Transcript Notes on Phases 3 & 4

Phase 3
July 1943 – June 1944
• Towards the end of 1942 and into 1943,
the power of the war shifted away from the
Axis.
• Midway, Pacficic Ocean – June 4-7, 1942
• Victory of US of Japanese Imperial Navy
• Stalingrad , USSR – July 1942 - February
1943
• Germany loses “bloodiest battle in the
history of warfare”
• El Alamein, N – May 1943
• Germany surrenders in North Africa
Phase 3
July 1943 – June 1944
• By the summer of 1943, the allies were on
the offensive and Germany was on the
defensive.
• On the “eastern front”, Germany began to
retreat back to Berlin from the Soviet
Union
• In the Pacific, the Americans were
successful in pushing Japan back.
What about Canada?
• A Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF)
formed its own bomber group in 1943 the No. 6 Bomber Group.
The Italian Campaign
What about Canada?
• Canadians were part of the Italian
Campaign – the fight to capture Italy.
• After securing North Africa, allied troops
crossed the Mediterranean to Sicily, them
mainland Italy.
• Italy surrendered in 1943, however,
Germany took over Italy and the fighting
continued.
What about Canada?
• The Canadians were particularly essential
to the Battle of Ortona in 1943.
Phase 4
June 1944 – September 1945
• Clearly, the allies needed to create a
“western front” in Europe to try and push
Germany back.
• Plans for the invasion of Europe began
early
• Operation Overlord – The Invasion of
Europ
• The actual operation took place June 6,
1944 and continued through the summer.
Phase 4
June 1944 – September 1945
Phase 4
June 1944 – September 1945
• The invasion of Normandy was successful
– The allies now had a foothold in Europe
– Germany was on the defence and losing
ground
– The allies could continue to liberate other
areas of western Europe
Phase 4
June 1944 – September 1945
• 2 052 299 Allied troop were landed on the
beaches of Normandy
• 36,976 killed, 153,475 wounded and
19,221 missing
• 4,101 aircraft were lost and 16,714 airmen
were
• total Allied casualties 226,386
What about Canada?
What about Canada?
• The Canadians were instrumental in the
Invasion of Normandy
• They took Juno Beach on June 6 and
reached their inland objective by the end
of the day
• They went on to participate in the rest of
the invasion of Europe.
What about Canada?
• Canadian troops were part of the force
which moved into France and then
Belgium during the autumn of 1944
What about Canada?
• Canada liberated the Netherlands
(Holland) in May 1945