The ten crucial military and political calls that changed the course of the Second World War.

In the Second World War, Canada faced desperate times. Tough decisions had to be made that could have meant life or death on the front lines. In the struggle overseas and the battle at home, the very future of the nation hung in the balance. For leaders of troops and governments, the pressure to make the right calls was enormous, as disaster loomed large on all fronts.

Even the decision to enter the war split the nation and had the potential to destroy the delicate balance that had been painstakingly struck between English and French Canada. From there, the problems only got messier. What ships to build? What troops to field, and under whose flag? The agonizing question of whether a costly battle was necessary, or if there could have been some other way.

Canadians, from the main streets to the barracks and all along the corridors of power, grappled with these life-and-death decisions throughout the Second World War. Here are ten of Canada's most agonizing decisions of the war, including the brilliant successes, stunning surprises, and a disastrous failure whose effects resound to this day.