Italy is proclaimed.

1879: In Afghanistan, a survey team came under attack and was forced to withdraw.  Captain Leach of the Royal Engineers led a small force of men from the 45th Sikh Regiment to their aid, attacking overwhelming numbers of tribesmen.  Leach was wounded but killed several opponents in close combat and the ferocity of the attack drove the tribesmen away.  Leach received the Victoria Cross.

1900:  Lord Strathcona's Horse and reinforcements for the Second (Special Service) Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment, depart Halifax aboard the Monterey for South Africa.

1917:  The Newfoundland Regiment celebrates St. Patrick's Day on the Western Front with the help of the regimental band.

1942:  MacArthur flies from Mindanao to Australia in a B-17.

1945:  HMCS Guysborough is torpedoed and sunk by a German U-boat off Ushant.

1951:  2nd Regiment RCHA fires its first operational round of the Korean War in support of the 28th Commonwealth Brigade (The redesignated 27th Brigade).
 
1744:  France declares war on Great Britain, beginning the War of the Austrian Succession. Although French forces, operating out of Louisbourg, strike the first blow, in the end the great fortress will fall to an Anglo-American army. Despite all of the raiding and counter-strikes carried out, the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle will restore the status quo ante bellum four years later.

1861:  Maoris successfully ambushed a party of skirmishers from the 40th Regiment (British Army), killing or wounding five men.  Colour-Sergeant Lucas sent one wounded man to the rear, aided by the only other uninjured soldier, whilst he himself remained alone guarding the other casualties, engaged in a firefight with the Maoris at only about 30 yards range until a relief party was able to reach him.  Lucas was awarded the Victoria Cross.

1863:  The "19th Battalion Volunteer Militia (Infantry), Canada" is formed.  This unit will become The Lincoln and Welland Regiment, Non Nobis Sed Patriae, (Not for ourselves, but for our country).

1918:  First session of 13th Parliament meets until May 24; will put 10% wartime luxury tax on cars, gramophones, records, player pianos, jewels.

1942:  The 15th Alberta Light Horse, in conjunction with other Alberta units, mobilizes the "31st (Alberta) Reconnaissance Battalion."

1942:  No. 413 Squadron begins its transfer from the Shetland Isles to Ceylon to strengthen Allied air defences in the Pacific.

1942:  US Army Engineers start building Alcan (Alaska) Highway to supply the North West in case of Japanese invasion.

1942:  Free Netherlands resistance movement announces a boycot of theaters.

1942:  Canadian forces establish unified military commands in Atlantic, Newfoundland, Pacific areas.

1943:  Central Burma" the "Chindits," raid across the Irrawaddy River.

1945:  At Meiktila in Burma, Lieutenant Karamjeet Singh Judge, of the 15th Punjab Regiment, distinguished himself repeatedly leading his platoon in an attack on a cotton mill held by the Japanese.  He led his men in capturing no less than ten Japanese strong-points.  At an eleventh, he guided a supporting tank to bombard the bunker at point-blank range.  However, when he then went forward alone to complete the clearance of the bunker, he was hit and mortally wounded.  His gallantry throughout the day was recognised by a posthumous Victoria Cross.

1952:  Communist offensive in Korea begins.

1957:  Canada takes part in disarmament conference with Britain, the US, the USSR and France.

1962:  Algerian War for Independence ends; c. 250,000 have died in seven years.

1963:  The Lincoln and Welland Regiment: Non Nobis Sed Patriae (Not for ourselves, but for our country).

 
1757:  A French strike force of 300 regulars and 900 Canadian militia arrive at Fort William-Henry (south end of Lake Champlain). The British commander of the fort refuses General Montcalm's early offer of surrender. The French will then take up limited night attacks for four days before eventually abandoning their siege.

1813:  Sir James Lucas Yeo appointed Commander in Chief of the Lake Squadrons.

1858:  During continuing fierce fighting at Lucknow, three Victoria Crosses were won.  Cornet Bankes of the 7th Hussars led three charges against fanatical resistance, suffering multiple sword wounds in the process; he died of his wounds several days later.  Sergeant-Major Rushe, 9th Lancers, drove defenders from a strongpoint, killing three of them in the process.  And Trooper Newell, of the same regiment, won the VC for rescuing under heavy fire a comrade who had been unhorsed.

1885:  Louis Riel seizes hostages and sets up Provisional Government of Saskatchewan; North West Rebellion begins.

1919:  The PPCLI are disbanded following their service in the Great War.  The Regiment will be reconstituted in April.

1923:  The Royal Canadian Air Force officially adopts the uniform of the Royal Air Force as its own.

1953:  Regimental Depots for the PPCLI and the R22eR are established.

1964:  Sergeant Major Walter Leja awarded George Medal for heroic conduct while dismantling FLQ bombs in Montreal May 17,1963.

1978:  United Nations Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) authorized.

2003:  Coalition forces commenced hostilities against Iraq on the night of 19/20 March.
 
