105th Anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge

April 9, 2022

Their Excellencies the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General and Commander-in-Chief of Canada, and Mr. Whit Fraser attended the commemorative ceremony for the 105th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge at the National War Memorial in Ottawa. During the ceremony, Her Excellency delivered remarks and laid a wreath.

Governor General Simon is saluting. She is standing on a small podium in front of the National War Memorial.

Their Excellencies the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General and Commander-in-Chief of Canada, and Mr. Whit Fraser attended the commemorative ceremony for the 105th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge at the National War Memorial in Ottawa.

  • Credit: MCpl Anis Assari, Rideau Hall
  • Reference Number: GG08-2022-0066-038
Governor General Simon is walking in front of a guard of honour at the National War Memorial. A man in a military uniform is walking alongside her.

Organized by Veterans Affairs Canada, the ceremony honoured the legacy of the Canadians who served and sacrificed so much for their country.

  • Credit: MCpl Anis Assari, Rideau Hall
  • Reference Number: GG08-2022-0066-043
Governor General Simon is standing in a row of people. She is shrouded in smoke from a smudging ceremony. An Indigenous woman performing the smudging ceremony is standing before her.

The ceremony opened with a prayer and smudging of the National War Memorial.

  • Credit: MCpl Anis Assari, Rideau Hall
  • Reference Number: GG08-2022-0066-054
Governor General Simon is delivering remarks at the National War Memorial.

During the ceremony, Her Excellency delivered remarks.

  • Credit: MCpl Anis Assari, Rideau Hall
  • Reference Number: GG08-2022-0066-074
Governor General Simon is delivering remarks at the National War Memorial. People in various military uniforms are standing behind her. The photo is taken from the back of a crowd looking at her.

“This is sacred ground. I would like to acknowledge that some incidents that happened here at the Memorial recently should never happen again. We must always, all of us, treat this place with the greatest respect.”

- Her Excellency the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada

  • Credit: MCpl Anis Assari, Rideau Hall
  • Reference Number: GG08-2022-0066-081
Governor General Simon is laying a wreath at the National War Memorial. Mr. Fraser and a man in a military uniform are standing beside her. There are rows of people sitting on chairs in the background.

During the ceremony, Her Excellency laid a wreath.

  • Credit: MCpl Anis Assari, Rideau Hall
  • Reference Number: GG08-2022-0066-093
Three men are beating a drum in the forefront of the photo. A crowd in the background of the photo is looking at them. Governor General Simon and Mr. Fraser are standing at the front of the crowd.

“I acknowledge that we are gathering on the unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe people.”

- Her Excellency the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada

  • Credit: MCpl Anis Assari, Rideau Hall
  • Reference Number: GG08-2022-0066-111
Governor General Simon is saluting. She is standing on a small podium in front of the National War Memorial.

“Today, we are paying tribute to the brave members of the Canadian Armed Forces who served and sacrificed for our country.”

- Her Excellency the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada

  • Credit: MCpl Anis Assari, Rideau Hall
  • Reference Number: GG08-2022-0066-114
Governor General Simon is saluting. She is standing on a small podium in front of the National War Memorial.

“In the end, Vimy Ridge was ours. Canadian forces won the battle. In Inuktitut, we say ajuinnata. It means to never give up. They never did. They persevered. But it came at a heavy price.”

- Her Excellency the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada

  • Credit: MCpl Anis Assari, Rideau Hall
  • Reference Number: GG08-2022-0066-115
Governor General Simon is walking alongside a man in a military uniform.

“Heartbreaking conflicts still rage around the world, and it’s our responsibility to turn towards dialogue, towards understanding and respect. We owe that much to those who stormed Vimy Ridge more than a century ago.”

- Her Excellency the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada

  • Credit: MCpl Anis Assari, Rideau Hall
  • Reference Number: GG08-2022-0066-123

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