Language selection

Government of Canada / Gouvernement du Canada

Search veterans.gc.ca

Canadian Virtual War Memorial

Gordon Carruthers Haig

In memory of:

Flight Sergeant Gordon Carruthers Haig

December 8, 1942

Military Service

Service Number:

R/93443

Force:

Air Force

Unit:

Royal Canadian Air Force

Division:

102 Sqdn.

Additional Information

Commemorated on Page 79 of the Second World War Book of Remembrance. Request a copy of this page. Download high resolution copy of this page.

Burial Information

Cemetery:

RUNNYMEDE MEMORIAL
Surrey, United Kingdom

Grave Reference:

Panel 104.

Location:

During the Second World War more than 116,000 men and women of the Air Forces of the British Commonwealth gave their lives in service. More than 17,000 of these were members of the Royal Canadian Air Force, or Canadians serving with the Royal Air Force. Approximately one-third of all who died have no known grave. Of these, 20,450 are commemorated by name on the Runnymede Memorial, which is situated at Englefield Green, near Egham, 32 kilometers by road west of London.

The design of the Runnymede Memorial is original and striking. On the crest of Cooper's Hill, overlooking the Thames, a square tower dominates a cloister, in the centre of which rests the Stone of Remembrance. The cloistered walks terminate in two lookouts, one facing towards Windsor, and the other towards London Airport at Heathrow. The names of the dead are inscribed on the stone reveals of the narrow windows in the cloisters and the lookouts. They include those of 3,050 Canadian airmen. Above the three-arched entrance to the cloister is a great stone eagle with the Royal Air Force motto, Per Ardua ad Astra". On each side is the inscription:

IN THIS CLOISTER ARE RECORDED THE NAMES OF TWENTY THOUSAND AIRMEN WHO HAVE NO KNOWN GRAVE. THEY DIED FOR FREEDOM IN RAID AND SORTIE OVER THE BRITISH ISLES AND THE LANDS AND SEAS OF NORTHERN AND WESTERN EUROPE

In the tower a vaulted shrine, which provides a quiet place for contemplation, contains illuminated verses by Paul H. Scott."

Information courtesy of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.

Digital Collection

Send us your images

  • Memorial– Inscription - Runnymede Memorial - April 2017 … photo courtesy of Marg Liessens

    Details

    Memorial
    Memorial – Inscription - Runnymede Memorial - April 2017 … photo courtesy of Marg Liessens
  • Memorial– Father J P Lardie's comments as inscribed on the Bomber Command Memorial Wall in Nanton, AB … photo courtesy of Marg Liessens

    Details

    Memorial
    Memorial – Father J P Lardie's comments as inscribed on the Bomber Command Memorial Wall in Nanton, AB … photo courtesy of Marg Liessens
  • Memorial– Flight Sergeant Gordon Carruthers Haig is also commemorated on the Bomber Command Memorial Wall in Nanton, AB … photo courtesy of Marg Liessens

    Details

    Memorial
    Memorial – Flight Sergeant Gordon Carruthers Haig is also commemorated on the Bomber Command Memorial Wall in Nanton, AB … photo courtesy of Marg Liessens
  • Memorial– Flight Sergeant Gordon Carruthers Haig is also commemorated on the Bomber Command Memorial Wall in Nanton, AB … photo courtesy of Marg Liessens

    Details

    Memorial
    Memorial – Flight Sergeant Gordon Carruthers Haig is also commemorated on the Bomber Command Memorial Wall in Nanton, AB … photo courtesy of Marg Liessens
  • Newspaper clipping– From the Toronto Star March 1942. Submitted for the project Operation Picture Me

    Details

    Newspaper clipping
    Newspaper clipping – From the Toronto Star March 1942. Submitted for the project Operation Picture Me
  • Newspaper clipping– From the Toronto Telegram April 1942. Submitted for the project Operation Picture Me

    Details

    Newspaper clipping
    Newspaper clipping – From the Toronto Telegram April 1942. Submitted for the project Operation Picture Me
  • Newspaper clipping– From the Toronto Telegram March 1943. Submitted for the project Operation Picture Me.

