When someone drives down Oxford st they rarely consider the history behind the fences of Wosley Barracks.
100 years ago the world was engulfed in the largest conflict it had seen. Hundreds of thousands playing a murderous game of cat and mouse in the fields of France and Belgium.
London was at the epicenter of the war. The Royal Canadian Regiment, Canadas only full time infantry regiment when the war broke out, was stationed here at Wosley Barracks. In the months that followed Canada would see a influx of over 30,000 volunteers to fight.
The RCR would go on to forge an everlasting legacy fighting underneath the British. That is until later in the war when the allies preferred to have all the Canadian divisions fight side by side at battles like Vimy Ridge and the pursuit to Mons.
In fact during the final push into the city of Mons in November of 1918, the RCR lead the way. They had no idea that the Treaty of Versailles was to be signed just a few hours later.
To think about how far we have come since then with space travel, huge leaps in equality and the peace we so often enjoy. It is hard to imagine what life must have been like for those who served. “We promised those who went that we would never forget their sacrifice” Casper Kahoots of the Royal Canadian Legion said during an interview. “That’s what Remembrance Day is all about, looking back and in our own way saying hey thanks guys. We will never forget what you did for us.”
The 4th Battalion of the Royal Canadian Regiment will hold a service at Wosley Barracks on Sunday November 11th to commemorate their fallen.
