Day 3 Part 1: True patriot love in all thy sons command.

Tyne Cott Commonwealth Cemetery is the largest Commonwealth Cemetery anywhere in the world, for any war.

1330 Local Time
Passendale, West Flanders, Belgium

Canadian memorial near Tyne Cot Commonwealth Cemetery.

During World War I England bore a tremendous load of the responsibility in manning the allied force. As a result they utilized their colonial assets, bringing in soldiers from all over their vast empire to fight under one banner...kinda. Historians continue to debate if colonial regiments were unfairly placed in circumstances that would result in higher death rates to protect the native English. This argument is spurred by the numbers. For instance, a significantly larger percentage of soldiers for colonial New Zealand and Canada were killed in France and Belgium compared to those native to the United Kingdom.

Marker on the side of the Canadian memorial.

The contribution and sacrifice of Canada in World War I cannot be underestimated. Much like the United States, most Canadians preferred neutrality, despite growing conflict in Europe in 1914. However because Britain maintained control of Canadian foreign affairs (until 1931), Canada was automatically entered into the war on August 4 1914 when Britain declared war on Germany.

Approximately 625,000 Canadians served in World War I. Of those, more than 60,000 were killed and 175,000 were injured. Those are astonishing numbers. That means that nearly 40 percent of Canadians became casualties.  I am not sure I can even comprehend the level of sacrifice that this denotes.

Canada and the United States have been allies for a very long time. Despite some issues early on, a remarkable peace has lasted for 200 years. The countries share the longest land boarder in the world, including the longest undefended boarder. Our similar cultural values, and great relationship in business and trade has lead to a great friendship that shows no sign of weakening.

The contributions of Canada to the allied efforts in World War I proved that they were a strong nation, with a military industrial capability that did not need to rely on Britain for support. In 1931 Canada gained independence from Britain but maintained some ties until 1982 when they became 100% independent of British influence. The contribution of Canada in Wold War I helped ensure that Canada would remain The True North strong and free.

Tyne Cot Commonwealh Cemetery

Located in Passendale, Belgium, Tyne Cot Commonwealth Cemetery is the largest Commonwealth cemetery in the world, for any war. The scale is simply hard to convey. Neatly dressed headstones grace a tightly packed landscape. There are 11,956 burials but astonishingly 8,369 are unnamed.

Each grave at Tyne Cot Commonwealh Cemetery tells a unique story.

Due to the horrific nature of the First World War, and limited technology for identification, I expected a high number of unnamed, but not to this extent. Unique to the British unknowns however is that many of them are still identified to the unit they they fought with, or by their rank, compared to the American cemeteries that do not denote any known information (more on this in a later post).. If something, anything was known about them, it is noted on the headstone. For instance one says "A Captain from the Canadian Regiment" or "An unknown from the Lincolnshire Regiment." This is why they distinguish quite clearly between "unnamed" and "unknown." However there are still 101 burials of complete unknowns.

German graves at Tyne Cot Commonwealth Cemetery.

All told there are burials for England, Canada, Newfoundland, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the British West Indies. Uniquely, there is also a single French grave and four for German soldiers as well. The German soldiers were treated for their injuries, but died before they recovered. They were immediately interred in the location and never exhumed. Today they are given the same respect as the Commonwealth soldiers.

Inside the walls of the cemetery are several old German pill box defense positions. There were incorporated into the design of the cemetery, including at the center where now stands a large cross and memorial to the missing.

To me it is not possible to recognize America's war history without also acknowledging the sacrifices of our allies. The tremendous strength of the allied forces in World War I and World War II lead to a revolutionary change in the way the world approached everything from business to defense. The world became one in war and then one in peace afterward (League of Nations). Then war again, then peace. It is now our responsibility to learn from these horrific wars to prevent more cemeteries like this one from being necessary in the future.