Picking up where Joel left off, a partial video clip from Combat Camera showing students on their way to the ceremony. You can find more videos on the Department of National Defence website.

Canadian students marched on Vimy Ridge today to commorate the 95th Anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge. The silent march was a moving tribute to what is one Canada's greatest military triumphs.

If you visit our Online Exclusive section, you can see a photo gallery of images taken by Combat Camera with links to more video on the Department of National Defence website.

Student Robert Sweeny, left, discovers the name of a soldier he researched before coming to Vimy Ridge.

VIMY RIDGE, FRANCE — I could begin with the dignitaries, or the speeches, or the pomp and ceremony that comes with the commemoration of the 95^th anniversary of Canada’s greatest war victory.

But if you wanted to witness the real power of Vimy Ridge, then you needed to be at the monument hours earlier.

There, standing with a group of his pals, was Robert Sweeny of R.D. Parker Collegiate School in Thompson, Manitoba. The teenager was pointing at a spot on the monument’s wall, and tears were welling in his eyes. As he reached out to touch the name of Robert Richardson — one name among more than 11,000 etched in the limestone of the Vimy monument — he reached across the decades, and was, for that brief moment, united with a young man who gave his life so that Robert and his chums could enjoy freedom and liberty.

“He was just 25 years old,” Sweeny said, his voice choking with emotion. “He never had a grave. They never found his body.”

Sweeny, like many of the other 5,000 students who gathered at Vimy Ridge on Monday to mark the battle’s 95^th anniversary, had been given a school project months ago — to research two soldiers from the First World War. Sweeny drew the name ‘Robert Richardson.’

At first, he admitted, it had seemed like just another assignment. But not now. Not after tracing his fingers over Richardson’s name. Not after witnessing the land that Richardson had fought and died for. Not after personally bearing witness to his sacrifice.

“I just wanted to be here, to touch the wall, and let him know that he’s not alone,” he said under darkened skies and drizzling rain. “I’m so glad I’m here, so that someone knows he fought in the battle.”

For students like Robert, the Vimy anniversary event was the culmination of week’s worth of travelling the battlefields of France and Belgium. Four thousand students were brought here by EF Education Tours in an effort to help the students remember Canada’s military history.

The students travelled to such sites as Beaumont-Hamel, France, where an entire Newfoundland regiment was wiped out in one single battle, and to the Menin Gate in Ypres, Belgium, where every night a ceremony is held to pay tribute to the thousands of soldiers, including many Canadians, who died trying to free the region from the Germans.

Monday’s event began in the early morning, as 4,000 students met the French village of Givechy to prepare for the march to Vimy Ridge National Historic Site.

A procession more than a kilometre long soon winded its way past the monument. For many students, this was the first time they had ever seen the monument in person. Their destination was Cemetery No. 2, built prior to the Vimy battle because of the expectations of high casualties. The students entered the cemetery two-by-two and formed lines before the graves of soldiers who died in in the region during WWI.

Many of the graves simply said “a soldier of the Great War,” their names lost forever. Canadian graves were identified by the maple leaves carved into the headstones.

During a special ceremony, the students each lit candles and, carefully protecting the flickering flames from wind and rain, placed the candles either on, or before the gravestones. Together, the students pledged to remember the sacrifices of the veterans.

After the event, I walked to where the students and dignitaries had laid wreathes for the fallen. It was there that one wreath in particular caught my eye.

On it, someone had pinned the photograph of a handsome, young soldier. Reading the inscription beneath it, I learned that the young man was Private George Russel McGougan, of the 47^th Infantry Battalion. Born in 1892, he died fighting for his country — and his mates — on August 22, 1917. Beneath his photo were the following words: “Lovingly remembered by the McGougan family, Prince Edward Island, Canada.”

Reading that simple message, I was momentarily overcome. I had lived for a time in Prince Edward Island, and met many good people there. I’m sure that George’s entire hometown would have felt his loss in 1917. Canada was much smaller then — a country of only 8 million people that suffered 66,000 war deaths — and no community escaped unscathed.

What strikes me now — 95 years after the Battle of Vimy Ridge – is this: no matter how many years pass, the war will remain real to Canadians as long as they continue to make it real. This was a war fought by neighbours and friends, family and loved ones. Entire towns of pals signed up together, because none could fathom leaving their mates to face the foe alone.

