''The Valour and the Horror'' is a Canadian television documentary miniseries, which aired on CBC Television in 1992. The series investigated three significant Canadian battles from the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

and was a co-production between the CBC, the

National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary f ...

(NFB) and Galafilm Inc."1992."
''

''. Retrieved: February 13, 2010. The films were also broadcast by

Radio-Canada The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

, the French network of the CBC. The series was written by Brian McKenna, an award-winning journalist and founding producer of '' The Fifth Estate'' and his brother,

Terence McKenna Terence Kemp McKenna (November 16, 1946 – April 3, 2000) was an American ethnobotanist and mystic who advocated the responsible use of naturally occurring psychedelic plants. He spoke and wrote about a variety of subjects, including ...

, and was directed by Brian McKenna.

The series

The series consisted of three two-hour films: ''Savage Christmas: Hong Kong 1941'', ''Death by Moonlight: Bomber Command'' and ''In Desperate Battle: Normandy 1944'', and was broadcast to critical acclaim. Almost three million people, in English and French, viewed each prime time broadcast.

''Savage Christmas: Hong Kong 1941''

The central theme of this program was that the force of soldiers sent to fight in the Battle of Hong Kong was "knowingly sent into a war zone without adequate training." The episode first aired on 12 January 1992. This episode was the least controversial: :''This program was the one least criticized by veterans and historians; indeed, except for three minutes of a 104-minute presentation, ''Savage Christmas'' showed nothing to which any reasonable person could object.''

'' Death by Moonlight: Bomber Command''

The central themes of the second program in the series are that RAF Bomber Command "deliberately hid the truth" about RAF bomber crew survival rates, concealed plans about deliberately annihilating civilians, and betrayed the trust of Canadian military airmen. The episode first aired on January 19, 1992.

''In Desperate Battle: Normandy 1944''

The central theme of the third and final presentation in the series concern the training and leadership of the Canadian Army in the

Battle of Normandy Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norm ...

, alleging that "The true story of those battles has never really been told." The show first aired on 26 January 1992.

Controversy

Canadian veterans' groups and some prominent historians attacked the films for allegedly presenting a biased and inaccurate portrait of

Canadian military } The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; french: Forces armées canadiennes, ''FAC'') are the unified military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air elements referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Force ...

actions. ''In Desperate Battle'', the allegation that there was significant incompetence on the part of Canadian military command, and claims that Canadian soldiers had committed significant, but un-prosecuted, war crimes against German soldiers, was challenged. ''Death by Moonlight'' alleged that Bomber Command, unable to hit military targets with any precision, ultimately turned their attention to German cities and killed more than 600,000 German civilians, mostly old men, women and children, using high explosives and

incendiary bombs Incendiary weapons, incendiary devices, incendiary munitions, or incendiary bombs are weapons designed to start fires or destroy sensitive equipment using fire (and sometimes used as anti-personnel weaponry), that use materials such as napalm, th ...

. They died not as a result of collateral damage, but as part of a deliberate campaign. The producers claimed that the directives remained top secret throughout the war. The films also claimed that bomber crews, flying at night, were, for the most part, kept in the dark about their true mission. As noted in the CBC Ombudsman’s report, many of these assertions were not adequately supported by documentary evidence. The series became the subject of an inquiry by the Senate of Canada. The NFB's Commissioner at the time, Joan Pennefather, did appear before the committee to defend the production.

Pierre Berton Pierre Francis de Marigny Berton, CC, O.Ont. (July 12, 1920 – November 30, 2004) was a Canadian writer, journalist and broadcaster. Berton wrote 50 best-selling books, mainly about Canadiana, Canadian history and popular culture. He also wr ...

, Margaret Atwood and

Shirley Douglas Shirley Jean Douglas (April 2, 1934 – April 5, 2020) was a Canadian actress and activist. Her acting career combined with her family name made her recognizable in Canadian film, television and national politics. Early life Douglas was born A ...

, as well as

PEN A pen is a common writing instrument that applies ink to a surface, usually paper, for writing or drawing. Early pens such as reed pens, quill pens, dip pens and ruling pens held a small amount of ink on a nib or in a small void or cavity wh ...

, the Writer's Union, the Guild, the Producer's Association, and many others defended the series. Military historian Desmond Morton stated, "As the McKennas' critics discovered, one of the most difficult things to do in a free society is to criticize the media...Anyone criticizing the media will find them judge, jury, and defence lawyer in their own case." The Senate sub-committee ultimately sided with the veterans' complaints against the filmmakers. The Sub-committee noted "that the criticisms levelled at The Valour and the Horror are for the most part legitimate. Simply put, although the filmmakers have a right to their point of view, they have failed to present that point of view with any degree of accuracy or fairness." The films were also investigated by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, which sided with the filmmakers. A group of air force veterans formed the Bomber Harris Trust. Claiming they had been slandered, they sued the film and the filmmakers for $500 million. The

class action suit A class action, also known as a class-action lawsuit, class suit, or representative action, is a type of lawsuit where one of the parties is a group of people who are represented collectively by a member or members of that group. The class actio ...

was dismissed by Ontario justice Mr. Robert Montgomery, himself a Second World War veteran. The Bomber Command veterans appealed to the Supreme Court, but were dismissed at every level. The

