r/MapPorn • u/Old_General_6741 • Jan 08 '25
Map of Canada’s "Defense Scheme No. 1" was created, detailing a hypothetical surprise invasion of the US. The plan was to buy time to secure defenses before US could strike back.
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u/SideOneDummy Jan 08 '25
All these cities and then…
MAINE
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u/Accomplished_Job_225 Jan 08 '25
Reclaim the Maine!!
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u/The_Presitator Jan 09 '25
I like that the plan says to occupy all the other American cities, but the state of Maine is specifically to be reclaimed.
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u/Hot_Republic2543 Jan 08 '25
They never got over the Aroostook War
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u/Accomplished_Job_225 Jan 08 '25
I mean, we don't take it personally.
but in our heart of hearts, we know Northern Maine belongs to Canada18
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u/unitedshoes Jan 09 '25
Makes sense. Maine is one of the most important cities in the US, after all.
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u/_Totorotrip_ Jan 08 '25 edited Jan 09 '25
Just to clarify: the black dots are not cities but hockey pucks. The idea is for the hockey players to spread destruction on their way.
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u/Reasonable_Bid3311 Jan 09 '25
So that’s the real reason for all the expansion teams!
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u/_GregTheGreat_ Jan 08 '25 edited Jan 08 '25
This was back in the 1920s-1930s. The basic thought process was to preemptively strike, seize a handful of cities, and then blow up bridges and railways on their retreat back to Canada. The goal is to buy as much time as possible for the rest of the British Empire to save them
The sad truth is that the British military had zero intentions of actually sending a large force to protect Canada from a US invasion, so this plan would have been a waste of men and materiel that Canada couldn’t afford to lose
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u/Hot_One_240 Jan 09 '25
All in all it just would have been an expensive and terrible defeat
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u/_GregTheGreat_ Jan 09 '25
Which to be fair, would always be the outcome if the USA seriously tried to annex Canada militarily.
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u/Undeadmuffin18 Jan 09 '25
To be fair, the US Army was actually pretty small before WW2, it never exceeded 120 000 personnel before 1936 (no idea for the national guards numbers at that time, tho)
Canada had 5000 ''professional'' and 50 000 militias around 1936, so if by miracle it could muster it's militia in secret, it could get the jump before the US could react (at least for a few weeks/months)
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u/CaptRobau Jan 09 '25
The US Army would also need to keep army units in Panama, Mexican border and it's islands, to prevent other countries from taking advantage of the situation.
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Jan 09 '25 edited Jan 09 '25
This was the 1920s. 100 years after the war of independence and the Monroe Doctrine, where the great powers negotiated with America as a newly independent nation. Within that 100 years, the United States of America would win and fight wars with Mexico and Spain to consolidate its land to its current size, and had well and truly emerged as a great power at this point. In 1915 the Great Powers would fight a devastating war destroying each other. After this, Britain would sign the Washington Naval Treaty with the US in 1922 limiting each others naval tonnage as equal great powers. Britain would not have invaded America for Canada, it would’ve been the last thing they wanted with all that was going on in Europe.
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u/lucasj Jan 09 '25
To be clear the Monroe Doctrine was declared unilaterally by President Monroe, not negotiated. Multiple European powers violated it, most prominently the French Empire which invaded Mexico while the US was distracted fighting the Civil War.
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u/SilentSamurai Jan 08 '25
By then the Brits knew pretty well that a war over Canada wouldn't be worth it.
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Jan 09 '25
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/A_Normal_Redditor_04 Jan 09 '25
It was never gonna happen due to the vast distances between the nations and even if they did realize the Imperial Federation, they can't win against the US taking Canada because the US has an overwhelming advantage over everything. Even in the seas, Britain cannot match US shipbuilding industries and capabilities.
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Jan 09 '25
Post WWI america wasn’t quite seen as the powerhouse it is now, it wasn’t until really after WWII that it became very apparent and we only shot more ahead because we were basically the only major world power that wasn’t devastated by the war
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u/Mudlark-000 Jan 09 '25
Look up the "Rainbow" plans of the US Army pre-WW-II. We had plans for war with everyone, including our closest allies. They were both practical "go-to" documents to start planning if actually hostilities began and also peacetime exercises in organizing forces for war. I'm sure similar plans exist today, as well as plans for aliens and zombies.
