The Society for Military History

University of Birmingham

Dr Steve Hewitt
Dr Steven Morewood

Canadian Military
First and Second World War

Five Days in May, and Beyond: Canada, Britain, and the defence of the Caribbean in the Second World War

Steve Dieter earned his Master of Arts in Military History through Norwich University (2013) during his nearly 21-year career in the Canadian Armed Forces. His interest in his dissertation topic was sparked from his deployment as Public Affairs and Visits Officer for Operation JAGUAR – Canada’s contribution of military aviation and search-and-rescue capability that supported the Jamaica Defence Force and conducted essential training for Canadian Forces search-and-rescue teams – during the second half of 2011. Downtime during the mission allowed the chance to visit the graves of Canadian soldiers of the Second World War, buried in the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery located inside the Jamaica Defence Force camp in Kingston, Jamaica. Research into the deaths of these ten service personnel brought to light a mostly forgotten piece of Canadian history. Limited time in country, and the mission mandate (to support the Jamaicans in case of hurricanes), left little opportunity to explore why Canadians were there in the first place, or how their presence affected or impacted the Jamaican population, or those of the other nations where Canadians served in the region. This dissertation intends to answer some of those questions.