Hon. Rebecca Patterson: Woebegone

Weeping

Autumn winds

Harrow my heart,

Wearying

My will.

[English]

This song chorus was broadcast by Radio London in June of 1944 as a signal to the French Resistance that the invasion of France was imminent.

We commemorate June 6 today as the seventy-ninth anniversary of D-Day, Operation Overlord, the invasion of Nazi‑occupied Europe at Normandy. It set in motion the eventual defeat of Hitler in the Second World War.

Of the approximately 150,000 Allied troops who landed or parachuted into France, roughly 14,000 were Canadian, about 1 in 10. Canadian commanders were responsible for one of the five beaches, Juno Beach. As part of the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division, Ottawa’s own Cameron Highlanders, were among those who stormed ashore along with six artillery regiments and the 2nd Armoured Brigade. In support of the Canadian and Allied armies, the Royal Canadian Navy provided escorts, minesweeping, troop transport and, of course, direct fire support as part of Operation Neptune.

Ahead of D-Day, the Royal Canadian Air Force, or RCAF, in conjunction with Allied air forces, conducted bombing raids across occupied territory to soften up the enemy’s defences. The 1st Canadian Parachute Battalion was dropped behind enemy lines on D-Day minus one and successfully destroyed two bridges to slow potential German counterattacks. RCAF fighters and bombers also provided air cover and direct support to the soldiers on the beaches.

Francis Godon of the Royal Winnipeg Rifles described Juno Beach as being so red and thick with blood that it was like crawling through ketchup. Just behind the troops, like Francis, the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps field ambulances came ashore, under fire, to gather and evacuate casualties to the waiting hospital ships and civilian boats.

And less than two weeks following D-Day, the first two Canadian Nursing Sisters, with the No. 2 RCAF Mobile Field Hospital, landed in Normandy at Bernières-sur-Mer. They were Dorothy Irene “Molly” Mulholland of Grimsby, Ontario, and Winnifred “Pit” Pitkethly of Ottawa.

Molly described her experiences to her family after the war, telling them how she slept most of her first week in a trench and how she did a 72-hour shift in the operating room, which was just a tent, while bombs fell, and combat raged around her.

At the close of the Normandy campaign, it is estimated that more than 2 million Allied soldiers landed in France. In terms of casualties, roughly 200,000 Allied troops were either killed or wounded, with a similar number of German casualties. Of those Allied casualties, 18,700 were young Canadian men, with over 5,000 killed in action.

As memories fade, and history becomes Hollywood, we must not forget that:

[Translation]

They shall grow not old,

as we that are left grow old:

Age shall not weary them,

nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun

And in the morning

We shall remember them.

Thank you.

[English]