Between the Wars and the Second World War

Between the two world wars, Canada experienced the giddy prosperity of the 1920s and then the grinding poverty of the Great Depression. When the Second World War came, Canada answered again — contributing more to the Allied effort, relative to its size, than almost any other nation. From the beaches of Dieppe to Juno Beach on D-Day, from the Battle of the Atlantic to the liberation of the Netherlands, Canadians fought and died across multiple theatres of war. This period also includes one of the darker chapters in Canadian domestic history: the unjust treatment of Japanese Canadians.

The British Commonwealth and the Interwar Years

After the First World War, the British Empire evolved into a freer association of states known as the British Commonwealth of Nations A free association of states that evolved from the British Empire after the First World War. Canada remains a leading member today, alongside India, Australia, New Zealand and several African and Caribbean countries. . Canada remains a leading member of the Commonwealth to this day, together with India, Australia, New Zealand and numerous African and Caribbean countries.

The 1920s — the “Roaring Twenties” — were boom times, with strong business activity and low unemployment. The stock market crash of 1929 triggered the Great Depression A severe worldwide economic downturn following the 1929 crash, known in Canada as the 'Dirty Thirties.' Unemployment reached 27% in 1933, many businesses collapsed and Western farmers were devastated by low grain prices and drought. — known in Canada as the “Dirty Thirties.” Unemployment climbed to 27% in 1933, many businesses were wiped out, and farmers in Western Canada were hit hardest by both low grain prices and a terrible drought.

Growing demand for a social safety net — minimum wages, a standard working week and programmes such as unemployment insurance — followed. The Bank of Canada Canada's central bank, created in 1934 to manage the money supply and bring stability to the financial system. was created in 1934 to manage the money supply and stabilise the financial system. Immigration dropped sharply, and many refugees were turned away — including Jewish people trying to flee Nazi Germany in 1939.

The Second World War

The Second World War began in 1939 when Adolf Hitler — the National Socialist (Nazi) The fascist political movement that governed Germany under Adolf Hitler, whose 1939 invasion of Poland triggered the Second World War. dictator of Germany — invaded Poland and rapidly conquered much of Europe. Canada joined its democratic allies to fight tyranny.

More than one million Canadians and Newfoundlanders (Newfoundland was a separate British entity at the time) served — out of a total population of 11.5 million. Of these, 44,000 were killed.

Canadians fought bravely on multiple fronts. They suffered significant losses in the unsuccessful defence of Hong Kong (1941) from Imperial Japan, and in a failed raid on Nazi-controlled Dieppe on the coast of France (1942). The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Canada's air force, which took part in the Battle of Britain and contributed more to the Allied air effort than any other Commonwealth country. Over 130,000 Allied aircrew were trained in Canada under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. took part in the Battle of Britain, contributing more to the Allied air effort than any other Commonwealth country; over 130,000 Allied aircrew were trained in Canada under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan.

The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) Canada's navy, which protected Allied supply convoys in the Battle of the Atlantic against German submarines. Canada's Merchant Navy helped feed, clothe and resupply Britain. By the war's end, Canada had the third-largest navy in the world. played a vital role in the Battle of the Atlantic, protecting convoys of merchant ships against German submarines. Canada’s Merchant Navy helped to feed, clothe and resupply Britain. By the war’s end, Canada had the third-largest navy in the world.

In the Pacific, Japan invaded the Aleutian Islands, attacked a lighthouse on Vancouver Island, launched fire balloons over British Columbia and the Prairies, and grossly mistreated Canadian prisoners of war captured at Hong Kong. Japan surrendered on August 14, 1945 — ending four years of war in the Pacific.

D-Day: June 6, 1944

To defeat Nazism and fascism, the Allies invaded Nazi-occupied Europe. Canadians had already taken part in the liberation of Italy in 1943–44. Then, in the epic invasion of Normandy in northern France on June 6, 1944 — known as D-Day June 6, 1944 — the day 15,000 Canadian troops stormed and captured Juno Beach as part of the Allied invasion of Normandy. Approximately one in ten Allied soldiers on D-Day was Canadian. — 15,000 Canadian troops stormed and captured Juno Beach from the German Army. Approximately one in ten Allied soldiers on D-Day was Canadian. The Canadian Army went on to liberate the Netherlands in 1944–45 and helped force the German surrender on May 8, 1945, bringing six years of war in Europe to an end.

A Shameful Chapter: Japanese Canadians

Regrettably, wartime fear and public opinion in British Columbia led the federal government to forcibly relocate Canadians of Japanese origin and sell their property without compensation. This occurred even though both the military and the RCMP had advised Ottawa that Japanese Canadians posed little danger to Canada. The Government of Canada formally apologised in 1988 for these wartime wrongs and compensated the victims.