Student Tour Blog

Written by Landon Munnings

Today was one of the most powerful and emotional days of our CBF tour through France, as we explored two specific sites that preserve the memory of some of the darkest parts of the Second World War while also honouring those who suffered and sacrificed so much for freedom. Our day began at the Memorial de Caen, a museum and memorial dedicated to peace and the history of the Second World War. We attended a CBF ceremony honouring the Allied soldiers who fought and died during the war. One of the greatest honours of the trip came when I had the opportunity to law a wreath alongside Denver and Emma. Standing before soldiers, mayors, veterans, and an overall large crowd, I felt a strong sense of responsibility and gratitude. It was definitely a moment I will never forget.

Following the ceremony, we toured the museum itself. The exhibits were quite powerful and thought provoking. We learned about Hitler’s rise to power and how his extremist ideology was able to take a hold over Germany. Another exhibit focused on the Holocaust, which offered a distinct reminder of the devastating consequences of hatred, prejudice and discrimination. We also explored an exhibit on the Cold War, which focused on key events and moments in popular culture during the period following the Second World War. Each exhibit was distinct, but showed the importance of remembering this history so that future generations like my own can learn from them.

Later in the day, we travelled to Abbaye d’Ardenne, the particular site where twenty young Canadian soldiers were brutally executed by members of the 12th SS Panzer Division, known as the Hitler Youth, under the command of Kurt Meyer. Standing in the exact location where these men lost their lives over 80 years ago brought a sense of reality to the events that I had studied and read about before the trip. It was both a sobering and emotional experience. During the ceremony, we also took part in a long-standing CBF tradition by laying maple leaves at the monument erected in memory of the massacre, with one leaf placed for each of the twenty Canadians who were murdered there. What I appreciated most was that, rather than calling the names of the students participating in the ceremony to step forward, the speaker read aloud the name of each young Canadian soldier who had lost his life. This simple but powerful detail ensured that the focus remained on those we had gathered to honour. It was a deeply moving ceremony, but one of the hardest realities to grasp was that many of the soldiers were our age or younger. They were young men who never had the chance to finish their education, pursue careers, start families or experience the lives that laid ahead of them.

Following the ceremony, Hannah delivered an outstanding presentation on the massacre. She explained the events that occured in 1944 while also humanizing the young Canadians soldiers who were tragically killed. Her presentation highlighted to the group both the cruelty and depravity of Meyer and his Hitler Youth troops, as well as the courage of the Canadian soldiers so far from home. Most importantly, she reminded us why it is so important to continue telling their stories. Today was a day of remembrance, reflection and the raw emotion in the history itself. It definitely reinforced the importance of honouring those who sacrificed and died before us and ensured that the lessons of the Second World War are never forgotten.

-Landon Munnings (Wilfrid Laurier University)