1686:  Pierre de Troyes plans expedition to expel English and capture traders in Hudson Bay working for Radisson.

1815:  Napoleon enters Paris after escape from Elba; The Hundred Days being.

1878:  Rumours of preying Russian naval squadrons prompt the manning of coastal batteries at St. Andrews, N.B. and Yarmouth, N.S. Eventually, no Russians appear and Canada will return to more peaceful pursuits.

1904:  Bruce Carruthers is appointed Inspector of Signaling.

1917:  Canadian and British artillery begin the preparatory bombardment of the German defences along Vimy Ridge in view of capturing the ridge one month later.

1917:  Whilst bombing Ottoman troops on the Egyptian border, an aircraft of 1 Squadron Australian Flying Corps was damaged by ground fire and forced to land behind enemy lines.  As Turkish cavalry closed in, another pilot, Lieutenant McNamara, decided to attempt a rescue, even though he too had been hit and wounded.  He managed to land his aircraft and picked up the pilot.  However, weakened by his injury and with the extra burden aboard, McNamara lost control of the aircraft and it overturned during the takeoff run.  Undaunted, he and his fellow pilot made their way to the first damaged aircraft, where McNamara once more took the controls whilst his colleague managed to start the engine.  This time, McNamara managed to hold the aircraft steady and flew the two of them back to their base, a flight of close on an hour, despite his loss of blood.  McNamara received the Victoria Cross, the first presented to an Australian airman.

1922:  First US aircraft carrier is commissioned: Langley (CV-1).

1939:  Prime Minister W. L. Mackenzie King tells Parliament that Canada will consider any attack on Britain as an attack on the Commonwealth.

1939:  The US Naval Research Lab proposes research into nuclear power.

1942:  Gen MacArthur vows, "I shall return". 

1943:  Air Defence of Canada Plan states “maximum effort” to be made by the RCAF on the Atlantic coast to assist the navy in anti-submarine operations.

1943:  Montgomery launched Eighth Army in an assault on the formidable Mareth Line in southern Tunisia.  Built by the French to guard against the Italians in Libya, it had been taken over and improved by the Axis, stretching from the coast to the Matmata Hills.  The infantry made initial good progress in breaching the Line, but the armoured forces hoping to exploit their success ran foul of a combination of minefields and soft sand.  Lieutenant Colonel Seagrim, commanding the 7th Battalion of the Green Howards (British Army), distinguished himself leading his men from the front, in particular charging two machine-gun nests and killing twenty enemy troops.  He received the Victoria Cross.

1944:  Lt. Gen. Henry Duncan Graham Crerar 1888-1965 appointed to command of 1st Canadian Army; largest field formation ever formed by Canada; includes British, Dutch, Belgian, and Polish units.

1945:  HMCS New Glasgow sinks the German submarine U-1003 off Lough Foyle, Northern Ireland.

2003: 3 Commando Brigade Royal Marines mounted an amphibious assault on the Al Faw peninsula during the night 20/21 March as the opening operation of the land campaign against Iraq.  Enemy resistance was light but eight British Servicemen were lost, along with four US aircrew, in a helicopter accident during the initial phase of the attack.  British and Australian frigates provided gunfire support to the Royal Marines, while Royal Navy submarines fired Tomahawk missiles at strategic targets.  RAF aircraft were also very active, with Tornado aircraft attacking key targets while Harriers provided close air support.



BORN TODAY:  Wilfred 'Wop' May 1896-1952
pilot, World War I air ace, was born on this day in 1896; dies June 21, 1952. May was being pursued by German ace Manfred von Richthofen when the Red Baron was shot down.

1917 Dame Vera Lynn, who sang "The White Cliffs of Dover." 

Photo 1)  Commandos board Sea King helicopters on HMS Ark Royal for the night assault on the Al Faw peninsula in 2003

 
1814:  Two hundred reinforcements for Lake Ontario's Provincial Marine squadron arrive at Kingston, Ont. from St. John, N.B., having lost 14 men from sickness and 3 from desertion.

1873:  Hon. Hector-Louis Langvin appointed (acting) Minister of Militia and Defence (to 30 June 1873).

1885:  Louis Riel demands surrender of Crozier's NWMP detachment at Fort Carlton; 32 km from Batoche.

1898:  The Yukon Field Force is organized to maintain order in Canada's north during the Klondike Gold Rush.

1916:  German army starts offensive on the Somme before American troops can arrive to join the War; Second Battle of the Somme ends in November, with one million casualties.

1917:  Robert Laird Borden attends Imperial War Conference; to April 27.

1918:  BATTLE OF ST. QUENTIN, effective dates for battle honour begin (to 23 Mar 18).

1918:  SOMME, 1918, effective dates for battle honour begin (to 5 Apr 18).

1918:  German forces launch a massive offensive against the Allied armies on the Western Front. The enemy assault falls mainly on British armies, although the Canadians in the Lens area and especially at Hill 70 repulse the enemy advance, sustaining and inflicting heavy casualties.

