Citation(s);
Military service
Burial/memorial information
Baptized Joseph-Napoléon-Donat Gélinas. Son of Napoléon Gélinas and Alphonsine Giroux, of Trois-Rivières, Mauricie, Québec.
Enlisted in the 57th Reserve Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force, he was assigned to the 41st Battalion on October 13, 1915. With this unit, he sailed for Great Britain on the 18th and landed in Plymouth, England, on the 28th. He was assigned to the 23rd Reserve Battalion on February 29, 1916, and transferred to the 22nd Battalion on April 23. On the 24th, he crossed the English Channel to land in France. He was temporarily attached to the Canadian Brigade Depot. On May 14, he rejoined his new unit, the 22nd. On December 25, 1916, around 1 a.m., a barrage of shells rained down on the Mecknes trenches between Angres and Lens. A German 5.9-inch shell exploded and buried Gélinas in the trench. He was quickly dug out, but he was already dead. He was buried in the Mecknes Trench Cemetery.
Digital gallery of
Private Donat Gélinas
Digital gallery of
Private Donat Gélinas
Digital gallery of
Private Donat Gélinas
In the Books of Remembrance
Commemorated on:
Page 90 of the First World War Book of Remembrance.
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TRANCHEE DE MECKNES CEMETERY Pas de Calais, France
Aix-Noulette lies about 16 kilometres north of Arras about 2 kilometres south-west of Bully-les-Mines on the road from Arras to Bethune. TRANCHEE DE MECKNES CEMETERY is about 2 kilometres east of the village.
For more information, visit Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
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