As Governor-General David Johnston spoke Monday afternoon during the ceremony at Vimy —as he mentioned words like sacrifice, freedom, and nation building — we proud group of Canadians, young and old, stood together in a driving rain and bitter wind to share the truth of Vimy Ridge. And the truth is this: This land is not French. Not any more. Once a part of France, it was bought for us 95 years ago and paid for in blood. And so it shall remain ours, so long as we are willing to reach out, like young Robert Sweeny, and touch the fallen.

Video taken at Cemetery No. 2, 4,000 kids filing into the cemetery to honour fallen Canadians.

BEAUMONT-HAMEL, FRANCE — It’s a battle sacred to Newfoundlanders, but virtually unknown to most other Canadians. But on Easter Sunday, students from across Canada joined together at Beaumont-Hamel, France, to ensure that together, the memory of the soldiers would fought and died at that 1916 battle would live on.

“I feel so emotional,” said Kristyn Chaffey, a student at Frank Roberts Junior High, Conception Bay South. “I can’t even put it in words. It’s incredible, absolutely incredible; I can’t even put it in words.”

The Battle of Beaumont-Hamel was part of the Somme offensive against the German forces in northeastern France. In 1916, Newfoundland was still an independent dominion, on equal status with Australia, Canada, and New Zealand. At the time, the population was 240,000. The dominion sent the 1st Newfoundland Regiment to the Somme and on July 1, 801 men went over the top along with their British allies.

The day before the battle, Lieutenant Owen Steele had written in his diary, “It is surprising to see how happy and light-hearted everyone is, and yet this is undoubtedly the last day for a good many.” His words were prophetic, because the battle was a slaughter.

A week’s worth of artillery bombardment was ineffective. The Newfoundlanders were met with a hail of bullets from machine guns and other arms. In The First Day of the Somme, British historian Martin Middlebrook writes of a soldier who witnessed the slaughter firsthand.

“On came the Newfoundlanders, a great body of men, but the fire intensified and they were wiped out in front of my eyes,” Private F. H. Cameron of the 1^st King’s Own Scottish Borderers is quoted as to have said. “I cursed the generals for their useless slaughter, they seemed to have no idea what was going on.”

All told, the regiment suffered 710 killed, wounded or missing in action. The next day, only 68 men were fit enough to make roll call.

Sunday’s event was held at Beaumont-Hamel National Historic Site, one of only two Canadian national historic sites located outside of Canada.

A crowd more than 400 strong marched through a bomb-blasted landscape to the majestic Beaumont-Hamel monument. There, situated on a ground mound of rock and shrubs native to Newfoundland, stands a statue of a bronze caribou, emblem of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment.

The ceremony began with playing of the national anthems of France and Canada. Then, a succession of speakers took the podium to pay their respects to the fallen.

“These soldiers served with courage, tenacity and distinction,” said Governor General David Johnston. “Through their enormous sacrifice … they have made our country more caring, and more sensitive to the cost of war.”

Veterans Affairs Minister Steven Blaney was celebrating his birthday on Sunday, and told the crowd he was immensely proud to be able to mark the anniversary with the students assembled at Beaumont-Hamel.

“You are the future, and you make me proud by your presence here,” he said under cloudy skies. “The veterans of the First World War are all gone… but by your presence here, you make them alive for today and tomorrow.”

Joshua Thomas, a Parks Canada interpreter who works at Beaumont-Hamel, hails from Newfoundland. The 24-year-old reminded the students that if they had lived a century earlier, it might have been them or their brothers who would have donned the famed blue puttees and sacrificed their lives here. Calling Beaumont-Hamel a “heart-wrenching” moment for Newfoundlanders, he added, “We will remember them.”

Students and dignitaries laid wreaths as members of the Newfoundland pop band Hey Rosetta sang a somber new song, called The Reckoning. It was a fitting accompaniment to one of the most solemn moments in Newfoundland and Canadian history.

The ceremony ended with the crowd of Newfoundland students and teachers singing “Ode to Newfoundland,” the province’s former national and now, provincial anthem.

As the students sang the refrain “We love thee, Newfoundland,” tears rolled down the cheeks of some students.

