Everything about Defence Scheme No 1 totally explained
Defence Scheme No. 1 was a plan created by Canadian Director of Military Operations and Intelligence
Col. James "Buster" Sutherland Brown, for a
Canadian pre-emptive invasion of the
United States.
Targets
Defence Scheme No. 1 was created in 1921 and details a surprise attack on the northern U.S. as soon as possible after evidence was received of an American invasion of Canada. According to the plan,
Canadian troops would immediately be sent to seize
Seattle, Washington;
Great Falls, Montana;
Minneapolis, Minnesota; and
Albany, New York in a surprise attack. In case of heavy resistance, the Canadians would retreat to their own borders, destroying
bridges and
railways to hinder any retaliation by the Americans. The purpose of the invasion would be to allow time for Canada to prepare its war effort and to receive aid from
Britain, or to limit the American invasion before the US government opted to discontinue the incursions. Defence Scheme No. 1 serves as a counterpart to the Americans'
War Plan Red, a plan to invade Canada, drafted in 1930.
Reconnaissance
Brown himself did
reconnaissance for the plan, along with other lieutenant-colonels, all in
plainclothes. These missions took place from 1921 and 1926. As historian
Pierre Berton noted in his book
Marching as to War, these investigations had "a zany flavour about it, reminiscent of the silent comedies of the day." To illustrate this, Berton quoted from Brown's reports, in which Brown recorded, among other things, that in
Burlington, Vermont the people were "affable" and thus unusual for Americans; that Americans drink significantly less
alcohol than Canadians (this was during
Prohibition), and that upon pointing out that to Americans, one responded "My God! I'd go for a glass of beer. I'm going to 'Canady' to get some more"; that the people of
Vermont would only be serious soldiers "if aroused"; and that many Americans might be sympathetic with the British cause.
Reaction
Despite Berton's description of the plan and its creator as "
quixotic", Berton notes the plan had its supporters. These included General
George Pearkes, who remarked that Defence Scheme No. 1 was a "fantastic desperate plan [which] just might have worked." However, in 1928, the scheme was terminated by
Chief of the General Staff Andrew McNaughton, who sought peaceful US-British relations. Many of the documents relating to the scheme were accordingly destroyed.
Further Information
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