Canadian Veterans Memorial

In 1944-45, after fighting their way through Belgium, the Allied Forces, with a large proportion of Canadian troops, liberated the Netherlands. More than sixty years later, the Netherlands, and its emigrants worldwide have never forgotten this gift by Canada, who lost near 8,000 soldiers fighting for their freedom and whose bodies still lay in Dutch soil to this day.

On September 22, 2006, this memorial was given as a gift from the Dutch Community as an expression of thanks to Canada and its Armed Forces, for their role in the liberation of Holland and Belgium during World War II. It was presented to the WW2 Veterans of Canada and the City of London in Victoria Park.

This memorial consists of 3 sections. The first a unique musical Carillon made of 18 bronze bells suspended on a large stainless steel tower. The second element is a granite sculpture at the base of the Carillon showing the locations of Canadian Forces cemeteries in Holland and Belgium, where 7,600 Canadian WW2 graves are located. Thirdly, as is fitting for the Dutch, a beautiful garden has been created to encompass the entire site.

The concept for this memorial was originally inspired by members of the local Dutch community and further developed by myself - Gerard Pas, a Dutch born artist. The actual production of the Carillon’s elements was fabricated and constructed by local London businesses, with the exception to the 18 bells, which were cast in the Netherlands.

Remarkably, the monies used to create this memorial came almost entirely from donations of Dutch Citizens and their many friends in London and Area. In fact, some donations were made by the surviving spouses and children of Veterans who fought in those bloody battles that liberated the Netherlands.

This truly was a community event and one organized by the generosity of many.