Essay courtesy of Paul Chapman

Kindly typed by Jo Kalisz-Vel-Kalisiak of Wokingham, Berkshire

FRENCH PRAISE: HANDSOME TRIBUTES TO BRITISH TROOPS:
VIMY RIDGE THE KEY TO LENS AND DOUAI.
written by a French military correspondent the text read:

"The British Army Corps were ordered to attack at dawn. Our Allies formed up and started to storm
the formidable line before which so many attacking waves had died since 1914.

The strongest position was the first, Vimy Ridge, and those who know the ground will understand the reason.
The Ridge, which runs from the south of Givenchy to the fringe of Farbus, dominates the whole plain of Lens
and Douai. The Germans were bent on holding it. Since the days when their armies after the Marne and after the Yser took to
trench warfare many engagements, many battles indeed, were fought by the French with the express
object of taking this position considered as the key to Lens and Douai. It was on December 17th,
1914 that the French troops under the command of General Maud'huy dashed for the first time
against the Vimy Ridge. They were unable to get beyond the approaches to Carency. Five months
later on May 9th, 1915, General Petain led his famous 70th Division against the German
positions; this was the first great attack supported by a strong artillery force. General
Petain's division succeeded in a very short time in capturing a whole series of positions, it
climbed the slopes of Hill 119, some patrols went as far as Vimy; at the end of the battle we
kept Notre-Dame-de-Lorette and the fringe of the white road. A month afterwards, on June 16th, a
new attack took place on a longer front. We occupied Ablain-Saint-Nazaire but the coveted Vimy
Ridge was not reached, further operations were necessary. Preparations went on actively for
three months and on September 25th a great offensive began under the direction of General Foch
on a fifteen mile front. The battle was extremely hot, an appreciable advance was made, Souchez
fell and even the small fort of Givency, but still the Vimy Ridge was strongly held by the
enemy. This fighting taught the need of strong artillery. The great battle of Artois, in
September 1915, was prepared by heavy artillery numbering in all no more than 400 guns. For the
present offensive thousands of heavy guns, for several days, prepared the tremendous operation,
which began yesterday. What the French troops could not succeed in doing, because their
artillery was inadequate, the British have accomplished. The Vimy Ridge has been snatched from
the Germans, and this is a great success, indeed a splendid victory, of which our Allies have
the right to be proud and on which they are to be heartily congratulated."

On the same page a British correspondent's headline read:-

FLOWER OF GERMAN ARMY BEATEN: MAIN BRITISH WEIGHT THROWN IN: SOMME BATTLE SCENES ECLIPSED:
130 MILES AN HOUR AEROPLANE ATTACKS.
For reasons of security, the praise for the successful attack and capture of Vimy Ridge, in both
accounts, was directed to 'British' troops; primarily the honour belonged to Canada.

******************************

On a return journey from Paris, five years ago, I visited the Canadian National Memorial, Vimy,
for the first time. Clearly visible for many miles, as I had read, I could not help but feel
dwarfed by this magnificent monument when its true size was revealed to me. In 'Before
Endeavours Fade' by Rose Coombs there is a photograph of the statue known as (and entitled) 'The
Spirit of Canada', it was my intention to take a photograph of this statue from the same
perspective as in Rose's book. Unfortunately, on this occasion, it was not possible to achieve
this due to the large number of visitors to the memorial; everytime I framed the shot somebody
entered my view. Frustratingly, over the next three years, this continued to be the case and I
thought I was never going to get the shot I wanted.

In mid 1996 I was introduced, through a colleague, to Constable John Kuhns (Northamptonshire
Constabulary) who, I was reliably informed, was scheduled to visit the Vimy Memorial whilst
returning from a forthcoming trip to Paris. I was further informed that John would gladly
attempt to get the photograph that had continued to elude me. During the course of the
introduction John asked me what I knew about the Memorial and I related (later supplying in
writing) some information I had gleaned through personal research:

The Vimy Memorial stands on what was known, during the Great War, as Hill 145; the highest point
on the chain of hills known collectively as Vimy Ridge. The memorial commemorates the action
begun here on April 9th, 1917 when the Canadians stormed the ridge - capturing it from the enemy.
It also stands in commemoration of all Canadian servicemen and women who gave their lives in the
service of their country during the 1914 - 1918 conflict.

