In Remembrance Of The Fallen Of Warfare

"At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them." ~ Laurence Binyon

"If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields." ~ John McCrae

It is Remembrance Day here in Canada, while elsewhere the date is known as Armistice Day or Veterans Day. At the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918, the guns of war fell silent across the battlefields of Europe, ending the Great War. There will be services in cities, towns, and villages, the laying of wreaths, and the rituals common to the occasion. I will be attending the national service today. And for today, I feature photographs from the last year in my photoblog. The above is taken at Green Island in Ottawa. The park is home to several military monuments, including the National Artillery Memorial. Right beside it is a statue of the Canadian soldier, doctor, and poet John McCrae, who gave the world the poem In Flanders Fields.

Another military monument in the city is the National Aboriginal Veterans Monument, which features four Indigenous warriors back to back, with the wolf, bear, elk, and bison around them, and an eagle overhead. It honours Indigenous soldiers and veterans who have fought for the country, even at times when the country wasn't treating them right. It stands in Confederation Park, where several military monuments reside.

Just up the street, occupying the very heart of Confederation Square, is the National War Memorial, seen here during the Tulip Festival. It was first dedicated to the dead of the First World War in 1939, and has since been rededicated, including the Second World War, Korean War, South African War, Afghan War, and those who have served and died in military service to the country. It is here today that the national service of remembrance is to be held.

The Canadian War Museum is at Lebreton Flats, just west of the downtown core, telling the story of Canadian military history, at home and abroad. It looks like a bunker, or a massive bomber plane, which is entirely appropriate for its subject material.

Lebreton Gallery inside holds a wealth of military equipment from multiple countries and eras, here photographed from above.

As one emerges from the permanent collection, the last artifact is this. Canadian forces ended the First World War at the Belgian town of Mons, where they presented two field guns to the people of the town, saying that these were the last guns fired on the enemy before the Armistice. For the centennial of the ending of the war, Mons presented this one back to the people of Canada, and now it has a place of pride here.

The War Memorial features the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at its base. An unknown Canadian soldier who fell at the Battle of Vimy Ridge is now buried there. His original gravestone occupies the Memorial Chamber inside the Museum. The building is designed and angled so that at 11 in the morning on November 11th, provided the sun is shining, sunlight will shine through an overhead window and illuminate the stone.

In Honour Of Their Memory

Today is Remembrance Day in Canada, and Armistice Day and Veterans Day elsewhere. On this date in 1918, the guns of the Great War fell silent across Europe. It is a day of commemoration for the fallen of war.

These photographs are from last year in my photoblog, taken at the National War Memorial here in Ottawa, where today a national service will take place.

The ceremony itself begins with the march in of the veterans, led by the pipes and drums.

After the ceremony is done, the pipes and drums lead the march past.

Veterans are right behind.

It also includes active members from each branch of the Canadian Forces.

I close this post with two statues by the same artist, Ruth Abernethy, both larger than life, and both a twin of the other. The first is here in Ottawa, on Green Island where the Rideau River meets the Ottawa River. Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae was the Canadian soldier, doctor, and poet who wrote the poem In Flanders Fields during the First World War, and would not live to see that war's end.

The other version of the statue is here in his home town- Guelph, in southern Ontario, where it stands outside the city's Civic Museum. In his hand he grips a notebook, with the first words to his most famous poem inscribed on the bronze page. A man whose words have left a lasting impact upon the world.

Paying Final Respects To The Fallen

Later this week sees Remembrance Day. November 11th is also known as Veterans Day or Armistice Day elsewhere, but here in Canada, it is Remembrance Day, a day to pay our respects to those who served in war, and those who died in it.  

These first shots are from several years ago, on a spring day when I visited Beechwood Cemetery, a historic cemetery in Ottawa with the graves of many prominent people, locally and nationally. Two sections of this large property have been set aside as a national military cemetery, and this is one of them, with the tombstones done in the same manner as originally laid out by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, a legacy of the First World War that carries on its work today.

I attend the national service held at the Canadian War Memorial, which occupies the very heart of Confederation Square. I usually choose a spot ideal for watching the parade past after the ceremony has ended. It begins with bagpipes.

Followed by the veterans- a smaller group by the year.

Active services follow them. A very solemn and moving ceremony, and one that draws out the public each year.

If Ye Break Faith With Us Who Die

 Today in Canada is Remembrance Day; the date of the end of the First World War. It goes by other names in the world, but is a common day of commemoration for war dead and those who served. I have some pictures today first featured at my photoblog over the last few years. Some years ago in April I paid a visit to the historic Beechwood Cemetery in Ottawa, where two large sections have been set aside as a national military cemetery.

The National War Memorial occupies the heart of Confederation Square, and is the subject of regular photographs by me. It was dedicated in the months before World War Two, and has since been re-dedicated in memory of those who fought and died in Canada's other wars and military service.

The Memorial is the heart of Canada's national Remembrance Day services, with all that you'd expect out of the occasion- including a march past of the veterans.

This photo, taken at night on April 8th, 2017, was during an evening vigil to mark the centennial of one of the most momentous battles of Canadian history. From April 9th-12th, 1917, Canadian soldiers fought to take Vimy Ridge, achieving victory in doing so, something no other Allied force had been able to do. It is one of the most consequential moments in the country's history.

A soldier who fought at Vimy has his final resting place here. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is the most sacred spot in the country since its installation in 2000. Each Remembrance Day since, citizens place poppies on the tomb. This was taken late one Remembrance Day some years ago.

I finish today with this remarkable painting that was on exhibit as part of a special exhibit several years ago at the Canadian War Museum. Byam Shaw painted The Flag in 1918, and the anguish of those left behind by the dead of war is its subject.