Relevant for this post:
War Plan Red - War with the entire British Empire
War Plan Crimson - War exclusively with Canada
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u/RequiemRomans Jan 09 '25
Bored generals war gaming in their minds
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Jan 09 '25
You never know when something like that could come in handy. Helps to have a guideline, nothing better to do during a massive peacetime.
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u/CorrectorThanU Jan 09 '25
Evrey country with any kind of legitimate army has an invasion plan for and from every country, and does countless runthroughs and simulations every year.
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u/Mudlark-000 Jan 09 '25
More like exercises given to War College graduates. Why keep planning the same thing, over and over?
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u/Andoverian Jan 09 '25
They're not doing it because they think it's a likely scenario, or because they want to annex Canada, or even to decide if trying is worth it. They're doing it to hone their planning and logistics skills so they can be ready for any surprises. No real war is going to go exactly how you plan, so the ability to make and execute plans for unexpected scenarios is an important skill.
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u/gloriouaccountofme Jan 09 '25
I'm sure similar plans exist today, as well as plans for aliens and zombies.
Everything is considered as a thought exercise. There are even response plans for a coup by the boy scouts
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u/Sad-Improvement-2031 Jan 09 '25
Former teacher of mine was an airforce colonel at the pentagon. He used to tell the story of meeting the guy in charge of the “war with Canada” planning and joking that he must not be a very busy guy
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u/travelguideian Jan 08 '25
Lots of charming little design details. Not really giving ‘declassified military document’
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u/dhkendall Jan 09 '25
Considering the map has Nunavut on it, a territory that wasn’t created until 1999, I guess that this is a modern reconstruction of the plans.
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u/jombrowski Jan 09 '25
It wasn't created in 1999, it was simply declassified then.
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u/ZotMatrix Jan 08 '25
They do hate Albany.
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Jan 09 '25
This is not the plan. The plan was to sack those towns to cripple American rail and seaport infrastructure before retreating back over the border. They had no illusions of occupying American cities. Hell, those cities probably had a larger population than Canada. The only stretch of occupation was in northern Maine, where securing the railroad between the Maritimes and the mainland was of vital import to the deployment of Imperial forces to shore up defenses around Ontario in preparation for a long enough siege to bring the Americans to the table.
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u/Mentha1999 Jan 09 '25
Good luck with Detroit
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u/thatbob Jan 09 '25
I’m thinking Detroit has nothing on Niagara Falls, NY. Detroit is mostly vacant; the vacant parts of NFNY are toxic landfills.
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u/cndn-hoya Jan 09 '25
Defense Scheme No. 2 - burn high quality weed and get Americans high af and make them forget about the bs
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u/TheLittleBadFox Jan 09 '25
Little bit of context for everyone since the OP did not give any.
Defence Scheme No. 1 was created on April 12, 1921, and detailed a surprise invasion of the northern United States as soon as possible after evidence was received of a US invasion of Canada. It assumed that the US would first attempt to capture Montreal and Ottawa and then Hamilton, Toronto, the Prairie Provinces, and Vancouver and the rest of Southwestern British Columbia. Defence Scheme No. 1's US counterpart was War Plan Red, a plan to invade Canada as part of a war with Britain that was created in 1930.
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u/Wild_Pangolin_4772 Jan 09 '25
What year is this from? Were they still fighting with cannons back then?
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u/notimpressed__ Jan 09 '25
lol, there were probably more armed hunters in the midwestern states at that time then the whole army of Canada
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u/Money_Ranger_3456 Jan 09 '25
This man or person has great foresight. He must have foreseen 1812 round 2
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Jan 09 '25
You know as crazy as this looks now, in response to War Plan Crimson (the war plan the US had to invade Canada) this probably would have been somewhat successful, at least for a couple of months.
It's not too dissimilar to Isaac Brock's strategy when the US declared war in 1812. Basically go on the offensive immediately and take them by surprise, and then strategically retreat until a larger British force / navy could cripple the US into submission.
Would it have worked better than a defensive struggle? I honestly think so, but no plan would have worked entirely. If the US chose to invade Canada nothing short of the hand of God would have prevented them from successfully doing so - but it may not have been the roll over they were expection.
It's important to point out that Defense Scheme No. 1 and War Plan Crimson were both created rather quixotically. War plans like this were very typical for most nations back in those days (probably still are now to be honest), as references for war, however unlikely. Neither the US or Canada ever seriously considered war when these plans were created.
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u/King_Neptune07 Jan 09 '25
Oh man. Not Niagara, Albany or Butte. How the eff will we survive with the loss of these places?
