Canadian History: 1900-Present, Military Participation in world affiars; Lists 4 of Canada's most defining moments, 2 from 1900-1949, 2 from 1950- the present.

How do you define a country? There is its geography, economy, demographics, the role it plays in the global community as well as its relationships with other countries. The latter two can be judged as the most important of this short list as, after all, how can you define anything unless you have something else to compare it to? Relationships and involvement are often defined by military interaction, events in or between countries having to escalate to a certain point where such things come into play. For these two reasons, Canada's military involvement in world affairs is what best define Canada from events occurring between 1900 to the present.

Although Canada was entered in the war by Britain arbitrarily in 1914, Canada still played a very important role in the Allied victory, fighting bravely and capturing key objectives(Morton 144). One such objective was Vimy Ridge, the seven-mile stretch of honeycomb-patterned trenches and the site of 200 000 French and British casualties (Quinlan 16).

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Internal development of Canada's internal borders,...

(W.W.I - 1914 - 1918) Mark II female Tank Number 5...

Before Canadians arrived on scene, Vimy Ridge had gained the reputation of an impregnable stronghold (Quinlan 16). When the order was given to Canadian Corps to take the Ridge, General Arthur Currie decided the troops should take a different approach from those who had proceeded and fallen before them. Currie deduced that the vast number of casualties had resulted from improper preparation and scouting by troops. Currie's division built a full-scale model of the battlefield and planned reconnaissance missions in order to familiarize the men with the conditions on the ridge (Morton 144). Evidently, this helped troops as they were able to build light railroads to transport artillery and men secretly so as to attack with the element of surprise on their side. On Easter Monday, 1917, implemented their carefully practiced strategy, pushing into enemy trenches and...