Later Sunday night, the Governor General and Minister Blaney travelled to the Menin Gate in Ypres, Belgium, to take part in the Last Post Ceremony for men who died in the Ypres Salient during the war. Among the thousands of names etched in the walls are 6,940 Canadians. The names represent the men who died, but whose bodies were lost and were not given proper burials. During the special ceremony, Johnston read the poem In Flanders Fields before a crowd of several hundred, including many Canadians. Incredibly, this was the 28,811^th time the Last Post ceremony has been performed since the end of World War I.

The Beaumont-Hamel event, organized by EF Tours, is part of a weeklong tour of key First World War battlefields. It will culminate on Monday, April 9, at Vimy Ridge, where approximately 4,000 students are expected to gather to mark the 95^th anniversary of that seminal Canadian victory.

Canada's History gets a sneak peak at the ceremonies that will take place on Moday marking the 95th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.

Here are three photos taken from Good Friday. Mark and Joel posted a collection on our Facebook page.

A group of Canadian students gather prior to the Good Friday march through London, while in the foreground, a flag is displayed made up of individual squares representing all the schools taking part in the commemoration ceremony. Each school's students have signed their school's square, and it was carried at the head of the parade by students.

A long parade of Canadian students marches through the streets of London on Good Friday toward Green Park, where they took part in a special remembrance ceremony for Canadian war veterans. The children are part of EF Tours' Vimy 95 tour, which will bring 4,000 students to Vimy Ridge to mark the 95th anniversary of the First World War battle.

Veterans Affairs Minister Steven Blaney, along with Canadian High Commissioner to the UK Gordon Campbell, and other dignitaries, look on as a bugler plays the Last Post for Canada's fallen war veterans. The ceremony, on Good Friday, took place at Green Park in London, at the Canada Monument created to honour our war dead. More than 1,200 Canadian students from across Canada joined the dignitaries for the event.

— Mark Reid

GREEN PARK, LONDON — They came from across Canada, 1,000 strong, to make a statement — we may be young, but we will remember.

“It was a major world conflict — how could we forget something like that without losing our identity as a society?” said Aidan Rogers, one 1,200 Canadian students who took part in a special parade through London and remembrance ceremony for Canada’s war dead. “It’s a moral responsibility to know about it,” the St. Joseph High School student from Saskatoon added. “The veterans fought for us. They created our country, and gave their lives for us.”

The special remembrance ceremony was organized by EF Tours, a Canadian educational tour company that organizes special tours of key Canadian battlefields in Europe.

On Good Friday, the students marched with pride, carrying special flags that indicated their support for Canada’s fallen veterans, as well as a pledge to keep their memory alive.

At the ceremony, Veterans Affairs Minister Steven Blaney spoke of the pride he felt, on behalf of call Canadians, to see so many young people engaged and interested in learning about their nation’s past.

“I’m honoured by your presence here,” Blaney said. “It’s vital that we don’t let (our veterans) fade from our memory. Your mission is to tell their story — on youtube, on Twitter, on Facebook. Your mission is to remember.”

The event is part of EF Tour’s Vimy95 tour, which will culminate in a special ceremony at the Vimy Memorial at Vimy Ridge, France, to mark the 95th anniversary of that seminal Canadian WWI battle. It was at Vimy Ridge, on Easter Sunday in 1917, that all four Canadian divisions first fought as one, and found victory.

The parade on Good Friday was the kick-off event of the week-long tour for the students. It began under sunny skies at Horse Guards Square in central London, just around the corner from a monument to a famous figure from Canadian history — Captain James Cook. At the clock ticked toward 1 pm, school after school lined up in succession for the march. There were schools from across Canada.

As the students lined up to begin the march, Maggie MacDonald, a 16-year-old Grade 11 student at Kincora High School in Prince Edward Island, was thinking of her great-great-grandfather William MacDonald, who fought at Vimy Ridge. She said she hopes other young people appreciate the sacrifices made by the war generations.

“A lot of us take it for granted, and we need to appreciate it, she said. Passersby lined the streets of London to watch the procession, which wended its way along Horse Guards Road, to Canada Gate at Buckingham Palace. Once there, the group gathered at the Canada Memorial, erected in 1992 to pay respect to the more than 113,000 Canadians who gave their lives during the First and Second World Wars.

