Papers by Matt Symes
"Most of the world remembers the First World War as a time when, as historian Sa... more "Most of the world remembers the First World War as a time when, as historian Samuel Hynes put it, “innocent young men, their heads full of high abstractions like Honour, Glory, and England … were slaughtered in stupid battles planned by stupid Generals.” English-speaking Canadians have for the most part accepted this view and supplemented it with an imaginative version of a war in which their soldiers won great victories and forged a new national identity. Both approaches have served to promote literary, political, and cultural agendas of such power that empirical studies of actual wartime events have had little impact on the historiography. A new generation of scholars has challenged those approaches, however, insisting that the reality of the war and the society that produced it are worthy of study. This guide to the Canadian battlefields in France and Belgium offers a brief critical history of the war and of Canada’s contribution, drawing attention to the best recent books on the subject. It focuses on the Ypres Salient, Passchendaele, Vimy, and the “Hundred Day”s battles and considers lesser-known battlefields as well. Battle maps, contemporary maps, photographs, war art, and tourist information enhance the reader experience."
""Terry Copp’s tireless teaching, research, and writing has challenged generations of C... more ""Terry Copp’s tireless teaching, research, and writing has challenged generations of Canadian veterans, teachers, and students to discover an informed memory of their country’s role in the Second World War. This collection, drawn from the work of Terry’s colleagues and former students, considers Canada and the Second World War from a wealth of perspectives. Social, cultural, and military historians address topics under five headings: The Home Front, The War of the Scientists, The Mediterranean Theatre, Normandy/Northwest Europe, and The Aftermath. The questions considered are varied and provocative: How did Canadian youth and First Nations peoples understand their wartime role? What position did a Canadian scientist play in the Allied victory and in the peace? Were veterans of the Mediterranean justified in thinking theirs was the neglected theatre? How did the Canadians in Normandy overcome their opponents but not their historians? Why was a Cambridge scholar attached to First Canadian Army to protect monuments? And why did Canadians come to commemorate the Second World War in much the same way they commemorated the First? The study of Canada in the Second World War continues to challenge, confound, and surprise. In the questions it poses, the evidence it considers, and the conclusions it draws, this important collection says much about the lasting influence of the work of Terry Copp.""
"In Canada, the War of 1812 has taken on various meanings. In the immediate aftermath, along... more "In Canada, the War of 1812 has taken on various meanings. In the immediate aftermath, alongside the “Loyalist” narrative of fleeing from the defeat of the British at the hands of American rebels, the War of 1812 provided a sort of redemption for those still loyal to British North America. From the American perspective, the War of 1812 is merely one in a host of small scale wars in North America and the events of 1812–1815 are mostly forgotten in the collective memory of the United States. The authors of 1812: A Guide to the War and its Legacy believe that the War of 1812 was an important event in North American history with lasting consequences for Canadians, Americans, and the First Nations. This is the latest guidebook published by the Laurier Centre for Military Strategic and Disarmament Studies that uses modern satellite images, archival records, paintings, and contemporary photographs to offer enough information to allow for a basic understanding of what happened and why it happened that way. 1812: A Guide to the War and its Legacy is organized into two parts. First, an historical section that seeks to place events in their strategic, operational, and human context. Second, there is a tour section that is designed to introduce and guide readers to key locations of war and memory, and offer an explanation of the fluid memory that has evolved over the last 200 years. The War of 1812 has been forgotten, re-imagined, and invented anew many times and the itineraries of the guide illustrate that ever-changing process of commemoration."
Canadian Military History, 2013
Canadian Military History, Jun 2013
The work of war artists allows the viewer to see and understand the extremity of war in a way tha... more The work of war artists allows the viewer to see and understand the extremity of war in a way that other mediums cannot. The work of Will Ogilvie is compelling in its depiction of Operation Husky. This article examines 12 of Ogilvie’s works to show the depth with which he understood the battle that was his subject in July and August 1943. This selection of paintings – from soldiers on transport vessels making their way to Sicily to depictions of bombed out civilians – supports many of the new conclusions about Canada’s experience in Sicily as expressed in this special issue.
