![\"WWI](\"http:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/20140303_soldiers_in_trench.jpg\")
\nWhat many Canadians know as the day to dress in red and white and demonstrate their biggest acts of love for their country is a different kind of day for those living in Newfoundland and Labrador. To them, July 1st is not just Canada Day, but a much more solemn event. Known as Memorial Day to Newfoundlanders, July 1st marks the anniversary of the battle at Beaumont-Hamel during the First World War.<\/p>\n
Not long after Britain declared war on Germany, Newfoundlanders showed enormous acts of patriotism by rushing to help protect the Commonwealth. Of the 25,000 citizens who enlisted, 12,000 were chosen to form the 1st Newfoundland Regiment.<\/p>\n
Beaumont Hamel marked\u00a0the first time Newfoundlanders entered the war.\u00a0Regarded as one of the bloodiest battles in history, the battle took place on the first day of the Battle of the Somme:\u00a0\u00a0July 1, 1916. \u00a0Within a few hours, the majority of the 1st Newfoundland Regiment was tragically eliminated, leaving only 68 soldiers in condition to battle and another 733 injured or missing.<\/p>\n
By the end of the Battle of the Somme and World War 1, the Newfoundland Regiment would be practically wiped out. And, despite the loss of almost all 1,305 soldiers, those left of the regiment never stopped fighting until the war ended in 1918. This courage and dedication earned the soldiers the official appointment of \u201cRoyal\u201d from King George V of the British Crown, recognizing their incredible heroism.<\/p>\n
The sacrifices of the men of the 1st Newfoundland Regiment are commemorated every year in Newfoundland and Labrador on July 1st. So this Memorial Day, no matter where you’re from, take some time to honour those who courageously fought for peace and freedom.<\/p>\n
Interested in seeing the untouched battlefield of Beaumont-Hamel? See\u00a0the original trenches and craters, including the danger tree, with Explorica.<\/em><\/p>\n Visit Beaumont Hamel on the following Explorica<\/a> tours:<\/strong><\/p>\n Battle of the Somme<\/a><\/p>\n Return to Vimy 2017: Rome & France<\/a><\/p>\n Paris, Vimy & Normandy<\/a><\/p>\n France & England<\/a><\/p>\n Want to learn more about Canadian history? Browse through our Canadian History Tours<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Guest post by Kayla MacIntosh.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" What many Canadians know as the day to dress in red and white and demonstrate their biggest acts of love for their country is a different kind of day for those living in Newfoundland and Labrador. To them, July 1st is not just Canada Day, but a much more solemn event. Known as Memorial Day Read More …<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[372,121,373,371],"class_list":["post-2218","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-explorica-news","tag-battle-of-the-somme","tag-canada-day","tag-royal-newfoundland-regiment","tag-world-war-1"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2218","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2218"}],"version-history":[{"count":22,"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2218\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2465,"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2218\/revisions\/2465"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2218"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2218"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.explorica.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2218"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}