Early Clashes of World War II

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Early Clashes of World War II

• The Miracle at Dunkirk
• The Battle Britain
• The Battle of the Atlantic
• The Raid on Dieppe

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The Miracle at Dunkirk

• May/June 1940
• Nazis invade and take control of France pushing
  Allied soldiers back to the coast
• 338,000 troops saved
• Privately owned British ships sailed across to
  help in any way they could. little ships
• Pushed out of Europe

http//www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/launc
h_ani_fall_france_campaign.shtml
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The Battle of Britain

• Never was so much owed by so many to so few
• Fought primarily by the Royal Air Force (RAF)
• Canadian pilots did join the RAF, and had helped
  to win this crucial battle
• Over 43000 people had died in these air attacks
  but Britain remained unconquered
• Occurred over the summer months of 1940
• The development of British RADAR was instrumental
  in the success of the Allies
• British planes often out numbered but still won!

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An Early RAF Spitfire All Allied planes had the
bulls eye symbol
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Part of an RAF squadron patrolling the skies,
ready to fight!
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Pilots wait near their dispearsed aircraft at a
coastal station
Defiant crews wait for the next scramble
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Battle for Control of the Atlantic

• Axis controlled much of Europe by 1941 (including
  coastal areas along English Channel and North
  Sea)
• Britain becomes an isolated target for Nazis
• Nazi bases in occupied territories of France,
  Belgium, Netherlands, Denmark, and Norway
• Convoy system to protect merchant shipping
• Merchant Marine
• First 3 years of the war, Allied ships were being
  sunk faster than they could be built
• Black Pit beyond aircraft protection (aka
  The Greenland Gap)

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• Analysis Questions
• What was the greatest disadvantage faced by
  Allied ships in the Battle of the Atlantic?
• What year turned the tide in the Battle of the
  Atlantic?

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Canada the Battle of the Atlantic

• Beginning of WWII Canada had only 6 warships and
  5 minesweepers to protect coastlines, with a
  Naval personnel of only 2000
• Britain looks to Canada as the source of food,
  raw materials and weapons of war
• By wars end RCN includes 373 warships and 93000
  men and women personnel
• The Corvette 120 built in Canada, best against
  U-Boat attack each had the name of a Canadian
  city
• 1941 Radar systems invented and installed

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HMCS Halifax
The WWII Corvette Class Warship
HMCS Weyburn
HMCS Oakville
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The Dieppe Raid

• Russia (Stalin) encouraged Britain and U.S. to
  invade Western Europe to create a second front
  and divide German forces.
• Western leaders decided that they werent ready
  for a full scale attack, so they opted for a
  hit-and-run raid to test German defences
• Many Canadian troops were involved
• August 19, 1942, a convoy of 237 ships reached
  Dieppe

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The Dieppe Raid

• Over 5000 of the 6000 Allied troops that landed
  at Dieppe were Canadian
• Canadians bore the brunt of the casualties at
  Dieppe,
• 907 killed
• 2,460 wounded
• 1,874 taken prisoner by the Germans.
• Of the 2,210 who returned to Britain, only 236
  were unhurt - and 200 of these were men who had
  not been landed

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Troops who took part in the raid on Dieppe,
France, 19 Aug 1942.
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The concrete barriers, wire fencing, and other
obstacles on the beach show how well the Germans
fortified the Dieppe beach.
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An Assault Landing Craft grounded on the Dieppe
beach.
Canadian tanks got bogged down on the pebbled
beaches at Dieppe and very few ever made their
objective of getting up the cliffs and into the
town.
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German soldiers round up Allied prisoners after
the Dieppe Raid.
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Canadian and Allied soldiers take care of their
own after being taken prisoner during the Dieppe
Raid.
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This Was My Brother(For Lt-Col. Howard McTavish,
killed in action at Dieppe)
This was my brother At Dieppe, The one who built
me a doll house When I was seven, Complete to
the last small picture frame, Nothing forgotten.
He was awfully good at fixing things, At
stepping into the breach when he was
needed. Thats what he did at Dieppe He was
needed. And even Death must have been a little
shamed By his eagerness. By Mona McTavish
Gould

• This was my brother
• At Dieppe
• Quietly a hero
• Who gave his life like a gift,
• Withholding nothing.
• His youth, his love,
• His enjoyment of being alive,
• His future, like a book
• With half the pages still uncut