MEDIA ADVISORY - Provincial plaque commemorates Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae, author of In Flanders Fields Français
TORONTO, Nov. 3, 2014 /CNW/ - Join the Ontario Heritage Trust and the 11th Field Artillery Regiment (RCA) for a provincial plaque unveiling commemorating the distinguished soldier, physician and poet John McCrae.
Date: |
November 6, 2014 |
Time: |
7:30 p.m. |
Location: |
Guelph Armoury |
7 Wyndham Street South |
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Guelph, Ontario |
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John McCrae had been serving in the First World War as a major and brigade surgeon of the 1st Brigade, Canadian Field Artillery, when the enemy unleashed a devastating gas attack on the Canadian troops on April 22, 1915 during the Second Battle of Ypres. Half of the brigade was killed in the 17 days of battle that ensued. Moved by the death of his friend Alexis Helmer on May 2, 1915, McCrae wrote In Flanders Fields a day later as he waited for the wounded to be brought to his medical post for treatment. First published in Punch magazine in December 1915, the memorial poem would become the most popular verse of the First World War, making McCrae well known throughout the British Empire and the United States.
This unique commemoration service will feature a video address by noted Canadian historian Jack Granatstein and a reading of McCrae's poem by cadets. Several representatives of the military will also be in attendance. Refreshments will be served immediately following the program.
In partnership with John McCrae Public School, the Ontario Heritage Trust will dedicate the provincial plaque during the school's annual Remembrance Day ceremony on November 11. Following the ceremony, the plaque will be installed at its permanent location at the entrance gates to the John McCrae Memorial Gardens and Cenotaph.
The Ontario Heritage Trust's Provincial Plaque Program commemorates significant people, places and events in Ontario's history. Since 1956, over 1,250 provincial plaques have been unveiled.
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SOURCE: Ontario Heritage Trust
Natasha Williams, Senior Marketing and Communications Specialist, Telephone: 416-325-5074, Email: [email protected]; www.heritagetrust.on.ca; www.facebook.com/ontarioheritagetrust; www.twitter.com/ONheritage
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