More than 70 years ago, the South Alberta Light Horse helped liberate Holland during the Second World War.
On Wednesday night, a delegation from the Netherlands came to say thank you and brought with them a special gift.
The South Alberta Light Horse is Alberta’s regiment and is made up of reservists from across the province.
The regiment fought in the Battle of the Scheldt, which opened up the port of Antwerp to allowed Allied supplies to get in. Liberation of the Netherlands followed soon after.
“It was a brutal battle. It was five weeks. It was almost 13,000 casualties, half of them Canadian,” Lt.-Col. Troy Steele, the commanding officer for the South Alberta Light Horse, said.
“When I first went over to Holland, the outpouring of pure emotion and gratitude of people of the Netherlands to Canadians is unbelievable. Those people never have forgotten what it was like to be liberated from an oppressive regime.”
Ruud van den Belt, the mayor of Steenbergen, said residents in his town collected money for a bell that would memorialize the liberation. Unfortunately, that bell was stolen in 2010 and a replica was made. A smaller replica was made to be given to the regiment.
“Tonight I’m going to hand over this bell to the regiment with the goal of connecting to each other. From now on in November, when we memorialize the freedom from Canadians to Holland, this bell…will ring at the same time as the bell here in Edmonton,” he said.
“It symbolizes gratitude – gratitude for the freedom we have today and hopefully for the freedom we will have for the future.”
Joan Rosendal was on hand to watch the ceremony. The Dutch-Canadian was only five years old when her town was liberated by Canadians.
“I know exactly where I was standing at the time when the tanks came through our village. It was just a lot of noise and excited people,” she said.
Now living in Edmonton, with a son who is in the South Alberta Light Horse, she said the gift is significant.
“The Canadians played a big, big part in the liberation of Holland. I think any kind of commemoration is really nice.”
Steele said the bell will live in the regiment’s armoury but will be taken out on Remembrance Day. It will ring for the first time this Nov. 11 at Light Horse Park in Old Strathcona.
“It’s a piece of history.”
“This bell will be for the next 100 years with this regiment. These people will see it for the first time today. It will become a part of the ceremony every year in the province of Alberta. It is the start of a tradition right here today,” he said.
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