For Canada, Vimy Ridge was, and remains, something special. Plans to preserve this site, begun as
early as 1920, came to fruition in 1922 when France ceded 250 acres of the Ridge to Canada in
perpetuity. Shortly thereafter, at the invitation of the Canadian Government, a competition was
set in motion. This competition was for the purpose of designing a National War Memorial; over
150 entries were received. Of all the plans, drawings and ideas submitted there could only be
one winner and it must have been a very difficult task to make the final selection. Finally,
despite the stipulated 'one winner', at the close there were two.

The 'runner up' designed by Frederick Chapman Clemesha, who was himself wounded during the war,
stands at Vancouver Corner near Ypres, Belgium. Entitled 'The Brooding Soldier', it is
simplistic in design, a statue of a Canadian soldier standing with head bowed, arms and hands
resting on the butt of a reversed rifle; carved from a single shaft of granite it stands 35ft
high. Unveiled by the Duke of Connaught, 8th July 1923, it commemorates the 18,000 Canadian
soldiers who withstood the first gas attack 22/24 April 1915 during which 2,000 of them died.

Revisiting the old western front in 1964, Henry Williamson wrote "Surely the memorial for all
the soldiers of all wars? For the bowed head and shoulders with reversed arms emerging from the
top of the tall stone column has the gravity and strength of grief coming from the full
knowledge of old wrongs done to men by men. It mourns; but it mourns for all mankind...The
genius of Man rises out of the stone, and once again our tears fell upon the battlefield."

The winning design was the brainchild of Walter Seymour Allward, a sculptor and architect, of
Toronto. His design, having come to him in a dream; he noted:-
"At the base of the strong impregnable walls of defence are the defenders, one group showing the
breaking of the sword, the other the sympathy of the Canadians for the helpless. Above these are
the mouths of the guns covered with olives and laurels. On the wall stands the heroic figure of
Canada brooding over the graves of her valiant dead; below is a suggested grave with a helmet,
laurels, etc.. Behind her stand two pylons symbolizing the two forces - Canadian and French -
while between, at the base of these is the Spirit of Sacrifice who, giving all, throws the torch
to his comrades. Looking up, they see the figures of Peace, Justice, Truth and Knowledge, etc.,
for which they fought, chanting the hymn of peace. Around these figures are the shields of
Britain, Canada and France. On the outside of the pylons is the Cross...a structure that will
endure in an exposed position, for a thousand years - indeed for all time." In plain terms - it
was to be an everlasting memorial.

To be 'everlasting' it had to be constructed from everlasting materials and to this end for the
twin pylons and the figures, of which there are twenty, 8,000 tons of Adriatic marble were
brought, via Venice, from a disused 4th century Roman quarry near Sarajevo to Vimy.
The Canadian National Vimy Memorial took 11 years to complete, 4 years longer than initially
planned. 150 feet by 240 feet in length the base is constructed of over 12,000 tons of steel
reinforced concrete. The wall at the front (normally mistaken for the rear) is 24 feet high, the
twin pylons that give the memorial its unique appearance reach skywards 138 feet; the centre of
one is hollow with a ladder giving access to a viewing aperture at the top. This is accessed via
the enormous crypt beneath the base.

Carved on the front wall of the monument are the names of 11,285 Canadians killed in France
during the Great War who have no known grave. Carved at the base of one pylon there is an
inscription:
'To the valour of their countrymen in the Great War and
in memory of their 60,000 dead this monument is raised by the people of Canada'
(Canada lost 66,655 sons and daughters in the First World War).
On the pylons can be seen the symbol of the Cross and, on one, the Fleur de Lys and Laurel; the
other has the Maple Leaf and Crown, both represent Franco Canadian unity. Both pylons are
adorned with figures, one - Peace, Truth and Justice, the other - Knowledge, Gallantry and
Sympathy. When viewing these highly detailed figures in their lofty settings one cannot help but
marvel at the craftmanship involved, especially when informed that all 20 were carved in situ
by, mostly Italian, master sculptors working round the clock, in all weathers, year in year out,
for 10 years. Between the pylons, at their base, supported by a comrade is the figure of a dying
soldier - the Spirit of Sacrifice - throwing his burning torch to his compatriots on high. It is
my personal belief that Allward's inspiration for this came from the last verse of John McCrae's
poem 'In Flanders Fields:

'...The torch be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die,
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow.
In Flanders Fields.'