1918:  General Ludendorff unleashed the last major German offensive of the First World War - Operation Michael.  Named for Germany's patron saint, the operation planned to use the large numbers of German troops freed from duty on the Eastern Front, following the collapse of Tsarist Russia, in a massive assault to secure victory in the West before US troops could arrive.  It is also known as the Kaiserschlacht or Kaiser's Battle Three German armies hit a sixty mile long stretch of the British lines from Arras to St Quentin and south to La Fere.  The defenders were over-stretched, due to the horrendous casualties suffered during the winter at Passchendaele and the recent need to take over responsibility for a greater section of the front owing to the equal exhaustion of the French.  The Germans attacked in a heavy mist, which hindered the Royal Flying Corps in bringing to bear its expertise in close air support and prevented senior headquarters from developing a clear and timely picture of the situation.  Gough's Fifth Army effectively collapsed, whilst Byng's Third Army was swung back and northwards by the weight of the attack.  The German success is often attributed to their use of specialist assault troops, but these took very heavy casualties in the process, and no less than eleven Victoria Crosses were won that day as fierce defensive actions and counter-attacks were fought the length of the front.  It is worth remembering that most of the actions below were fought under heavy poison gas attack.

2nd Lieutenant Beal, for leading a counter-attack that captured four enemy machine-guns and rescuing a wounded man.  He was killed in action a few hours later.
Gunner Stone, for braving gas and artillery barrages to deliver an important report to the rear.  He then returned and single-handedly fought as an infantryman defending his gun battery to allow it to remain in action.
2nd Lieutenant McLeod, a Canadian pilot of an RFC observation aircraft; he and his observer shot down a Fokker Triplane, but were then attacked by another eight.  They shot two more down, but the fuel tank of their FK8 was set alight and both men were badly wounded.  Nevertheless, McLeod managed to crash-land his aircraft and dragged his observer clear from the blazing wreckage.
2nd Lieutenant de Wind, who held a vital position with a handful of men under continual attack for seven hours, despite himself being wounded twice.  A third wound finally proved fatal.
Captain Hayward, for continuing to lead his men despite being buried alive in the opening German artillery barrage, suffering a head wound which left him deaf, and having his left arm shattered.  He remained in action for three days, finally having to be evacuated after another head wound and complete exhaustion overtook him.
2nd Lieutenant Horsfall, who took command of a company after all the other officers had become casualties, despite himself suffering from a severe head wound.  He led two successful counter-attacks before being killed in action.
Lieutenant Ker, who led a small group of badly wounded men in a last-ditch defence after the Germans breached the British positions.  Fighting first with a machine-gun, then with bayonets and revolvers after the Vickers Gun was knocked out, he and his men held off an entire German battalion for three hours, only surrendering when they had run out of ammunition.
2nd Lieutenant Buchan, who refused to be evacuated despite serious wounds.  After distinguishing himself in a number of defensive actions, he was cut off alone by another German attack, and seen to fall fighting to the last against massive odds.
Lance-Corporal Sayer, who commanded a small garrison which defended a position for two hours, fighting off attacks in thick mist.  The garrison was eventually overrun and Sayer wounded and captured.  He died of his injuries a few weeks later.
Lieutenant Colonel Elstob, for leading his battalion of the Manchester Regiment in a determined defence.  When ammunition ran low, Elstob himself ran back through the barrage to carry up fresh supplies.  Twice wounded, he was eventually killed when German troops finally overran the position.
Captain James, who led a counter-attack which took some thirty prisoners and a couple of machine-guns, then held the position for two days against multiple attacks, despite twice being wounded.  When the Germans finally broke through, he remained behind to man a machine-gun on his own.  He was finally wounded a third time and captured.

1930: "A" Battery, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery conducts its last parade as a horse drawn unit.

1945:  Lieutenant Raymond of the Royal Engineers accompanied a reconnaissance patrol in Burma, which ran into a concealed Japanese position.  Despite coming under heavy fire, Raymond immediately charged forward.  He was hit first in the shoulder, then the head, and then the arm, but continued his attack regardless.  He broke into the enemy position, and, supported by the remainder of the patrol, managed to clear it.  He insisted that other men wounded in the action received priority for medical treatment, and died of his injuries the next day.  He was awarded the Victoria Cross.

1951:  The federal government authorizes the enlistment of women into the regular RCAF.

1955: The Canadian government announced that a Distant Early Warning Line of radar stations was to be constructed in the northern portions of North America.

2000:  The Coastal Auxiliary Vessel HMCS Anticosti conducts her final sail-past and is 'paid -off'.

2003: The RAF used its new Storm Shadow stand-off missile for the first time, 617 Squadron conducting precision attacks against strategic Iraqi targets.  On the ground, 7th Armoured Brigade advanced towards Basrah while 16 Air Assault Brigade secured villages and oil installations in the desert and 3 Commando Brigade strengthened its position on the Al Faw peninsula.  Two Royal Navy helicopters collided during night operations, with the loss of the six RN and one US personnel aboard.
 
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