Canada Remembers Times 2024
Veterans' Week Special Edition

5-11 November 2024 - Page 3

Determined to serve

More than 17,000 Jewish Canadians joined the army, navy, air force and merchant navy during the Second World War. Nearly 450 of them lost their lives. Here is one sailor’s story.

Harry Hurwitz was born in Lachine, Québec, in 1921. He was one of 13 children in a large Jewish family. Harry was 18 in the spring of 1940 when he volunteered for service in the Second World War. The great discrimination faced by Jewish people in Europe was a strong motivation to enlist. In fact, eight Hurwitz siblings served in the conflict.

Harry served with the Royal Canadian Navy and departed for the United Kingdom in 1943. As a gunner aboard HMCS Athabascan, Harry and his fellow crew members helped defend merchant ships on the frigid waters of the Atlantic Ocean. They also escorted Allied convoys delivering supplies to northern Russia and were later sent to patrol the English Channel. It was dangerous work and on April 29, 1944, HMCS Athabascan was sunk off the coast of France. Sadly, 128 sailors died.

Harry and 82 of his surviving crewmates were captured by the Germans and became prisoners of war. He had to lie about his name and hide his Jewish roots for fear of being killed. After a year in captivity, Harry’s prison camp was liberated by the British Army. He returned to Canada and died peacefully in 2020.

Going to war in 1914

Britain declared war on Germany on August 4, 1914. At the time, Canada and Newfoundland were separate dominions of Great Britain. That meant both were also automatically at war. Our service members made many important contributions in the First World War. Some battles are still a source of pride more than a century later, such as the:

2^nd Battle of Ypres (April-May 1915)
Battles of the Somme and Beaumont-Hamel (July-November 1916)
Battle of Vimy Ridge (April 1917)
Battle of Passchendaele (October-November 1917)
Battle of Amiens (August 1918)
Canada’s Hundred Days (August-November 1918)

More than 650,000 men and women from Canada and Newfoundland served during the First World War.

Over 66,000 died and about 172,000 were wounded. A peace agreement called an armistice finally ended the fighting on November 11, 1918. That is why Remembrance Day takes place each year on November 11.

Reading between the lines

Take a look at this First World War recruitment poster created by British artist Arthur Wardle.

THE EMPIRE NEEDS MEN!
THE OVERSEAS STATES
All answer the call.
Helped by the YOUNG LIONS
The OLD LION defies his foes.
ENLIST NOW.

What is the message of this poster?
What does the word Empire refer to?
What other word could replace men?
Who are the young lions?
Who is the old lion?
Who are the foes?

Do you think this poster was effective for getting people to join the military during the First World War?

Strength and unity

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is an important political and military alliance. It was created in April 1949 at the start of the Cold War.

Canada was one of NATO’s 12 founding nations. The group’s central goals are to protect the freedom of its members and to defend the principles of democracy and the rule of law.

Canada’s army, navy and air force have all played key roles in our country’s contributions to this alliance over the past 75 years. NATO continues to grow and be a major force for stability in today’s complicated world. NATO members work together for peaceful resolutions when international conflicts arise. Use of force is always the last resort. However, freedom is not free. Canadians understand the great commitment it takes from our men and women in uniform to stand up for peace and freedom. Let’s never forget those who put their lives on the line for Canada and the world.

The Italian Campaign

More than 93,000 Canadian soldiers served in Italy during the Second World War. They overcame great hardships to help push back enemy forces there over a 20-month period.

Canadian and other Allied troops invaded Sicily the morning of July 10, 1943. Codenamed Operation Husky, the assault resulted in the sun-baked Mediterranean island being captured after weeks of hard fighting. This was only the beginning of the Italian Campaign.

The Allies’ next task was attacking mainland Italy. Our soldiers came ashore there on September 3, 1943. Italy was a challenging place to fight. Much of the country is mountainous with many deep valleys cut by rivers. The climate could be harsh, with scorching summers and surprisingly cold winters. The German defenders were skilled and used the terrain to their advantage. Attacking Allied forces often faced heavy fire from the hills above as they fought their way northward.

The fighting was bitter. Battles at places like Ortona, the Liri Valley and the Savio River were never forgotten by the Canadian Veterans who were there.

Canadians fought bravely in Italy, but their success came at a high cost. They suffered approximately 26,000 casualties, including almost 6,000 dead. The Italian people still remember today. Come li ricorderai? (How will you remember them?)

Riding the waves to the top

Geneviève Bernatchez grew up in Gaspé, Québec, on the shores of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. As a child, she dreamed of becoming a ballet dancer, but an injury forced her to rethink her career path. The discipline and commitment she developed in dancing probably helped when she joined the naval reserves in 1987.

Geneviève first worked in the reserves as a way to help pay for her law studies. But her love for being in the Canadian Armed Forces grew. She eventually joined the Regular Forces in 1997 as a lawyer with the Judge Advocate General office. Geneviève made a successful career of offering expert guidance on many high level military legal matters.

Geneviève served as the Judge Advocate General from 2017 to 2023. She was the first woman to become the top lawyer in the Canadian Armed Forces. With hard work and dedication, she has never shied away from navigating uncharted waters.

Did you know?

The Battle of the Scheldt raged in Belgium and the Netherlands in the fall of 1944. The bitter fighting across flat, flooded terrain made it one of the hardest battles of the entire Second World War. Canadian soldiers never gave up and the shores of the Scheldt River were liberated. It was an important step in helping the Allies win the war in Europe. Sadly, more than 6,000 of our troops were killed or wounded.

Date modified:: 2024-08-01

Canada Remembers Times 2024 Veterans' Week Special Edition