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“I felt it was my duty”
Ottawa’s exiled princess
The Nazis invaded the Netherlands on May 10, 1940, intent on capturing the royal family and stamping out resistance.
Queen Wilhelmina, her daughter Juliana, son-in-law Bernhard and two granddaughters fled to England. Wilhelmina headed her government-in-exile in England. Her weekly radio broadcasts kept hope alive among the Dutch people suffering under the Nazi jackboot. The Dutch planted orange flowers everywhere as a symbol of resistance and to show their allegiance to the Crown, even under occupation.
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“I felt it was my duty”
‘Snowmageddon’ and the military’s role in fighting disasters
Twenty-three years ago, on Jan. 13, 1999, Toronto was under siege. More than 118 centimetres of snow had fallen since Jan. 2 in what became known as “Snowmageddon.”
With the latest dump of 27 centimetres, then-mayor Mel Lastman called his second emergency in 10 days and, with that, appealed to defence minister Art Eggleton, himself a former Toronto mayor, for military relief.

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Choose our cover for March/April issue of Legion Magazine
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The next issue of Legion Magazine includes the Victory at Vimy, the battle that redefined Canada and much more!
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Pilots and partisans
Pilots and partisans
The beginning of January 1945 marked a run of luck—or rather, display of expertise—for Canadian Flying Officer Norman Pearce, serving with No. 73 Squadron, Royal Air Force, in Yugoslavia.
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Choose our cover for March/April issue of Legion Magazine
Choose our cover for the next issue of Legion Magazine
The next issue of Legion Magazine includes the Victory at Vimy, the battle that redefined Canada and much more!
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A merry little Christmas: The wartime boom in holiday songs
A merry little Christmas: The wartime boom in holiday songs
They were dark and uncertain times in 1943 when two American composers, Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane, wrote a hopeful little song that would become an all-time hit of musical cinema—and of the ever-expanding Christmas season.
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Hirohito backed U.S. war months before Pearl Harbor attack, says aide’s diary
Hirohito backed U.S. war months before Pearl Harbor attack, says aide’s diary
Japanese Emperor Hirohito was long depicted as a naïve pacifist who reluctantly acceded to the wishes of his hawkish military leaders.
But the newly released diaries of one of his closest aides suggest the emperor posthumously known as Shōwa thought war with the West was inevitable and was preparing for it earnestly two months before Japan attacked Pearl Harbor.
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The birth of the Maple Leaf
The birth of the Maple Leaf
On Dec. 15, 1964, the bitter argument over the new Canadian flag came to an end when closure was invoked to shut down the debate in Parliament.

Two months later, the new Maple Leaf flag became the official Canadian national flag, replacing the Union Jack—officially known as the Royal Union Flag—and the Canadian Red Ensign.
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How mission creep undermined NATO’s mission in Afghanistan
How mission creep undermined NATO’s mission in Afghanistan
Eighteen years of alliance operations in Afghanistan were doomed by “mission creep,” as allied nations poured undue effort and resources into helping rebuild the country rather than focus on their core mission of defeating terrorism, says the head of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
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New website documents over 150 years of Black military service in Canada
New website documents over 150 years of Black military service in Canada
At 17, James Post of Ottawa had already been serving two years overseas when he earned a Distinguished Conduct Medal for “conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty” during a 1917 attack on the First World War battlefield of Passchendaele.
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Lowering the Maple Leaf
Lowering the Maple Leaf
On Dec. 1, 2011, at a quiet ceremony in Afghanistan, the Maple Leaf flag was lowered for the last time in Kandahar as Canadian troops prepared to leave the wartorn region.
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The first peacekeepers
The first peacekeepers
In mid-November 1956, 950 men of the 1st Battalion, Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada, were flown to Halifax, where HMCS Magnificent was being prepared to carry troops and materiel to Egypt for one of the first United Nations peacekeeping missions, to quell the crisis at the Suez Canal.
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FRONT LINES

Defence Today
‘Snowmageddon’ and the military’s role in fighting disasters
Twenty-three years ago, on Jan. 13, 1999, Toronto was under siege. More than 118 centimetres of snow had fallen since...
Defence Today
Focus on change, says Canada’s defence intelligence chief
The new head of Canada’s military intelligence command says the Five Eyes security partnership is robust in spite of public...
Defence Today
December 1946: A season of hope
Seventy-five years ago, the lights of Christmas 1946 twinkled and danced across Canada and throughout the Western world as they...
Defence Today
A merry little Christmas: The wartime boom in holiday songs
They were dark and uncertain times in 1943 when two American composers, Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane, wrote a hopeful...
Defence Today
Hirohito backed U.S. war months before Pearl Harbor attack, says aide’s diary
Japanese Emperor Hirohito was long depicted as a naïve pacifist who reluctantly acceded to the wishes of his hawkish military...
Defence Today
How mission creep undermined NATO’s mission in Afghanistan
Eighteen years of alliance operations in Afghanistan were doomed by “mission creep,” as allied nations poured undue effort and resources...
Defence Today
New website documents over 150 years of Black military service in Canada
At 17, James Post of Ottawa had already been serving two years overseas when he earned a Distinguished Conduct Medal...
Defence Today
A multinational warship crew of the 16th century
The crew of the Tudor warship Mary Rose was a diverse bunch, hailing from as far away as continental Europe,...
Defence Today
The threat of domestic extremism
Domestic extremists, not foreign terrorists, pose the greatest threat to American security, says a new report that criticizes the U.S....
Defence Today
Too young—and too old—to join the fight
Clifford Robinson Oulton was just 14 years old and baby-faced when he walked into a recruiting office in Moncton, N.B.,...
Defence Today
Lessons to learn
The fall of Afghanistan prompts a tough question: “Was it worth it?”   The Afghanistan government of Ashraf Ghani collapsed...
Defence Today
Viking settlement predates latest discovery: archeologist
“We don’t know how long before and after they were there.” A co-author of a groundbreaking study that pinpointed Viking...
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MEMOIRS

The man who skipped a line
He signed in the wrong place, but representing Canada at...
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...

