The permanent galleries in the Canadian War Museum begin in the earliest times with conflict between First Nations peoples, moving into European contact and Canadian involvement in global conflicts as time goes on. I've been through the galleries on numerous occasions, so this visit was more of a walk through. The first two shots deal with the period of the French and Indian War, with flags greeting the visitor, and a model of the battlefield at the Fields Of Abraham outside Quebec City, where the war came to a zenith. Lines of British and French regulars, as well as militia and First Nations allies, can be made out along the contours of the model, and the display panels below the model explain what went wrong and right during the battle.
This British uniform dates back to the period of the American Revolution, which, aside from ending up seeing a lot of Loyalists move into Canada after the fact, impacted us personally- Richard Montgomery and Benedict Arnold (yes, that Arnold) launched a failed invasion into Quebec.
Tensions on both sides of the border defined the era, and led into the War of 1812, which is examined in this area. These weapons and tools are in a display case.
Moving ahead in time to the Second World War, I paused to try a navy cap on in a spot that simulates being out at sea. As usual, the hat doesn't fit my bloody big skull.
This portrait is by a Flight Lieutenant, Robert Stewart Hyndman, dating to the end of the war. Sergeant M.E. Boreham, The British Empire Medal depicts Myrtle Eileen Boreham, a Canadian who joined the RCAF in 1941 and served at headquarters in London through the war. She was given the medal for her devotion to duty in 1944.
Close by, in an area that concentrates on the Italian campaign, are panels and mementos of the Devil's Brigade, the joint U.S.-Canadian group of special operators.
D-Day and the Normandy campaign get quite a lot of attention in this area of the museum, and here is some of the equipment from the campaign.
Interesting exhibition, nice portrait of the lady.
ReplyDeleteA very interesting exhibition. Pity we don't learn that war is not good.
ReplyDeleteInteresting war exhibition but a sad reminder of the lost lives. Have a great day!
ReplyDeletei enjoy the uniform, design, color ... nice selfie. happy week! ( ;
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting to see weapons of war from times gone by William, how they have changed!
ReplyDelete@Marianne: it is quite a portrait.
ReplyDelete@Mo: humanity is slow to learn.
@Nancy: thank you.
@Beth: thanks!
@Grace: they certainly have.
...war has a long history!
ReplyDeleteHello, it is an interesting exhibit. I wish we would all learn war is not a good thing. Happy Monday, enjoy your day and new week ahead!
ReplyDeleteAn interesting exhibition, William !
ReplyDeleteWe've been involved in much conflict. Maybe we're not the peaceful people we think we are.
ReplyDeleteThat looks like a very interesting exhibition.
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing exhibition, William!
ReplyDeleteLove seeing the uniforms, learning more of the history and learning about Myrtle Boreham.
ReplyDeleteJanis
GDP
@Tom: humanity is prone to violence.
ReplyDelete@Eileen: thank you.
@Red: there are times in our history when we as a country have been called to serve, and we have answered that call.
@Sharon: I enjoy visiting this museum.
@Linda: definitely!
@Janis: it is quite a portrait.
So many wars!
ReplyDeleteFascinating. May conflict by arms become a museum relic!
ReplyDeleteGreat exhibition. I like the portrait of Myrtle Eileen Boreham.
ReplyDeleteThis museum is one I would love to see. Thank you for sharing another very interesting post William.
ReplyDeleteToo bad, we couldn't see more of you wearing that hat, William.
ReplyDelete@Red: it's in our nature.
ReplyDelete@Cloudia: that might be a tall order.
@Tamago: she certainly did stand out.
@Denise: you're quite welcome.
@Beatrice: alas, I don't take too many selfies!
Hmm, 1812. Not a very good year for Yankees.
ReplyDeleteWeapons change, but the wars continue.
ReplyDeleteA nice exhibition, William.
ReplyDeleteA simulation of being out at sea? I hope it doesn't get bad enough to provoke sea sickness.
ReplyDeleteFascinating - my kind of museum! Many exhibits I recognise - nice portrait, by the way. Ref the earlier section on the late 18th/early 19th centuries, they were little tinkers, those Patriots, weren't they? Still they seem to be doing OK these days :-)
ReplyDeleteWe never learn from history, do we?
ReplyDeleteA lot of interesting stories in this exhibition.
ReplyDelete@Revrunner: as your side's objective was to kick the British out of Canada and take over, your side lost the War of 1812.
ReplyDelete@Mari: that's true.
@Bill: that it is.
@Kay: nope!
@Mike: you'd enjoy it.
@Norma: we don't.
@Jan: there are.