History

Historically important films, and films about history.
  • film

    Blue Vanguard

    A fascinating account of the Middle East conflict circa 1956
    This doc explores the Suez Crisis as seen from the point of view of UN forces who served during the conflict and chronicles their role in restoring the peace.
  • film

    Madwoman of God

    Divine love
    Starring Marie Tifo, this feature-length film tells the story of Marie de l’Incarnation, a mid-seventeenth-century mystic who abandoned her son and left France to build a convent in Canada, where she became the first female writer in New France.
  • film

    Westray (2001)

    Was it a disaster waiting to happen?
    Filmmaker Paul Cowan recreates the events that led up to the Westray coal mine disaster in Nova Scotia in 1992. Personal stories and an innovative filmmaking approach make this compelling viewing.

Films

They Called Us 'Les Filles du Roy'  

They Called Us 'Les Filles du Roy'

  • Structured as a love letter, this feature film is an impressionistic history ...
  • 1974,
  • 56 min 11 s
Proudest Girl in the World  

Proudest Girl in the World

  • This wartime short is a musical recruiting film for the Canadian Women ...
  • 1944,
  • 2 min
Available for download
Blue Vanguard  

Blue Vanguard

  • A film made for the United Nations to chronicle its role in ...
  • 1957,
  • 60 min
The Story of H.M.S. Shannon  

The Story of H.M.S. Shannon

  • This animated short describes an incident in the War of 1812. Here ...
  • by ,
  • 1958,
  • 7 min 48 s
Available for download
Bush Pilot: Reflections on a Canadian Myth  

Bush Pilot: Reflections on a Canadian Myth

  • This short documentary offers a reflection on the development of the North ...
  • by Norma Bailey & Bob Lower,
  • 1980,
  • 22 min 28 s
Available for download
Selkirk of Red River  

Selkirk of Red River

  • This film tells the story of the Red River settlement, now the ...
  • by Richard Gilbert,
  • 1964,
  • 28 min 3 s
Available for download
Madwoman of God  
Available with closed captioning

Madwoman of God

  • This feature-length film tells the story of the passion between Marie de ...
  • by Jean-Daniel Lafond,
  • 2008,
  • 76 min 30 s
Available for download
Kanehsatake 270 Years of Resistance  
Available with closed captioning Available with described video

Kanehsatake 270 Years of Resistance

  • On a July day in 1990, a confrontation propelled Native issues in ...
  • by Alanis Obomsawin,
  • 1993,
  • 119 min 15 s
Savage Christmas: Hong Kong 1941  
Available with closed captioning

Savage Christmas: Hong Kong 1941

  • This film is part of the Valour and the Horror series, three ...
  • by Brian McKenna,
  • 1991,
  • 104 min 1 s
Available for download
Impressions of Expo 67  

Impressions of Expo 67

  • This short film served as an invitation to the World's Fair ...
  • by William Brind,
  • 1967,
  • 8 min 21 s
Available for download
Rosies of the North  
Available with closed captioning

Rosies of the North

  • They raised children, baked cakes... and built world-class fighter planes. Sixty years ...
  • by Kelly Saxberg,
  • 1999,
  • 46 min 40 s
Available for download
No More Hiroshima  

No More Hiroshima

  • This short documentary depicts the stories of two hibakusha, survivors of the ...
  • by Martin Duckworth,
  • 1984,
  • 25 min 52 s
History on the Run: The Media and the '79 Election  

History on the Run: The Media and the '79 Election

  • This documentary examines the media's coverage of the federal election of ...
  • by Peter Raymont,
  • 1979,
  • 56 min 45 s
A Little Fellow from Gambo - The Joey Smallwood Story  
Available in 3d stereoscopy

A Little Fellow from Gambo - The Joey Smallwood Story

  • This feature-length documentary paints a lively portrait of Father of Confederation and ...
  • by Julian Biggs,
  • 1970,
  • 56 min 11 s
Available for download
Goddess Remembered  

Goddess Remembered

  • This documentary is a salute to 35,000 years of the goddess-worshipping ...
  • by Donna Read,
  • 1989,
  • 54 min 29 s
Available for download
The Burning Times  

