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Early days: Canadian troops in Afghanistan 2002-2004
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Early days: Canadian troops in Afghanistan 2002-2004
The 3PPCLI Battle Group launches Canada’s first combat assault since the Korean War on a mountain called the Whale’s Back, a valley away from the Pakistan border. The soldier in the foreground is a Canadian sniper in specially designed British combat fatigues. Taliban and al-Qaida fighters attempting to escape into the mountains to the east came under heavy bombardment from American B-52s and F-16s.
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Prisoners of Hong Kong
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Prisoners of Hong Kong
George MacDonell, of Stratford, Ont., was following in his parents’ footsteps when he enlisted in the Second World War. He was the only son of an army major and nursing sister who met while serving overseas and married after the First World War.
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Poignant remnants
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Poignant remnants
The centrepiece of a ceremony in Gander, N.L., marking the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks that brought down the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, will be a piece of steel recovered from the wreckage.
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Afghanistan goes to the Taliban
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Afghanistan goes to the Taliban
The 20-year war to eliminate the Taliban that had sheltered and assisted Osama bin Laden and the al-Qaida terrorist organization he led has come to an end.
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Bleeding us dry
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Bleeding us dry
Osama bin Laden had more in mind than inflicting incidental death and mayhem when he dispatched 19 al-Qaida terrorists to strike at the heart of American economic and military might two decades ago.
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Kosmos-1383
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Kosmos-1383
The mountainous terrain of British Columbia has been described as a graveyard of small planes.

Many light aircraft downed by equipment failure, turbulence or unexpected foul weather have disappeared, crashing among the peaks and dense forests of the mountainsides and valleys. Some have never been found.
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front lines
Defence Today
Early days: Canadian troops in Afghanistan 2002-2004
March 13, 2002 The 3PPCLI Battle Group launches Canada’s first combat assault since the Korean War on a mountain called...
Defence Today
Weak point
Norad needs stronger cyber defences This year marks the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in...
Defence Today
Bleeding us dry
Osama bin Laden had more in mind than inflicting incidental death and mayhem when he dispatched 19 al-Qaida terrorists to...
Defence Today
The graveyard of empires
The graveyard of empires appears to have claimed another victim. But why couldn’t a high-powered coalition that included the United...
Defence Today
The eyes of war
Canadian Paul J. Tomelin’s photograph of a young private waiting for medical aid after battle stands among the Korean War’s...
Defence Today
Displaced by war: Life on the edge
While the world fights the coronavirus pandemic, families displaced by war in Yemen are combatting malnutrition and rampant disease, most...
Defence Today
Military orders new boots; soldiers are skeptical
An army may march on its stomach but it’s the feet that take the heat—and if soldiers don’t take care...
Defence Today
Diver discovers suspected wreckage of Halifax Explosion
Tufts Cove is a shallow, innocuous little inlet nestled at the back end of Halifax Harbour on the Dartmouth side...
Defence Today
War, hunger, locusts, fire and pestilence: World Press Photo returns
War in the Caucasus. Hunger in Yemen. Locusts in Kenya. Fire in Brazil. Pestilence everywhere. The World Press Photo (WPP)...
Defence Today
Afghanistan veterans frustrated by Taliban resurgence
With U.S. forces out and Taliban insurgents advancing across much of Afghanistan, Sean Maloney’s post on the Canadian Afghanistan War...
Defence Today
A glimmer of hope for Afghan interpreters left behind
The U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan has profound implications for more than 100 Afghans believed to have worked alongside Canadian troops...
Defence Today
Out of touch
Gender discrimination is not acceptable, in any way, shape or form   I have been writing this column for Legion...
Vertical-Ad-new-7-v1
MEMOIRS
Letters to Mom
During the Second World War, 21-year-old Allan Coburn was one...
Cross Border Doctor
It can be extraordinary who and what you will find...
Pépère’s war story
Hormidas Odilon (Henry) Goulet enlisted with the 22nd Battalion in...
Battlefield doctor
My great-great-grandfather was a surgeon who treated soldiers at the...
Canada’s man in Havana
The story of a young Canadian diplomat spying on the...
