The conversations we start on Remembrance Day can and should span all year long. Visitors to modern-day Europe can find ample reminders of a time when the continent was bitterly divided into Allied, Axis, Central and neutral powers. On this Remembrance Day, as a record number of Canadians prepare to visit Europe for the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge, we’ve assembled a collection of must-see historic sites, monuments and museums to enhance your students’ understanding of the greatest wars in our nation’s history.
Imperial War Museums
The IWM focuses on the war efforts of Britain and Commonwealth forces. The 5 unique branches are IWM London, IWM Duxford, IWM North in Manchester, HMS Belfast, and Churchill War Rooms also in London.
Dieppe Canadian War Cemetery
Fallen Canadian soldiers were buried here by the Germans. The headstones have been placed back-to-back in long double rows, reflecting typical German burials but unlike any other Commonwealth war cemetery.
Memorial Museum Passchendaele 1917
Located near Tyne Cot National Cemetery, this memorial commemorates the 100 days in which half a million casualties fell, only gaining eight kilometers of ground.
Juno Beach Centre
This is the only museum in France dedicated solely to Canada’s extensive role in Operation Overlord. Beny-sur-Mer Canadian War Cemetery is located nearby.
In Flanders Field Museum
The museum is housed in the rebuilt Cloth Hall of Ypres and presents the story of WWI in the West Flanders front region. The Menin Gate Memorial is located nearby.
Tyne Cot National Cemetery
The largest Commonwealth war cemetery in the world stands near the farthest point in Belgium that was reached by Commonwealth forces before the final advance to victory.
National Liberation Museum
Experience the sights and sounds of the Netherlands’ liberation on the famous battlegrounds of Operation Veritable, The Rhineland Offensive and Operation Market Garden.
Nazi Party Rally Grounds
Intended to demonstrate National Socialist power to the world, this historic area contains gigantic buildings where Nazi Party rallies were held.
Dachau Memorial Site
The first Nazi concentration camp in Germany, Dachau was originally intended for political prisoners but grew to include forced labour, and eventually the imprisonment of anyone deemed a criminal.
Cassino Memorial
Located within the Cassino War Cemetery, this memorial commemorates the 4,000 casualties of the 1944 advance on the German defenses of Rome, but whose Vimy Monument graves are unknown.
See more Canadian history experiences that you can share with your students on explorica.ca/history.