North of Paris, close to Arras, is the Vimy Ridge Monument dedicated to the fallen Canadian soldiers from WWI. It’s an immense monument which can be seen from very far away, and it’s so impressive! Designed by Canadian sculptor and architect Walter Seymour Allward, the monument took 11 years to build. The towering pylons and sculptured figures contain almost 6,000 tonnes of limestone brought to the site from an abandoned Roman quarry on the Adriatic Sea. If you’ve ever read “The Stone Carvers” by Jane Urquhart, you’ll understand the challenges that entailed.
Canada is represented by the cloaked figure of a woman with her head bowed – a young nation mourning her dead. On each side of the front walls at the base of the steps are the Defenders: two groupings of figures known as the Breaking of the Sword, and Sympathy for the Helpless. At the top of the pylons are figures representing Peace and Justice; below them are Truth and Knowledge.
At the base is a young dying soldier, the Spirit of Sacrifice, and the Torch Bearer. On each side of the staircase are the male and female Mourner figures. Carved on the walls are the names of 11,285 Canadian soldiers who were killed in France and whose final resting place was then unknown.
We visited a few of the 30 cemeteries within a 20-km radius of the Vimy Memorial. We were touched by the rows and rows of perfectly aligned white headstones, a few small Canadian flags fluttering in the breeze, and some of the epitaphs, one which read “In loving memory of our only child who died for his country. Age: 20 years.” Altogether, more than 66,000 Canadian service personnel died in the First World War.
Canada is represented by the cloaked figure of a woman with her head bowed – a young nation mourning her dead. On each side of the front walls at the base of the steps are the Defenders: two groupings of figures known as the Breaking of the Sword, and Sympathy for the Helpless. At the top of the pylons are figures representing Peace and Justice; below them are Truth and Knowledge. At the base is a young dying soldier, the Spirit of Sacrifice, and the Torch Bearer. On each side of the staircase are the male and female Mourner figures. Carved on the walls are the names of 11,285 Canadian soldiers who were killed in France and whose final resting place was then unknown.
We visited a few of the 30 cemeteries within a 20-km radius of the Vimy Memorial. We were touched by the rows and rows of perfectly aligned white headstones, a few small Canadian flags fluttering in the breeze, and some of the epitaphs, one which read “In loving memory of our only child who died for his country. Age: 20 years.” Altogether, more than 66,000 Canadian service personnel died in the First World War. 
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