Rum Ration

How did a country of just 11 million people become one of the world’s great wartime industrial powers?In this episode of the Rum Ration Podcast, Rejoy and Colin are joined by David Bensadoun, CEO of the ALDO Group and Honorary Colonel of The Royal Montreal Regiment, to explore the story of the Canadian Military Pattern truck.From Canada’s shaky industrial footing in 1939 to the “war of horsepower” that followed Dunkirk, the CMP became a symbol of rapid adaptation, mass production and sheer mechanical grit. The conversation covers the rivalry-turned-collaboration between Ford and GM, the cramped “Monkey Face” cabs, crash gearboxes, desert driving, women in wartime factories, and the extraordinary scale of Canadian production.David also brings a hands-on perspective after helping restore a CMP C60L to running condition.It’s a story of workers, drivers, engineers and a truck that helped put the Allies on wheels and toward victory.

On 19 August 1942, thousands of Canadian soldiers landed at Dieppe expecting a bold raid against occupied France. Instead, they found a killing ground. Poor intelligence, heavily fortified beaches, immobilized tanks and collapsing communications turned Operation Jubilee into one of Canada’s costliest days of the Second World War.In this episode of the Rum Ration, Rejoy and Colin are joined by historian Julien Lehoux of Canada Company’s Je me souviens program to examine what went wrong—and, more importantly, what soldiers did when the plan fell apart. From Dollard Ménard leading the Fusiliers Mont-Royal despite being wounded repeatedly, to Charles Merritt’s astonishing courage at Pourville, the story is filled with individual acts of determination.At its heart is Montreal signaller David Hart, whose decision to keep transmitting helped save more than 100 stranded soldiers. Dieppe was a disaster of planning, but amid the chaos were examples of courage, initiative and comradeship.

Dunkirk is remembered as a miracle. St. Valery-en-Caux was the bitter sequel.In June 1940, the 51st Highland Division, fighting alongside French troops, was driven toward the Normandy coast as Rommel’s forces closed in. Their escape route through Le Havre collapsed, leaving thousands trapped in a small harbour town overlooked by cliffs, German artillery, machine guns, and armour. The Royal Navy mounted a desperate evacuation, but fog, poor communications, air attack, and enemy guns turned the harbour into a killing ground.Canada was there too. HMCS St. Laurent and HMCS Restigouche rescued wounded soldiers and exchanged fire with German shore batteries, among the Royal Canadian Navy’s earliest engagements of the Second World War.This episode explores the men behind a forgotten defeat: exhausted soldiers, sailors heading toward the guns, and the cruel reality that not every desperate evacuation ends with a miracle.Sometimes history arrives not as rescue, but surrender.

In August 1914, Russia’s Second Army marched into East Prussia expecting to help trap Germany’s outnumbered Eighth Army. Instead, it walked into one of the First World War’s most devastating encirclements.In this episode, Rejoy and Colin unpack the Battle of Tannenberg, where German railways, rapid concentration, intercepted Russian wireless messages, and bold command decisions collided with poor logistics, weak coordination, and overextended Russian forces. At the centre is General Alexander Samsonov, a commander burdened by collapsing communications, exhausted troops, and the unbearable knowledge that his army was being destroyed around him.The battle became a celebrated German victory and a national myth, but its reality was messier: confusion, refugees, failed communications, courage on both sides, and enormous human loss. Tannenberg reminds us that numbers alone do not win battles. Armies succeed when logistics, intelligence, movement, and leadership come together at the decisive moment—and fail when ambition outruns readiness.

In 1942, with German U-boats ravaging Allied shipping in the North Atlantic, Britain faced a brutal problem: how to close the Mid-Atlantic Gap without enough steel to build more carriers. Enter Geoffrey Pyke, a brilliant and eccentric inventor with an idea so strange it almost worked—build a massive aircraft carrier out of ice.In this episode of The Rum Ration, Rejoy and Colin dive into Project Habakkuk, the secret Allied plan to create a 2-million-ton floating airbase made from pykrete, a mixture of ice and wood pulp. From Churchill’s enthusiasm and Mountbatten’s infamous live-fire demonstration to the hidden Canadian prototype built by conscientious objectors at Patricia Lake, Alberta, the story is equal parts ingenuity, desperation, and absurdity.Ultimately undone by physics, cost, steel demands, and changing technology, Habakkuk remains one of the Second World War’s strangest “plausible but ludicrous” ideas.

On 1 July 1916, the British Army suffered the bloodiest day in its history as the Battle of the Somme opened beneath machine-gun fire, unbroken wire, and shattered expectations. Yet the Somme was more than one catastrophic morning. In this episode, Rejoy and Colin examine why the offensive was launched, how the crisis at Verdun reshaped Allied plans, and why citizen soldiers were asked to solve a battlefield problem no army had mastered.They challenge myths of mindless generals and unquestioning troops while never minimizing the battle’s human cost. From the devastated Pals battalions and Newfoundland Regiment at Beaumont-Hamel to the Canadians at Courcelette and the Royal Montreal Regiment’s 40-hour fight, the episode follows ordinary men through industrial warfare’s machinery.The Somme produced no decisive breakthrough, but it relieved Verdun, weakened the German Army, accelerated tactical innovation, and transformed British forces. Its legacy remains horrifying, complicated, and impossible to dismiss.

What makes someone a soldier: the name on the muster roll, or the hardship they endured beside their comrades?In Episode 54 of The Rum Ration Podcast, Rejoy and Colin explore the remarkable stories of women who disguised themselves as men to serve as soldiers, sailors, surgeons, and cavalry troopers in worlds officially closed to them. Using Canadian-born Sarah Emma Edmonds—who served in the American Civil War as Franklin Thompson—as the focal point, the episode ranges from Cathay Williams, the only documented female Buffalo Soldier, to William Brown of the Royal Navy, Nadezhda Durova of the Russian cavalry, Christian Davies of the British Army, and the legendary figure of Mulan.These stories are not about costumes or curiosities. They are about endurance, competence, comradeship, and the uncomfortable truth that many institutions only recognized ability after the work had already been done.