Buried alive at the Somme
When I was a young child of four or five,...
My dad, the air force doctor
The nooks and crannies of my parents’ red-brick house in Halifax...
The Silent Ward
The author was a nurse in the First World War....
Not all Veterans wore uniforms
Story by Brian Purdy Son of Gordon Purdy Through the...
Tears of Remembrance
At the first strains of the anthem, backs straightened and...
Remembrance
On Remembrance Day or, for a naval veteran, Battle of...
The search for an old contemptible
It all started with a random tweet. My first inclination...
MILITARY HISTORY
Military History
Prisoners of Hong Kong
Prisoners of Hong Kong
George MacDonell, of Stratford, Ont., was following in his parents’ footsteps when he enlisted in the Second World War. He was the only son of an army major and nursing sister who met while serving overseas and married after the...
Military History
<em>Kosmos-1383</em>
Kosmos-1383
The mountainous terrain of British Columbia has been described as a graveyard of small planes. Many light aircraft downed by equipment failure, turbulence or unexpected foul weather have disappeared, crashing among the peaks and dense forests of the mountainsides and...
Military History
At the liberation of Dieppe
At the liberation of Dieppe
On Sept. 1, 1944, the 2nd Canadian Division returned to Dieppe, France, to a very different reception from that of just two years before. Canadians made up the bulk of the attack force of about more than 6,000 in the...
Military History
Almost Calgary
Almost Calgary
But for a cold winter and a cold heart, the city we know as Calgary could well have a different name, one that traces back three centuries to Canada’s original French settlers. As a teenager, Éphrem-Albert Brisebois, who was born...
Military History
Prisoners of Dieppe
Prisoners of Dieppe
In June 1942, Canadian troops arrived for six weeks of combined operations training on the Isle of Wight in England in preparation for the raid on Dieppe, France. Among them were a dozen men from the Royal Canadian Ordnance Corps,...
Military History
The rise and fall of the Berlin Wall
The rise and fall of the Berlin Wall
After the Second World War, Germany was quickly occupied by the Allies, who divided it into four zones of occupation to be administered separately by the Soviets, Americans, British and French. Berlin, the capital, was technically in the Soviet zone,...
HEALTH
Time heals
Time heals
Whether buying time or giving...
Medical Advances Behind The Line, Part 2
Medical Advances Behind The Line, Part 2
The odds of recovering from...
Research on family matters
Research on family matters
In May, Canadians will be...
Looking for a good night’s sleep
Looking for a good night’s sleep
Looking for a good night’s...
Medical Advances Behind the Line, Part 1
Medical Advances Behind the Line, Part 1
The First World War spurred...
Pain centre
Pain centre
In 2014, in physical agony...
Legion Magazine
1/7 videos
1
Indigenous War Heroes
Indigenous War Heroes
2
The Fall of Hong Kong | Narrated by Stephen J. Thorne
The Fall of Hong Kong | Narrated by Stephen J. Thorne
3
Canadians in the Battle of Britain | Narrated by Stephen J. Thorne
Canadians in the Battle of Britain | Narrated by Stephen J. Thorne
4
Canadians in the Battle of Britain | Narrated by Stephen J. Thorne
Canadians in the Battle of Britain | Narrated by Stephen J. Thorne
5
Liberation of the Netherlands | Narrated by Roméo Dallaire
Liberation of the Netherlands | Narrated by Roméo Dallaire
6
William Shatner | Battle of Vimy Ridge
William Shatner | Battle of Vimy Ridge
7
The Dieppe Raid | Narrated by Alex Trebek
The Dieppe Raid | Narrated by Alex Trebek
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NEWS
Choose our cover for the next issue of <em>Canada’s Ultimate Story!</em>
Choose our cover for the next issue of Canada’s Ultimate Story!
Help choose the cover for our next issue of Canada’s Ultimate Story! Since the first people arrived on this continent, the place that would be called Canada has been shaped by conflict and...
Choose our cover for the November/December issue of <em>Legion Magazine</em>!
Choose our cover for the November/December issue of Legion Magazine!
