Hamilton featured in new Dieppe exhibition marking 80th anniversary of WW II raid
CBC
On a day that would rove pivotal to Canadian war history, 5,000 Canadians raided the French port of Dieppe in August of 1942.
Now a new exhibition will commemorate the 80th anniversary of that day, and two Hamilton-related artifacts will be a part of it.
Juno Beach Centre Association, based in Burlington, owns and operates the Juno Beach Centre in Normandy, France. The centre is launching a new exhibit, From Dieppe to Juno: 80th Anniversary of the Dieppe Raid, featuring 72 artifacts and represents Canada's ever-changing understanding of the raid and its lasting memory and legacy.
Securing those artifacts will allow the centre to help keep the memory alive, said Marie Eve Vaillancourt, Juno Beach Centre's director of exhibitions.
"The objects we did find are quite powerful and reveal the significance of the raid," she said. "Each of them is a true treasure."
"They will help the JBC tell the story of the Dieppe Raid through the individuals who experienced the raid and whose artifacts we will be showcasing. Their presence in France will help visitors understand the legacy of the Dieppe Raid."
The raid had a deep impact on Hamilton. The Royal Hamilton Light Infantry (RHLI) saw 197 men dead following the battle, and nearly 300 wounded.
Captain Tim Fletcher, now retired from the Canadian Armed Forces after a 36-year career, served with the RHLI for 16 of those years. He said the memory of the raid hasn't lasted, but its legacy has.
Fletcher calls the Dieppe Raid "a terrible slaughter," during only several hours of combat.
"The [Hamilton] Spectator of the day reported that not a family in Hamilton or Stoney Creek was left unaffected by the massive casualties," he said.
As for the exhibition, 18 of the artifacts came from Canadian museums of family collections, the centre said in a media release.
One of Hamilton-related artifacts is a cross made of chert stones from the beach at Dieppe that was presented to John Weir Foote after the war.
One of two Canadians to win the Victoria Cross, Foote was an honorary captain and chaplain of the RHLI. At Dieppe, he tended to wounded soldiers on the beach and chose to go into captivity with his group instead of escaping to England, the centre said.
"The story of his sacrifice quickly spread through Hamilton society in the weeks following the tragedy at Dieppe," it said in a media release.
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