In 1943, the Allies faced a problem: everyone knew Sicily was the obvious next target. To make Operation Husky succeed, British intelligence needed the Germans to believe the real invasion would strike somewhere else. Their solution was audacious, macabre, and almost absurd: take the body of Glyndwr Michael, create a fictional Royal Marine officer named Major William Martin, attach forged invasion plans to his wrist, and let him wash ashore in neutral Spain.In this episode of The Rum Ration, Rejoy and Colin unpack Operation Mincemeat, one of the Second World War’s most successful deception operations. It is a story of espionage, forgery, bureaucracy, Spanish neutrality, German overconfidence, and extraordinary attention to detail. But beneath the dark humour lies a human story too: the real man whose identity was hidden for decades, and whose death helped change the course of the war in the Mediterranean.

Rejoy and Colin tackle one of the darkest questions in modern warfare in our latest episode of The Rum Ration Podcast:Can bombing civilians actually break a nation's will to fight?Beginning with Colin’s visit to the haunting ruins of Hamburg’s St. Nikolai Memorial and Rejoy’s experiences living in post-war Germany, this episode traces the evolution of strategic bombing from the Zeppelin raids of the First World War to the firestorms of Hamburg, the skies over Vietnam, and the modern doctrine of “Shock and Awe.”Along the way, we examine the theories of air power advocates who believed that terror from above could force populations to surrender, and compare those ideas against the historical record. Did bombing campaigns achieve their intended political objectives? Or did they harden civilian resolve and create a different kind of endurance?We also explore the Royal Montreal Regiment’s own experiences under Luftwaffe attack during the Battle of Britain, reminding us that strategic bombing was not an abstract concept, but a lived reality for thousands of Canadian soldiers.This is an episode about technology, strategy, leadership, and, above all, the resilience of ordinary people caught beneath extraordinary violence.🎙️ Listen now and join the discussion: does air power win wars, or merely change how they are fought?

In March 1919, long after the guns had fallen silent on the Western Front, nearly 20,000 Canadian soldiers found themselves trapped in another kind of battlefield: Kinmel Park, a bleak repatriation camp in North Wales. In this episode of The Rum Ration Podcast, Colin and Rejoy unpack the forgotten and deeply troubling story of the Kinmel Park Riots, where frustration, poor leadership, broken promises, and brutal living conditions erupted into deadly violence.Separated from their original units, unpaid, overcrowded, freezing, and stuck in administrative limbo after surviving the trenches of the First World War, these men were pushed to a breaking point. What followed was one of the most serious episodes of unrest involving Canadian troops overseas: looting, arson, clashes with loyal troops, and ultimately Canadians firing on Canadians.The episode explores the failures of command, the chaos of demobilization, the deaths of five soldiers who never made it home, and the military effort to quietly bury the scandal. More than a mutiny story, Kinmel is a stark reminder that when leadership breaks its covenant with those who serve, the consequences can be tragic.

At 4:20 a.m. on August 8, 1918, the silence east of Amiens shattered. No warning bombardment. No days of shellfire. Just fog, fire, tanks, and thousands of Allied soldiers moving forward behind one of the most carefully coordinated assaults of the First World War.In this milestone 50th episode of The Rum Ration Podcast, hosts Rejoy Chatterjee and Colin Robinson dive into the opening day of the Battle of Amiens—the moment that German commander Erich Ludendorff would forever label “the Black Day of the German Army.”Listeners are taken into the chaos of that August morning, where the Canadian Corps—including the 14th Battalion, the fighting lineage of The Royal Montreal Regiment—helped smash through German defenses and begin the Hundred Days Offensive.This is not just the story of a battle. It’s the story of the day the Western Front finally began to break.

In this episode of The Rum Ration, hosts Colin Robinson and Rejoy Chatterjee tackle one of the most controversial, brilliant, infuriating, and undeniably influential figures in Canadian military history: Sir Sam Hughes.Teacher, newspaper editor, politician, militia fanatic, and unapologetic brawler, Hughes helped build the Canadian Expeditionary Force at breakneck speed in 1914, turning the wilderness of Valcartier into a military city in mere weeks and sending tens of thousands of volunteers overseas. His fierce belief in the “citizen-soldier” helped shape Canada’s wartime identity.But Hughes’s legacy is anything but simple. From his disastrous defence of the Ross Rifle and the infamous MacAdam shovel, to accusations of patronage, nepotism, and his bitter feud with Sir Arthur Currie, Hughes often proved as destructive as he was visionary.Was Sam Hughes a patriot, a madman, or both? This episode dives deep into the man who helped launch Canada’s army—and nearly tore it apart in the process.

On the latest episode of The Rum Ration, Rejoy and Colin tackle one of military history’s most irresistible “what ifs”: what if Erwin Rommel had direct control of the German Panzer reserves on D-Day? Rather than drifting into fantasy, they ground the discussion in the hard realities of June 6, 1944: a fractured German command system, delayed decision-making, Allied air superiority, and the brutal geography of Normandy. The episode zeroes in on the British and Canadian sector around Caen and Juno, arguing that this was the likeliest place where an earlier, sharper German armoured response could have created a genuine crisis. Still, this is no cheap revisionism. Rejoy and Colin weigh Rommel’s instincts against the enormous strength and redundancy built into Overlord, and against the stubborn resistance of Allied troops already ashore. The conclusion is both sober and compelling: Rommel probably could not have repulsed the invasion, but he might have made Normandy even bloodier and more dangerous than it already was.

