Words of war

Story by Stephen J. Thorne
The briefest, if not the greatest, wartime speech ever was not really a speech at all. It was a one-word message written in December 1944 during the Battle of the Bulge, one of the last German offensives of the Second World War.

Weather was preventing resupply drops. United States paratroopers were cold, hungry and starved for ammunition when Brigadier-General Anthony McAuliffe, acting commander of the 101st Airborne at Bastogne, Belgium, received surrender terms from his German counterpart. Not for a German surrender, mind you, but his own.

He gave the American two hours to decide.

McAuliffe’s reply, typed and centred on a full sheet, was simple and direct:

December 22, 1944

To the German Commander,

N U T S!

The American Commander.

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HMCS Iroquois takes leadership
of Operation Apollo

Story by Sharon Adams

HMCS Iroquois, a destroyer, took over on April 2, 2003, as the flagship of the multinational anti-terrorism fleet in the Persian Gulf on Operation Apollo, which was established following the terrorist attacks in the United States in September 2001.

Canada was among the first to respond to the call, providing assistance in October from ships already in the region, but maintained between two and five warships on station taking part in surveillance patrols and inspections. A total of 15 vessels were deployed between 2001 and December 2003.

In addition to replenishing the rest of the fleet, Canadian crews also inspected merchant ships and fishing boats operating from Pakistan and Iran, alert to prevent supplies reaching Al-Qaida and the Taliban, or terrorists escaping.

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April 1, 1999

Canada creates a third territory called Nunavut, carved out of the Northwest Territories.
It covers one-fifth of Canada and 85 per cent of its population is Inuit.

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