Government of Canada memorials in Europe

Many Canadians gave their lives in Europe during the World Wars. These sites commemorate their sacrifice.

Monchy-le-Preux, France

Monchy-le-Preux Newfoundland Memorial

Nine kilometres east of Arras, the village of Monchy-le-Preux crowns a conical hill about a kilometre north of the main Arras-Cambrai road. At the eastern edge of the village, standing erect upon the ruins of a German strongpoint, the caribou of the Monchy-le-Preux Newfoundland Memorial gazes proudly toward Infantry Hill, where a handful of gallant Newfounlanders held off massive German counter-attacks on April 14, 1917.

Thelus, France

Bourlon Wood Canadian Memorial

Today, the Bourlon Wood Canadian Memorial commemorates the attack across the Canal Du Nord on ground donated by the Comte de Franqueville, then Mayor of Bourlon.

Amiens, France

Courcelette Canadian Memorial

A circular park surrounds the memorial, screened from the road by tall trees. More than ten varieties of maples have been planted beside wide paths of well-tended turf. There are few bright colours to distract the eye from the pleasing shades of green, making the memorial park at Courcelette a place for meditation.

London, England

Canada Memorial in Green Park

Designed by Canadian sculptor Pierre Granche and unveiled by Her Majesty The Queen in 1994, the Canada Memorial pays tribute to the nearly one million Canadian and Newfoundland men and women who served in the United Kingdom during the First and Second World Wars. In particular, it honours the more than 100,000 brave Canadians and Newfoundlanders who paid the ultimate sacrifice for peace and freedom.

Courtrai, Belgium

Courtrai Newfoundland Memorial

The Courtrai Newfoundland Memorial in Belgium, just outside Courtrai on the road to Ghent, is the only caribou memorial in Belgium. In his rocky eminence, the stag commemorates the Royal Newfoundland Regiment's crossing of the Lys River under British divisional command.

Cambrai, France

Dury Canadian Memorial

At Dury Mill, 16 kilometres southeast of Arras, the Dury Canadian Memorial preserves in stone the memory of hard-fought actions to break the Drocourt-Qué ant Line.

Gueudecourt, France

Gueudecourt Newfoundland Memorial

Just north east of Gueudecourt is the Gueudecourt Newfoundland Memorial. The bronze caribou stag erected by the Newfoundland Government is clearly visible from the Albert-Bapaume-Cambrai road and stands in a small battlefield park on a low rise.

Mount Sorrel, Belgium

Hill 62

Hill 62 (Sanctuary Wood) Canadian Memorial is a block of white Quebec granite weighing almost 15 tonnes, set in a large circle of green lawn at the top of three landscaped terraces, each ablaze with solid beds of roses in season.

Amiens, France

Le Quesnel Canadian Memorial

At Le Quesnel, on the road from Amiens to Royce, the Le Quesnel Canadian Memorial, made of Quebec granite, pays tribute to the achievements of the Canadian Corps in the Battle of Amiens, 8-1 1 August, 1918. As with the others, its massive sides are inscribed in English and in French.

Masnières, France

Masnières Newfoundland Memorial

With these words, Field Marshal Sir Douglas Haig paid tribute to the "high courage and unfailing resolution" of all ranks of the Newfoundland Regiment who had fought under his command at the Battle of Cambrai, 1917.

Passchendaele, Belgium

Passchendaele Canadian Memorial

The Passchendaele Canadian Memorial commemorates the actions and sacrifices of the Canadian Corps during the First World War's Battle of Passchendaele.

Saint-Julien, Langemark, Belgium

St. Julien Canadian Memorial

Visible for several miles from its site beside the main road from Ypres to Bruges, the impressive Canadian Memorial at St. Julien stands like a sentinel over those who died during the heroic stand of Canadians during the first gas attacks of the First World War.