In this episode of The Rum Ration, Rejoy and Colin explore one of the darkest and least understood chapters of Canada’s First World War: the 25 Canadian soldiers executed by their own side, “shot at dawn.” Through the story of Private Fortunat Auger of The Royal Montreal Regiment, we examine the brutal logic of military discipline in trench warfare and the impossible strain placed on ordinary volunteers. Auger was not a simple victim, nor a villain. He was a Montreal architect, an early volunteer, and a man who endured the horrors of Ypres and Festubert before repeatedly deserting the line. His execution in March 1916 became a warning to others, meant to preserve discipline in a citizen army under unbearable pressure. This episode looks beyond easy judgments to ask harder questions about fear, duty, morale, and how armies chose to enforce obedience. It is a sobering reminder that the war claimed lives in more ways than one.

On this episode of The Rum Ration, Rejoy and Colin take listeners into the life and legend of Billy Bishop, Canada’s most famous and most controversial First World War air ace. Beginning with his dramatic final patrol over the Western Front on 19 June 1918, the episode explores both the astonishing exploits that made Bishop a national hero and the lingering questions that still surround his record. From his unruly youth in Owen Sound and his gift for marksmanship to his rise in the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force, Bishop emerges as a bold, complex, and deeply individualistic figure. The episode also examines the machines and tactics that shaped aerial combat, especially Bishop’s “lone wolf” style of flying, which brought spectacular success but also fuels debate among historians. Rather than offering simple hero worship or easy dismissal, Rejoy and Colin tackle the harder question: how should we understand Billy Bishop today?

On this episode of The Rum Ration, Rejoy and Colin take on one of the most revered and sobering subjects in British and Commonwealth military history: the Victoria Cross. Beginning with the astonishing story of Charles Upham, the only combat soldier to receive both a Victoria Cross and Bar in the same war, they explore what the VC is, why it was revolutionary, and why it still carries such weight. The episode traces the medal’s origins in the Crimean War, its place as an all-ranks award for conspicuous valour, and the myths and meaning wrapped up in its bronze cross. Along the way, they highlight Canadian recipients, including Alexander Roberts Dunn, William Hall, Smokey Smith, and Robert Hampton Gray, before, of course, coming home to The Royal Montreal Regiment’s own VC heroes: Francis Scrimger and George Burdon McKean. It is ultimately an episode about courage, sacrifice, and the human choices made under the worst imaginable pressure.

In this episode of The Rum Ration, Colin and Rejoy explore the little-known story of the Canadian Berlin Battalion, a composite unit created to represent Canada in the Allied victory celebrations in Berlin in July 1945. Joined by historian Steven Bright, they unpack why this symbolic battalion mattered, how it was assembled from units across the Canadian Army, and what its presence said about Canada’s place in the Allied victory narrative. The episode moves through the ruins of postwar Berlin, the politics behind the parade, and the strange mix of symbolism, logistics, and national identity wrapped up in one brief moment on history’s stage. Though the battalion did not fight in Berlin, it marched there so Canada’s wartime sacrifice could not be overlooked. It was a short-lived formation, but its story reveals how even ceremonial acts can carry deep meaning for soldiers, nations, and memory.

In this episode of The Rum Ration, Colin and Rejoy explore the story behind one of Canada’s most iconic wartime rifles: the Lee-Enfield No. 4. Joined by military industry researcher William Patterson, they look beyond the weapon itself to the vast Canadian supply chain that made it possible. From the rifle’s early roots in James Paris Lee’s design work to the industrial demands of the Second World War, the episode traces how the Lee-Enfield evolved into a weapon built for mass production.The conversation focuses especially on Long Branch’s Small Arms Ltd. in Ontario, where nearly a million No. 4 rifles were produced. But this is not just a story of steel and machinery. It is also a story of yellow birch, labour shortages, mills, kilns, and the civilians who kept production moving under wartime pressure.More than a tale of manufacturing, this episode reveals the “other army” behind the front lines: the workers, loggers, inspectors, and factory hands who helped turn a rifle into a legend.

In April 1951, the Korean War’s front lurches again as the Chinese Spring Offensive surges south and a South Korean division collapses, cracking the line. Suddenly, the narrow Kapyong Valley becomes the gate on the road toward Seoul. Two Commonwealth battalions are ordered to block it: the Australians of 3 RAR on Hill 504, and the Canadians of 2 PPCLI on Hill 677. When the Australians withdraw under crushing pressure, the Canadians become the last cork in the bottle.What makes Kapyong endure isn’t a flawless plan, it’s disciplined preparation. Lt-Col James Stone’s insistence on hard, night-focused training pays off as Chinese infiltration tactics tighten in the dark. Fighting becomes close and confused, to the point the Patricias call artillery onto their own positions to break the assault. Surrounded at dawn, they hold, resupplied by air, buying the UN time to stabilize the front. Both battalions later earn the U.S. Presidential Unit Citation, but the episode also confronts a harder legacy: many Korean veterans came home to indifference and, at times, exclusion.

At Waterloo, Napoleon’s Old Guard crested the ridge and met a silent wall of British red. In this episode of The Rum Ration Podcast, Colin and Rejoy unpack the real story behind that iconic colour: not vanity or intimidation, but logistics. Red had long signalled English authority, but in 1645 the New Model Army made it policy—cheap wool, durable dye, and easy mass production, with facing colours to distinguish regiments. In smoke-choked, black-powder battles, bright coats helped commanders track lines, reduced friendly fire, and made desertion harder. They also bust the myth that red “hid blood” (it doesn’t). Over time, practicality became prestige: by the 18th century red meant British power, until rifled weapons and smokeless powder made visibility fatal and khaki took over. The red coat survives today as ceremony—less about tactics, more about memory. Expect practical history, dark humour, and a few imaginary sponsor breaks along the way.