MILITARY HISTORY

Military History
Ottawa’s exiled princess
Ottawa’s exiled princess
The Nazis invaded the Netherlands on May 10, 1940, intent on capturing the royal family and stamping out resistance. Queen Wilhelmina, her daughter Juliana, son-in-law Bernhard and two granddaughters fled to England. Wilhelmina headed her government-in-exile in England. Her weekly...
Military History
Trench Raid
Trench Raid
The attack on German dugouts at Calonne in 1917 was one of Canada’s most successful raids of the war The war diary of the 21st Battalion (Eastern Ontario) on Jan. 7, 1917, was brief and to the point: “The battalion...
Military History
“I felt it was my duty”
“I felt it was my duty”
At 110 years old, Reuben Sinclair is believed to be Canada’s oldest living veteran of the Second World War. The son of Jewish Ukrainian immigrants, Sinclair was born on his family’s farm just 100 kilometres shy of Regina in 1911....
Military History
Our man in Angola
Our man in Angola
Angola, a country of some 32 million people along the southwest coast of Africa, endured centuries as a colony of Portugal followed by long years of war to gain independence, then long years of civil war. At the end of...
Military History
Pilots and partisans
Pilots and partisans
The beginning of January 1945 marked a run of luck—or rather, display of expertise—for Canadian Flying Officer Norman Pearce, serving with No. 73 Squadron, Royal Air Force, in Yugoslavia. The squadron spent much time searching for enemy aircraft aloft, but...
Military History
The birth of the Maple Leaf
The birth of the Maple Leaf
On Dec. 15, 1964, the bitter argument over the new Canadian flag came to an end when closure was invoked to shut down the debate in Parliament. Two months later, the new Maple Leaf flag became the official Canadian national...

HEALTH

Collateral benefits from COVID research
Collateral benefits from COVID research
Medical breakthroughs are a sad irony of great wars,...
Time heals
Time heals
Whether buying time or giving it time, the...
Medical Advances Behind The Line, Part 2
Medical Advances Behind The Line, Part 2
The odds of recovering from a wound in...
Research on family matters
Research on family matters
In May, Canadians will be asked to fill...
Looking for a good night’s sleep
Looking for a good night’s sleep
Looking for a good night’s sleep
Medical Advances Behind the Line, Part 1
Medical Advances Behind the Line, Part 1
The First World War spurred medical innovations that...
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 March/April issue of <em>Legion Magazine</em>!
Choose our cover for the March/April issue of Legion Magazine!
Help choose the March/April cover of Legion Magazine! The next issue of Legion Magazine includes the Victory at Vimy, the battle that redefined Canada and much more! Help choose our cover!...
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!
The next issue of Canada’s Ultimate Story is How Canada conquered VIMY RIDGE. Help choose the cover by casting your vote. It will soon be 105 years since the capture of Vimy Ridge...
Lytton Branch destroyed by wildfire
Lytton Branch destroyed by wildfire
Lytton, B.C., was devastated by wildfire on June 30.  The hospital, ambulance station and pharmacy were destroyed.The bank, museum, coffee shop, both grocery stores, all gone. And with them, Lytton...
The Immortal Poppy is digital art
The Immortal Poppy is digital art
The Royal Canadian Legion has digitized a real Flanders poppy to commemorate its 100th year as a symbol of remembrance.  Dubbed the “Immortal Poppy,” the project has created highly detailed...
Choose our cover for the January/February issue of <em>Legion Magazine</em>!
Choose our cover for the January/February issue of Legion Magazine!
Help choose the January/February cover of Legion Magazine! The next issue of Legion Magazine includes the attack on German dugouts at Calonne. It also includes the details of Operation Drumbeat, Battlefields...
Young artists showcase the will to remember
Young artists showcase the will to remember
Emily-Ann Alyward had three great-grandfathers and a great-grandmother who served during the Second World War, but they were not the inspiration for the work that earned her first place in the...
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...
Heroes And Villains
Osborn & Sakai
Osborn & Sakai
Sacrifice and atrocities in the Battle of Hong Kong WARRANT OFFICER JOHN OSBORN In October 1941, the Winnipeg Grenadiers joined the Hong Kong garrison as part of ‘C’ Force. British-born Warrant Officer John Robert Osborn was 42. He had been gassed on...
Face to Face
Was Canada’s decision to reinforce Hong Kong a mistake?
Was Canada’s decision to reinforce Hong Kong a mistake?
Richard Foot says NO Was Canada wrong to send soldiers to Hong Kong in 1941? Absolutely—if one weighs the question with the full benefit of history. On the other hand, if we examine it with an honest appraisal of what...
Heroes And Villains
Heroes And Villains: Bush & bin Laden
Heroes And Villains: Bush & bin Laden
George W. Bush’s war machine proved unable to eliminate Osama bin Laden GEORGE W. BUSH Just 45 minutes after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks started, President George W. Bush responded publicly from Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota,...
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...

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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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