Editor鈥檚 Note: Monday The Alexander Ross Branch of the Royal Canadian Legion held at a tea as part of week-long activities leading up to Remembrance Day Services.
As part of the tea Brittany Johnson made a presentation at the tea relating to her most recent trip to North Western France in June. Her presentation is presented here in its entirety.
Good afternoon and thank you for joining today to take part in the annual Remembrance Day tea here at our Legion branch. My name is Brittany Johnson and I recently became a member of our local Legion branch No. 77 just this past month. My grandfather was Fred Bodnaryk and I wanted to become an associate member in his honor. I have enjoyed my time so far as a member working with Kathy and Ken Gordon at the branch and learning more about our fallen heroes and it is an honor to have been asked to speak to you all today.聽
I have been asked to share some of my stories and memories from my most recent trip to North Western France that I took in June with my husband. I had visited France ten years prior and fell in love with the country and it鈥檚 history. This trip was special, as it was my husbands first time setting foot on European soil as well as my first time visiting some new locations of historical Canadian significance.聽
When we were deciding which area of France to venture out into after our few days in Paris I immediately knew two things. The first being that I wanted to bring my husband to see Normandy and the second being that I wanted to visit Vimy and parts of the western front from WWI since I wasn鈥檛 able to see these locations on my previous trip. Little did I know that by visiting these new locations it would fill my heart with pride and gratitude as well as allow me to return to Canada with a deeper sense of understanding along with the desire to share the stories of our heroes with both young and old. For today鈥檚 tea, I decided to share with you my time spent in the areas of our Canadian soldiers during WWI.
After our time in Paris my husband Scott and I travelled by train to the city of Arras. At the Arras train station we were greeted by our tour guide Faye from Living Memory Tours. Faye is a Canadian from Manitoba who lives in Arras and is fulfilling her dream of welcoming Canadians to the Western Front to teach them the history of the area and guide them through the sites.聽
The first stop on our tour was the Canadian Memorial at Vimy Ridge. As we drove up to the memorial on that cool, foggy morning, I tried to picture myself in the shoes of our Canadian soldiers as Faye described the battle, it鈥檚 importance and it鈥檚 difficulty for our men. Seeing the scars of war still present on the pock-marked land in the form of mine-craters and shell-holes now cloaked with a perfect carpet of green grass covering the land as if laying it to rest, helped me try to imagine the magnitude of what had happened in this place as our Canadian soldiers crossed no-man鈥檚 land, sacrificing everything for our freedom, marching their way into history.
When we arrived at the memorial Faye explained the different sculptures that it was adorned with and the meaning of each one and why the artist had decided to include them. Then next we saw the names, the names of 11,285 Canadian soldiers who were declared as 鈥榤issing, presumed dead鈥� in France during the Great War carved into the memorial. At the base of the memorial a message is inscribed reading 鈥楾o the valour of their countrymen in the Great War and in the memory of their sixty thousand dead, this monument is raised by the people of Canada.鈥� Below this inscription laid multiple wreaths, flags, handwritten notes, photos and poppies brought to the memorial by visitors paying their respects to their fallen heroes. To all of those who have not had a chance to visit this monument in person, please 聽know that it stands in glory of our country and all who fought for her, and please know that it radiates an incredible sense of pride on behalf of all Canadians both near and far.聽
Our next stop in the Vimy area was our Canadian Visitor鈥檚 Center. The visitors center was of particular interest to me as most recently a story on social media about an owner of an antique store in small town Manitoba captured my interest. Amanda Kehler is the owner of Prairie Pickers Caf茅 in Steinbach Manitoba. In February Amanda came across a letter which was in amongst antiques that she had purchased from an estate sale. This very letter is on display in the Canadian Visitor鈥檚 Center at Vimy Ridge and here is why: When Amanda opened the letter it was dated May 1917 and was written by a man named Earl Sorrel who was writing from a hospital in Birkenhead England. An excerpt from Earl鈥檚 letter, addressed to the sister of Gordon Rochford read as follows:
"Of course you know why I am writing to you, well I will tell. Your brother and I as you knew, were always the best of friends. Gordon made a name for himself in the Batt. but it never made any difference between our friendship. Well on Easter Monday the big advance on VIMY RIDGE started. At 5 o'clock we were all lined up in the trench waiting for the barrage to open up, and then we were to advance. At 5:30, we started. Gordon, sergeant of the platoon #9 led. The barrage was like a thunderstorm and we were trotting at a good pace. We had gone about 1200 yards and then "bang". I felt a sharp burn in my back and left arm. The next thing I remember was Gordon pulling me into a shell hole, and he said, 鈥榮tay there, old boy, and someone will help you.鈥� That was the last I saw of poor Gordon. After, I was helped to the dressing station by a corporal. It was the other day, in this hospital that I heard Gordon was killed. He died a hero, along with many others that day.鈥�
During my visit at the visitors center I learnt that Gordon and Earl were best friends growing up in Selkirk, they lived just a few streets apart. In 1915, they enlisted in the army on the same day, were assigned to the same platoon and later set sail for England on the same ship. They were still together as day broke over Vimy Ridge on April 9th, 1917. That morning, Gordon offered the last gift of their friendship when he pulled his wounded comrade to the safety of a nearby shell hole. Continuing forward with the advance, Gordon was never seen again. A few days later, Earl remembered his friend and their final moments in a letter to Gordon鈥檚 sister.聽
Lance Sergeant Gordon Rochford was just twenty-two years old when he was killed at Vimy Ridge. With no known final resting place, his name can be found engraved on the stone wall near the steps leading to the Vimy Memorial. Reading this letter in person and learning more about the history and the friendship of Gordon and Earl, I was overcome with emotion. Knowing the background stories on these two men, even though they are complete strangers to me, brought the war to life and the realities of the sacrifice and loss of so many were all brought to the forefront of my thinking for the rest of my journey throughout these important sites.聽
Our next stop on tour was to one of the bloodiest battlefields of the Somme, the battlefield of Beaumont-Hamel. I am not going to lie, I really did not know the history of this particular battle and am a bit embarrassed to admit so, because after my visit, I have to say that I will never celebrate a July 1st again without thinking of the Newfoundland Regiment and their sacrifice at Beaumont-Hamel. On July 1st, 1916, the Battle of the Somme began. On that day, The Newfoundland Regiment were forced to attack from a support trench behind their front line. A tree which was nicknamed 鈥楾he Danger Tree鈥� stands part way through no man鈥檚 land marking an area where enemy fire became intense and is the spot where so many Newfoundlanders fell that morning. After less than half an hour the Newfoundland Regiment suffered substantial loss. Of the some 800 soldiers that went into battle that morning, only 68 were able to answer roll call the next day.
The grounds of the battlefield are well preserved and the Danger Tree still stands now as a permanent reminder to all who visit of the courage and valour seen that day. A lane of maple trees lines your walk back to the visitors center and as I walked through these trees, which are a national symbol of home, I reflected on what I had learned during my visit and聽 I couldn鈥檛 help but think of the families that these men left behind to fight for our freedom.聽
Signs reading 鈥楧anger 鈥� No entry undetonated explosives鈥� made me ask questions about the dangers still present today to the current French people of the area more than 100 years later. I was told that farmers in that region risk their lives each day by just driving their equipment across their own land. It is not uncommon for tractors to trigger old explosives and be blown up injuring the farmer. This is a very real risk that farmers deal with everyday.聽聽
The memorial built on this battlefield was most beautiful and was my favorite memorial that we visited. The construction reflects the natural topography of Newfoundland with stacked rocks covered with flora and fauna particular to the region. The crowning glory of the monument is the bronze caribou standing at the very top with his mouth open in a call, bellowing towards the battlefield, mourning his fallen Newfoundlanders. It is a special place that nobly recognizes the sacrifice of those who came before us in order for us to enjoy the freedoms of today.
