The Soldier in Meditation, also known as The Brooding Soldier, is a Canadian war memorial located in Saint-Julien, Belgium. It honors the First Canadian Division for its crucial role in the Second Battle of Ypres during World War I, marked by the first poison gas attacks on the Western Front. Designed by Frederick Chapman Clemesha and selected after a design competition organized by the Canadian Battlefield Memorial Commission in 1920, this memorial embodies the remembrance and commemoration of the sacrifices made.
Galerie photos
Lbmarshall, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Background & Origins
The village of Saint-Julien and a wooded section are located in the northeastern sector of the Ypres Salient, on the border between British and French areas of responsibility. The First Canadian Division occupies the northernmost part of the British line, with the 45th (Algerian) Division to its left, holding the southern end of the French line.
When the German army launched the first poison gas attack on the Western Front on April 22, 1915, the Canadians found themselves confronted with this terrible weapon. Despite the north wind pushing the gas toward their lines and those of the French troops, the Canadians resisted bravely, preventing German breakthroughs in fierce fighting at several strategic locations.
In the 48 hours that followed, 6,035 Canadians, or one-third of the combatants, suffered the effects of chlorine, with nearly 2,000 deaths, demonstrating their courage and tenacity in the face of such a devastating attack.
History & Description of the Monument
Following the First World War, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission allocated eight sites to Canada, five in France and three in Belgium, for the construction of memorials, each symbolizing a significant Canadian commitment to the war. A Canadian Battlefield Memorials Commission was established in November 1920, organizing a competition to select the designs for the memorials.
In October 1922, Walter Seymour Allward’s proposal was chosen for Vimy, while Frederick Chapman Clemesha’s was intended for the other sites but was only used at Saint-Julien.
Inaugurated on July 8, 1923, by Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, and honored by French Marshal Ferdinand Foch, the memorial stands on the site formerly known as Vancouver Corner, depicting a Canadian soldier in meditation, surrounded by gardens and cedar trees. A replica of the Clemesha monument has also been incorporated into a cenotaph in Regina, Saskatchewan.
