Latest news with #FirstWorldWar
Cision Canada
a day ago
- General
- Cision Canada
Canadian War Museum unveils new display marking the 100th anniversary of the Canadian Corps of Commissionaires Français
OTTAWA, ON, June 18, 2025 /CNW/ - In honour of the 100th anniversary of the Canadian Corps of Commissionaires, the Canadian War Museum unveils a new display. It marks the century-long history of Commissionaires by highlighting the significant contributions of the organization from its beginnings to the present day. Visitors can find the display in Commissionaires Way, the corridor connecting the Museum's main exhibitions to the LeBreton Gallery. Established to provide meaningful employment to veterans, Commissionaires was founded in Montréal in 1925. Since then, the not-for-profit organization has grown to 22,000 employees, including many veterans of the Canadian Armed Forces and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. It is the largest private-sector employer of veterans in Canada. "We are pleased to present this display highlighting the longstanding relationship between Commissionaires and Canada's veterans," said James Whitham, Director General of the Canadian War Museum. "The display offers visitors a chance to learn about the organization's evolution and its vital role in supporting veterans over a century." "We are delighted with how Commissionaires Way recognizes some of the many extraordinary people who served and continue to serve the Corps throughout our century of service to Canadians," said Commissionaires Chief of Staff, Captain Harry Harsch, OMM, CD, RCN (Ret'd). Developed by the Canadian War Museum, the display highlights veterans from all decades of Commissionaires. It features the Victoria Cross (VC) medal set that belonged to Major Benjamin Handley Geary of the East Surrey Regiment, who earned the decoration for bravery at Hill 60 during the First World War. Also featured is Lieutenant Colin Fraser Barron of the 48th Highlanders, who received the Victoria Cross for capturing three German machine-gun positions in the 1917 Battle of Passchendaele. Modern-day Commissionaires in the display include Ajit Singh and Rodney McAlpine, whose quick thinking saved lives while on the job, and who were recognized with the Commissionaires Medal of Bravery. Also included is Major (Ret'd) Sandra Perron, Canada's first female infantry officer, veterans' advocate, and bestselling author, who serves on the board of Commissionnaires du Québec. The Museum extends its sincere appreciation to Commissionaires for its generous support in bringing this important initiative to life. If you would like to have your name removed from our distribution list or if this information should be directed to someone else, please email us.
India Today
3 days ago
- Health
- India Today
The facemaker of World War 1: how Harold Gillies gave shattered soldiers a new self
Today, when we hear the words 'plastic surgery,' it often conjures images of celebrities fine-tuning their looks under bright Hollywood lights. But long before it was about aesthetic tweaks, it was about survival -- about restoring identity to those whose faces had been taken by war or fire or trenches of the First World War unleashed a kind of devastation few could have imagined. Men returned to Britain with their jaws blown off, noses missing, eyes sealed shut -- shells of their former at Cambridge Military Hospital in Aldershot, England, a young surgeon from New Zealand saw something others didn't. He looked beyond the torn skin and shattered bones and asked a different kind of question: what if surgery could bring not just flesh, but identity, back to life?FROM DUNEDIN DREAMER TO SURGICAL PIONEEROn June 17, 1882, Harold Delf Gillies was born into a world of rhetoric and renaissance. His father was a Member of Parliament in Dunedin, NewZealand, and his mother was related to the whimsical poet Edward Whanganui Collegiate, young Gillies excelled in medicine, but also cricket and golf. Those qualities would shape his later life: physical precision mixed with a creative England, he read medicine at Cambridge's Gonville and Caius, where he rowed in the 1904 Boat Race and played golf for England. Then came London and Hospital, where he trained in 1911, he'd married Kathleen Margaret Jackson, and shortly after, World War I broke out. Group photo at Queen Mary's Hospital in Sidcup in 1917, including Harold Gillies, William Kelsey Fry and Henry Tonks (1917) (Photo: Wikimedia Commons) A WAR SCULPTED A NEW VISIONHe arrived on the Western Front in 1915, a 32-year-old doctor with tools, questions, and a quiet kind of French