The Legion National Foundation shared word that today is the 150th birthday of Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae.
He is the author of the famous war poem “In Flanders Fields” and he served in South Africa and the First World War.
McCrae was born in Guelph on November 30th, 1872.
He began writing poetry as a student at Guelph Collegiate Institute.
He became a resident physician in the US in 1894 before enlisting for the South African War in 1899.
He later became a pathologist before joining World War 1 as a medical officer.
He was killed in the summer of 1917.
The poem “In Flanders Fields” was published in England’s Punch magazine in December of 1915.
Within months it it came to symbolize the sacrifices of all who were fighting in the First World War.
Today it continues to be part of Remembrance Day ceremonies across Canada and the world.
For more information on Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae and the “In Flanders Fields” War Poem you can visit the link below.
https://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/people-and-stories/john-mccrae
