Perils Of The War On The Seas

As mentioned yesterday, the Battle of the Atlantic lasted from the beginning of the war until it ended in Europe. Convoys of merchant ships, guarded by Canadian and British naval ships, and later American naval ships, would make the treacherous crossing carrying supplies vital to the war effort, dealing with the threat of German u-boats and other naval assets. 

Some of those who served in the merchant navy are seen here.

A recent addition to the Museum- a short film, alternating between English and French, depicting a Corvette crew's encounter with a U-Boat at night.

This is the uniform of Joan Voller, who went to war as a member of the Women's Royal Canadian Service and met her future husband. She's since passed away, but I remember speaking with her on several occasions here. 

A German torpedo is found here. The quote by Churchill speaks to how dreaded the u-boats were.

This map of the Canadian east coast features multiple spots, on the coast and off the coast, where the u-boats made their presence known- from engagements to sinkings to covert operations. 

Here we have a depth charge- a tried and true way to kill a u-boat.

Most of Canada's war effort was concentrated in the European theatre and the Atlantic. But there was involvement in the Pacific theatre. Canadian soldiers were sent to Hong Kong early in the war to replace British soldiers there. Over the course of a few hours on December 7th and 8th, 1941, the Japanese struck over multiple targets, including Pearl Harbor, and at Hong Kong. The Battle of Hong Kong would end with Canadians taken prisoner.

Through the remainder of the war, the Japanese tried multiple techniques to spread havoc among their enemies across the ocean. This included balloon bombs, one of which is suspended above. These would drop down over land and start fires.

On the map of the continent, every red dot represents a landing.