Canada's last working sub?

[Papewaio]

But...but...but...the axe!

Its for trees not knees.

So he is not bloody he is sappy... in a sweet maple syrup kind of way, what a guy [reference to Ace in Red Dwarf]

I'm pretty sure however that axe of his would be just at home giving a vascetomy as chopping down trees.

[Ironside]

Socialist countries can't afford large militaries and Canada has no need for one even if it could afford it.

The Swedish defence from post-WW2 to about 1995 was quite large. It works if you need it.

[Tribesman]

Unfortunately I don't have much to add about Canada's military, except to mention that they don't really seem to need the submarine in the first place....

But they might do , a new international dispute is arising , with the reduction of the ice pack in the arctic and the greater availability and viability of the north west passage to commercial shipping then Denmark , the USA , Russian Federation and Canada might need their naval assets .

[Beirut]

The best place to start if you're interested in Canadian military history is a book titled Vimy by Pierre Berton. The book is some 300 pages and extraordinarily well written. (It is also an excellent account of the Canadian artillery fire system which was revolutionary and the most sophisticated in the world at the time. If you are interested in the history of artillery, it's a must read.)

It's the story of the Canadian attack on the German high ground positions Vimy Ridge (part of the Third Ypres battles). The French and the British thought the German defences at Vimy impenetrable. We didn't.

A few lines from the book:

Two minutes. Now came the whispered order to fix bayonets. The sound of the loose locking rings, rippling all along the miles of trenches, was like the humming of a thousand quivering bees.

Silence. Thirty thousand men held their breath, tensing their cramped muscles for the moment that some had been awaiting since November.

One more minute ticked by, and then a single gun fired. One second elapsed and the world exploded as the greatest artillery barrage in the history of warfare burst upon the unsuspecting Germans and the battle of Vimy Ridge began.

[The Stranger]

gah!!!

[Redleg]

Having said all that, we also used to go down to Fort Lewis and work with the Rangers quite a bit. Those guys had their crap together pretty good and (for the most part, anyway) could keep up with us during PT. Some of the most fun I ever had was doing live fire jungle lanes that they set up for us.

Used to work with the Canadian Light artillery when they came down to Fort Lewis when I was assigned there. They were always pretty good artillerymen.

Learned a few tricks from them concerning light howitzers - showed them a few tricks we knew on fire direction - all in all a good exchange of training from two groups of professional soldiers.

[Goofball]

Goofball,

You were in the PPCLI?

(Beirut bows in respect.)

Thanks m'man; it's nice to be appreciated. I was with 3rd Battalion (The "Hollywood Third") in Victoria.

Back to the issue of Canadian military; I am genuinely interested in Canadian military history. How much, in terms of scale, time, and actions; did the Canadian regiments participate in the two World Wars, for instance? Were they also in Korea during the Korean War?

Yep, we were in Korea. The second Battalion of the PPCLI (along with some rag-tag Aussies ) was awarded the United States Presidential Unit Citation for their actions there. See below:

The battalion kitted out with winter gear and a plethora of weaponry moved 50 miles north to Miryang in order to undergo rigorous training until the 15th of February when they would join the 27th British Commonwealth Brigade at Changhowan-ni. Operations would begin with earnest and throughout March and early April the Patricias would conduct several attacks on Chinese-held features. Hills 419 and 532 fell to the Patricia's in March and the advance continued against sporadic enemy resistance on 900 and 1200 meter features until the Brigade went into reserve near the village of Kapyong on the 18th of April.

The enemy had finally managed to stop the advancing UN forces and, on the night of 22 April, let loose the Spring Offensive to recapture Seoul. Under heavy resistance at the front the 6th Republic of Korea Division broke, and 27 British Commonwealth Brigade was called upon to block the advancing Chinese troops. The 2nd Battalion Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry quickly and efficiently moved their forces onto Hill 677 where they occupied a defensive position. As this was occurring, at the same time, the Australians occupied a defensive position to the east on Hill 504.

The Patricia's and Australians bedded in and awaited the inevitable battle that would commence on the night of the 23rd. The Australians fended off the Chinese attacks for the full day until they were forced to withdraw on the afternoon of the 24th in order to establish a new defensive line. Once the Aussies had fallen back it was left on the shoulders of the 2PPCLI troops to bear the brunt of the Chinese attacks. The Chinese were obviously no match for the skilled and highly trained Canadian troops attacking non-stop for two days with no success. 2 PPCLI was surrounded and low on ammunition, water, and rations but was able fight off the attackers, at one time even bringing artillery fire down on their own positions.

The Chinese plans to attack and recapture Seoul had failed due to the well-trained Canadian and Australian infantry soldiers who never gave up although they were heavily outnumbered. As a result, their efforts were recognized with the award of the United States Presidential Unit Citation, which is proudly worn to this day by the warriors of the 2nd Battalion.

[Beirut]

For those who don't know, the PPCLI, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, is a famed unit with a long and very distinguished history.

Our boys!

[Strike For The South]

When I go to Canada here is what I want

1. I want to see a mountie
2. Some one needs to explian hooser to me

3. All of you will so aboot and hoose

4. Get fake ID from Goof and get all the free perscription drugs I want (If there is 1 thing Canada complety pwns America in it is that)

5. See Beirut chop down a tree just by looking at it.

6. Get maple syrup