How Canadian Snipers Were So Precise the Germans Thought They Used Witchcraft

On the frozen hillsides of the Moro River Valley, Italy, in November 1943, German front line veterans confronted an enemy they could not see or hear. In the morning, the fog was so thick that soldiers were killed by pinpoint shots from great distances with their precision rifles. The Germans were frightened by Canadian ghosts, invisible bullets and witchcraft. The truth was even more formidable: Canadian wilderness hunters, trappers, farm boys who developed deadly skills from ancient tracking techniques. Lieutenant General Guy Simonds and men such as Sergeant Harold Marshall and Corporal James Wallace led the way for Canadian sniper sections to eschew the notion of firing in large volumes and adopt a more patient, precise, hand-loaded ammunition and modified Ross Mark III rifle approach. Whether it be in the harsh streets of Ortona or the hedgerows of Normandy, Canadian snipers struck at German command structures, causing large numbers of officer casualties, and laying the groundwork for the modern military sniper. CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS 00:00 - Terror in the Moro River Valley (November 1943) 01:19 - Sergeant Harold Marshall: The Manitoba Hunter 06:14 - Developing the Program: Modified Ross Mark III 12:16 - The Rule of Faith in Willingness to Wait At 15:49, the Battle of Ortona and Psychological Dominance were discussed. 21:51 - Normandy: Corporal Wallace and the Impossible Shot 27:22 - How Canadian Snipers Rewrote Modern Military Doctrine 32:30 - The Silent Hunters' Silent Legacy For further reading, the following sources will be useful: Canadians at War - The Italian Campaign and Canadian Infantry Tactics: https://www.warmuseum.ca/ Library and Archives Canada - Canadian Army Overseas War Diaries and Sniping Reports (RG 24): https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/ Colonel C.P. Stacey - The Canadian Army 1939-1945: An Official Historical Summary Mark Zuehlke - Ortona: Canada's Epic World War II Battle Martin Pegler - Out of Nowhere: A History of the Military Sniper Supporters of the war on Canada.Warmongers for Canada. If you enjoy detailed, thoughtful Canadian military history and the stories of the people behind the uniform, please consider: Liking the video Picking up on your ideas in the comments Make sure to subscribe and enable notifications.Subscribe and activate notifications. Notice: All historical footage, combat logs and narrative dramatizations are used for historical and educational purposes only. #CanadianHistory #WWII #CanadiansAtWar #MilitaryHistory #ItalianCampaign #RossRifle #MilitarySniper