Canada’s 1950s defence sprint looked like science fiction: Arctic radar lines, a research reactor at Chalk River, and the Mach-2 Avro Arrow. In this episode of The Rum Ration, hosts Rejoy Chatterjee and Colin Robinson talk with Dr. Joanne Archibald to ask what that “blueprint era” can teach today’s Canada about NORAD modernization, Arctic posture, and industrial capacity right now.Dr. Archibald traces how layered radar networks (Pinetree, Mid-Canada, and the DEW Line) forced binational integration and faster decision-making, while still protecting sovereignty through clear legal terms. She then unpacks Chalk River’s nuclear reactor promise and price, from the 1952 NRX accident to the 1958 NRU fire, highlighting the human cost of “build fast, learn later.” Finally, the Avro Arrow becomes a procurement case study: world-class tech without aligned strategy, buyers, and budgets.Eight takeaways land hard: be useful to allies, pick niches, pre-delegate authority, build dual-use value, integrate industry, and govern risk early.

On this special Valentine’s Day episode of Rum Ration, retired infantry officers Colin Robinson and Rejoy Chatterjee celebrate a different kind of “Valentine”: the Infantry Tank Mk. III. They start with the martial origins of February 14th, from Saint Valentine’s defiance on behalf of soldiers to wartime traditions that kept troops connected to home. Then the story shifts to steel and diesel as Dunkirk’s disaster forces Britain to lean on Canada, a country with no tank-building tradition, to produce a finished design at speed.At CPR’s Angus Shops in Montréal, 3,500 workers assemble 40,000 parts into the Canadian Valentine, swapping in a GM 6-71 diesel and a Browning machine gun while wrestling with early production growing pains and design changes like cast armour. The twist: most Canadian Valentines ship to the USSR via brutal Arctic convoys, where Soviet crews praise the tank, improvise solutions, and fight on. The episode closes with the Archer variant and the remarkable journey of Montréal-built Tank #838—lost in 1944, recovered decades later, and preserved today in Ottawa. Support the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

In this special Winter Olympics episode, Rum Ration heads to St. Moritz 1948, when Canada needed to fix the national bruise of 1936. But the enemy wasn’t another team, it was the IOC’s amateur oath. With senior clubs unable to pass the paperwork test, RCAF medical officer Squadron Leader Dr. Sandy Watson pulls a military loophole: airmen are paid for service, not hockey. In 48 hours he assembles the Ottawa RCAF Flyers, scrounges equipment, and funds the tour through 34 exhibitions, despite early public humiliation. Upgrades like George Mara and Wally Haider add bite, and midnight call-up goalie Murray Dowey arrives on a three-hour warning order and posts five shutouts. In Switzerland, the Flyers adapt to new rules, altitude, and lopsided officiating, then go undefeated. A 0–0 tie with Czechoslovakia turns gold into goal-quotient math, so coach Frank Boucher locks it down, finishing 3–0 cleanly in slush. Gold, restored pride.

Episode 37, is the third of a three-part series where the Rum Ration Podcast works to correct the myth of French-Canadian reluctance in the world wars. Social scientist and Lieutenant-Colonel Richard Garon joins the hosts for this episode to explain how the record-keeping in the First World War itself made francophone service “invisible”: CEF attestation papers never captured first language, so researchers leaned on crude proxies like Quebec enlistments or the 22nd Battalion's service records, when in fact there were more than 43 additional units in artillery, cavalry, engineers, medical services, signals, and support roles. The French-Canadian effort was massive, but much of it was absorbed into reinforcement pools, home defence, or imperial garrisons — roles that were essential, yet far less visible than front-line infantry combat — and overshadowed by the powerful symbol that the R22eR (Vandoos) has become of French-Canadian military service. But when Richard re-checks individual files across Canada’s “archipelagos of francophonie,” the picture flips. He estimates roughly 76,000 francophones served in the CEF, including about 48,000 volunteers—equal to, or higher than, English-Canadian enlistment rates. The episode also revisits the Royal 22e’s impossible burden as the lone French-speaking front-line infantry battalion, paying for its reputation at Courcelette and Regina Trench, while still working inside an English command system. We close with a reminder that courage looked like the 14th Battalion's (RMR) Sergeant François Narcisse Jérôme: three Military Medals, earned during the war. It’s a reset of remembrance, and a toast to countrywide sacrifice today.📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

Episode 36 continues our three-part series on French-Canadian participation in Canada’s world wars, with historian Julien Lehoux joining us to examine Hong Kong as Québec’s forgotten battle. We revisit how “C Force” was assembled as a symbol of a united, bilingual Canada, including the Royal Rifles of Canada: an officially English-language regiment drawn largely from Eastern Québec, with a significant Francophone contingent. From the first shells to the Christmas Day fighting at Stanley Village, Hong Kong was Canada’s first land battle of the Second World War against impossible odds, ending in surrender, captivity, and silence. We also discuss how POW censorship pushed Francophones to write home in English, and how veterans’ associations became their refuge decades after the war. Julien then explains how sparse Francophone press coverage, Dieppe’s emotional pull, and the Conscription Crisis redirected Remembrance, leaving Hong Kong’s volunteers outside Québec’s public memory.For additional resources, check out Julien's paper "« Souvenons-nous de Hong Kong » : la bataille de Hong Kong et son absence mémorielle au Québec de 1941 à aujourd’hui" here and don't forget the Je Me Souviens website for their interactive online exhibition about the Canadians at Hong Kong titled “Impossible Odds.”

