Just in time for the upcoming 100th anniversary celebration of the Battle of Vimy Ridge, a diorama made by a local artist has been donated to the 8th Canadian Hussars Museum in Sussex, N.B.
READ MORE: NB modeller honours Canadian soldiers who fought at Vimy Ridge
“This is very, very special to me because being a Hussar, and where it is going to be placed, it belongs here,” said former reservist Nick Dunning of Quispamsis, who spent more than 100 painstaking hours crafting the diorama which depicts on of Canada’s most significant battles.
“It is very, very hard to find footage on the Battle of Vimy Ridge itself because of film back in those years so you have to go by the written statements from people who were actually there.”
On April 9, 1917, nearly 15,000 Canadian soldiers sprang from the trenches during the First World War to win one of the biggest battles in military history.
Dunning handcrafted the diorama for the upcoming centennial anniversary of one of Canada’s most celebrated military battle victories.
“It will be a focal point for showing people the actual way the soldiers had to live,” said Tom McLaughlan, one of the chairs representing the museum.
The miniature battle scene depicts what it might have looked like on the battlefield in the early morning, hours before the first strike.
“It’s prior to the launch at 5:30 in the morning” said Dunning.
READ MORE: Calgarian to honour Vimy Ridge soldiers with performance on a special flute
“The term years ago when this happened is that Canada became a nation and when they built the memorial over in France it pulled the nation together.”
Dunning said he hopes that his work will help Canada relive that pride.
Comments