The Burning Times

  • This documentary takes an in-depth look at the witch hunts that swept ...
  • by Donna Read,
  • 1990,
  • 56 min 10 s
Available for download
Return to Dresden  
Available with described video

Return to Dresden

  • In 1945, Great Britain and the United States organized a bombing raid ...
  • by Martin Duckworth,
  • 1986,
  • 27 min 43 s
Memorandum  

Memorandum

Available for download
Canada Remembers Part Three: Endings and Beginnings  
Available with closed captioning

Canada Remembers Part Three: Endings and Beginnings

Available for download
Canada Remembers Part Two: The Liberators  
Available with closed captioning

Canada Remembers Part Two: The Liberators

Available for download
Canada Remembers Part One: Turning the Tide  
Available with closed captioning

Canada Remembers Part One: Turning the Tide

Available for download
The Vinland Mystery  

The Vinland Mystery

  • This short documentary depicts the search, discovery and authentication of the only ...
  • by William Pettigrew,
  • 1984,
  • 28 min 59 s
Available for download
Action: The October Crisis of 1970  

Action: The October Crisis of 1970

  • This feature-length documentary looks at those desperate days of October 1970 when ...
  • by Robin Spry,
  • 1973,
  • 87 min 9 s
Available for download
The Champions, Part 3: The Final Battle   

The Champions, Part 3: The Final Battle

  • The final instalment of this 3-part documentary series about Pierre Elliott Trudeau ...
  • by Donald Brittain,
  • 1986,
  • 87 min 2 s
Available for download
The Champions, Part 2: Trappings of Power   

The Champions, Part 2: Trappings of Power

  • Part 2 of this 3-part documentary series about Pierre Elliott Trudeau and ...
  • by Donald Brittain,
  • 1978,
  • 55 min 35 s
Available for download
The Champions, Part 1: Unlikely Warriors  

The Champions, Part 1: Unlikely Warriors

  • In Part 1 of this 3-part documentary series, director Donald Brittain chronicles ...
  • by Donald Brittain,
  • 1978,
  • 57 min 10 s
Available for download
Bethune  

Bethune

  • This feature documentary is a biography of Dr. Norman Bethune, the Canadian ...
  • by Donald Brittain,
  • 1964,
  • 58 min 38 s
In Desperate Battle: Normandy 1944  
Available with closed captioning

In Desperate Battle: Normandy 1944

  • This documentary looks at the events of June 6, 1944, when a ...
  • by Brian McKenna,
  • 1992,
  • 103 min 30 s
Available for download
Louisbourg Under Siege  
Available with closed captioning

Louisbourg Under Siege

  • Using stunning footage of the fortress and a re-creation of the battle ...
  • by Albert Kish,
  • 1997,
  • 45 min
Death by Moonlight: Bomber Command  
Available with closed captioning Available with described video

Death by Moonlight: Bomber Command

  • This feature-length documentary focuses on the Canadian pilots who served in the ...
  • by Brian McKenna,
  • 1991,
  • 104 min 4 s
Available for download
Final Offer  

Final Offer

Available for download
The Memories of Angels  
Available with closed captioning

The Memories of Angels

  • This visual love letter crafted by filmmaker Luc Bourdon uses clips from ...
  • by Luc Bourdon,
  • 2008,
  • 80 min 23 s
Available for download
Westray  
Available with closed captioning

Westray

  • In this feature documentary, filmmaker Paul Cowan offers an innovative, moving account ...
  • by Paul Cowan,
  • 2001,
  • 79 min 37 s
The Fate of America  

The Fate of America

  • Two well-known Quebec artists (filmmaker Jacques Godbout and playwright René-Daniel Dubois) look ...
  • by Jacques Godbout,
  • 1997,
  • 81 min 27 s
Available for download
Wolfe and Montcalm  

Wolfe and Montcalm

  • This short film recreates the tense hours before the Battle of the ...
  • by Allan Wargon,
  • 1957,
  • 29 min 30 s
Available for download
Royal Journey  

Royal Journey

Available for download
The Stratford Adventure  
Available in 3d stereoscopy

The Stratford Adventure

  • This short film depicts how a small Canadian city, bearing the name ...
  • by Morten Parker,
  • 1954,
  • 39 min 24 s