Episode 32 kicks off a three-part Rum Ration series that shatters the myth that French-Canadians were unwilling to serve in Canada’s wars. Hosts Rejoy Chatterjee and Colin Robinson sit down with historians Richard Garon (First World War) and Julien Lehoux (Second World War/Hong Kong) to explain why the story is less about “reluctance” and more about barriers.They unpack the pre-1914 climate: an English-only military culture, limited advancement for Francophones, and political flashpoints like Ontario’s Regulation XVII. Then they follow the call to arms, from the hard-won creation of the 22nd Battalion (“Van Doos”) to strong volunteerism again in 1939, even as “one-way bilingualism” persisted. The episode also confronts the bitter legacy: conscription, riots, and how collective memory elevated Dieppe while Hong Kong’s Quebec volunteers faded from view. Next up: stay tuned for episodes that will focus on Richard’s new numbers for WWI participation, and Julien’s deep dive on Hong Kong: Québec's Forgotten Battle.

Rum Ration turns one! In Episode 33, former infantry officers Rejoy Chatterjee and Colin Robinson celebrate together a full year of rum, banter, and battlefield history, plus their ongoing hunt for a sponsor. Listen in as they revisit Canada’s early conflicts, from Queenston Heights to the 1775 march on Quebec, then fast-forward to Paardeberg’s “Bloody Sunday.” The First World War dominates a lot of their episodes: the grind of trenches and logistics, the Ross Rifle’s failures, and the shock of chlorine gas at Second Ypres, where Canadians and their beloved unit, The Royal Montreal Regiment (RMR), helped hold a collapsing line. Vimy Ridge returns as a turning point, alongside lessons from General Sir Arthur Currie at Vimy and in a separate episode about Hill 70. The recap also ranges across Hong Kong, Canadian volunteers for the Vietnam war, the Sten gun, the RMR’s fight for an armory (and survival!), Hannibal’s Cannae, and the Avro Arrow vs Bomarc missile debate, before landing on the show’s core theme: selflessness, remembrance, and camaraderie, plus a teaser of what’s ahead in 2026.Cheers to history!

In this special Christmas episode of The Rum Ration, Colin and Rejoy head to Ortona, December 1943, the “Italian Stalingrad,” where Canadians fought for every doorway. A minor port guarding Highway 16 became a fortress held “at all costs” by the German Fallschirmjäger “Green Devils,” as record rain and the Moro River’s mud turned approach routes into misery. Inside Ortona, the Loyal Edmonton Regiment and the Seaforth Highlanders improvised “mouse-holing,” blasting through adjoining walls to stay off kill-zone streets. The cost was savage: leaders exposed, buildings booby-trapped, civilians trapped in cellars, and over 1,300 Ortonesi killed. Yet on Christmas Day, the Seaforths staged a proper dinner in a ruined church, officers serving troops, while machine guns rattled outside, a moment that even impressed nearby Germans. Days later the enemy slipped away, leaving “Bloody December” and a legacy of resilience, ritual, and hard-earned truth about the famous Ortona Dinner photo, for Canada today.Shout out to Petula Clark for her musical inspiration! 

In this episode of The Rum Ration, Colin and Rejoy head to the Ardennes in December 1944 for Hitler’s last desperate Western gamble: Wacht am Rhein. With Allied supply lines stretched and American units recovering in a “quiet sector,” the assault on 16 December erupts under fog, snow, and frozen rifles. The green US 106th Division is mauled and surrounded, while stubborn holds at St. Vith and Elsenborn Ridge bleed away the Germans’ one resource they cannot replace: time (okay, and fuel - the Germans couldn't replace that either!).They also unpack the psychological chaos of Otto Skorzeny’s Operation Greif—Germans in U.S. uniforms, rumours of assassinations, and checkpoints quizzing GI's on trivia. The turning point comes at Bastogne: “Nuts!”, a Christmas airlift, and Patton’s dash north to break the siege.We close with why the attack on the Bulge failed—logistics, terrain, delays, Allied airpower—and the brutal cost that made it one of the U.S. Army’s deadliest battles. Episode suggested (and birthday-dedicated) by friend of the show, Simon McLean.

In this episode of the Rum Ration Podcast, we tackle one of the most decisive half-hours in North American (and global) history: the Battle of the Plains of Abraham, 13 September 1759.Colin and Rejoy are joined by Professor Hal Klepak, Professor Emeritus of History and Strategy at the Royal Military College of Canada, to unpack how a global struggle between empires—fought in Europe, India, on the oceans, and in the forests of North America—came to a head outside Quebec City.We explore the wider Seven Years’ War, why the conquest of New France was increasingly inevitable, and how a sickly young James Wolfe and battle-hardened Louis-Joseph de Montcalm approached command in utterly different ways. From the brutal, fumbling siege of Quebec to the daring night ascent at L’Anse-au-Foulon and the disciplined British volleys that shattered Montcalm’s line, we dig into tactics, luck, and consequences.Listen in as we trace how this brief clash reshaped Canada—and helped set the stage for the American Revolution.📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

Every war leaves names etched in stone, but what about the ones who never came home at all? In this episode of Rum Ration, we trace the story of the Unknown Soldier, the man without a name who came to stand for hundreds of thousands lost in the mud and chaos of the First World War.We follow his journey from shattered French battlefields, to a midnight selection in a quiet chapel, to a gun carriage rolling through silent London streets toward Westminster Abbey. Along the way, we look at how other nations, including Canada in 2000, created their own tombs of the unknown. Then we shamelessly bring the story home to The Royal Montreal Regiment and the rediscovery of Captain Richard Steacie’s long misidentified headstone, a powerful reminder that behind every “unknown” are individuals, families, and stories. Join us as we raise a glass to them all and reflect on why remembrance never really ends.📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

