Yesterday was the 79th anniversary of D-Day – June 6, 1944. One of the most famous battles of World War 2, that’s when the Americans, British, and Canadians launched a coordinated strike on German fortifications in Normandy, France, gaining a foothold in Western Europe.

Or, as Danielle Smith put it:

She later edited the Tweet, removing the highlighted portion. Edit history, as of the drafting of this post, is still accessible here.

World War 2 is generally regarded as having started on September 1, 1939, when Germany invaded Poland. A series of declarations of war occurred in the days to follow, including Canada’s on September 10, 1939. (Parliament voted to go to war on September 9; the Order in Council was signed September 10. It was the first time Canada had declared war independently of the UK.)

Germany rapidly conquered France in June 1940, and then attempted to stage an invasion of Britain. In order to cross the channel, they needed to establish air superiority, which led to the “Battle of Britain” – a months-long series of aerial battles from July to October, 1940. The Royal Canadian Air Force played a major role in that fight. After the Germans were repelled, this left something of a stalemate across the English channel until 1944. But the war raged on in various theatres.

Canada fought in the Battle of Hong Kong in December 1941; was the main contributor to the unsuccessful Dieppe Raid in August 1942 (which turned out to be something of a rehearsal for D-Day); supported the Americans against the Japanese in the Pacific campaign; and participated in the invasions of Sicily and Italy in summer 1943.

So, no, D-Day did not mark the beginning of World War 2.

This isn’t the first misstep Smith has made in respect of that conflict. In November 2021, Smith compared vaccinated Canadians to Hitler supporters and said that she wouldn’t wear a poppy because public health measures were comparable to the fascism that Canadian troops had fought against.