Courage Under Fire

 Alvie Burden came from Saskatchewan, and served in the European theatre during the Second World War, seeing action in Italy and the Netherlands.

Piercey Augustus Haynes joined the Navy after restrictions were lifted, serving during World War Two.

Eva May Roy went to war in the Second World War as part of the Canadian Women's Army Corps, and later made a career of it. Anderson Abbott was a black doctor who went south to serve with the Union Army during the Civil War.

Clarence Este saw a lifetime of service starting in the Korean War, and carrying on with various missions in the years afterwards. Jowel Fils-Aime saw peacekeeping and active duty operations around the world, but PTSD led him to take his life. The Carty brothers all served in the RCAF during the Second World War.

Black men and women have taken part in many of Canada's military history, from the Revolution to the War of 1812 and the Civil War.

They fought with distinction in two World Wars that changed the world.

And they have done the same ever since.

I found this exhibit very well curated. One of the strengths of the War Museum is telling the very human stories of individuals.

Service To The Nation

Back in May I made a stop at the Canadian War Museum, where a temporary exhibit was up in the central hub, profiling black Canadians in military service down through time.

This was done in cooperation with a museum in the Niagara area and a historical society in Nova Scotia. After the American Revolution, black Loyalists came north, and escaped slaves, making new lives in the Canadian colonies.

This is part of the citation for Stephen Thomas, who won the Medal of Bravery during the Afghan War.

Richard Pierpoint had been enslaved as a teen, but gained his freedom fighting as part of Butler's Rangers during the Revolution. He settled in Canada after that war, and served again in the War of 1812. The Coloured Corps was a militia of black volunteers who organized during that latter war.

William John Chandler went south during the Civil War to fight for the Union, losing an arm in the process, but returned to Canada and lived a long life with his family. John Bright fought in the ferociousness of World War One at places like Mount-Sorrel and Passchendaele, killed in action in the last year of that war.

Connie and Kathleen Brown were sisters who went to war in the Second World War in support roles in the Canadian military. Junius Hokan was one of Canada's first black pilots in that war, but never made it home.

David Johnson fought in the Korean War and went on to serve afterwards. Stephen Thomas served with distinction in the Afghan War.

There is a rich black history in Nova Scotia, starting with the Loyalists after the American Revolution.

William Hall was serving with a British naval gun crew in India and won the Victoria Cross for his bravery under fire. Jeremiah Jones enlisted in the First World War at a time when most men would be looking to retire, and saw action at Vimy Ridge.

The No. 2 Construction Battalion was made up of black men during the First World War, doing physical labour. They faced prejudice and neglect throughout. William White, whose parents had been enslaved, was their chaplain and advocate for fair treatment.

In recent years, the government made a point of a formal apology to the men of the No. 2 Construction Battalion.

Minnie Gray served during the Second World War in the Canadian Women's Army Corps, and ended up going into healthcare. Allan Bundy became a pilot during that war for the RCAF.

Joseph Niles saw service during the Korean War. Leo Vemb was more recent, seeing thirty years of service in places like Bosnia, Kosovo, and Afghanistan.

The Victoria Pioneer Rifle Corps was made up of free African-Americans at the invitation of the governor to settle on Vancouver Island in the 19th century. Ebenezer Mortimer, who had played baseball professionally, went to war in 1939, and was thought to have died in combat, but returned home in 1943. Samuel Watts was the first black Canadian from central Alberta to enlist in the Great War, but would not return home.

Frontier War

 At the beginning of the American Revolution, rebels attempted to invade Quebec, as the city commanded control of the St. Lawrence and was deemed to be the key to the continent. They were driven out.

The Revolution would create two countries. The thirteen colonies would become the United States. And Loyalists would leave, going north into what was still British territory, and become Canada.

Loyalists included Richard Pierpoint, an escaped slave who joined Butler's Rangers, a force of men who fought against the Americans. After the Revolution, he went north, and fought again in the War of 1812.

Here we have weapons of both wars.

This is a model of the HMS St. Lawrence, which was sunk during the War of 1812 just outside the harbour of Kingston in Ontario. Naval weapons are also in the display case.

John Norton was a Mohawk war chief who fought in the War of 1812, including most critically at the Battle of Queenston Heights. His portrait, along with weapons, a wampum belt, and a medal, are displayed together.

First Nations peoples partnered with British regulars and Canadian militia to defend the country against multiple invasions by American forces through that war. In the end, American aims to take over the country never came to pass.

This coat dates to the Battle of Queenston Heights. This is the uniform coat the commanding general, Isaac Brock was wearing that day. He was shot by an American while rallying a charge, and killed instantly. A black hole, seen directly beneath the downturned collar, marks the spot where he was hit. His final resting place is at the base of a monument dedicated in his memory at that battlefield.

Long before her name got appropriated for a chocolate company, Laura Secord was a settler. She was also a spy for the British side, and took intelligence of an impending American attack through the woods towards British lines.

The Marble Dancer

 Thayendanegea (Joseph Brant) is a 1776 painting by George Romney, depicting the Mohawk leader during a visit to London. He would fight in the American Revolution on the side of his British allies, and lead his people into southern Ontario following the end of that war.

This bust is Voltaire, a 1778 work by Jean-Antoine Houdon, depicting the renowned French philosopher.

One of the most dramatic works in the Gallery is this large painting. The Death Of General Wolfe is by Benjamin West, depicting the dying moments of the British general James Wolfe at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham at Quebec City, which decided the fate of North America. West painted this in 1770. He would do other variants of the painting, but this one is deemed the primary one.

And here we have Dancer, a marble sculpture by Antonio Canova, dating to 1818-22. She's up on a pedestal, with a playful expression, and looking like she's about to move.