Canada and the Second World War: Essays in Honour of Terry Copp, May 2012
"Terry Copp’s tireless teaching, research, and writing has challenged generations of Canadian vet... more "Terry Copp’s tireless teaching, research, and writing has challenged generations of Canadian veterans, teachers, and students to discover an informed memory of their country’s role in the Second World War. This collection, drawn from the work of Terry’s colleagues and former students, considers Canada and the Second World War from a wealth of perspectives.
Social, cultural, and military historians address topics under five headings: The Home Front, The War of the Scientists, The Mediterranean Theatre, Normandy/Northwest Europe, and The Aftermath. The questions considered are varied and provocative: How did Canadian youth and First Nations peoples understand their wartime role? What position did a Canadian scientist play in the Allied victory and in the peace? Were veterans of the Mediterranean justified in thinking theirs was the neglected theatre? How did the Canadians in Normandy overcome their opponents but not their historians? Why was a Cambridge scholar attached to First Canadian Army to protect monuments? And why did Canadians come to commemorate the Second World War in much the same way they commemorated the First?
The study of Canada in the Second World War continues to challenge, confound, and surprise. In the questions it poses, the evidence it considers, and the conclusions it draws, this important collection says much about the lasting influence of the work of Terry Copp."
Book Reviews by Matt Symes
Academic Council of the United Nations Services, Oct 2011
Books by Matt Symes
In Canada, the War of 1812 has taken on various meanings. In the immediate aftermath, alongside t... more In Canada, the War of 1812 has taken on various meanings. In the immediate aftermath, alongside the “Loyalist” narrative of fleeing from the defeat of the British at the hands of American rebels, the War of 1812 provided a sort of redemption for those still loyal to British North America. From the American perspective, the War of 1812 is merely one in a host of small scale wars in North America and the events of 1812–1815 are mostly forgotten in the collective memory of the United States.
The authors of 1812: A Guide to the War and its Legacy believe that the War of 1812 was an important event in North American history with lasting consequences for Canadians, Americans, and the First Nations. This is the latest guidebook published by the Laurier Centre for Military Strategic and Disarmament Studies that uses modern satellite images, archival records, paintings, and contemporary photographs to offer enough information to allow for a basic understanding of what happened and why it happened that way.
1812: A Guide to the War and its Legacy is organized into two parts. First, an historical section that seeks to place events in their strategic, operational, and human context. Second, there is a tour section that is designed to introduce and guide readers to key locations of war and memory, and offer an explanation of the fluid memory that has evolved over the last 200 years. The War of 1812 has been forgotten, re-imagined, and invented anew many times and the itineraries of the guide illustrate that ever-changing process of commemoration.
"Terry Copp’s tireless teaching, research, and writing has challenged generations of Canadian vet... more "Terry Copp’s tireless teaching, research, and writing has challenged generations of Canadian veterans, teachers, and students to discover an informed memory of their country’s role in the Second World War. This collection, drawn from the work of Terry’s colleagues and former students, considers Canada and the Second World War from a wealth of perspectives.
Social, cultural, and military historians address topics under five headings: The Home Front, The War of the Scientists, The Mediterranean Theatre, Normandy/Northwest Europe, and The Aftermath. The questions considered are varied and provocative: How did Canadian youth and First Nations peoples understand their wartime role? What position did a Canadian scientist play in the Allied victory and in the peace? Were veterans of the Mediterranean justified in thinking theirs was the neglected theatre? How did the Canadians in Normandy overcome their opponents but not their historians? Why was a Cambridge scholar attached to First Canadian Army to protect monuments? And why did Canadians come to commemorate the Second World War in much the same way they commemorated the First?
The study of Canada in the Second World War continues to challenge, confound, and surprise. In the questions it poses, the evidence it considers, and the conclusions it draws, this important collection says much about the lasting influence of the work of Terry Copp."
Most of the world remembers the First World War as a time when, as historian Samuel Hynes put it,... more Most of the world remembers the First World War as a time when, as historian Samuel Hynes put it, “innocent young men, their heads full of high abstractions like Honour, Glory, and England … were slaughtered in stupid battles planned by stupid Generals.” English-speaking Canadians have for the most part accepted this view and supplemented it with an imaginative version of a war in which their soldiers won great victories and forged a new national identity. Both approaches have served to promote literary, political, and cultural agendas of such power that empirical studies of actual wartime events have had little impact on the historiography. A new generation of scholars has challenged those approaches, however, insisting that the reality of the war and the society that produced it are worthy of study.
