CBC Digital Archives

Korean War volunteers in Canada

It is called Canada's "Forgotten War." Over 500 Canadians died in the United Nations' struggle to repel the communist forces that invaded South Korea on June 25, 1950. To the people they helped liberate, the Canadians were heroes. Yet those who made it home returned to an indifferent country and a government that took 40 years to officially acknowledge their sacrifice.

Prime Minister St-Laurent's appeal for volunteers sends Canadian armed forces personnel scrambling to prepare for the expected flood of recruits. Enlistment standards are loosened to encourage as many Second World War veterans as possible to enlist. By Aug. 26, 8,000 men have volunteered amid fears that the reduced standards will allow "riff-raff" to join. The CBC's Bill Beattie hears what has inspired one group of men to enlist.
Among the military establishment's concerns with the character of the Special Force was the fear that it would attract warmongering recruits. According to Department of National Defense archival material, such a worry led the military to impose an 18-month limit on the duration of a soldier's service in the unit. Limiting service ensured a means of ridding the military of such unwanted elements when their time was up.
Medium: Radio
Program: CBC News Roundup
Broadcast Date: Aug. 8, 1950
Host: Bill Reid
Interviewer: Bill Beatty
Duration: 2:43

Last updated: February 26, 2013

Page consulted on March 20, 2013

All Clips from this Topic

Related Content

Peacekeepers and Peacemakers: Canada's Diplom...

Canada has enjoyed a reputation for diplomacy ever since Lester B. Pearson came up with a nove...

Peacekeeper to the World

For half a century, Canada's Blue Berets have defused escalating tension and conflict with the...

The Princess Patricias go into battle in Kore...

Bernard Kaplan reports on the first battles of Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry in ...

1946: First UN General Assembly opens

In London, England, a new international organization holds the first "town meeting of the worl...

Dallaire back in Rwanda to testify against ol...

Dallaire travels back to Africa to testify against his old foes at a special UN criminal tribu...

Blue Berets: Genocide in Rwanda

Lt.-Gen. Romeo Dallaire recalls the horror and failure of the Rwanda peacekeeping mission.