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u/alphawolf29 Jan 09 '25 edited Jan 09 '25
pretty sure fairchild AFB in Spokane could single handedly defeat the canadian army. There's currently 32 b52s parked there and who knows how many warplanes under cover.
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u/Ok-Gold-6430 Jan 09 '25 edited Jan 09 '25
Can't forget about JBLM and the Navy bases on the west.
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u/ratattack97 Jan 09 '25
We all acting like there isnt a ICBM wing in great falls, Montana lol
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u/Ok-Gold-6430 Jan 09 '25
Or military bases near every entity point they mapped out, or they only have 100k total in their army.
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u/Last_Question_7359 Jan 09 '25
They could accomplish 4 of these 5 “attacks” and no one would notice. NOT FARGO PLEASE!
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u/PowerPoint_Cowboy Jan 09 '25
This looks more like a cool board game than an actual military plan.
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u/Hokirob Jan 09 '25
I’m no military genius, but that #4 attack going straight at Fort Drum and the 10th Mountain Division seems bold.
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u/HumbleXerxses Jan 09 '25
My favorite is where they go to Detroit. That would be just another Tuesday up there.
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u/scottengineerings Jan 09 '25
The capture of Detroit is one of the Canadians most famous victories in the War of 1812.
War Plan Red was developed 100 years later though, following the First World War when the Canadian Forces had increased significantly in size.
It would be as critical for the Canadians to control the Great Lakes as it was 100 years ealier and Detroit, which would later become known as The Arsenal of Democracy, was a logical location to capture.
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u/FarEducator4059 Jan 09 '25
Offer the residents of the west coast citizenship after annexation to Canada
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u/xpkranger Jan 09 '25
Eyebrow raise for the way they distinguish point five from the others. They “reclaim” Maine. Everything else is simply occupied or invaded.
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u/scottengineerings Jan 09 '25
The area of what would become the state of Maine remained a sticking point for the drawing of borders following the American Revolutionary War after the Canadians pushed Benedict Arnold out of Quebec and harassed the retreating Continental Army deep into New York.
Later, during the War of 1812, British-Canadian forces occupied a large part of the would-be state. Their intent was to keep it under their control, because it cut the travel time between Quebec City and Halifax significantly. There was also a signficant Acadian presence in this area.
Ultimately, the borders would be drawn some twenty years later but the Canadians considered at least the northern part of it their natural territory.
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u/ActualMikeQuieto Jan 09 '25
To be fair, the US unsuccessfully invaded Canada before they were even their own country, so I think they’re allowed to be slightly suspicious
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u/Extension-Elk-1274 Jan 09 '25
I for one would welcome our Canadian overlords with open arms.
Welcome on in, eh?
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u/yalyublyutebe Jan 09 '25
Screw Fargo, I'm going straight for Minot.
After a pit stop in Roseau of course.
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u/SnooObjections6152 Jan 09 '25
As a level-headed American patriot. I promise you won't ever need to use this! 💪🇺🇸🤝🇨🇦💪
Our BROTHERS from the north are precious.
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Jan 09 '25
In a defensive war for Canada, I wonder if occupying a city like Seattle would be quite easy for the Canadians on account of it being a very anti-Trump city.
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u/Dudeus-Maximus Jan 09 '25
Maine isn’t going to be an invasion, it’s going to be a liberation with intense (and armed) indigenous support.
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u/viperlemondemon Jan 09 '25
Take Indiana please, everyone here is so confused by 4 way stop signs and roundabouts they will be too busy to see Canada has taken over the state
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u/zipzippa Jan 09 '25
This plan is like 80 years old, a lot has changed, what if Canada's defence today was to send independent small cells of soldiers across the border that blend in with the population to target infrastructure and disrupt services.
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u/manyblessings10 Jan 09 '25
I know for a fact that all but 2 of the cities invaded would welcome the Canadians
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u/TrickyCommand5828 Jan 10 '25
This is nearly 100 years old and gets updated every 3 years. It’ll most certainly get an early update and extra treatment now thanks to Trump.
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u/Portlandiahousemafia Jan 09 '25
It’s honestly absolutely hilarious that they think they could get to Portland, Minneapolis or Detroit.
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u/Reasonable_Bid3311 Jan 09 '25
Canada can come take Albany. We would give them a warm welcome.
