unveiling of vimy ridge monument ‘made deep impression’ on attendees by Jason G. Antonio, Moose Jaw Express
Nearly 100,000 gathered on Vimy Ridge on July 26, 1936 for the unveiling of a monument dedicated to Canada’s efforts to capture the ridge and the men who died fighting for it. Photo courtesy Valour Canada
Canada’s victory during the Battle of Vimy Ridge in 1917 generated great praise for the young country, while the unveiling in 1936 of a monument dedicated to that battle created just as much enthusiasm. More than 3,400 Canadian veterans — along with 1,600 other citizens — left Canada by ship in June for the unveiling on July 26. According to the Moose Jaw Times-Herald, this large contingent landed in England before debarking for Le Havre, France and Antwerp, Belgium, where numerous French and Canadian dignitaries were expected to be present. Civic dignitaries and representatives of the French war wounded and war veterans of the Le Havre region greeted the Canadian veterans once they arrived at the City of Ypres by rail. Five trains were needed to transport the Canucks to the monument, which honoured those men who fought — and died — during the battle of April 9 to 12, 1917. King Edward VIII helped unveil the monument, the first time he had left England after ascending to the throne on Jan. 20, 1936. Besides the 6,000 Canadians, 100,000 people
King Edward VIII (second row, first right) helped unveil the Vimy Ridge monument, one of his first acts as king after ascending to the throne in January 1936. Photo courtesy Wiki Commons
also were on hand to see the new monument. Before the group arrived at Ypres, though, many members stopped in Lille to lay wreaths at memorials in memory of France’s wartime dead. These dignitaries included Brig. Gen. Alex Ross, president of the Canadian Legion and a Yorkton resident, and members of the Legion colour party. In an article from July 27, 1936, the Canadian Press wrote, “Alone on the crest of Vimy Ridge two pylons breast the sky with heroic symmetry. Alone, except for the sleeping thousands buried in these plains in whose honor the symbol in stone was reared … . “King and commoner and veteran came yesterday to a rendezvous and dedication of Canada’s memorial to the youth, dead in war, of her last generation.” King Edward VIII unveiled the monument; French President Albert Lebrun spoke;
a message from Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King was read; two Canadian ministers addressed the thronged thousands; and three wartime chaplains prayed for peace. Many war widows were also present, including those of General Sir Arthur Currie, one of Canada’s most well-known battlefield commanders, and General Sir Julian Byng, who commanded the Canadian Corps and later became the country’s 12th governor-general. The unveiling “made a deep impression in France,” the Canadian Press wrote on July 27. French post offices sold a special Vimy stamp that sold rapidly; movie theatres on Paris’ Grand Boulevards featured pictures of the ceremony; and Paris newspapers gave frontpage coverage to the event. Albert Petit wrote in the Journal des Debats: “Canadians died not for their own country, which was not menaced, but … for the common country of all men of peace and good will. Vimy Ridge is one of those spiritual summits of a better world whereof the dead who lie there had the conviction they were preparing the magnificent advent.” Even the New York Herald Tribune paid tribute to the massive cenotaph, saying the ceremony “must have stirred American hearts only in less degree than it did Canadians.” Nineteen years after the bloody victory, “none of us who remembers the day and the circumstances will forget its galvanic effect on the nation which had just resolved to share its fortunes with the allies … ,” the article said. “And so, ‘in a spirit of thankfulness for their example, of reverence for their devotion and of pride in their comradeship,’ to cite King Edward’s eloquence, we salute the memorial to Canada’s dead.” On July 30, many Vimy veterans, Canadian government officials and Scottish dignitaries travelled to Dryburgh, Scotland, to
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Charlotte Wood of Winnipeg was the first Silver Cross Mother of Canada and laid a wreath at the unveiling of the Vimy Memorial in 1936. Seven of her sons and stepsons had enlisted — two were killed in action, including one at Vimy Ridge. Photo courtesy National Archives of Canada
pay tribute to former Field Marshal Douglas Haig, who commanded the British Expeditionary Force — under which the Canadians fought — from 1915 to 1918. A wreath of poppies and Canadian maple leaves were deposited on the soldier’s cross that marked the tomb of Haig. Men admired Haig for many reasons, including the fact his creed had been simple “but great in its simplicity and in its implicit faith in the power of divine help,” Presbyterian minister Rev. John Kelman said during the service. “Equally strong was his conviction ‘that the battle was not his, but God’s.’” Kelman also praised Haig’s post-war efforts to unify veterans of the British Empire. The creation of the Canadian Legion in 1926 was one outcome of his efforts. A delegation of 50 Vimy pilgrims, led by Yorkton’s Ross, later travelled to Essex, England on July 30 to pay homage to Byng, under whose leadership they conquered Vimy.
