CDDHS/DCMA Battlefields Tour 2013

Thousands of Canadian students joined the Governor General and the minister of veterans affairs in France today, April 9th, to mark the 95th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.
 

"We stand on hallowed ground — a place of agonized conflict, a site of appalling loss of life, a vessel of sorrow, a crucible of courage, a hallmark of ingenuity, collaboration and resolve undertaken by men at arms in the cause of peace," Johnston said.
 

The trip reports: "We were up at 5:30 a.m. to prepare for the big day. Over 5000 Canadian students attended the 95th anniversary of Vimy Ridge. We had a 2.7 km SILENT march up the hill to one of the Canadian cemeteries at Vimy. The march was very moving as many locals came out to watch and most houses had doors and windows decorated with Canadian flags. We got to see the trenches, the Vimy Memorial and participate in the televised 95th anniversary ceremony that governor general David Johnston attended. The kids were great despite steady and sometimes heavy rain."
  

Villers Station Cemetery contains 1,208 Commonwealth burials of the First World War and 32 German war graves. 
 

There are 74 Canadians buried here from the Battle of Vimy Ridge.
 

We read some paragraphs about Canadian soldiers who had died during World War I and are buried here. Afterwards students found the grave marker and left a poppy, Canadian flag and paragraph at the headstone.

We also visited a German cemetery, Hill 62 and tunnels and visited the bunkers where John McCrae of Guelph, writer of "In Flanders Fields" once fought.