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77 recordsStructured records (JSON) ↗
Prince of Wales Fort, Churchill, Manitoba.
CA-K1561History

Early science in Canada’s North, 1768 to about 1810

In 1768 the Hudson’s Bay Company sent two British astronomers to Prince of Wales Fort, on Hudson Bay, to observe the 1769 transit of Venus. It began more than forty years of HBC cooperation with the Royal Society of London in astronomy, meteorology, cartography and natural history in the North, with Indigenous collaborators sharing their deep knowledge of the land, plants and animals.

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Verified against cited sourcesVerified on 2026-10-27↗
Photo: Peterfitzgerald · Photo licence: CC BY-SA 3.0 · Credit & context
A vehicle of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force in the Golan Heights.
CA-K1378History

Canadian peacekeepers in the Golan Heights, since 1974

Canada has kept a peacekeeping presence in the Golan Heights of Syria since 1974, when it joined the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force after the Yom Kippur War. It is one of Canada’s longest-running international commitments, and more than 12,000 Canadians have served there.

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Photo: Spaceboyjosh · Photo licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 · Credit & context
Major-General E.L.M. Burns, commander of the UN Emergency Force, 1957.
CA-K1375History

Canadian peacekeepers in Egypt and the Suez Crisis

During the Suez Crisis of 1956, Canadian diplomat Lester B. Pearson proposed a peacekeeping force, and the United Nations launched its first large-scale peacekeeping mission, the United Nations Emergency Force, commanded by Canada’s Major-General E.L.M. “Tommy” Burns. Canadians served with UN troops in Egypt from 1956 to 1967 and again from 1973 to 1979; Pearson received the 1957 Nobel Peace Prize.

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Photo: Indonesian Ministry of Information and the Information Department of the Indonesian Army · Photo licence: Public domain · Credit & context
Reconciliation: The Peacekeeping Monument, Ottawa.
CA-K1374History

Canada and international peacekeeping

Members of the Canadian Armed Forces have served in dozens of peacekeeping efforts with the United Nations, NATO and other multinational operations. Peacekeepers are neutral international troops sent to countries in turmoil to reduce tensions and restore peace, monitoring ceasefires, patrolling buffer zones, clearing landmines and providing humanitarian aid.

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Photo: Pierre André Leclercq · Photo licence: CC BY 4.0 · Credit & context
A Royal Canadian Air Force CF-188 Hornet during coalition operations against Daesh, March 2015.
CA-K1370History

Canada against Daesh in Iraq and Syria: Operation IMPACT

Operation IMPACT began as the Canadian Armed Forces’ support to the Global Coalition formed in 2014 to degrade and defeat Daesh in Iraq and Syria. Canadian CF-18 Hornets flew 1,378 sorties between October 30, 2014, and February 15, 2016. The mission then focused on training and building the military capabilities of Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon.

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Photo: Staff Sgt. Perry Aston · Photo licence: Public domain · Credit & context
Canadian CF-18s waiting to refuel from a Royal Air Force tanker over Libya, July 2011.
CA-K1369History

Canada in Libya, 2011

In 2011 Canada took part in the NATO-led Operation Unified Protector in Libya through Operation Mobile. It began in February with the evacuation of Canadians and other foreign nationals, then, after the UN Security Council imposed a no-fly zone on 17 March, became a combat operation involving naval ships and fighter, transport, patrol, helicopter and refuelling aircraft. It ended on October 31, 2011, after Gadhafi’s death.

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Photo: SAC Sally Raimondo / MOD · Photo licence: OGL v1.0 · Credit & context
Canadian soldiers and RG-31 vehicles in Afghanistan, October 2008.
CA-K1368History

Canada in Afghanistan, 2001–2014

After the attacks of 11 September 2001, Canada joined the international coalition against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, which had sheltered Al-Qaeda. More than 40,000 Canadians served there, the largest deployment of Canadian troops since the Second World War, in a conflict that lasted more than 12 years, the longest in Canada’s history. Canada led Operation MEDUSA, its largest combat operation since the Korean War.

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Photo: ISAF photo by U.S. Air Force TSgt Laura K. Smith · Photo licence: Public domain · Credit & context
Canadian CF-18 aircraft departing Aviano Air Base, Italy, after supporting Operations Allied Force and Echo; photographed in December 2000.
CA-K1367History

Canada in the Kosovo air campaign, 1999

In 1999 Canadian CF-18 pilots flew combat missions in NATO’s 79-day air campaign over Kosovo, Operation ALLIED FORCE, which ran from March to June 1999 to end violence and repression in Kosovo. Canada’s part, Operation Echo, had begun in June 1998 when CF-18 Hornets deployed to Aviano, Italy.

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Photo: Staff Sgt. Jennifer C. Wallis, U.S. Air Force · Photo licence: Public domain · Credit & context
A Canadian CF-18 Hornet flying with coalition fighter jets during Operation Desert Shield.
CA-K1366History

Canada in the Gulf War, 1990–1991

After Iraq invaded Kuwait on 2 August 1990, more than 4,000 Canadians served in the Persian Gulf with a coalition formed to drive Iraqi forces out. Canada’s part, Operation Friction, was mainly warships and aircraft. It was the first conflict in which Canadian women played an active combat role.

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Photo: Staff Sgt. Lee Corkran · Photo licence: Public domain · Credit & context
Soldiers of the 9th Canadian Infantry Brigade landing at Juno Beach, 6 June 1944.
CA-K1365History

Canada in the Second World War, 1939–1945

Germany’s invasion of Poland in 1939 began more than six years of fighting on land, at sea and in the air that ended in 1945. More than one million Canadians and Newfoundlanders served in uniform at home and around the world; over 45,000 gave their lives and another 55,000 were wounded.

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Photo: Canadian Official photographer · Photo licence: Public domain · Credit & context
Canadian troops heading for a rest after the capture of Vimy Ridge, May 1917.
CA-K1364History

Canada in the First World War, 1914–1918

When Britain declared war in August 1914, Canada, whose external affairs were still governed by the United Kingdom, was automatically at war. More than 650,000 Canadians and Newfoundlanders served in what was then called the Great War; more than 66,000 died and more than 172,000 were wounded. Canada signed the Treaty of Versailles separately from Britain.

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Photo: Castle, W.I. (William Ivor), official Canadian War photographer · Photo licence: Public domain · Credit & context
Memorial to soldiers who died in the South African War, by Hamilton MacCarthy, Confederation Park, Ottawa.
CA-K1363History

Canada in the South African War, 1899–1902

The South African War, also known as the Boer War, was fought in southern Africa from 1899 to 1902 between the British Empire and the Boers. More than 7,000 Canadians volunteered to serve alongside British forces, and five earned the Victoria Cross. In February 1900 Canadians played an important role at Paardeberg, the first major British victory of the war.

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Photo: D. Gordon E. Robertson · Photo licence: CC BY-SA 3.0 · Credit & context
Dame Cindy Kiro, Governor-General of New Zealand, meets Mary Simon during the Platinum Jubilee, June 3, 2022.
CA-K1102History

Mary Simon at the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, 2022

From June 2 to 6, 2022, Governor General Mary Simon represented Canada in London at the official events marking the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, and met the Governors General of Australia, Belize and New Zealand.

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Photo: New Zealand Government, Office of the Governor-General · Photo licence: CC BY 4.0 · Credit & context