The Green Fields of France

Posted on by CBF Students - Étudiants FCCB

Today was a very full day. We started in Hell’s Corner, outside Authie and Buron, and talked about the fighting in the days and weeks following D-Day. This was the theme of the day: Canada’s continued contribution following June 6, 1944.

We discussed the tank battle in Authie and some of the Nazi atrocities committed against Canadian prisoners of war. Much of the day was devoted to talking about the Canadian offensives of Operation Atlantic and Operation Spring. But the part of the day that has stayed with me the most, the few minutes which will stay with me for a very long time to come, were the few minutes we spent with Madame Carville.

Madame Carville is a sweet, elderly French woman living in Authie. She lives in the same house her family lived in while she was growing up, the house they were living in in 1944. She was 24 that year. On June 7, 1944 there was a battle between the Canadian forces and the Germans in Authie. Some of the civilians in the village attempted to help the wounded Canadian soldiers, and they were shot for their efforts. Madame Carville’s father was one of these civilians. He died helping one of our men, and yet, to her, Canadians are considered sacred. I can’t help but feel as though it should be the other way around. I don’t think anyone could blame her if she felt some animosity toward Canadians, or soldiers in general. We owe her father, and her, a great debt – he died for our countrymen. And yet she feels so strongly about Canadians, has so much love and gratitude in her heart. It’s something I’ve noticed quite a bit since we’ve been in Normandy.

The Canadians are remembered here. Our soldiers who died here, on these fields and beaches so far from home, are thought of with respect, honoured every year, and remembered every day. I am so proud to say I come from the same country as these men. I am so honoured to have their service as part of my past. And I am so fortunate that they were willing to give their all so we can live the lives we have today.

We’ll be heading for home in a couple short days. This tour has been nothing short of extraordinary. I could write for days about the things we’ve seen and heard, about the cemeteries and the battlefields, about the countryside which still bears the scars of wars which happened so long ago. I will carry this experience with me for a very long time, and I will always remember, with great respect and gratitude, the men we learned about here.

“The sun, now it shines on the green fields of France
There’s a warm summer breeze that makes the red poppies dance
And look, how that sun shines from under the clouds
There’s no gas, no barbed wire, there’s no gun firing down”
–The Green Fields of France, Eric Bogle

-Shelagh Prowse

Of Contrasts and Conundrums

Posted on by CBF Students - Étudiants FCCB

Today was a study in contrasts. The weather, foggy and cold at first, the turned into a warm and sunny evening (where were these clear blue skies when trying to see the battlefields and vantage points in the distance, I ask you?).  The tour also combined several different location, national cemeteries, and approaches to remembrance.

We had a full day. At 8:30 we headed to the D-Day Academy. Following a particularly invigorating ride in the Royal DUKW, we went to La Cambe, Pointe du Hoc, Omaha Beach, the Normandy American Cemetery, and Longues sur mer. After arriving home around 6, we sat down to supper and enjoyed the peaceful scenery (and braying donkey) at the Moulin Morin.

As we wound our way through Normandy, several stark contrasts arose, particularly between cemeteries, and approaches to commemoration.

First, the differences between cemeteries in terms of nationality and design provoked ongoing conversations contemplating historical insight and memory.  Last week, I discussed the First World War German cemetery Neuville-St.-Vaast and its message of peace.  Today’s cemetery at La Cambe carried the same message, however, the context of the Second World War provoked a more complex array of thoughts and emotions when considering the soldiers who rest there.  The graves also differ. For example, La Cambe had a mass grave in the center and the headstones were laying flat on the ground, a different visual impact than dark crosses (especially since the graves are white in the other cemeteries). Also, while the Canadian cemeteries we have visited list ages, as well as personal messages, these markers did not have much detail. In comparison, the Normandy American Cemetery was more up to date than La Cambe, and much larger (especially when you consider that La Cambe holds 40,000 soldiers, and the Normandy American Cemetery holds 9,000).  There were no messages on the graves, and there were more sections dedicated to monuments. The space was far more intricate, and different panels reflected the same themes of commemoration present at Pointe du Hoc.

View from Pointe du Hoc

The second major contrast of the day was the approach to remembrance at different locations.  More specifically at the D-Day Academy and Pointe du Hoc.  Last week, at the Juno Beach Centre we saw an amalgamation of interactive approaches to experiential remembrance- through visiting a bunker, outpost, and the beach, then following the path of the museum (which was engaging and highly interactive).  Today, we spent a couple of hours at the D-Day Academy, where we learnt about different arms from the Second World War.  This, however, was not a conventional site- we got to climb and sit in trucks, hold weapons, crank an air horn, and generally explore the vast warehouse of contemporary articles. Before starting to explore, Mr. Benamou talked about the academy, and said it had been designed to incorporate all five senses. It certainly reached this goal, however, each person had the opportunity to experience them at their own pace and in their own way.  Pointe du Hoc, and even the American Normandy Cemetery were quite different in this.  Their three themes were competence, courage, and sacrifice.  The sites had many panels to reinforce this, as well as a clear path which reinforced the message.  While there was a bit of flexibility in where you could walk, and what pace you could go each section was signposted and followed through from start to end.

