Battle of the Atlantic

Recognizing Canada’s role

Written by Phil Koch

 — Posted May 1, 2018

On the first Sunday of May, Canada remembers the Second World War Battle of the Atlantic and recognizes the efforts and sacrifices of members of the Royal Canadian Navy, Royal Canadian Air Force, and Canadian merchant navy.

Their work serving upon supply convoys headed for Europe and protecting them from German U-boats is credited with bolstering Allied forces in Europe and helping to provide the resources for the successful D-Day invasion. By the end of the war, Canada had the world’s fourth-largest navy, and a Canadian was in command of the northwest Atlantic region.

More than 4,000 Canadians perished during the Battle of the Atlantic, which was the Second World War’s longest continuous campaign.

Here we present a selection of some recently published books about Canada and the Battle of the Atlantic.

Battle of the Atlantic

by Marc Milner

War at Sea: Canada and the Battle of the Atlantic

by Ken Smith

War in the St. Lawrence: The Forgotten U-Boat Battles on Canada’s Shores

by Roger Sarty

Haida: A Story of the Hard Fighting Tribal Class Destroyers of the Royal Canadian Navy on the Murmansk Convoy, the English Channel and the Bay of Biscay

by William Sclater

Canada’s Navy: The First Century

by Marc Milner

The Naval Service of Canada, 1910–2010: The Centennial Story

edited by Richard H. Gimblett

For younger readers:

Sink and Destroy: The Battle of the Atlantic, Bill O’Connell, North Atlantic, 1940

Part of the “I am Canada” series

by Edward Kay

Themes associated with this article

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