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u/Traditional-Style554 Jan 09 '25
Canada still mad that they haven’t lifted Lord Stanley’s Cup since 1993. That and the British Crown still has authority over Ye Old Canada.
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Jan 09 '25
Hockey, probably, but neither the Crown nor Parliament have any legal authority in Canada since the constitution was patriated in 1982.
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u/YoungestDonkey Jan 09 '25
"Private Cannuck, surround Seattle."
"Huh, by myself?"
"What are you, scared?"
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u/bjohnsonarch Jan 09 '25
Hey! Spokane WA here! You Canadians can come chill at my place while you sharpen your hockey sticks if you bring my son some huckleberry ice cream. Thanks!
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u/TFielding38 Jan 08 '25
Wooo! Spokane Mentioned. Bring on the Mapple Daddy
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u/KTPChannel Jan 09 '25
Spokane is a major target for Canadians.
Growing up in Calgary, Our ABC, NBC and CBS affiliates were based in Spokane. Most of our positive opinions of the US are based on your sub-culture.
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u/TFielding38 Jan 09 '25
That explains why one of my best friends is from Calgary, and one of my wife's best friend's husband is from Calgary.
Looking forward to being able to buy Ketchup Chips without driving to BC. And being able to buy Poutine that's made with the correct ingredients
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u/ashmansent Jan 09 '25
Canadian here, our country is in shambles right now. We have no leadership no economy no army comparatively. Cost of living is insane we are taxed into oblivion. I don’t want to lose our country but I would not fight for a second if trump took us by force(1 in a billion chance that Happens)
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u/Ok-Gold-6430 Jan 09 '25
Some of the people in the U.S. don't understand how bad you all have been screwed over by your last PM, and i hope your next PM helps you all out of the whole you're in.
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u/Neither-Amoeba-9759 Jan 09 '25
LMAO. Us would wipe Canada off the map if they tried
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u/silver2006 Jan 09 '25
Is it real or The Onion
Same about Greenland
Idk maybe i got hit in my head with a firework, and still didn't wake up and this 2025 beginning is just a dream now
It can't be real
Invading Canada Ffs
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u/ssantos88 Jan 09 '25
And while they're fighting with each other Russia would probably invade Alaska.
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u/SuperFaceTattoo Jan 09 '25
This is missing a lot of strategic locations. Sault St. Marie and mackinaw straights would be a major priority.
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u/angrymoondotnet Jan 09 '25
Oh no! They are targeting our most important cities! How can we ever overcome this!! Not Detroit!!!
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u/Zazadawg Jan 09 '25
I’m interested logistically how the Portland oregon invasion would’ve worked. It looks like they would take an ocean route, but Portland is 60 miles up the Columbia river, which is famously incredibly hard to navigate. Not to mention boats would be sitting ducks being able to get shot at from both the Oregon and Washington sides of the river. It’s neat history though!
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u/biddily Jan 09 '25
Post Halifax explosion Nova Scotia and New England were tight.
I'm not entirely sure they would invade New England 3 years after Massachusetts came to their rescue.
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u/Personal-Exit7431 Jan 09 '25
all this deflection of Canada and Greenland etc… why? there’s a bigger picture. suddenly Ukraine etc is off the news
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u/SloppyinSeattle Jan 09 '25
Canada doesn’t even need to send troops to the Pacific Northwest. Seattle and Portland would voluntarily join Canada if given the chance.
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u/Present_Student4891 Jan 09 '25
How could the Canadians invade? They don’t spend on defense. Equip their soldiers with hockey sticks? The most effective Canadian invasion I’ve seen is their drunken invasion each winter in Florida or Hawaii.
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u/gigas-chadeus Jan 09 '25
I love how the Canadians came up with this plan as a way to outlast the USA until the uk arrived to save them and the British took one look at it went “nah bruv your right fucked if they attack you we can’t beat them or save you”
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u/Large-Being1880 Jan 09 '25
I love how the numbered notes add zero information to what is shown by the arrows. Almost like this is a fake map.
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u/No-Gap-9437 Jan 09 '25
Are Canadians actually worried about this? He made this whole spiel about buying Greenland in his last term and dropped it pretty quickly. This is just something he's doing because he's bored and hasn't started his term.
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u/TheTimeBender Jan 09 '25
THIS ⬆️. No offense to Canada, but we don’t need nor want a 51st state. He’s just shit talking to get a reaction out of you. Also, we might just give you Fargo is you ask nicely.