Help choose the November/December cover of Legion Magazine! The next issue of Legion Magazine includes a poignant look at how the poppy became a symbol of remembrance. It also includes the heartbreaking story...
RCMP needs “fundamental transformation” to end systemic racism, says report
RCMP needs “fundamental transformation” to end systemic racism, says report
Fundamental transformation of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police is necessary to end systemic racism, concludes a landmark report by the Commons public safety committee.   It recommends the RCMP transition...
Veterans’ tech training group plans Canada-wide recruitment tour
Veterans’ tech training group plans Canada-wide recruitment tour
After a year of successful socially distanced recruitment seminars, Coding for Veterans plans to begin a Canada-wide tour this fall.  The organization, which offers online retraining for veterans in skills...
Hidden victims
Hidden victims
Military sexual misconduct isn’t just a women’s issue.  Yes, military women are the more likely targets of harassment, assault and rape. A 2018 survey of Canadian military sexual misconduct by Statistics...
Longtime news editor retires
Longtime news editor retires
A lot of good folks—writers, editors, designers, marketers, administrators—have come and gone over the course of three decades at Legion Magazine. Through it all, Tom MacGregor has been a constant. He retired...
Veteran support groups receive $4 million in funding
Veteran support groups receive $4 million in funding
Veterans Affairs Canada has awarded $4 million in funding to 23 organizations across the country serving veterans and their families. “We’re supporting some remarkable organizations doing vitally important work on...
Legion National Foundation disburses over $350,000 to veterans’ groups
Legion National Foundation disburses over $350,000 to veterans’ groups
The Legion National Foundation board has agreed to disburse more than $350,000 in donations to support programs for veterans, service members and youth across the country.  “This is the first year significant donations...
Face to Face
Should Canada boost its military presence in the Arctic?
Should Canada boost its military presence in the Arctic?
Ernie Regehr says NO Today’s Arctic is increasingly accessible, Russia is its most prominent military presence, and pundits are forecasting intensified big power rivalry. The question of boosting Canada’s Arctic military operations is prudent. But context matters.   Ongoing imperatives—such as...
Face to Face
Was the Newfoundland Regiment sacrificed at Beaumont-Hamel?
Was the Newfoundland Regiment sacrificed at Beaumont-Hamel?
John Boileau says YES It was a battle that should never have occurred.   There was no sound military reason for a British attack on the Somme at a location of no military importance. The British were unprepared for a...
Heroes And Villains
Harry Crerar & Benito Mussolini
Harry Crerar & Benito Mussolini
In Italy in 1943, both leaders failed at command Even heroes have flaws. General Henry (Harry) Crerar rose to lieutenant-colonel of artillery in the First World War, then commanded divisions and corps in the Second World War. Shortly after the...
Heroes And Villains
Commodore James Yeo & Commodore Isaac Chauncey
Commodore James Yeo & Commodore Isaac Chauncey
Victory in the War of 1812 depended on which side controlled Lake Ontario James Yeo joined the Royal Navy when he was 10 and earned a rapid rise in promotions spurred on by a stunning series of military successes.  In 1810, King George...
Heroes And Villains
Sophie Scholl and Roland Freisler
Sophie Scholl and Roland Freisler
Sophie Scholl & Roland Freisler
Face to Face
Was it right to commute Kurt Meyer’s death sentence for killing Canadian PoWs?
Was it right to commute Kurt Meyer’s death sentence for killing Canadian PoWs?
Was it right to commute Kurt Meyer’s death sentence for killing Canadian PoWs?

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Front Lines is a weekly podcast produced by Legion Magazine, Canada’s leading military history publication. Join writer Stephen J. Thorne each week for fascinating stories and compelling commentary on Canada’s rich military past and present.

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Legion Magazine engages Canadians in commemorating the effort, bravery and sacrifice of those who served and continue to serve in Canada’s military. From the War of 1812 to modern armed forces missions around the world, Legion Magazine offers a blend of stories, photographs, graphics, maps and posters on Canadian military history and heritage, veterans’ issues and the Canadian Armed Forces. Legion Magazine is published six times a year in English with a French insert. Legion Magazine is published by Canvet Publications Ltd.

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