surgeon Hippolyte Morestin, Harold Gillies watched as damaged jaws were covered using pieces of skin from other parts of the body. The sight moved him in London, he convinced the military to let him create a special ward at Aldershot, dedicated entirely to soldiers with facial he was bringing wounded men from the front lines to England -- not just to fix their wounds, but to help them rebuild their sense of first ward would grow. By 1917, the Queen's Hospital (later renamed Queen Mary's Hospital) opened in Sidcup, England, a place where medicine met Gillies assembled a team of surgeons, dentists, anaesthetists, and artists -- all working in harmony to develop new ways of healing. They used skin grafts layered like building blocks, and carefully shaped pieces of tissue to rebuild faces feature by SURGERY, REBUILDING FACESadvertisementThe most famous of Gillies' breakthroughs was something that, on paper, sounded bizarre: the 'tubed pedicle flap.'In an era before antibiotics, open wounds were a dangerous gamble. So Gillies came up with a solution -- shaping skin into tubes while keeping one end attached to the body, so it stayed living skin was slowly moved, bit by bit, across the face until it reached the damaged area. It looked strange, but it 8,000 soldiers were treated using this method at Sidcup. For many, it gave them something beyond survival -- it gave them their face back. Walter Yeo, the first person to receive plastic surgery, before (left) and after (right) skin flap surgery performed by Sir Harold Delf Gillies in 1917. The pictures of Walter's face before the surgery are blurry and hard to come by. In the tragic accident he was recorded as having lost both his upper and lower eyelids. The surgery was some of the first to use a skin flap from an unaffected area of the body and paved the way for a sudden rash of improvements in this field. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons) advertisementGillies planned every operation with care. He drew sketches on envelopes and scrap paper, built wax masks and plaster moulds to imagine how a face could be put back together.'Use your eyes first, dirty fingers later,' he would say. His surgery wasn't just skill -- it was craft.A CUP OF COLOUR AND A STREAK OF HUMOURHe wasn't always serious. Gillies liked mischief as much as medicine. He often lit up a Cuban cigar while testing colours in his spectrometer, a tool used for analysing chemical elements, claiming it helped him check lithium lines. It probably also amused the operating theatre, Gillies was a champion golfer, earning his Blue at Cambridge and competing in national tournaments -- even tweaking surgical tools to suit his golfer's grip. He was widely regarded in the early 1920s as one of the finest amateur golfers in England. Harold Gillies was one of the best amateur golfers in England (Photo: Wikimedia Commons) advertisementAnd then there was 'Dr Scroggie from South Africa' -- a persona he created for fun. Dressed in a fake beard and wig, Gillies once walked into his own home pretending to be a visiting doctor. He even fooled his colleagues roared with laughter when they realised the trick -- it was the kind of prank that became legend in his personal life had its own chapters. He married Kathleen Jackson and had children, but lost her in 1957. Later that year, he married Marjorie Clayton, his assistant and close companion for lived for people, progress, and humour -- sometimes all in one operating WAR: A NEW ERA IN SURGERYAfter 1918, Gillies sowed his seeds in civilian soil. His book Plastic Surgery of the Face (1920) became the cornerstone of modern surgery. He founded units around the world, training others like Archibald McIndoe and Rainsford in WWII, his influence helped build effective plastic surgery teams. In 1946 he performed one of the first female-to-male affirming surgeries (MichaelDillon) and in 1951 worked with gender pioneering RobertaCowell. Dr. Gillis, who operated on the Danish sailors injured in the geyser explosion (2nd from the left) (Photo: Wikimedia Commons) When asked why, he replied simply: 'If it gives real happiness, that is the most any medicine can give.'A DOCTOR'S LAST ACTGillies worked nearly to the end. He died on September 10, 1960, days after a stroke, still amid a life of purpose and left no fortune, but his real legacy lives on in faces once surgery may now conjure cosmetic bowls on screens. But Gillies reminded the world it was always about function, dignity, reclaiming used art to heal a person's soul as well as their skin. He proved science can be creative. And he offered hope where despair once reigned.