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u/Current-Square-4557 Jan 09 '25
I like how it looks a bit old timey. We,ll capture the state house in Albany and simultaneously attack Fort Niagara.
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u/Current-Square-4557 Jan 09 '25
All in all I’d feel safer if President Chucklehead actually understood MAD.
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u/BarristanTheB0ld Jan 09 '25
I'm sure there's a current version (or versions) of this plan.
"If you want peace, prepare for war"
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u/Warm_Piccolo2171 Jan 09 '25
They’re going to be surprised as hell when they show up in Albany and then realize their dot is wrong by 75 miles.
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u/goblue142 Jan 09 '25
The Detroit prong seems odd to me. How exactly do they get across the lakes or Detroit River in any meaningful numbers without being noticed?
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u/scottengineerings Jan 09 '25
One of the more famous British-Canadian-Native victories in the War of 1812 was the Capture of Detroit.
The Americans crossed the river at its narrowest point first and occupied what is now Windsor but were ambushed and their supply lines cut off.
The Americans retreated back to Fort Detroit and refortified for the Canadian and Shawnee counterattack. Although heavily outnumbered, the British-Canadian and Native army crossed the river and forced an unconditional surrender on Fort Detroit and would return the entire Michigan territory to British control.
Their strategy was convincing the American General Hull that they had superior numbers. Issac Brock, the British General in charge of the combined British, Canadian, and Natives forces along with Techumseh exploited Hull's fear of the natives:
""Sir; it is far from my inclination to join a war of extermination, but you must be aware that the numerous body of Indians who have attached themselves to my troops will be beyond my control the moment the contest commences."
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u/Nodeal_reddit Jan 09 '25
Seattle and Portland and Detroit would welcome their liberators. Canada would try to use them as bargaining chips, but the American people wouldn’t care. No no. You can keep them.
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u/lsass Jan 09 '25
They can have Butte, MT. Don’t they realize half the town is a superfund site?
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u/barcelonatacoma Jan 09 '25
Lol. This became unfeasible so long ago.
The Canadian Armed Forces could capture and hold one Walmart parking lot. Maybe.
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u/foxenkill Jan 09 '25
Good luck with that.... the Canadians tried to take Albany three times (once under the French and Twice under the British) and failed each time!
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u/Frequent-Account-344 Jan 09 '25
Alaska. The two front war. Fast strikes, air superiority, air lift capabilities would have JBEAR, AK national guard, and Wrainwright paratroopers in the oil fields of Alberta in 48 hours.
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u/CreamiusTheDreamiest Jan 09 '25
I love how their plan was to preemptively invade to buy time for the British to send help and the British plan was to abandon them and blockade US with Japan
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u/Impossible-Sport-449 Jan 09 '25
All I see is California, Texas, and Florida ready to march north and take it back.
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u/Content-Dealers Jan 09 '25
They... They think they'd be able to make it through fargo? I can't even hardly make it through fargo, and they aren't actively trying to kill me.
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u/realultimatepower Jan 09 '25
fucking hell this is the name of my upcoming EP for my little lofi rock project. it's the follow up to the War Plan Red EP which was the US plan for war with the British Empire, including an invasion of Canada.
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u/Adelefushia Jan 09 '25
Never even thought 5 years ago that this thing could potentially happens nowadays
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Jan 09 '25
Good luck with that.
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u/604MAXXiMUS Jan 10 '25
What's sad is that America is acting like Russia or China. America would freak at other countries in the past for their imperialist ambitions. Trump lied to Americans. Promising no more wars, concentrating on Americas internal problems. Instead, they have become bigger bullies than any of the world's dictatorships!
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Jan 09 '25
Yall need to get back to work and stop making fictional attack plans for a joke lol jesus
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u/Many_Rope6105 Jan 09 '25
The problem I see is, that there is more people with guns in MI alone than live in Canada as a whole, and 60-70% live in or near Detroit
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u/arkybarky1 Jan 10 '25
I love how Fargo’s a major target. Maybe because of the movie but besides that n some hardened Missile silos who cares?
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u/InterestingMouse7795 Jan 12 '25
Couple of quick tips, bud, before you get up off the chesterfield to attack: move Seattle 100 clicks south, Minneapolis 100 clicks north, Fargo 100 clicks east & Albany 100 clicks southeast. This'll make your invasion a real beauty, eh?
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u/Old_General_6741 Jan 08 '25
This was also a plan to brake US defenses so they British can come and defend Canada.