At the rear of the monument (normally mistaken for the front) a short flight of steps is flanked
by two recumbent figures. Commonly called the 'Mourning Parents' - one is male, the other female
- they also represent father, son and brother, wife, daughter and sister. On the other side (the
front) two flights of steps lead down to two sets of figures either side of the base. One group
represents Sympathy for the Helpless and the other Breaking of the Sword; collectively known as
the Defenders they are sited beneath the silent mouths of cannons draped with laurel and olive
wreaths symbolising Victory and Peace. Sited between the groups of Defenders is the only item
that draws attention to the fact that this is a war memorial - a draped sarcophagus with a
laurel wreath, sword and soldier's steel helmet placed on it.

On top of the front wall is the largest single figure of the entire memorial, taking the form of
a woman, cloaked from head to foot, head heavy and bowed she is exquisite in every detail.
Positioned directly above the sarcophagus, looking directly down towards it, she seems to
unseeingly stare out across the middle distance to somewhere on the Douai Plain towards Lens.
This young woman, symbolising a young nation mourning its dead, is known as
'The Spirit of Canada'

After relating most of the above to Constable Kuhns and the fact that the whole thing cost
around $1,000,000 there was little more I could tell him, so I was a little surprised when he
asked me if I knew anything else. Then he dropped the bombshell - the reason for his question
was due to the fact that he was of the opinion his late aunt had been a model for one of the
figures, or so he thought, and he had hoped that I might have been able to shed some light on
this - I could not. Shortly after that first meeting John put me in touch with his cousin
Drusilla Mason who managed to complete the story.

Edna Moynihan - born 1st August 1902 - sister to John (commonly Jack), only daughter of John and
Lizzie Moynihan. Mr. Moynihan was a Customs & Excise officer and throughout her early life Edna
lived in a variety of towns, in the British Isles, as her father's work dictated. Educated at
more than one school, naturally, she finished her education at Edgbaston High School,
Birmingham. After leaving school she took up a career in the theatre as a dancer, touring around
the country with various productions. It was whilst on tour, living in 'digs', that Edna and
another girl contracted a severe strain of typhoid. Taken into hospital and confined to an
isolation ward, not permitted any solid foods, and gently nursed through the illness, Edna was
informed that if she recovered she would never be able to dance again as it was highly likely
the exertion and strain on her heart would prove fatal. After a few weeks she was discharged
from hospital and sent home to recuperate.

During this period of recuperation at home with her family, who were now living in Tavistock
Square (London), Edna was visited by one of her dancing friends and informed about a job, "She
was a little bit dubious, she had been turned down, and didn't know how I would react when she
suggested that I should go for the job. Modelling was rather different in those days." Indeed,
models in those days were not often asked to parade down a catwalk displaying new designs - they
were more likely to get assignments of a dubious nature which usually involved parading their
flesh! Mr. and Mrs. Moynihan were not at all happy about their daughter applying for this job
but Edna had her way and went along to the Maida Vale studio of Walter S. Allward.

She was given a very lengthy explanatory interview followed by Allward taking her measurements
by use of a "special pair of calipers." Offered the job there and then, Edna readily accepted,
"He said I was just right for the job. He wanted a mother figure with shoulders wide enough to
carry the sorrows of her dead sons." Between 1927 and 1930 Edna modelled for Walter Allward at
his Maida Vale studio; in an interview in 1974 she recalled "The models were first made in clay
and then sent to France where it was carved in stone."

It was during her time modelling for Allward that Edna met her future husband; in 1928 she
married Charles Bertram Jennings who later became a doctor of medicine and general practitioner.
In 1930, with the bulk of her work on the Vimy figures now being done in France, Edna took her
leave of Walter Allward's employ and started to lead the life of wife and, soon thereafter,
mother to the first of Dr Jennings and Edna's five children. Throughout the course of their
married life they lived in a number of different towns before finally settling in Southam,
Warwickshire where they lived at 38, Pendyke Street. The 9th - 15th November 1974 edition of the
Radio Times carried a picture on its front cover - The Spirit of Canada - promoting the
beginning of a 13 part series on 20th Century European history entitled 'The Mighty Continent'.
This magazine cover prompted a family member (or friend) to inform the Leamington Spa Courier
about 'The Mother of Canada' whose subsequent article was published Friday 15th November 1974.

