Presentation Piece

Held by

Montreal Holocaust Museum via Canadian Jewish Heritage Network (incl. Alex Dworkin Canadian Jewish Archives)

Level

item

Extent

Presentation Piece : printed ; Ht: 44 cm x W: 54,2 cm

Scope & content

Souvenir frame for Roger Bédard, containing 4 commemorative medals, 2 badges, a photo and a poem by Gaétan Major. This frame and the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal (CVSM) are awarded to all soldiers who served more than 18 months of voluntary service during the Second World War. The CVSM is at the top right of the frame. At top left is the War Medal 1939-1945, awarded to personnel who have completed 28 days of continuous service during the war. Bottom left is the Defence Medal, awarded to all those who have served for six months or more in a non-operational theater, but at risk of combat (e.g. Great Britain). Finally, in the bottom right-hand corner, the 1939-1945 Star is awarded to anyone with six months' service in any branch of the army during the war. Note that the ribbon on Roger Bédard's medal is different from the ribbon marked on the Veterans Affairs website. Roger Bédard (b. August 29, 1916) was born in Canada to Jos (Joseph) Albert Bédard and Laura Bédard (née Murphy). In his testimony, Bédard mentions that the Flemish rather than French Canadians raised him. A document reveal Thérèse Manseau had taken Roger in an orphanage. However, Manseau's name appears crossed out. It is Arthur Bédard-Julien, Roger's grandmother, who eventually became his guardian. In 1932, Roger Bédard completed his Secondary 3. He then had many small jobs in construction, agricultural fields and as a painter. In July 24, 1940, he enlisted voluntarily in the army after passing his medical examination. According to his testimony, Roger initially began his military career in the machine gun unit of the Châteauguay Militia (a branch of the 22nd Regiment), but was later transferred. Between 1940 and 1941, Roger Bédard transferred to Great Britain for training. In 1942, he began his commando training with the Fusiliers Mont-Royal (FMR) unit on the Isle of Wight. His training on the island was in preparation for the raid on the Dieppe's French port, which took place on August 19, 1942. Approximately 5,000 of the 6,100 men deployed were Canadians. The operation's objective (also called Operation Jubilee) was to land an amphibious attack on the beaches of Dieppe, temporarily seize the town and destroy Nazi installations. However, Allied soldiers encountered a fierce defense from Nazis throughout the whole operation. The men, completely blocked on the beaches by machine-gun fire, had no room to maneuver. Along with the rest of the FMRs, Roger Bédard was part of the second assault wave sent to the beach. The Nazi army severely damaged the second wave as much as the first. Without ammunition and immobilized on the beach, 1,874 Canadians, including Roger Bédard, were captured by the Nazis. On board in a cattle train to camps between Germany and Poland, Nazis took Bédard to Stalag 344, where conditions were terrible. The Gestapo subjected all Canadian soldiers captured at Dieppe to interrogation. During his imprisonment, Roger Bédard (prisoner number 25325) had his nose broken and might have been one of many Canadians whose wrists remained shackled for 14 months. In April 1944, Bédard was transferred to Stalag II-D. There, he attempted to escape with six other prisoners. They all failed to escape except for an Australian pilot who was with them. As the Soviet Army advanced in 1945, the Nazis began evacuating prisoners of war from POW camps. It is not exactly clear when Roger Bédard was evacuated from Stalag II-D. However, Roger testified going through a 'death march' (forced evacuation) towards Dachau. Roger remained in Dachau until its liberation by American soldiers at the end of April 1945. He returned to Great Britain and then to Canada on July 31, 1945.

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In the picture

CapEmblemFlagFramed PortraitMedalMilitaryMilitary UniformPortraitPosterSignTagged automatically by a vision model; may contain mistakes.

Text in the image

SacrificeCanadaRead automatically; may contain mistakes.

Harvested

2026-10-17T20:12:41Z · source datestamp n/a · cjhn

Digital objects at the source

• imageOpen original at source ↗2020_14_03.jpg