It was on the grounds of Beaumont-Hamel that I visited my first Commonwealth War Graves cemetery. The areas where our heroes are laid to rest are truly beautiful and so well cared for. Faye explained how our Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries are maintained, who cares for them, how we can navigate them and also why and how flowers are planted. At these graves, flowers are planted in English garden style and a rose bush is planted in such a way that at some point in the day, each grave marker will have the shadow of a rose present. Commonwealth War Graves gardeners care for these graves and visit the cemeteries every day. It must have given family members of these soldiers a great sense of relief to know that their fallen husbands, fathers, brothers, uncles and sons are honored and cared for in such a respected way in the same location that they had fallen overseas. I can confidently say that our Commonwealth War Graves are the most beautiful of all of the war graves that we had visited.聽
Other stops during our tour of the Western Front included our visit to Thiepval and the Thiepval Memorial which stands over the French-Anglo cemetery of the Somme, the French cemetery at the Notre-Dam-de-Lorette where we were shown the grave of a father who had fallen during WWI and his son who had fallen in WWII, as well as a memorial dedicated to the Australians and a nearby memorial dedicated to all of the animals that were used, served and lost during the Great War.
A particularly somber visit was to the German cemetery. I have been asked by many as to why I would make this stop. To anyone who asks I say that it is extremely important to see both sides of war to fully understand the level of loss incurred by all. The desire for peace is stronger than ever before. Yet all hopes that people would learn from the terrors of war are continuously disappointed. The atrocities of war seem to fade. War graves memorials are one of the few places where history is made visible and it is so important that we visit them. They truly are memorials of millionfold suffering. War graves memorials cannot prevent war, but they make us think twice. When we stand at these crosses and markers, we know that it is from here that the best reminder of peace is radiated.
Our final visit was to the Ring of Remembrance International Memorial. This memorial, which commemorates the 600,000 names of those who died in the French region during WWI, sits outside of an abbey near Arras. The names of those people are all inscribed on double sided panels that span an area of over 1300 square meters. These names do not show preference to nationality, race or rank and symbolizes unity and peace with all names linked together like a human chain holding hands. As you walk along the ring you walk over a bridge hovering over the hill to symbolize the fragility of peace and how quickly it can fall away. Seeing all names together in alphabetical order is said to be a powerful reminder of the shared humanities of former enemies. The architect wanted to make visitors see that these people could have been brothers, but instead were instructed to kill each other. This makes the concept of peace ever more prevalent and can be transferred to the current period in which we live. Exiting the ring you see the word 鈥榩eace鈥� written in different languages on each panel reminding us to live in such a way that would never allow war again.聽
During the last few weeks of spending time at he Legion I have been going through the items in our two showcases, cataloging and photographing them so that I can compile an index. Just last week I came across a photo album that belonged to Jack Young. In this photo album were snapshots taken by Jack during his time in France during WWI. Seeing these photos of the exact areas that I visited was incredible. It is one thing to view pictures like this online, where it seems anything and everything is at our fingertips, but to actually hold these pictures in your hands, that are over 100years old, turn the pages and read someone鈥檚 handwriting, is a completely different experience and doing so makes a person realize why preserving these artifacts is so important. In the same showcase was a photograph taken in the last Legion Hall titled 鈥榁imy Night 1974鈥�. In the photo there are 21 veterans with their names listed. What I would give to listen to just one of them talk and tell their stories.
I strongly recommend that all Canadians, especially our youth and leaders, visit the memorials and battlefields that I was so lucky to have gotten to visit this year. I do feel that all who visit these special places will return with a deeper understanding of the importance for peace, desire for change, gratitude for our heroes and a newfound pride for being a Canadian. Lest We Forget.