********************

The Spirit of Canada was unveiled at the Ceremony of Inauguration July 26th 1936.
"We were up at five-thirty and after a lovely French breakfast, got our lunch that was put up by
Cook's and left early for Vimy by bus. Such crowds and such greetings. We were allowed to drive
right up, all the Canadians, but the rest of the people had to walk in. We drove in through
those wonderful avenues of maple trees that have been sent from Canada, and had our lunch with
our companies in a woods near Vimy. All this ground has been given to Canada by France and so is
known as Canadian territory. We went through trenches at Vimy, where they have 22 miles of
trenches preserved, and came out at the famous old Grange Tunnel. Everywhere there were
thousands of people gathering, but of course, in the enclosure in front of the Vimy Memorial
only Canadians were allowed and the French soldiers guarded all around the outside edge. The
Guards of Honour were lining up and we surely were proud of them all. Sixteen had been picked
from our boat, and some from each boat, then others and the Kiltie bands etc. were wonderful.
The French people certainly seemed to like the Scotch regiments and of course our Nova Scotia
Highland Brigade, that played so great a part at Vimy, were all in kilts. Those French Algerian
Cavalrymen mounted on white Arabian horses and dressed in scarlet were wonderful. They were
lined up as guard for the King too; some had been at Vimy. When the King did arrive, they stood
straight up in their stirrups with their gold swords held straight in the air. Really they were
a magnificent sight and someone said 'Lawrence of Arabia' and they did look like his pictures in
their white turbans, etc. But I can't half describe the wonder of that day.

Our 'Beloved King' (Edward VIII would abdicate the throne in December in favour of his
sweetheart Wallis Simpson) arrived before the President of France, as that was Canadian soil,
and he appeared to us as 'The King of Canada' and came first to welcome the President of France
and the Canadians. Our first notice that he was coming, was the salute fired from the Battery at
Lens."
Florence Murdock, Nova Scotia.

Accompanied by the Hon. Ernest Lapointe, Canadian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice
the King's approach was heralded by 'God Save The King' and 'O Canada'. The King moved freely
amongst the crowds, numbering in excess of 100,000, shaking hands here and there. After
inspecting the Guard of Honour, from HMCS Saguenay, the King ascended the monument where a
number of Canadian dignitaries were present including - Sir Robert Borden, Canada's wartime
Prime Minister: Sir George Perley, wartime Minister for the Overseas Military Forces, Canada
(later Canadian High Commissioner to Britain): the Hon. Vincent Massey, Canadian High
Commissioner to the UK: Brig. Gen. Raymond Brutinel, wartime CIC Canadian Machine Gun Corps and
Gen. John J. Pershing, wartime CIC United States Army. After presentations the crowd sang 'For
He's a Jolly Good Fellow' and the King once again mingled with the crowds, asking questions,
smiling broadly at the unrestrained enthusiasm.

Florence Murdock recalled:
"The King came down and just walked through the lines of Canadians anywhere speaking to all he
could. The French, Belgian and British aeroplanes began to come flying in formations of four
until the sky was filled. Our own Canadian Mounted Police in their scarlet coats were the King's
real guard that day, and we certainly were proud of them. Against that white background they did
look lovely and their gold badges shone in the sun."

After the flypast the King ascended the dais for the Service of Dedication led by Monsignor E.A.
Deschamps of Montreal, wartime padre and official chaplain to the Canadian pilgrimage. He
offered ' the homage of unfailing gratitude' and spoke of the need for the 1914 - 18 conflict to
serve as a necessary example to the pathway for permanent peace; "Let the peoples learn to love
one another until the word 'enemies' has passed from the lexicon of mankind." Although no
official function had been assigned to him Archdeacon F.G. Scott, known to thousands of
ex-servicemen as 'Canon Scott' offered a prayer from the dais when the ashes from Armistice Day
Remembrance fields were scattered at the base of the monument (Scott was best remembered for the
action when, badly wounded himself, he rushed out and brought in his son and another man before
collapsing; the son he rescued and a grandson were with him). The religious ceremony was
concluded by the playing of the traditional Scottish regiments lament 'Flowers Of The Forest',
by the pipers of the Nova Scotia Highlanders.

Walter Allward, the sculptor, and his wife were in attendance; in his address Allward emphasized
"....this altar in stone, gives something beautiful to France, is worthy of the men who gave
their lives for it and, as a protest against the futility of war, makes men regret that humanity
has to go to war instead of being proud of it."

