1940s Canadian Army Training By Norma Galambos

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Holding these seventy-eight-year-old Canadian Army training booklets, I imagined my dad, in his early 20s, reading them when they were issued to him in 1942.

Canada WWII

World War II raged on from September 1, 1939 to May 8, 1945. One million Canadians served; 45,000 did not return. Fifty thousand women served in the military. At the time, Canada had a population of only eleven million people, so it significantly contributed. The war changed Canadian society forever. There was a greater sense of pride and a more patriotic nation emerged. People saw themselves more as Canadians than where they had come from.

Zero Warfare Training

Tan, black and red 4 x 5” booklet

This booklet was a digest summarizing information for Canadian Army personnel in training. Inside the front cover is printed in capital letters RESTRICTED. The information given in this document is not to be communicated either directly or indirectly to the press or to any person not holding an official position in His Majesty’s service. Guarding this information was a priority as the enemy wanted to know what training methods other countries used. 

The army wanted to have men prepared in the event of a major assault upon Canada’s northwest frontiers. These exercises were designed to train troops in cold-weather survival. Trudging over mountains and muskeg, through thick bush and over the barren country, was a scenario they needed to be ready for. 

The use of the term Zero Warfare as the title likely refers to training in sub-zero temperatures. 

This booklet was written in a light tone with hints of humour even though it dealt with life-saving information. Writing in this tone may have been done to keep morale up. 

Excerpts:

• Six-man tent – Chateau G.I.
• This won’t be an Elk’s picnic
• Don’t accidentally shoot your comrade
• If you surprise a grizzly bear, shoot, brother, shoot
• Brush your teeth, it improves your outlook on life

They learned how to survive various types of weather, ranging from snow and mud to alarmingly low temperatures. Some personnel trained on the mountain trails of British Columbia or in the broad, northern Saskatchewan regions. Dad was sent to British Columbia for his training.

Army personnel took classroom instruction prior to field training, going through the information in this manual including:

• knot tying
• body signals to use when communicating with aircraft 
• how to recognize animal tracks
• how to use a tumpline - a gadget consisting of a narrow sling with rope on either end that was looped over the forehead and tied to your pack board, helping transfer some of the strain off your shoulders and onto your back 
• Army issued footwear was designed with grooves so skis or snowshoes could be used

A sample of outdoor survival information:

• Conserve your body heat. Stay warm, not hot.
• Change your socks.
• Ventilate your tent, if using a camp stove, to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning.
• Wash your mess tin well.
• Drink hot liquids.
• To keep warm, keep moving; 75% of body heat comes from muscles in action.
• If you have frost on the inside of a garment, shake it out; if you do not have time to dry it, do not thaw it. Better to wear it frozen than wet. 
• You have been issued two pairs of gloves, one leather and one pair of wool liners. The gloves are designed so that the trigger finger and thumb can be withdrawn to fire a weapon. 
• To keep gloves dry when not in use, tuck them into your belt and at night, put them in your sleeping bag. Keep your hands clean, particularly of grease, which conducts heat away from the hands.
• Wash your hankies.
• Depending on the weather, underwear drying on a line can be spotted by enemy aircraft, wear army-issued khaki or white underwear.  
• Neck squares are to be worn like the cowboys do. They are not for cleaning rifles or mess tins.
• Purify your drinking water.
• Carry lots of matches.
• Wax your skis. 
• Baby your sleeping bag.
• When lost, sit down and think, build a fire and a shelter. 
• Notice landmarks.
• Keep your hands off cold metal.
• Never trade rations. Rations are portioned to maintain your health. 
• Dress warm, sleep dry, eat lots.
• If in doubt - ask.
• Use your head.

When on training exercises, personnel carried sixty pounds of gear on their backs and on more extended combat missions overseas, they often carried up to eighty pounds. Equipment included items such as:

• shovel for digging trenches, latrines and fire pits 
• mess tins - be careful of reflection from it revealing your location 
• whistle to use if lost 
• enamel mug
• water purification tablets
• field stove and gasoline 
• knives - can be used to open cans and bottles, remove screws, adjust ski bindings, or help climb an icy slope
• tumpline
• axe
• matches
• tent
• map and compass
• canned and dry rations
• dry food bag
• goggles to prevent snow blindness - if you lose your goggles, you can obtain some protection by cutting two slits in a piece of cardboard or light wood and fitting it with a string around your head
• poncho - can be used as a rain cape, groundsheet or in pairs as a pup tent
• paint - white and olive green to camouflage items depending on the terrain you’re in, i.e. black boots painted white if it snowed
• ice creepers (cleats)
• whisk broom to brush off snow from equipment, clothing and sleeping area
• candles - for warmth in a small shelter, the wax can be used on skis 
• pack board to load equipment on to carry
• rucksack (backpack) for clothing, toiletries and personal items 

This verse about recognizing potential weather conditions was included:

When the wind is in the east

'Tis good for neither man or beast. When the wind is in the south 

It blows the bait in the fishes mouth.

When the wind is in the north 

Prudent mortals go not forth. 

When the wind is in the west 

All things that are at their best. 

East wind brings rain. 

South wind brings heat. 

West wind brings clear, bright, cool weather. 

North wind brings cold. 

The cleaning of weapons was discussed, but I assume that information on specific types of weapons wasn’t included for security reasons.

Reminders for instructors:

• Lecture to the class, not the blackboard  
• Teach class as individuals  
• Avoid discrimination 
• Take no point for granted
• Never make a man feel a fool
• If you think this is bs, you are just the guy who should reread it

First Aid Training Pamphlet 

5 x 8"

This pamphlet is a detailed guide to train soldiers in first aid.

It covers:

• How to treat specific types of injuries/complications:

- gas poisoning 

- near-drowning 

- broken bones

- bleeding

- shock 

- frostbite 

- snow blindness 

- sunburn

• Techniques:

- application of bandages and splints 

- administering artificial respiration 

- how to prepare for the evacuation of an injured soldier if no stretcher is available using poles, blankets, a greatcoat, door, shutter or board

- how to hand carry a wounded man using the two-person standing chair method or crawling on the ground dragging the injured party with their arms tied around your neck 

Army Militia Book 

Soldier’s Service and Pay Book

3 x 4 “ hardcover

Instructions;

• this book is to be carried on your person when on duty and active service, and you are required to produce it whenever called upon to do so by a military authority 
• do not alter or make any entries in this book without your superior’s authorization, except for the pages used to form a will
• you are permitted to retain this book after discharge, but should you lose it, it cannot be replaced 

Information contained:

• the date on which the soldier was fingerprinted and photographed 
• name and physical description
• jobs held while in service
• next of kin 
• rank and appointment 
• training programs completed 
• health information - glasses, dental and inoculations 

At the back of the book was the soldier's will, it was to be completed if going out on active service. Those pages were perforated to be torn out and sent to the soldiers next of kin if necessary. 

We hear combat stories but not many about training. The amount of information they were expected to learn would have been overwhelming to many young trainees; let alone the physical rigor they were put through to prove their readiness for combat. It may have been then that the magnitude of being a soldier started to sink in. 

Thank you for your service. 

Please take a moment on 11-11-11 to think about these men and women. 

If you like this story, please share it.  

Thanks, Norma