Ontario Court of Appeal The Court of Appeal for Ontario (frequently referred to as the Ontario Court of Appeal or ONCA) is the appellate court for the province of Ontario, Canada. The seat of the court is Osgoode Hall in downtown Toronto, also the seat of the Law Socie ...

ruled that the veterans did not have standing for a class action suit and that "The broadcast was aimed not at the plaintiffs or any other Canadian involved in the bombings, but at the British High Command which ordered the bombing and particularly at its overall commander." It was further noted "It is possible to criticize, even strenuously to criticize, the misplaced emphases, the caricaturish portrayals of some of the strategies, the inaccuracy of some of the detail, and the omission of some of the countervailing considerations in the film." In addition Mr. Justice Grange wrote that, "There can be nothing wrong with the air crew obeying lawful orders and participating in acts of war that were neither war crimes nor crimes against humanity as defined in our courts". The merits of the veterans’ claims were never presented in court and the courts never ruled on them. In 1993, the films were broadcast by

Channel Four Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service in ...

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

The Queen Mother ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

, honorary Colonel of Bomber Command, tried to stop the broadcast, but was unsuccessful. As in Canada, the films stirred a fierce historical debate.

Honours

The films were honoured three times at the 1993 Gemini Awards, the highest honour for Canadian film and television. The awards were: * Best Direction In An Information Or Documentary Program Or Series (Brian McKenna) * Best Writing In An Information/Documentary Program Or Series (Brian and Terence McKenna) * Best Documentary Series. For the first and only time in history, the French versions of the films received similar honours at the Prix Gemaux—awarded the prizes for Best Documentary and Best Direction.

Investigation

The CBC Ombudsman, William Morgan, and his office, investigated the series, and had historian S.F. Wise prepare a report on it.Steed, Judy. "Valor — and Horror — abound at the CBC." ''The Toronto Star'', November 22, 1992, pp. A1, A4. The report's findings concluded that some claims were untrue; material was presented out of context so that it was misleading; information differing from the producers’ views were ignored; and that the series cannot be considered history rather, at best, editorializing.Wise, S. F. "''The Valour and the Horror'': A Report for the CBC Ombudsman." in Bercuson and Wise 1994, pp. 13–30. The CBC Ombudsman then issued a report noting that ''The Valour and the Horror'' has serious problems with accuracy in particular "various interpretations and assertions which the producers were unable adequately to support with documentary evidence and which were questioned or challenged by the historians consulted, including those recommended by the program makers themselves."Morgan, William. "Report of the CBC Ombudsman, 6 November 1992." in Bercuson and Wise 1994, pp. 70, 72. The report further noted that ''The Valour and the Horror'' "is flawed and fails to measure up to the CBC’s demanding policies and procedures."Walker, William. "CBC official condemns controversial war series." ''The Toronto Star'', November 22, 1992, p. A2.

Related books

A book by Merilyn Simonds and

Merrily Weisbord Merrily Weisbord is a Canadians, Canadian literary non-fiction writer, documentary screenwriter and broadcaster. Her 2010 book ''The Love Queen of Malabar'', a memoir of her longtime friendship with the late Indian writer Kamala Das, was a finalist ...

accompanied the original series. Military historians

David Bercuson David Jay Bercuson (born 1945) is a Canadian labour, military, and political historian. Career Born on 31 August 1945 in Montreal, Quebec, he attended Sir George Williams University, graduated there in 1965 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in hi ...

and S. F. Wise later published ''The Valour and the Horror Revisited'', a book examining the historical accuracy of the films. When the official history of the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...

was finally published, the main points of the Bomber Command episode were supported, prompting ''Maclean's'' magazine to write that the film and the filmmakers were "totally vindicated." Historian

Jack Granatstein Jack Lawrence Granatstein (May 21, 1939) is a Canadian historian who specializes in Canadian political and military history.SeJack Granatsteinfrom The Canadian Encyclopedia Education Born on May 21, 1939, in Toronto, Ontario, into a Jewish fam ...

, in a book review in ''

Quill and Quire ''Quill & Quire'' is a Canadian magazine about the book and publishing industry. The magazine was launched in 1935 and has an average circulation of 5,000 copies per issue, with a publisher-claimed readership of 25,000. ''Quill & Quire'' reviews ...

'', sarcastically called it "'The Valour and Horror' ' with footnotes." Granatstein severely criticized ''The Valour and the Horror'' in his book, ''

Who Killed Canadian History? ''Who Killed Canadian History?'' is a 1998 book by Canadian historian J. L. Granatstein. The book argues that Canadians lack national unity because of their failure to teach their country's history. Granatstein contends that multiculturalism, ...

''Granatstein 1998, pp. 14–15, 116–120.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Bercuson, David J. and S.F. Wise. ''The Valour and the Horror Revisited''. Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press, 1994. . * Granatstein, Jack. ''

'' Toronto: Harper Collins Publishers Ltd., 1998. . * Newcomb, Horace. ''Encyclopedia of Television''. London: Routledge, 20014. . * Niemi, Robert James. ''Inspired by True Events: An Illustrated Guide to More Than 500 History-Based Films''. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO, 2013.

External links

Watch ''The Valour and the Horror'' at NFB.caNFB Web page
* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20131203014429/http://www.galafilm.com/galafilm/e/about/awards.php Gala Films - Awards {{DEFAULTSORT:Valour And The Horror Canadian documentary television films CBC Television original films 1990s Canadian television miniseries Documentary television series about aviation Documentary television series about World War II National Film Board of Canada series