This guide to the Canadian battlefields in France and Belgium offers a brief critical history of the war and of Canada’s contribution, drawing attention to the best recent books on the subject. It focuses on the Ypres Salient, Passchendaele, Vimy, and the “Hundred Day”s battles and considers lesser-known battlefields as well. Battle maps, contemporary maps, photographs, war art, and tourist information enhance the reader experience.
The third of the LCMSDS battlefield guides to concentrate on the Canadian forces in Italy, The Ca... more The third of the LCMSDS battlefield guides to concentrate on the Canadian forces in Italy, The Canadian Battlefields in Italy: The Gothic Line and the Battle of the Rivers continues the journey through the Gothic Line, Canada’s greatest battle of the Italian Campaign, and on to Ravenna, where Canadian soldiers fought doggedly against the enemy and the elements in a remote corner of the war. The guidebook offers a broad introduction to the campaigns, concise summaries of each stage of the fighting, and itineraries that allow Canadian visitors to explore the battles from the most important perspective—the physical setting itself. Three-dimensional maps familiarize readers with the landscape and features that affected the course of the battles, while contemporary photos and war art recapture the scene as contemporaries saw it.
This book transports the reader to Sicily, where Canadian soldiers fought in the summer of 1943. ... more This book transports the reader to Sicily, where Canadian soldiers fought in the summer of 1943. With remarkable new three-dimensional satellite maps, this book is sure to be enjoyable reading for anyone with an interest in Canada’s Second World War experience
The Canadian battlefields in Italy are portrayed in revolutionary, new, three-dimensional satelli... more The Canadian battlefields in Italy are portrayed in revolutionary, new, three-dimensional satellite maps that show the terrain and towns as they have never been seen before. The detailed narrative takes the reader through some of the toughest fighting of the Second World War.
Teaching Documents by Matt Symes
Talks by Matt Symes
Art, in all its abstraction, has the ability to bring us closer than any other medium to understa... more Art, in all its abstraction, has the ability to bring us closer than any other medium to understanding what it must have been like to experience war. Join Matt Symes as he examines art from the First World War held in the Beaverbrook Collection at the Canadian War Museum as well as other pieces held at the Library and Archives of Canada. From the famous members who went on to create the Group of Seven to the prolific but virtually unknown Mary Riter Hamilton, these spectacular images offer a sensory engagement in one of the defining moments in Canadian history. Matt Symes has worked with Canada's war art in the publication of 4 guidebooks on the First and Second World War.
Uploads
Papers by Matt Symes
Social, cultural, and military historians address topics under five headings: The Home Front, The War of the Scientists, The Mediterranean Theatre, Normandy/Northwest Europe, and The Aftermath. The questions considered are varied and provocative: How did Canadian youth and First Nations peoples understand their wartime role? What position did a Canadian scientist play in the Allied victory and in the peace? Were veterans of the Mediterranean justified in thinking theirs was the neglected theatre? How did the Canadians in Normandy overcome their opponents but not their historians? Why was a Cambridge scholar attached to First Canadian Army to protect monuments? And why did Canadians come to commemorate the Second World War in much the same way they commemorated the First?
The study of Canada in the Second World War continues to challenge, confound, and surprise. In the questions it poses, the evidence it considers, and the conclusions it draws, this important collection says much about the lasting influence of the work of Terry Copp."
Book Reviews by Matt Symes
Books by Matt Symes
The authors of 1812: A Guide to the War and its Legacy believe that the War of 1812 was an important event in North American history with lasting consequences for Canadians, Americans, and the First Nations. This is the latest guidebook published by the Laurier Centre for Military Strategic and Disarmament Studies that uses modern satellite images, archival records, paintings, and contemporary photographs to offer enough information to allow for a basic understanding of what happened and why it happened that way.
1812: A Guide to the War and its Legacy is organized into two parts. First, an historical section that seeks to place events in their strategic, operational, and human context. Second, there is a tour section that is designed to introduce and guide readers to key locations of war and memory, and offer an explanation of the fluid memory that has evolved over the last 200 years. The War of 1812 has been forgotten, re-imagined, and invented anew many times and the itineraries of the guide illustrate that ever-changing process of commemoration.