Remembrance Day is more than a moment of silence—it’s a story, and the poppy is its narrator. In this episode of The Rum Ration, Colin and Rejoy trace the red flower from the churned mud of the Western Front to today’s lapels. We begin with Lt.-Col. John McCrae at Ypres and the poem that launched a symbol, move to American educator Moina Michael who vowed to “keep the faith,” and meet Anna Guérin—the French organizer who scaled the idea into an international movement. Along the way, we unpack how post-war veterans’ groups competed to own remembrance before unifying around the poppy. Finally, we compare how Canada, Britain, and the United States run their campaigns today—different designs and calendars, same mission: honour the fallen, support the living. If you’ve ever pinned a poppy to your coat, this is the story behind that simple, powerful act—and why it still matters today.Support the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

Episode 28 of The Rum Ration, “War Poetry – Once More Unto the Verse,” raises a glass to the verses that outlasted every battle. In this special Remembrance Day episode, Rejoy and Colin explore how poetry has captured the courage, chaos, and cost of war—from Homer’s Iliad and Shakespeare’s rousing Henry V to Tennyson’s Charge of the Light Brigade and McCrae’s immortal In Flanders Fields. Joined by celebrated poet George Elliott Clarke, former Parliamentary Poet Laureate of Canada, they trace how language became both a weapon and a memorial—giving voice to soldiers’ pain and defiance across centuries. Clarke reads and reflects on these timeless works, offering insight into why war poetry still moves us today. Whether sung, shouted, or whispered from the trenches, these verses remind us that behind every uniform is a heartbeat—and sometimes, a pen.📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

In this 27th episode of The Rum Ration, hosts Rejoy and Colin raise a glass to the century-old home of The Royal Montreal Regiment (RMR) — and the extraordinary fight it took to build it. Joined by Assistant Curator of the RMR Museum, Amynte Eygun, they uncover how the RMR nearly vanished after the First World War, saved only by the determination of its veterans and the people of Westmount. Through civic votes, creative financing, and one indomitable general, Major-General Charles Basil Price, DSO, a memorial armoury rose from blueprints to copper-roofed reality in just 209 days. Dedicated in 1925 to the 1,192 RMR soldiers who never came home, the armoury became more than a building — it was a living memorial, community hub, and symbol of resilience. A century later, its walls still echo with service, sacrifice, and the timeless reminder that some battles are fought not abroad, but at home.📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

On the eve of the First World War, British Columbia’s Premier pulled off one of the boldest—and strangest—arms deals in Canadian history. Two submarines vanished from Seattle under cover of darkness and reappeared flying the White Ensign. Rear-Admiral Christopher Robinson, Canada's senior submariner, joins The Rum Ration to reveal how those leaky little boats quietly launched Canada’s submarine service—and a century of undersea ingenuity.📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

To mark The Rum Ration’s 25th episode, Colin and Rejoy swap trenches for theatre seats in “Popcorn and Powder Smoke: Our Favourite War Movies.” They explore how films—from A Bridge Too Far and All Quiet on the Western Front to Three Kings—shape how generations remember courage, chaos, and sacrifice. Colin’s picks focus on the cost of bravery and the absurdity of war, while Rejoy’s choices—Journey’s End, All Quiet on the Western Front, and The Charge of the Light Brigade—highlight quiet endurance amid despair. Between “fantasy sponsor” breaks from Trench Brew Ale and Foxhole Flicks, they remind listeners that war movies aren’t just about explosions—they’re about humanity under fire. It’s a cinematic toast to storytelling, memory, and the soldiers who inspired them all. Grab your rations and popcorn, and join The Rum Ration for a spirited salute to our favourite war films ever made.Available now at rumration.ca or wherever you get your podcasts (Apple, Amazon, Pocket Casts, Spotify, and YouTube).📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

In this episode of ⁨the Rum Ration Podcast,⁩ Colin and Rejoy uncork the story of one of the Second World War’s most infamous weapons—the Sten submachine gun. Designed in desperation after Dunkirk, the Sten was Britain’s $10 answer to the $200 Thompson: ugly, unreliable, and dangerously simple. Yet for millions of Allied soldiers, including Canadians at Dieppe and beyond, it was the only tool they had for close combat. The hosts explore its creation, its rough production, and its deadly flaws—magazines that jammed, bolts that fired when dropped, and misfires that changed history. But despite its faults, the Sten armed resistance fighters across Europe and even earned imitation by the Germans. It’s a story of ingenuity born from necessity—and of the soldiers who fought courageously with a weapon they couldn’t always trust.📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

In this episode of The Rum Ration, Rejoy and Colin tackle one of Canada’s most complex military figures—General Sir Arthur Currie. Hailed as the finest general of the First World War, Currie rose from a humble Ontario schoolteacher to command the Canadian Corps, mastering the brutal learning curve of modern warfare. Yet behind his strategic brilliance lay controversy: a hidden financial scandal, bitter political enemies, and soldiers who branded him a “butcher.”From Vimy Ridge to the Last Hundred Days, Currie proved that meticulous planning could save lives—even if it cost him his reputation. The episode explores his triumphs, his moral courage to defy orders, and his postwar struggle for vindication at McGill and in court. Featuring Rum Ration’s signature wit, fictional sponsors, and reflection, this episode dives deep into the paradox of a man who won Canada’s war—and lost its affection.📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

August 1917. The Western Front is bogged down in blood and mud. The French Army is reeling from mutiny, Passchendaele is already a quagmire, and German U-boats are choking Britain’s lifelines. Into this chaos steps a newly knighted Canadian commander, Sir Arthur Currie—already earning a reputation as one of the war’s finest tacticians—with the confidence to push back on his orders and suggest a smarter plan that would save lives.Instead of a costly frontal assault on the city of Lens, Currie proposed striking Hill 70, the high ground just north of it. The gamble worked. Over ten days of brutal fighting, including 21 German counter-attacks, the Canadian Corps held firm, inflicted massive losses, and cemented its reputation as an elite fighting force—earning six Victoria Crosses along the way.The Royal Montreal Regiment was there—through gas, shellfire, and relentless pressure—earning a place among Canada’s proudest battlefield moments. Private Raymond Duval of the RMR, who would go on to earn the Military Medal for his actions during the battle, recorded in his diary on August 15: “Things were popping plenty here and casualties were again being sustained all too frequently.” Duval’s wartime diary, published in 1954 and available online via the RMR Foundation, offers day-by-day insights into life at the front and is an invaluable window into the experience of the ordinary soldier. We encourage you to check it out at https://royalmontrealregiment.com/history/duval-diary/ In this episode, we bring this often-overshadowed triumph to life. 📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