    Details

    Newspaper clipping
    Newspaper clipping – From the Toronto Telegram March 1943. Submitted for the project Operation Picture Me.
  • Soldiers' Tower Memorial– The Soldiers’ Tower was built by the University of Toronto Alumni Association in 1924 as a memorial to the Great War of 1914-1918. The names of those who died in that conflict are carved on the Memorial Screen at photo left. After the Second World War, more names were carved in the Memorial Arch at the Tower’s base. In total, almost 1200 names are inscribed. A Memorial Room inside the Tower contains mementoes and artifacts, and a 51-bell carillon serves as the audio element of the living memorial to the alumni, students, faculty and staff who died in the World Wars. The Soldiers’ Tower is the site of an annual Service of Remembrance. Photo: Kathy Parks, Alumni Relations.

    Details

    Soldiers' Tower Memorial
    Soldiers' Tower Memorial – The Soldiers’ Tower was built by the University of Toronto Alumni Association in 1924 as a memorial to the Great War of 1914-1918. The names of those who died in that conflict are carved on the Memorial Screen at photo left. After the Second World War, more names were carved in the Memorial Arch at the Tower’s base. In total, almost 1200 names are inscribed. A Memorial Room inside the Tower contains mementoes and artifacts, and a 51-bell carillon serves as the audio element of the living memorial to the alumni, students, faculty and staff who died in the World Wars. The Soldiers’ Tower is the site of an annual Service of Remembrance. Photo: Kathy Parks, Alumni Relations.
  • Memorial Room– Soldiers’ Tower, University of Toronto. Photo: David Pike, courtesy of Alumni Relations.

    Details

    Memorial Room
    Memorial Room – Soldiers’ Tower, University of Toronto. Photo: David Pike, courtesy of Alumni Relations.
  • Memorial Book– University of Toronto Memorial Book, Second World War 1939-1945. Published by the Soldiers’ Tower Committee, 1993. Entry on page 26 reads: “F/Sgt Gordon Carruthers HAIG RCAF, 102 Sqn RAF. Graduate UTS 1930. University College, BA 1935. Missing, believed killed, in an air operation overseas, 9 December 1942. Name inscribed on the Runnymede Memorial, Cooper's Hill, Egham, Surrey, England.”

    Details

    Memorial Book
    Memorial Book – University of Toronto Memorial Book, Second World War 1939-1945. Published by the Soldiers’ Tower Committee, 1993. Entry on page 26 reads: “F/Sgt Gordon Carruthers HAIG RCAF, 102 Sqn RAF. Graduate UTS 1930. University College, BA 1935. Missing, believed killed, in an air operation overseas, 9 December 1942. Name inscribed on the Runnymede Memorial, Cooper's Hill, Egham, Surrey, England.”
  • Memorial Arch West– Memorial Arch West – The names of those who died in the Second World War were added to the archway beneath the Soldiers’ Tower in 1949. The name of “FS G. C. HAIG R.C.A.F.” is among the names inscribed. Photo: Cody Gagnon, courtesy of Alumni Relations.

    Details

    Memorial Arch West
    Memorial Arch West – Memorial Arch West – The names of those who died in the Second World War were added to the archway beneath the Soldiers’ Tower in 1949. The name of “FS G. C. HAIG R.C.A.F.” is among the names inscribed. Photo: Cody Gagnon, courtesy of Alumni Relations.
  • Photo of Gordon Haig– Photograph from Torontonensis, University of Toronto's yearbook in 1935

    Details

    Photo of Gordon Haig
    Photo of Gordon Haig – Photograph from Torontonensis, University of Toronto's yearbook in 1935
  • Roll of honour– Image from Torontonensis, University of Toronto's yearbook in 1935 shows Haig's name under 'Rowing'. A 'T Holder' is a person who has worn a U of T Athletic Letter (i.e. a 'T').

    Details

    Roll of honour
    Roll of honour – Image from Torontonensis, University of Toronto's yearbook in 1935 shows Haig's name under 'Rowing'. A 'T Holder' is a person who has worn a U of T Athletic Letter (i.e. a 'T').
  • Team Photo– Photograph from Torontonensis, University of Toronto's yearbook in 1935 shows Haig and the rest of the U of T Rowing Crew. They were Intercollegiate Champions in 1934.

    Details

    Team Photo
    Team Photo – Photograph from Torontonensis, University of Toronto's yearbook in 1935 shows Haig and the rest of the U of T Rowing Crew. They were Intercollegiate Champions in 1934.

Learn more about the Canadian Virtual War Memorial

To learn more please visit our help page. If you have questions or comments regarding the information contained in this registry, email or call us. For inquiries regarding the names and information found in the RCMP Honour Roll, please email the RCMP.

Date modified: