Canadians Prepare for Remembrance Day Nov. 11
Organizations Plan Events to Commemorate Fallen Soldiers
Oct 27, 2008
The date, Nov. 11, is when, in 1918, the Allies and Germany signed an armistice at Compiègne, France, for cessation of hostilities on the Western Front. It was signed the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. Hostilities continued elsewhere, but this date is the symbolic end of the war.
The 90th anniversary falls in 2008 for what is also a holiday in the United States, United Kingdom and several European countries.
Initially, Armistice Day observances focused upon World War 1 and World War 2 veterans. Now soldiers from later conflicts are also remembered.
From sea to shining sea, North Americans pay attention to something too serious to ever forget. They want to perpetuate in their national collective memory the value of the sacrifice of soldiers who gave their lives so freedom is both preserved in their countries and gained in countries where people are victims of repressive governments.
Veterans' Ceremonies
In Louisbourg, Nova Scotia—site of Fortress Louisbourg, largest historical reconstruction in Canada—Royal Canadian Legion Branch 62 veterans will hold a commemoration service and wreath-laying ceremony at Memorial Park, followed by a reception at branch headquarters.
The Nov. 11 Louisbourg service on the Atlantic seaboard will be echoed across Canada as legionnaires honor fallen comrades.
Church Observances
At the Anglican Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Quebec—a city celebrating its 400th anniversary—the parish ezine this week features Robert Metcalfe, the iconic World War 2 veteran shown on Canada’s $10 bill.
Sunday School children selected from the cathedral’s memorial plaques a group of soldiers killed in the World Wars to research. At its Nov. 9 service, the Cathedral parish--and hundreds of churches across Canada--will read the “roll of honor”, naming soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice, and observe a moment of silence.
In thousands of locations worldwide the two minutes of silence will be preceded by playing “last post” and followed by “reveille”. Parades of veterans and marching bands will take place in dozens of cities.
National Ceremony
The Governor General presides over Canada’s official ceremony at Ottawa’s National War Memorial.
Regina ceremonies will be at two city cemeteries where veterans are buried in a special Field of Honor.
There are two “remembrance days” at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. The first is Nov. 11 and the second Dec. 7, anniversary of the Pearl Harbor bombing.
Because the United States celebrates “Memorial Day” in May, its Nov. 11 Veterans Day observances, though significant, are not as widespread as in Canada and the greater British Commonwealth. It is a legal holiday and veterans’ organizations place wreaths on graves and at monuments. The President places a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington Cemetery.
Wearing Poppies
Worldwide, people wear poppies as an emblem of respect for fallen soldiers. This usage is traced to Canadian John McCrae’s poem, “In Flanders Fields.” Poppies bloomed across some of the worst World War 1 battlefields; their color calls to mind the bloodshed common to trench warfare.
Some choose white poppies to signify desires for peaceful alternatives to military action.
Wearing a poppy for two weeks prior to Nov. 11 is a Canadian tradition.
A companion article is about Robert Metcalfe, the inconic veteran portrayed on the Canadian $10 bill.
SOURCES: “A Guide to Commemorative Services,” website of Veteran’s Affairs Canada; Royal Canadian Legion websites; "History of Veterans Day," website of U. S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
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