In this episode of Rum Ration, Rejoy and Colin unpack one of the boldest—and most disastrous—campaigns of the American Revolutionary War: the 1775 invasion of Quebec. It was a Hail Mary to make Quebec the 14th colony, complete with promises of liberty, a two-pronged winter assault, and a tragic march through the Maine wilderness led by none other than Benedict Arnold. What followed was a brutal cocktail of faulty maps, rotting food, mutinous soldiers, and snowstorms that turned ambition into agony.This isn’t just a tale of military failure—it’s a human drama marked by disease, desperation, and cultural misreadings that still echo in Canada–U.S. relations today. From the misfiring ideals of Congress to the hardened loyalty of Quebecers, the invasion offers more than history—it offers a cautionary tale of how not to win hearts and minds.🎧 Listen now and find out why Canada said non merci.📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

On August 2nd, 216 BCE, one of the bloodiest and most brilliant battles in history unfolded on the plains of Cannae—and in this episode of The Rum Ration, Colin and Rejoy break it down. With masterful storytelling and a hint of dark humour, they recount how Hannibal’s Carthaginian army—outnumbered nearly two to one—utterly destroyed a massive Roman force using a tactical maneuver still studied today: the double envelopment. The episode explores the psychological traps, battlefield innovations, and sheer brutality of the slaughter that left 50,000–70,000 Romans dead in a single day. But more than just a tactical analysis, the hosts reflect on the horror and legacy of Cannae, asking what happens when brilliance meets butchery. This episode is for anyone fascinated by ancient strategy, battlefield leadership, and the devastating cost of military hubris. Tune in to learn why Cannae wasn’t just a defeat—it was a near-death experience for the Roman Republic.📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

What if everything you thought you knew about the Avro Arrow’s cancellation was only half the story? In Episode 20 of The Rum Ration, we revisit Canada’s most controversial Cold War decision—but this time, through a different lens. Dr. Sean Maloney, military historian and Cold War expert, joins us to dig into the lesser-known truths behind the so-called “Arrow good, BOMARC bad” narrative.From classified weapons systems and Cold War strategy to misunderstood doctrines and public myths, Dr. Maloney dismantles the emotional nationalism surrounding the Arrow and reveals the BOMARC missile’s surprising sophistication. This episode builds directly on Episode 18 and invites listeners to stop romanticizing and start contextualizing.Was the Arrow’s end a betrayal of innovation or a strategic pivot? Was BOMARC obsolete—or misunderstood? Dive in and find out why the real story isn’t about a plane, but about perception, deterrence, and Canada’s evolving place in a dangerous world.Links to Dr. Sean Maloney's articles in the RCAF Journal:https://www.canada.ca/en/air-force/corporate/reports-publications/royal-canadian-air-force-journal/2014-vol3-iss3-06-secrets-of-the-bomarc.html#note4 https://www.canada.ca/en/air-force/corporate/reports-publications/royal-canadian-air-force-journal/2014-vol3-iss4-08-secrets-of-the-bomarc-part-2.html

In this episode of Rum Ration, Rejoy and Colin unpack the rise and fall of one of Canada’s most ambitious aerospace projects: the Avro Arrow. More than just a supersonic jet interceptor, the Arrow was a bold symbol of Canadian innovation during the Cold War—designed to fly at Mach 2 and counter Soviet bombers. But on February 20, 1959—“Black Friday”—the program was abruptly cancelled. Why would a government destroy such cutting-edge technology?Through gripping storytelling, the hosts explore how shifting intelligence assessments, escalating costs, and Cold War politics sealed the Arrow’s fate. They reveal the role of NORAD, the missile age, and even Soviet KGB espionage in the decision to scrap Canada’s aerospace crown jewel. From national pride to economic reality, this episode offers a sobering case study in defence procurement—and a haunting “what if” for Canada’s industrial future.🎧 Listen now to learn why the Arrow flew high—and why it never flew again.

In this gripping episode of The Rum Ration, Colin and Rejoy revisit the Battle of Paardeberg—Canada’s bloody debut on a foreign battlefield. Set during the Second Anglo-Boer War in 1900, the episode explores how a young Canada, eager to prove itself, sent a small volunteer force to South Africa. What began as patriotic fervour soon turned into a harsh reality check. The hosts recount the disastrous “Bloody Sunday” assault led by the Royal Canadian Regiment, where 18 Canadians were killed and over 60 wounded in a matter of hours. Through vivid storytelling, including first-hand accounts, the episode captures the confusion, courage, and cost of war. It also examines how Paardeberg—once commemorated across the country—has faded from national memory. From trench digging under fire to chaplains burying the dead by moonlight, this episode is a powerful reminder of sacrifice and the forging of Canada's military identity. Tune in to rediscover this forgotten cornerstone of Canadian history.📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

In this riveting episode of Rum Ration, Colin and Rejoy take aim at the Ross Rifle—a weapon born from patriotic zeal and political ambition, but ultimately forged into a symbol of failure on the Western Front. Meant to establish Canada’s self-sufficiency in arms production, the Ross was praised for its accuracy but doomed by its tight tolerances, poor trench reliability, and incompatibility with standard British ammunition. Through firsthand accounts, including soldiers discarding their Rosses for Lee-Enfields mid-battle, the hosts unpack how political pride and procurement shortcuts cost lives. From its early promise to its humiliating withdrawal in 1916—ordered by General Haig himself—the Ross story highlights the peril of choosing nationalism over practicality. And yet, in a twist of irony, the same rifle would go on to serve snipers with deadly precision. It’s a tale of innovation, hubris, and hard-learned lessons that still resonate today in defence policy.📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

