**** RCMP Media Release
Today marks Vimy Ridge Day in Canada.
The RCMP has a significant military history and connections. During the First World War, hundreds of members of the Royal Northwest Mounted Police (RNWMP, the RCMP’s precursor) took their discharge from the force to fight overseas, including the Battle of Vimy Ridge.
In 1918, the Canadian government authorized the creation of two RNWMP contingents for the First World War: Squadron A based in France and Belgium, and Squadron B based in Siberia.
In total, 182 former members of the RNWMP who fought in the First World War are interred in France and Belgium. Of these, 30 are named on the Vimy Memorial and 27 are named on the Menin Gate Memorial.
Here at Depot we have a special memorial wall with plaques honouring three members who received the Victoria Cross, Canada’s highest military decoration.
