Today is Vimy Ridge Day

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The National Flag of Canada is flown at half-mast on the Peace Tower in Ottawa, from sunrise to sunset Friday, April 9, 2010, to mark the national day of remembrance of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.


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In 2003, the Government of Canada declared April 9 as "Vimy Ridge Day", to honour and remember the battle that took place at Vimy Ridge, France, in 1917, during the First World War.
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On April 9, 1917, the Canadians did what other allied forces had so far failed to do – they took Vimy Ridge. At Vimy, regiments from coast to coast saw action together in a distinctly Canadian triumph, helping create a new and stronger sense of Canadian identity. After Vimy, the Canadian corps never looked back, and its success raised our international stature and earned us a separate signature on the Treaty of Versailles that ended the war.

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Today, on land granted to Canada for all time by a grateful France, the Vimy Memorial rises above the now-quiet countryside. It stands as a tribute to all who served their country in battle and paid such a price to help ensure the peace and freedom we enjoy today.