Social, cultural, and military historians address topics under five headings: The Home Front, The War of the Scientists, The Mediterranean Theatre, Normandy/Northwest Europe, and The Aftermath. The questions considered are varied and provocative: How did Canadian youth and First Nations peoples understand their wartime role? What position did a Canadian scientist play in the Allied victory and in the peace? Were veterans of the Mediterranean justified in thinking theirs was the neglected theatre? How did the Canadians in Normandy overcome their opponents but not their historians? Why was a Cambridge scholar attached to First Canadian Army to protect monuments? And why did Canadians come to commemorate the Second World War in much the same way they commemorated the First?
The study of Canada in the Second World War continues to challenge, confound, and surprise. In the questions it poses, the evidence it considers, and the conclusions it draws, this important collection says much about the lasting influence of the work of Terry Copp."
This guide to the Canadian battlefields in France and Belgium offers a brief critical history of the war and of Canada’s contribution, drawing attention to the best recent books on the subject. It focuses on the Ypres Salient, Passchendaele, Vimy, and the “Hundred Day”s battles and considers lesser-known battlefields as well. Battle maps, contemporary maps, photographs, war art, and tourist information enhance the reader experience.
Teaching Documents by Matt Symes
Talks by Matt Symes
Social, cultural, and military historians address topics under five headings: The Home Front, The War of the Scientists, The Mediterranean Theatre, Normandy/Northwest Europe, and The Aftermath. The questions considered are varied and provocative: How did Canadian youth and First Nations peoples understand their wartime role? What position did a Canadian scientist play in the Allied victory and in the peace? Were veterans of the Mediterranean justified in thinking theirs was the neglected theatre? How did the Canadians in Normandy overcome their opponents but not their historians? Why was a Cambridge scholar attached to First Canadian Army to protect monuments? And why did Canadians come to commemorate the Second World War in much the same way they commemorated the First?
The study of Canada in the Second World War continues to challenge, confound, and surprise. In the questions it poses, the evidence it considers, and the conclusions it draws, this important collection says much about the lasting influence of the work of Terry Copp."
The authors of 1812: A Guide to the War and its Legacy believe that the War of 1812 was an important event in North American history with lasting consequences for Canadians, Americans, and the First Nations. This is the latest guidebook published by the Laurier Centre for Military Strategic and Disarmament Studies that uses modern satellite images, archival records, paintings, and contemporary photographs to offer enough information to allow for a basic understanding of what happened and why it happened that way.
1812: A Guide to the War and its Legacy is organized into two parts. First, an historical section that seeks to place events in their strategic, operational, and human context. Second, there is a tour section that is designed to introduce and guide readers to key locations of war and memory, and offer an explanation of the fluid memory that has evolved over the last 200 years. The War of 1812 has been forgotten, re-imagined, and invented anew many times and the itineraries of the guide illustrate that ever-changing process of commemoration.
Social, cultural, and military historians address topics under five headings: The Home Front, The War of the Scientists, The Mediterranean Theatre, Normandy/Northwest Europe, and The Aftermath. The questions considered are varied and provocative: How did Canadian youth and First Nations peoples understand their wartime role? What position did a Canadian scientist play in the Allied victory and in the peace? Were veterans of the Mediterranean justified in thinking theirs was the neglected theatre? How did the Canadians in Normandy overcome their opponents but not their historians? Why was a Cambridge scholar attached to First Canadian Army to protect monuments? And why did Canadians come to commemorate the Second World War in much the same way they commemorated the First?
The study of Canada in the Second World War continues to challenge, confound, and surprise. In the questions it poses, the evidence it considers, and the conclusions it draws, this important collection says much about the lasting influence of the work of Terry Copp."
This guide to the Canadian battlefields in France and Belgium offers a brief critical history of the war and of Canada’s contribution, drawing attention to the best recent books on the subject. It focuses on the Ypres Salient, Passchendaele, Vimy, and the “Hundred Day”s battles and considers lesser-known battlefields as well. Battle maps, contemporary maps, photographs, war art, and tourist information enhance the reader experience.