Introduction

The goal of Canada's Military History is

• to help Canadians to learn about their nation's military history;
• to be aware of the larger influence that our military has had on our national history; and
• to appreciate the importance of our military to present-day Canada.

Canada's Military History is an interpretative history of the Canadian military from 1867 to the present. It looks at the growth and development of the Canadian military tradition and at the important influence that Canada's military has had on our nation's history. In particular, it attempts to focus on the experiences of Canadian soldiers in battle and during peacetime.

Copyright Canadian War Museum (CN 8931).

The Battle for Courcelette, by Louis Alexander Weirter.

The Canadian army emerged from the First World War with a reputation as an effective and reliable force. Canadian soldiers enhanced that fighting tradition at Ortona, D-Day, Kap'Yong, and other battles of the Second World War and the Korean conflict.

Since 1867, tens of thousands of Canadian soldiers and their families have sacrificed so that our nation and its people could remain free. Users wishing to learn more about these sacrifices should explore the Cost of Freedom. There, they will find a chronicle of the enormous sacrifices that Canadian soldiers made in the First World War, the Second World War, and the Korean War.

United Nations (UN 126967, photo by Y. Nagata).

Canadian Armoured Personnel Carriers on Patrol near Nicosia, Cyprus, August 1974.

During the 1950s and 1960s, Canada became recognized around the world for its contribution to various peacekeeping initiatives. Cyprus was the proving ground.