Both the cemeteries and sites prompted a substantial amount of reflection, and for today have left many more questions than answers. How do we remember the dead?  How do we come to terms with the light and dark parts of history?  In what ways to we approach remembrance, and is there a “best” way?  What benefits are there to solid messages? To meandering paths? To deliberate communication of content?

I have no answers for these questions, but asking them lead to many interesting and in-depth conversations- a process that is key to remembrance itself.

Nina Bozzo

Normandy Continued

Posted on by CBF Students - Étudiants FCCB

Today we largely focused on the American contribution to D-Day, but we had some unique and reflective stops before then. At the D-Day Academy, everyone was so excited for hands on experience with vehicles, weapons and clothing. In my case, I was able to better understand the soldiers and equipment of the battles we have been studying during our tour. I never released how heavy the rifles were, or how coarse the fabric of the Canadian uniforms were. I think it brought history to life for just a bit. I understand artillery, vehicles, and soldiers just a bit better now.

The most challenging and potent part of the day for me was the La Combe German War Cemetery. For one, it’s interesting to contrast it between the British, Canadian, and (from later in the day) American Cemeteries. They usually have at least two soldiers per grave, and they use grey stone as opposed to the white of the Allied ones. In many ways, it feels a lot darker at La Combe, because of the layout but even more so from those buried there. I saw the grave of Adolf Diekmann, who was in charge of the massacre at Oradour-sur-Glane, and I didn’t know what to think. At the same time, Marc showed me the graves of a couple teenagers. It makes me all question how soldiers from both sides of the war should be commemorated, how to define evil, and how I should reconcile history with modern commemoration.

The rest of the day was pretty interesting. We went to Pointe-du-Hoc to see where the Rangers scaled the cliffs, Omaha Beach, and the battery at Longues-sur-Mer. It was interesting to see some American sites on top of the Canadian ones because it provides a wider context for WWII and gives me a better understanding of Canada’s role within the entire Normandy Campaign.

Sarah Oeste

Amid the Winds of Time

Posted on by CBF Students - Étudiants FCCB

Here in Normandy remembrance is a part of life, a tradition that shapes the region’s institutions and inhabitants. Today’s commemoration ceremonies, organized by the Canadian Battlefields Foundation, allowed us to contribute to and better understand that tradition.

The day began with a visit to the Mémorial de Caen museum that presents the history of the Second World War. We attended a luncheon there for the foundation’s supporters and were fortunate to meet all of them – in the process learning more about French culture as we adopted their way of greeting each other with a kiss on each cheek. I sat with a city counselor from Caen, who explained that his responsibilities in municipal government include acting as the Counselor for Commemoration. That they have this as a separate position is telling of how important they consider remembrance to be.
Memorial at the Abbaye d'Ardenne. Each maple leaf commemorates a murdered Canadian POW.

Memorial at the Abbaye d’Ardenne. Each maple leaf commemorates a murdered Canadian POW.

We moved into the Canadian Garden for the day’s first ceremony and joined the crowd of French citizens who would go on to attend all of the day’s commemorations with us. One lady said she had been attending the foundation’s events for years, and after the French anthem had been played she sang the Canadian one with just as much enthusiasm. In fact, to my surprise, everyone there knew the words to the Canadian anthem. It was yet another sign of the immense respect they have for the Canadians who liberated them.
After a second ceremony, this time at La Place de l’Ancienne Boucherie in Caen, we proceeded to the Abbaye d’Ardenne for our third (and last) ceremony. Twenty Canadian prisoners of war were murdered there by the 12th SS Panzer Division. In a very moving act of remembrance, we laid one maple leaf for each soldier on the memorial. It was difficult to reconcile the brutality of their deaths with the peaceful garden we were in – sunlight streamed through the trees and songbirds accompanied the Last Post. Afterwards I spoke with several Frenchmen who remembered being liberated as children by Canadians. Attending these ceremonies was a way for them to continue to give thanks. The Norman warmth and hospitality that we have experienced these past few days was on display yet again when we were invited to a reception hosted by the widow of Jacques Vico, who used to live at the Abbaye. It was humbling to see the care with which a gratitude spanning 70 years has been, and continues to be, so profoundly and generously expressed.
This year we started a new tradition of leaving our poppies at a tree.

This year we started a new tradition of leaving our poppies at a tree.

Yesterday, I had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to participate in the D-Day commemoration ceremonies at Bény-sur-Mer Cemetery, where I recited the Commitment to Remember. It was a powerful moment to make my promise among the graves of the Canadian fallen, and to hear it echoed by French and Canadians alike.

“They were young, as we are young,
They served, giving freely of themselves.
To them, we pledge, amid the winds of time,
To carry their torch and never forget.
We will remember them.”

“We will remember them.”

As today’s commemorations showed, these are words for us to live by – and  words that keep alive the memories of the fallen.
Lilia Lockwood