Viking

THEY STOOD ON GUARD NOVEMBER 11, 1918 Two Minutes from Peace: The Last Canadian to Fall At 10:58 a.m. on November 11, 1918, Private George Lawrence Price died from a German sniper’s bullet in Belgium. At 11:00 a.m., the guns of the First World War fell silent. Two minutes. That was all that separated a 25-year-old Canadian soldier from surviving the Great War. Born on December 15, 1892, in Falmouth, Nova Scotia, George was the son of James and Annie Price. As a young man, he headed west to Saskatchewan, finding work as a farm labourer near Moose Jaw. In October 1917, he was called up for military service under Canada’s Military Service Act. His surviving recruitment papers list his occupation as farm labourer, his marital status as single, and his home address as Moose Jaw. By May 1918, he had joined the 28th Battalion (Northwest), Canadian Expeditionary Force, serving on the Western Front. In September, George survived a poison gas attack in France. After receiving medical treatment, he returned to his battalion later that month. He had survived the trenches, the fighting and the gas. By November, the war was finally nearing its end. On the morning of November 11, 1918, Canadian troops were advancing through the Belgian countryside near Mons. The Armistice had been signed earlier that morning, but the ceasefire would not take effect until precisely 11:00 a.m. Near the village of Ville-sur-Haine, George and several comrades crossed a canal and began searching houses for German soldiers. At approximately 10:57 a.m., as George emerged from a house, a sniper’s bullet struck him in the chest. His comrades pulled him back inside. Local Belgian civilians rushed to help, including a young woman who attempted to comfort the wounded Canadian. But his injuries were fatal. At 10:58 a.m., George Lawrence Price died. Two minutes later, the Armistice took effect. The war that had consumed more than four years and millions of lives was finally over. George would never see home again. One particularly touching detail survives from those final moments. A small fabric maple leaf flower, stained with his blood, was preserved by local residents as a remembrance of the young Canadian who died on their doorstep. Today, George rests in St. Symphorien Military Cemetery near Mons. A memorial stands near the place where he fell, and the people of Belgium have continued to honour his sacrifice for generations. He is remembered as the last Canadian soldier killed in battle during the First World War. George was not alone that morning. Forty Canadians lost their lives on November 11, 1918, even as the world prepared to celebrate peace. This Remembrance Day, when the clock approaches eleven and Canadians bow their heads in silence, remember the young farm labourer from Nova Scotia who came within two minutes of surviving the war. Private George Lawrence Price December 15, 1892 – November 11, 1918 Service No. 256265 28th Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force Age 25 Lest We Forget. #RemembranceDay #LestWeForget #TheyStoodOnGuard #WWI