In this episode of The Rum Ration, Rejoy and Colin journey back to the War of 1812 and the pivotal Battle of Queenston Heights. It’s a gripping tale of ambition, missteps, and extraordinary courage. It's also our special birthday present to the US Army, happy 250th birthday! In 1812, the United States, already annoyed by British naval blockades and the Royal Navy's maddening habit of pressing any American sailor they deemed 'British enough', was hungry to annex Upper Canada. So they launched a poorly coordinated invasion—only to be met with stiff resistance from a smaller but far more determined force of British, Canadian, and Indigenous defenders. At the heart of this defence is Major General Isaac Brock, whose bold leadership and tragic death become the stuff of legend. From chaotic river crossings and militia no-shows to the heroic stand of Runchey’s Coloured Corps and Six Nations warriors, this battle is packed with drama, blunders, and resolve. Recounted with wit and reverence, this episode showcases how Queenston Heights helped shape a Canadian identity and stopped an early American land grab cold. Available now at rumration.ca or wherever you get your podcasts (Apple, Amazon, Pocket Casts, Spotify, and YouTube).📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

In this gripping episode of The Rum Ration, Colin and Rejoy take listeners to the Pacific Theatre of World War II, focusing on the harrowing Battle of Hong Kong in December 1941. It was the first major land combat for Canadian troops in the Second World War—and a brutal introduction. Tasked with defending the British Crown Colony, nearly 2,000 Canadians, including the Royal Rifles of Canada and the Winnipeg Grenadiers, faced overwhelming Japanese forces in a battle marked by fierce resistance, devastating losses, and remarkable acts of courage.Listeners will hear the tragic yet inspiring stories of Brigadier J.K. Lawson, who died “going outside to fight it out,” and Company Sergeant Major John Osborn, who sacrificed himself by throwing his body on a grenade—earning a posthumous Victoria Cross. The episode also honours the lesser-known heroes: two Canadian nurses, a loyal Newfoundland dog named Gander, and the many POWs who endured years of abuse, starvation, and forced labour.More than 550 Canadians lost their lives, with many more forever scarred by the battle and its aftermath. Tune in to explore this sobering chapter of Canadian military history—and why it still matters today.Available now at rumration.ca or wherever you get your podcasts (Apple, Amazon, Pocket Casts, Spotify, and YouTube).📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

In this gripping episode of Rum Ration, Rejoy and Colin take us deep into the Second Battle of Ypres—Canada’s brutal baptism by fire in the First World War. Focusing on The Royal Montreal Regiment (14th Battalion), they recount the horrors of April 1915, where untested Canadian troops held their ground against Germany’s first mass use of poison gas. The episode honours Captain Richard Steacie, the first RMR officer killed in action, whose remains were only recently identified. It also honours the quiet courage of unnamed stretcher-bearers and buglers, while telling the story of Captain Francis Scrimger, the RMR's medical officer who earned the Victoria Cross for heroic actions under fire at Shelltrap Farm. Listeners also hear of Westmount High School's Fred Fisher, a member of the Black Watch (13th Battalion), he was the first Canadian soldier awarded the VC in WWI at the age of 19-years old. With storytelling steeped in personal sacrifice, chaos, and camaraderie, this episode reveals how the RMR helped stop a German breakthrough and cemented the reputation of the Canadians on the Western Front.Available now at rumration.ca or wherever you get your podcasts (Apple, Amazon, Pocket Casts, Spotify, and YouTube).📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

In this gripping episode of The Rum Ration, hosts Colin and Rejoy delve into one of the most terrifying chapters of modern warfare: gas. Kicking off with a powerful reading of Wilfred Owen’s haunting WWI poem Dulce Et Decorum Est by acclaimed poet Ayesha Chatterjee, the episode explores how chemical weapons evolved from ancient toxins used by the Greeks and the Romans to the industrial-scale horror of chlorine, phosgene, and mustard gas during the First World War.Listeners will learn how Canadian troops—including the hosts beloved The Royal Montreal Regiment—endured these inhumane weapons with minimal protection, often resorting to urine-soaked cloths before proper gas masks were developed. Through vivid storytelling and first-hand accounts, the episode reveals the devastating psychological and physical toll gas had on soldiers and how the horrors of 1915 Ypres marked a turning point in global attitudes toward chemical warfare.Tune in for history, humanity, and the occasional fictional ad for a fantasy sponsor.Available now at rumration.ca or wherever you get your podcasts (Apple, Amazon, Pocket Casts, Spotify, and YouTube).📬 Have Questions or Suggestions? Send us a message at [email protected] the Podcast - If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends. And as always...Cheers to history! 🥂

In Episode 11 of The Rum Ration, we dive into the Canadians’ baptism by fire at the Second Battle of Ypres. This is Part 1 of a special three-part series unpacking one of the most terrifying chapters of the First World War. Rejoy and Colin explore how a quiet stretch of Belgian countryside became a living hell in April 1915. The episode sets the scene: muddy trenches, exposed flanks, and the high-stakes importance of the Ypres Salient. With vivid storytelling, they chart the arrival of the fresh-faced First Canadian Division and explain why the Germans chose this place to unleash a horrifying new weapon — chlorine gas. From the broader strategic picture to the haunting last days before the green cloud rolled in, this episode is both sobering and gripping. It's the beginning of a story about courage, chaos, and Canada’s emergence on the world stage.