This was a special moment for both the students, and their teachers. Some, such as teacher Kevin Bustard of Kincora High, have personal connections to veterans who fought in the First World War. Bustard’s great grandfather, Lance Corporal Joseph Bustard, died at the Battle of the Somme, which took place in 1916. He was a chaplain, and he died giving last rites over a mortally wounded German soldier.

Kevin Bustard says he’s looking forward to later next week, when he and his students will make the pilgrimage to Vimy Ridge. He expects it to be an emotional moment.

“It means quite a bit to me. When I see Vimy, it will really hit me.”

Gordon Campbell, the former British Columbia premier, and current Canadian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, also spoke at the event.

He urged the students to keep the memory of the veterans alive.

“We owe it to the people who fought for our way of life, to ensure ... peace and freedom.”

— Mark Reid

It's shaping up to be a great day here in London today. In a special ceremony today more than 1200 students will take part in a procession to the Canadian War Memorial in Green Park in London.

The students will walk down Horse Guards Road before proceeding through the Canada gate just outside Buckingham, Palace to the war memorial in Green Park.

Many of the students will be taking on special roles as flag bearers and wreath layers, and we'll be talking with them and posting pictures of the events throughout the day.

It's hard to imagine that all of these Canadian students traveling with EF Tours, more than 30 buses in total, are just the vanguard of an even larger group that will be forming up at Vimy Ridge in just a few days.

Victory March through London, 3rd March 1919 - Canadian troops passing Buckingham Palace.

Traveling to Vimy Ridge for the 95th anniversary ceremonies follows most closely in the footsteps of the 1936 pilgrimage. It was that summer that approximately 11,000 Canadians travelled to Europe for the official unveiling of the Vimy Ridge Memorial designed by Walter Allward.

There are a wonderful collection of documents easily available online to learn more about the 1936 pilgrimage.

The Archives of Ontario has posted a letters and quotes from John Mould, who traveled with his wife Edith and their daughter Audrey to the unveiling. Perhaps most amazing, they have posted a rare 8 mm video from the actual ceremony which shows King Edward unveiling the statue representing a young Canada mourning for her war dead. Ed. note: If the video does not play for you here, click on Archives of Ontario link above, scroll down to bottom of their page and choose your format for viewing. (Reference Code: F 1329-7; Archives of Ontario)

Another website that is particularly helpful is British Immigrants in Montreal. The site has a detailed account of the trip including itineraries and copies of newspaper articles covering the original voyage.

Finally WartimeCanada.ca, which is a new recently launched website, has some great documentation of the trip, including a postcard sent home from one of the soldiers who returned to Vimy Ridge. As we travel to Europe I'll be talking more about these and other documents along the way and how they help connect us to this turning point in Canadian history.

Welcome to the home of our Vimy Ridge 95th Anniversary Blog. My name is Joel Ralph, New Media Manager for Canada’s History. Together with Canada’s History Magazine Editor-in-Chief Mark Reid, we will be posting stories, images, and videos from the ceremonies marking the 95th anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge.

Canada’s History is travelling with EF Tours. You can also follow along on their blog at http://blog.vimyridgetour.ca/. Working with teachers across Canada, EF Tours is brining more than 4,000 Canadian students from across Canada to attend this special event.

Many of the students have family connections to the battle or have researched members of their community and their connection to the Great War. This will be only the third such ceremony to take place since the death of John Babcock, the last Canadian First World War veteran. The students participating in this trip represent the generation who will be carrying the memory of the First World War into the future. It’s a really interesting opportunity to see who this generation remembers this important moment.

Likewise, it’s a great opportunity to recognize the thousands of teachers across Canada who work so diligently to make trips like this happen. It’s impossible to quantify the amount of time and effort that they put in to make sure students have an opportunity like this. We’ll be talking with teachers along the way about why they do it and how they see it impacting their students.

In the week running up, we will also be talking about resources and lesson plans available for teachers to use in the classroom. We’ll be looking for primary sources that help tell the story of the battle and the creation of that now dominate Vimy Ridge.

Throughout the week feel free to leave your own comments about your own connections to the Great War and the Battle of Vimy Ridge. You can also participate through our Vimy Ridge Forum: http://www.canadashistory.ca/Communaute/Forums.aspx?forumid=15&threadid=151.