Latest news with #1stHussars
CTV News
3 days ago
- General
- CTV News
1st Hussars Honour D-Day heroes at Holy Roller Memorial in Victoria Park
Ahead of the 81st anniversary of the D-Day invasion, the 1st Hussars Regiment Association held a public memorial, CTV London's Reta Ismail has the details. Ahead of the 81st anniversary of the D-Day invasion, (which will take place on June 6) the 1st Hussars Regiment Association held a public memorial next to the Holy Roller tank in Victoria Park on Sunday. 'On June 6, 1944, 14,000 Canadians landed that day. There were, 39 squadrons of (Canadian) airplanes,' explained Joe Murray, a retired Lieutenant Colonel with the 1st Hussars Regiment Association. 'The 1st Hussars led the way on D-Day, we landed amphibious tanks, we landed, generally speaking, ahead of the infantry,' explained Lt. Col. Murray. 'There were hundreds of Canadian ships at the end of World War two, we had over a million people in uniform from Canada. We had the third largest navy, fourth largest air force, and sixth largest army in the world.' 060125_DDAY holy roller victoria park London D-Day memorial next to Holy Roller in Victoria Park, June 1, 2025 (Reta Ismail/CTV News London) The names of 187 fallen Hussars were read during the ceremony, as wreathes were laid at the foot of the Holy Roller. A parade to the sound of bagpipes marched through downtown to Victoria Park, where the Holy Roller has been on display since 1950. 'The Holy Roller was one of the two tanks that made it from D-Day to the end of the war, and we call it our last veteran,' said an emotional Lt. Col. Murray. 'It was beat up, it's scarred somewhat through battle, but it survived… just like the veterans who came back.' 060125_DDAY holy roller victoria park London D-Day memorial next to Holy Roller in Victoria Park, June 1, 2025 (Reta Ismail/CTV News London) The ceremony honoured all who served and acknowledged a change of command for the 1st Hussars. Brigade commander, Col. Blair Ashford, says the 1st Hussars have roots back to the 1800's. 'We just need to remember those that have served and didn't come back. And it's our sacred duty to remember that, because still our soldiers to go into danger today. And we need to make sure that they realize that we'll remember them if they do fall.' Also on hand for the memorial was the King's Royal Hussars from England, who attended the ceremony for the first time in history.
CTV News
3 days ago
- General
- CTV News
Honouring veterans ahead of D-Day anniversary
Ahead of the 81st anniversary of the D-Day invasion, the 1st Hussars Regiment Association held a public memorial next to the Holy Roller tank in Victoria Park on Sunday. CTV London's Reta Ismail has the details.
CTV News
5 days ago
- General
- CTV News
D-Day anniversary: Londoners, French students unite in remembrance
Joe Murray, a retired LCol with the regiment, was joined by French students Inès Girard and Clement Hulley on May 30, 2025, ahead of the 81st anniversary of D-Day, which will be honoured this weekend. (Sean Irvine/CTV News London) The 81st anniversary of the D-Day invasion will be marked this weekend by a London regiment with ties to the battle. The 1st Hussars Regiment Association will hold a public memorial at 10:30 a.m. next to the Holy Roller tank in Victoria Park. Two students from France, who've studied the sacrifices of local Canadian soldiers and the significance of the Holy Roller, will join them. 'This tank liberated Normandy, France, and the Netherlands, and it came home,' Joe Murray, a retired LCol with the regiment, told the students. Both Inès Girard and Clement Hulley reside near Juno Beach, where Canadian soldiers and the Holy Roller tank came ashore on June 6,1944. For the pair, traveling to the Forest City is a pilgrimage. 'I think you need to investigate the duty of remembrance,' pledged Girard. The 1st Hussars Regiment Association sponsored the student's trip to Canada and the visit of two of their own overseas. 'We send two young soldiers, usually in their early 20s, over to France to celebrate and commemorate D-Day,' explained Murray. As area veterans of the invasion have passed, Murray contends it is vital for students and young soldiers on both sides of the Atlantic to learn of their sacrifice. 'Well, I think we always must talk about it, because if we don't talk about it and we don't say the names of the people who sacrificed for us, we will forget. If we speak the names, like we will on Sunday, they will be remembered forever,' said Murray. The students agreed, with Girard adding, 'If you remember what the soldiers in the past did, we can be vigilant for the future.' Albeit an increasingly uncertain future. Which is why Murray stated it remains important to focus on what the Holy Roller represents. 'I always think of the Holy Rollers as the last veteran, and that it symbolizes freedom. People don't realize when they speak their mind that the Holy Roller has their backs. And symbolically, the veterans who won that freedom, well, they're looking down upon them,' said Murray.
