Harold A. Skaarup

My name is Harold (Hal) Aage Skaarup, CD3, BFA, MA in War Studies. "Back in the day" as my generation likes to say, I served as a Canadian Army Paratrooper and Military Intelligence Officer. I have had the great good fortune in having a military career that gave me a chance to see some interesting parts of the world while on duty with NATO in Germany, with the UN in Cyprus, with SFOR in Bosnia-Herzegovina, with NORAD in Colorado, with ISAF in Afghanistan and of course here at home and across Canada. During those 40 years with the Canadian Forces, I had the privilege of taking part in history making events and having interesting experiences with incredibly talented people from many different countries. As a result, I believe that I have a bit of insight into some of the military history that Canadian soldiers, sailors, airmen and women have made in the past, are making in the present and will make in the future, both here at home and overseas. I have written and researched a fair number of our military stories and recorded some of those experiences. If you have similar interests, you will find a good deal of it here, shared from my perspective. When I retired from the Army in August 2011 at 5 Canadian Division Support Base (5 CDSB) Gagetown, New Brunswick, I took an interest in the New Brunswick Military History Museum (NBMHM) on base. Now settled down at our home in Fredericton, I became a volunteer researcher and tour guide at the museum. I also currently serve on the Board of Directors of the York Sunbury Historical Society and am now one of their past Presidents. I volunteer with activities taking place at the Fredericton Region Museum (FRM), as well as the New Brunswick Aviation Museum (NBAM) in the Miramichi. Along the way, I was inducted into the group of Associate RCAF Historians and am one of the Canadian Peacekeeping Veterans Association (CPVA) historians. I am also a member of the Canadian Aerospace Artists Association (CAAA) where we are in the process of building a book on Canadian Aviation artwork. Along the way, I have met many wonderful people and have listened to many of their stories, fielded questions from a myriad of visitors and continue to learn something new about our history every day. The aim, therefore, of these pages, is to share some of these stories with you. I have collected a fair amount of data that will be of interest to military historians and like-minded enthusiasts, but I am not the expert on all things military. What I do have is a wonderful collection of colleagues who do have some expertise in specific military subjects, and if I can't find an answer to your question, I may know someone I can refer you to, who can help.

Royal Navy dreadnought-class battleships: HMS St Vincent, HMS Collingwood, HMS Vanguard

Royal Navy dreadnought-class battleships: HMS St Vincent, HMS Collingwood, HMS Vanguard The St Vincent-class was a line of three, originally four, dreadnought battleships, HMS St Vincent, HMS Collingwood, and HMS Vanguard. With the exception of their more powerful 50-calibre Mk. XI (305 mm) main guns and twenty 50-calibre Mk VII (102 mm) secondaries, the St … Read more

Royal Navy dreadnought-class battleships: HMS Bellerophon, HMS Superb, HMS Temeraire

Royal Navy dreadnought-class battleships: HMS Bellerophon, HMS Superb, HMS Temeraire The Bellerophon-class battleships, HMS Bellerophon, HMS Superb, and HMS Temeraire, were the first Royal Navy dreadnoughts to be built after Dreadnought, from 1906–1909. The sisters retained much of HMS Dreadnought’s design, such as her 45-calibre Mk X 12-inch (304.8 mm) guns and their arrangement,[27] but … Read more

Royal Navy light armoured cruisers: HMS Cambrian, HMS Canterbury, HMS Castor, HMS Constance, HMS Centaur, HMS Concord

Royal Navy light armoured cruisers: Cambrian group: HMS Cambrian, HMS Canterbury, HMS Castor, HMS Constance, Centaur group: HMS Centaur, HMS Concord. Cambrian group 4,320 tons, two 6-in & eight 4-in guns. HMS Cambrian, HMS Canterbury, HMS Castor, HMS Constance. HMS Cambrian (IWM Photo, SP 3064) HMS Cambrian was a C-class light cruiser built for the Royal … Read more

Royal Navy light armoured cruisers: HMS Caroline, HMS Carysfort, HMS Cleopatra, HMS Comus, HMS Conquest, HMS Cordelia, HMS Calliope, HMS Champion

Royal Navy light armoured cruisers: C class, Caroline group: HMS Caroline, HMS Carysfort, HMS Cleopatra, HMS Comus, HMS Conquest, HMS Cordelia, HMS Calliope, HMS Champion. The light armoured cruiser – light cruiser – succeeded the protected cruiser; improvements in machinery and armour rendering the latter obsolete. The Town class of 1910 were rated as second-class … Read more

Royal Navy light armoured cruisers: HMS Arethusa, HMS Aurora, HMS Galatea, HMS Inconstant, HMS Penelope, HMS Phaeton, HMS Royalist, HMS Undaunted.

Royal Navy light armoured cruisers: HMS Arethusa, HMS Aurora, HMS Galatea, HMS Inconstant, HMS Penelope, HMS Phaeton, HMS Royalist, HMS Undaunted. The light armoured cruiser – light cruiser – succeeded the protected cruiser; improvements in machinery and armour rendering the latter obsolete. The Town class of 1910 were rated as second-class protected cruisers, but were … Read more

Royal Navy light armoured cruisers: HMS Birmingham, HMS Lowestoft, HMS Nottingham, HMAS Adelaide, HMS Birkenhead, HMS Chester

Royal Navy light armoured cruisers: HMS Birmingham, HMS Lowestoft, HMS Nottingham, HMAS Adelaide, HMS Birkenhead, HMS Chester The light armoured cruiser – light cruiser – succeeded the protected cruiser; improvements in machinery and armour rendering the latter obsolete. The Town class of 1910 were rated as second-class protected cruisers, but were effectively light armoured cruisers … Read more

Royal Navy light armoured cruisers: HMS Weymouth, HMS Dartmouth, HMS Falmouth, HMS Yarmouth, HMS Chatham, HMS Dublin, HMS Southampton, HMAS Brisbane, HMAS Melbourne, HMAS Sydney

Royal Navy light armoured cruisers: HMS Weymouth, HMS Dartmouth, HMS Falmouth, HMS Yarmouth, HMS Chatham, HMS Dublin, HMS Southampton, HMAS Brisbane, HMAS Melbourne, HMAS Sydney The light armoured cruiser – light cruiser – succeeded the protected cruiser; improvements in machinery and armour rendering the latter obsolete. The Town class of 1910 were rated as second-class … Read more

Royal Navy light armoured cruisers: HMS Bristol, HMS Glasgow, HMS Gloucester, HMS Liverpool, HMS Newcastle

Royal Navy light armoured cruisers: HMS Bristol, HMS Glasgow, HMS Gloucester, HMS Liverpool, HMS Newcastle The light armoured cruiser – light cruiser – succeeded the protected cruiser; improvements in machinery and armour rendering the latter obsolete. The Town class of 1910 were rated as second-class protected cruisers, but were effectively light armoured cruisers with mixed … Read more

Denmark

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark, also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the autonomous territories of the Faroe Islands and Greenland in the north Atlantic Ocean. Metropolitan Denmark, also called “continental Denmark” or “Denmark proper”, … Read more