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Canada’s most decorated citizen

Honorary Lieutenant-General Richard Rohmer tends to greet people with a fist bump these days. The informal gesture quickly puts guests at ease when they first meet the legendary Veteran of the Second World War.

At 101 years old, Rohmer has been called Canada’s most decorated citizen, a distinction that has less to do with longevity and more with the remarkable achievements the General has packed into his well-lived life.

A military man through and through

Rohmer is a military man through and through. He is also a lawyer, an author and the main character in a story more Canadians ought to know.

Born in Hamilton, Ontario, in 1924, Rohmer was just 18 when he enlisted. From the moment he saw his first airplane as a little boy, he knew flying was what he would do.

“I had wanted to be a pilot from the time I was about five. On my 18^th birthday, I decided I would join up. I walked in and put the uniform on, and that was it.”

After training in southern Ontario, Rohmer soon found himself evading German U-Boats crossing the Atlantic Ocean on his way to England. There, he would join No. 430 Squadron, a fighter reconnaissance unit that was flying Mustang and Spitfire aircraft on air intelligence work.

“Our job was to go behind enemy lines and see what we could find—tanks, guns, people or things moving. We went across to Normandy (for D-Day) and that’s when we really came to grips with the enemy and what we were doing.”

Memories of the Second World War

Rohmer flew 135 combat missions in France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany. A few, in particular, stand out.

In July 1944, Rohmer was flying a low-level reconnaissance mission when he spotted a German staff car.

“I didn’t know who was in it, but I knew it was brass because they didn’t have staff cars for everybody.”

After calling in the location, a Spitfire appeared and strafed the vehicle off the road, killing the driver and badly wounding the officer beside him.

Rohmer later learned the passenger was Field Marshall Erwin Rommel, a key figure in the German war machine. Rommel’s severe injuries from the crash took him out of the war. He later died from cyanide poisoning after being caught up in a plot to kill Adolf Hitler.

“My connection with him was never direct, but it was indirectly direct,” Rohmer says.

Another vital military engagement came in the Netherlands.

“The key moment of mine was in relation to the artillery shoot that I was tasked to do.”

From the air, Rohmer directed the battery ordered to destroy bridges in the Dutch town of Venlo, a major logistical hub near the German border.

“This shoot was extremely important,” he says. “The exercise was that I would go out and make contact with this big gun, which was about 12 miles away, to get the shells falling exactly where I wanted them. And I got the shoot going without any problem.”

This was one of many important examples of how the Allies weakened Germany’s ability to fight and defend itself. With the bridges destroyed, it became much harder for German units to retreat and resupply, and easier for the Allies to free occupied areas.

Within months, Germany surrendered, and the war in Europe was over.

It is a story Rohmer is eager to tell again in May when he travels to the Netherlands to mark the 80^th anniversary of the Liberation.

Making a mark

He knows this will be the last time he attends such commemorative events abroad, and has always tried to convey the importance of remembering and honouring the sacrifices made during the war.

“The Canadian troops and the Air Force got really involved to free the Holland people. It left quite a mark on the Canadians who did it and on the people who received the good results of the effort of a lot of people who were killed in the process,” he says.

“Remembrance relates to your obligation to your country as a citizen. But Canada is the finest country in the world and the Dutch are very strong people in terms of remembering those who have helped them. And that’s one of the things that I think is important to us Veterans who did take part.”

Despite his heroics as a pilot, Rohmer’s greatest achievement in life cannot be narrowed down to one specific moment from the war. After some careful reflection, he smiles humbly and says:

“I was able to influence the course of events in many fields, whether it’s peace, war, flying, writing. I was fortunate to do it and to have a wonderful family. I’m one of the more lucky people in the world to be in that position. And I hope to live forever, of course, which is what we all do.”

With courage, integrity and loyalty, Honorary Lieutenant-General Richard Rohmer is leaving his mark. He is a Canadian Armed Forces Veteran. Discover more stories.