ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — To this day, families across the province are touched by devastating losses suffered by the Royal Newfoundland Regiment in the First World War.
Descendants will mark legendary triumphs and sacrifices with fading photos and treasured heirlooms Saturday as Princess Anne presents new regimental colours with full pageantry.
The second child and only daughter of Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh is colonel-in-chief of the storied military unit. She starts a two-day visit to St. John’s, N.L., on Friday.
“In a sense, there was almost a generation that was wiped out,” said Rev. Ian Wishart of the staggering carnage at Beaumont Hamel in France and in other First World War battles.
“Anything that has to do with the regiment has a real resonance among the people of Newfoundland,” added Wishart, the chairman of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment advisory council.
It falls to the Princess Royal to preside over major ceremonies such as the presentation of fresh silk flags or “colours” that embody the famed unit’s battle honours.
“But it’s the regiment that is the thing that has people’s real interest,” said Wishart.
Lt.-Col. Alex Brennan said he hopes Mile One Centre in St. John’s will be a scene Saturday of remembrance and respect for veterans past and present.
The parade and ceremony are expected to be a highlight of Princess Anne’s trip. Her visit was delayed for a day, and a stop in Halifax earlier in the week was cancelled amid safety concerns over a volcanic ash cloud from Iceland.
“It’s easy for history to be lost,” Brennan said of the occasion’s importance.
“We’ve asked the public to come out with memorabilia of their ancestors who fought in the First World War or any other conflict. And people have been calling, saying they’re bringing their great-grandfather’s medals, they’re bringing their compasses, or their Bible from when they were in the trenches.
“I think it’s absolutely important that we make sure those memories stay alive and people understand what their ancestors went through.”
Doug Bursey of St. John’s will be there to honour his Uncle John (Jack) Nicol, one of the first 500 men recruited to fight for the British Army in the First World War when Newfoundland was a dominion separate from Canada.
The regiment was nicknamed the Blue Puttees thanks to the shortage of khaki-coloured material that saw them wrap their lower legs in blue broadcloth.
After the catastrophe of Beaumont Hamel on July 1, 1916 — a dark day still marked each year in Newfoundland and Labrador — the unit was replenished to fight on. King George V added the extraordinary prefix of Royal to the regiment’s title in 1917, in part to recognize its valour at Ypres and Cambrai.
“People should remember and be glad that they had these people that went out,” said Bursey. “They were only young. I doubt if they knew where they were going, even. They went out and they did their thing. I suppose, to them, it was a lark. But it was no lark when they got over there. It was a whole different world.”
On Friday, Princess Anne will receive an honorary degree from Memorial University and present awards to young volunteers.
She will wrap up her stay in the province on Sunday with a wreath-laying ceremony at Bowring Park in St. John’s to honour those who died in the First World War.