Absent from the ceremony, Canadian Prime Minister W.L. Mackenzie King his address was read by
the Hon. C.G. Power, Canadian Minister of Pensions and National Health:- "Canada asks that the
nations of Europe strive to obliterate whatever makes for war and for death. She appeals to them
to unite in an effort to bring into being a world at peace. This is the trust which we, the
living, received from those who suffered and died. It is the trust we hold in common."

With the words "It is a memorial to no man but a memorial for a nation" the King unveiled the
Spirit of Canada. He spoke softly, reminding his subjects that Vimy was "...not alien soil..." -
it would be forever Canada, affirming "Though their mortal remains lie far from home, they lie
on Canadian soil - battlefields abound on which is indelibly written their story. Vimy is one
such name. The splendour of their hope fills us with thankfulness for their example. Now peace
and the rebuilding of hope is our task." As His Majesty finished speaking, the Last Post rang out
signalling two minutes silence - eyes were moist as memories of sacrifice filled the assembled
crowd; Reveille heralded another day and a prayer for peace. Voicing the gratitude of France for
Canada's sacrifice President Le Brun said the monument would serve as a permanent reminder
"That here several thousand men, come from a faraway land, spilled blood to defend their hearth."

Via short wave transmission, courtesy of the Canadian Broadcasting Commission, thousands of
homes in Canada tuned into the ceremony. The Mutual and National Broadcasting systems of America
carried the program in the United States. As the day's events unfolded, announcers broadcast a
vivid picture, in English and French, to listeners around the world.

Florence Murdock was equally vivid:
"After the service we went up and all over the Monument...The weather, and flowers put on the
tomb were simply marvellous, but one blue beret with the crest of a Nova Scotia Regiment, and
pine cones on either side, and pine needles through the top, occupying a very central place drew
our attention. The crosses of forget-me-knots and the poppy wreaths, roses, and carnations,
every known flower was there and such unique and impressive shapes, etc. We were all so thrilled
by the picture the Monument made in that glorious sunshine and such crowds...The whole picture
will always remain with us as of one gorgeous painting."

Sadly there are no recollections like those of Florence Murdock for another who was present at
the Inauguration. "A dear old lady..." Mrs. C.S. Woods, of Winnipeg (travelling in company with
a war nurse), represented the Silver Star Mothers of Canada. Wearing their medals on her right
breast. "...She had twelve sons in the war; five were killed at the front, and three died of war
wounds after...The soldiers were wonderful to her. The King spoke to her, personally at Vimy and
she was chosen to put the wreath on the Unknown Soldier's Grave at Westminster Abbey in
London..." One wonders what thoughts might have passed through this lady's mind?

*********************
Postscript:

On April 9th 1940 one Canadian newspaper carried the following;_
'WHAT OF THE MONUMENT?'
'Three years ago (sic) Edward VIII, in the presence of a great crowd of Canadian pilgrims,
dedicated the Canadian Memorial on Vimy Ridge, that spot of Canada in France. Now again war has
come and more Canadians have answered the call. One wonders what fate has in store for this
Canadian Monument. Will it survive this new conflict? Only time will tell!'
Not only did the monument survive, it was strikingly portrayed on the 1944 Christmas cards
printed by General Crerar's First Canadian Army Headquarters having advanced over 300 miles from
the Normandy beaches. "...and all Vimy saw of the fighting was the dust of armoured divisions as
they poured through (Anon)."

&

Edna Jennings (nee Moynihan) never attended the unveiling on July 26th 1936 when the flag draped
figure of her was unveiled by Edward VIII (This was his last official public engagement), Fifty
years later, in 1986, Edna moved home for the last time, to Budleigh Salterton in Devon, to live
out her final days in the company of her family; Charles had passed away some years previously.
Today Drusilla runs an Arts and Crafts shop in Budleigh and is very proud that her mother is The
Spirit of Canada. Drusilla confided in me that her mother did not model only one statue - she is
also the Mother of Canada, they are both the same, next time you visit Vimy take a look. Sadly
Edna passed away in 1995 never having visited Vimy although it was always her intention to do so
but, Walter Allward ensured that she will always be with us by virtue of his ideal - "to endure,
in an exposed position, for a thousand years - indeed for all time." At the time of writing
Drusilla has not visited Vimy. The elusive photograph? - I took it myself in 1996.

*********************
Source:
The Vimy Pilgrimage July 1936 - David Pierce Beatty
Vimy Ridge - Alexander McKee.
Private Papers - Author.
Copyright. C PRC 1997/2000