7th Canadian Infantry Brigade The 7th Canadian Infantry Brigade , along with the 8th Canadian Infantry Brigade and the 9th Canadian Infantry Brigade , formed the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division , which was a Canadian Army formation during World War II . The division arrived in the United Kingdom in 1940 and spent three years in Garrison duties and training in preparation for the assault landings on Juno Beach in Normandy on 6 June 1944 . Juno Beach , D Day . Juno beach was five miles wide and stretched on either side of Courseulles - sur - Mer . The 3rd Canadian Infantry Division was the assault Division , along with the 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade under command to provide armoured support for the infantry assault brigades . 7th Canadian Infantry Brigade , had been selected to take part in the initial assault , they would land on the left hand side of the beach , supported by the 1st Hussars armoured regiment . During the assault the Regina Rifles would land at Courseulles which had the codename Nan Green beach , the Royal Winnipeg Rifles would land on the western edge of Courseulles , which had the codenames Mike Red beach and Mike Green beach . Major Gordon Baird described the landing in the book The Regina Rifle Regiment 1939 - 1945 " " So far , not a shot has been fired from the defenders on the beach . Will it be a push - over ? We soon have the answer in the form of machine - gun fire and shells from pillboxes which are apparently still open for business despite the terrific pounding they have taken . The LCA ' s of the leading companies and the tanks of the 1st Hussars are working into the beaches now . H - hour has arrived . For the purposes of the assault , Courseulles had been divided into blocks numbered one to twelve . Each was to be cleared by a designated company . Careful study of enlarged air photos showing the sites of enemy strong points had made the ground itself easily recognizable . Every foot of the town was known before it was entered . " In the first hour of the assault on Juno Beach , the Canadian forces suffered approximately 50 % casualty rates , comparable to those suffered by the Americans at Omaha Beach . Once the Canadians cleared the seawall ( about an hour after leaving the landing craft transports ) they started to advance quickly inland and had a much easier time subduing the German defences than the Americans at Omaha had . By noon , the entire 3rd Canadian Division was ashore and leading elements had pushed several kilometres inland to seize bridges over the Seulles River . By 6 : 00pm they had captured the town of Saint - Aubin - sur - Mer . By the end of D - Day the elements of the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division , had penetrated farther into France than any other Allied force , though counter - attacks by two German armoured divisions would stop any further movement for several weeks . " None of the assault divisions , including 3rd Canadian Division , had managed to secure their D - Day objectives , which lay inland , although the Canadians came closer than any other Allied formation . " By the end of the next day , the Canadian forces had linked up with the British forces that had landed at Sword Beach . Battle of Normandy . On 8 June , SS - Panzergrenadier - Regiment 26 under command of SS - Obersturmbannfuhrer Wilhelm Mohnke arrived on the battlefield . Their orders were to drive over the Canadians and force a deep wedge between them and the British division to the west . The attack , launched at 0330 hours - had little initial success . The various companies in the attacking 12th SS Panzer Division , failed to co - ordinate their moves towards the Canadians and , despite heavy casualties during repeated attempts by the infantry , Canadian artillery and supporting heavy machine guns of the Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa took a heavy toll on each attacking company of SS troops . The " Regina Rifle Regiment " held their ground and the I Battalion fell back . On the Canadian right the II Battalion attacked the " Royal Winnipeg Rifles " defending the village of Putot - en - Bessin . The Battalion managed to break into the village and surround several companies , effectively pushing the Winnipeg ' s out of the village , inflicting 256 casualties - of which 175 were taken prisoner . A counter - attack launched at 2030 Hours by the " Canadian Scottish Regiment " , however , regained Putot - en - Bessin , and the II Battalion withdrew and dug - in south of the village . Following the battle SS - Aufklärungs - Abteilung 12 deployed to the west of Mohnke ' s regiment and , by the evening of 8 June the division , while having failed in its assignment to drive the Canadians into the sea , had effectively halted the units of the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division , in the Allied advance on Caen . Spending much of the next four weeks in static positions , the Division participated in the battles to capture Caen in early July , which included Operation Totalize and Operation Tractable and the battles around Verrières Ridge , during the rest of the month . The Brigade then took part in the pursuit across France , and clearing the Channel ports , most notably Boulogne , Calais and Cape Gris Nez . Battle of the Scheldt . Operation Switchback . The second main operation of the Battle of the Scheldt opened with fierce fighting to reduce the Breskens pocket . Here , the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division encountered tenacious German resistance as they fought to cross the Leopold Canal . It was decided that the best place for an assault would be immediately east of where the two canals divided : a narrow strip of dry ground only a few hundred metres wide at its base beyond the Leopold Canal ( described as a long triangle with its base on the Maldegem - Aardenburg road and its apex near the village of Moershoofd some five kilometres east ) . A two - pronged assault commenced . " 7th Canadian Infantry Brigade " made the initial assault across the Leopold Canal , while the 9th Canadian Infantry Brigade mounted an amphibious attack from the northern or coastal side of the pocket . The assault began on October 6 , supported by extensive artillery and Canadian - built Wasp Universal Carrier s , which were equipped with flamethrowers . The Wasps launched their barrage of flame across the Leopold Canal , allowing the " 7th Brigade " troops to scramble up over the steep banks and launch their assault boats . Two precarious , separate footholds were established , but the enemy recovered from the shock of the flamethrowers and counter - attacked , though they were unable to move the Canadians from their extremely vulnerable bridgeheads . By October 9 , the gap between the bridgeheads was closed , and by early morning on October 12 , a position had been gained across the Aardenburg road . The 3rd Division fought additional actions to clear German troops from the towns of Breskens , Oostburg , Zuidzande and Cadzand , as well as the coastal fortress Fort Frederik Hendrik . Operation " Switchback " ended on November 3 when the First Canadian Army liberated the Belgian towns of Knokke and Zeebrugge , officially closing the Breskens Pocket and eliminating all German forces south of the Scheldt . After spending three months in static positions in the Nijmegen Salient , the Division engaged in fierce combat once more in February . Fighting once again through flooded terrain , the Brigade helped clear the last German positions west of the Rhine . . The Brigade fought on into Germany and were ordered to suspend operations on 4 May 1945 .