June 6 marks the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings in 1944 during the Second World War.
Canadian troops were assigned the June Beach objective as part of Operation Overlord and the Battle of Normandy – which saw the allied invasion of Nazi-controlled Europe.
By the time of the Normandy invasion, Canada had been at war for almost five years. On 1 September 1939, Germany invaded Poland. Britain and France had pledged to protect Polish sovereignty and, after the demand for a German withdrawal went unanswered, declared war on Germany on September 3. The growing realization of the threat that Nazi Germany posed to freedom and democracy led the Canadian Parliament to declare war on Germany on September 10.
5 long years later during this brutal war of attrition, including the disaster at Dieppe, the allies amassed for an invasion of mainland Europe. Canadian troops stormed ashore at Juno Beach in the face of fierce opposition from German troops. Soldiers raced across the wide-open beaches swept with machine gun fire. Amidst fierce fighting, Canadians fought their way into the towns of Bernières, Courseulles and St. Aubin, and then advanced inland, securing a critical bridgehead for the allied invasion. The victory was a turning point in the Second World War.
14,000 Canadians landed at Juno Beach; in the days that followed they displayed tremendous courage, determination and self-sacrifice. 574 Canadian soldiers were wounded and 340 were killed in action, including 9 soldiers from historic Mississauga.
Those from historic Mississauga who lost their lives at Juno Beach include: Private Howard Rex Arthur, Gunner Cyril De-Lisle Askin, Lieutenant Norman Harold Victor Brown, Rifleman Allan Murray Cheeseman, Lieutenant Charles William Cooper, Rifleman Michael Costello, Rifleman Albert E. Crocker, Private Wallace Cameron Pickering and Flying Officer Philip Nairn Thompson Van Alstyne.
We remember their brave service.
EVENTS IN THE MISSISSAUGA COMMUNITY
The Royal Canadian Legion (RCL) Branch 582 will hold a commemoration event to mark 80th Anniversary of D-Day on June 6, 11 am, at Branch 582 in Cooksville (456 Hensall Circle). Click here to learn more.
Royal Canadian Legion holds D-Day commemorative event in Mississauga
The ceremony begins 11 a.m. Thursday (June 6) at Royal Canadian Legion’s Branch 582 at 456 Hensall Circle.
CANADA AND D-DAY RESOURCES
For more information on Canada and D-Day, please visit:
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/normandy-feature
Normandy Landings: Canada on D-Day
The following article is an editorial written by The Canadian Encyclopedia staff. Editorials are not usually updated….
www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca
VIDEO
Also, please see our “I Am Mississauga, Too” remembrance video:
I am Mississauga Too: Mississauga Remembers
I am Mississauga Too: Mississauga Remembers follows the arduous journey of the servicemembers from Mississauga who fought, the many who fell, those who serve…
MEN WHO SERVED FROM MISSISSAUGA
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