Scottish Sun
4 days ago
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Popular retailer RETURNS to more high streets five years after collapsing into administration and shutting 66 stores
We reveal some of the other retailers staging a comeback on UK high streets BOUNCE BACK Popular retailer RETURNS to more high streets five years after collapsing into administration and shutting 66 stores A POPULAR British retailer which has returned to the high street after collapsing into administration is set to open more shops. Shirtmaker T.M. Lewin is gearing up to open more stores in London, Manchester and Edinburgh after staging a dramatic comeback. Advertisement 1 T.M. Lewin is eyeing up further locations after opening a new store in London Credit: Alamy The retailer recently opened its first new store in the capital since 2020, when it fell into administration and shut all of its 66 branches. The site in Bow Lane, City of London, stocks a range of formal shirts, office-wear and a new Clerkenwell Jacket. But it is now eyeing up further locations across the UK in an expansion drive. Dan Ferris, T.M. Lewin's managing director, told The Times, which first reported news of the additional openings: "A big part of our three-year plan is to expand the real estate very quickly. Advertisement "We're looking for another couple this year, and thereafter it'll just be about opening as many additional outlets as we can." T.M Lewin was founded by Thomas Mayes Lewin and Geoffrey James Lewin in London in 1898, and supplied the RAF and Army with uniforms during the First World War. The company made its shirts in Southend, Essex until the late 1980s, when production moved overseas. However, the impact of the coronavirus pandemic led to the retailer falling into administration in 2020 and going online-only. Advertisement The administration process led to the closure of T.M. Lewin's 66 branches. In 2022, the business was forced to call in administrators for a second time as shoppers shifted to working from home. Britain's retail apocalypse: why your favourite stores KEEP closing down RETAILERS MAKING A COMEBACK T.M. Lewin is not the first retailer to stage a comeback in recent years despite a challenging economic backdrop. The Centre for Retail Research said more than 13,000 stores, the equivalent of 37 each day, shut their doors for good in 2024. Advertisement This was after more than 10,400 stores closed permanently in 2023, the centre said. However, some retailers have been bucking the closure trend and opening stores across the UK. Others have been making major comebacks after going bust too. Cath Kidston opened up a brand new store last October, after going into administration in June 2023. Advertisement Meanwhile, earlier this year ASOS revealed plans to relaunch a Topshop website. The two names have joined a host of other brands that have announced they will make some form of return. Toys R Us, Cath Kidston and M&Co all said last year they would be making a comeback after previously falling into administration. Major brand Wilko is already back on the high street after closing 400 stores in 2023. Advertisement Its new owners, CDS Superstores, have opened branches across the UK.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
'As we laid a pennant by his headstone, we reflected on how thankful we should be'
Four men from Bolton on a cycle challenge have reflected on "how thankful we should be" for those who laid down their lives in the First World War. Colin Higham, Kevan Ball and Rob Taylor are in the middle of cycling 634 miles along the Western Front Way this month, with Russell Jones providing support. The trail follows the historic frontline of the First World War, from the French-Swiss border to the beaches of Belgium. The quartet reflected during a poignant moment, stood by the grave of Richard Nelson in the middle of rural France, hundreds of miles away from his home on Lee Lane, Horwich. They said: "We thought this challenge was one of the hardest things we would have ever done, but then we met an English lady in our hostel who was walking from Canterbury to Rome, which put our task into perspective. The lads at the grave of Richard Nelson (Image: Submitted) "Then we thought no matter how tough either challenge was, they pale in comparison to what those lads faced along this front in the First World War. "On Monday we all stood together in a graveyard in the middle of rural France next to the remains of a lad who lives in a butcher's shop at 201 Lee Lane, Horwich, a shop we have all walked past hundreds of times. Read more: Bolton schoolfriends' epic journey to pay tribute to those who died in the Great War Read more: 'Successful' charity music festival set to return to Bolton Read more: Free cat welfare clinic to take place at shopping centre "As we laid a Rivington and Blackrod School pennant by his headstone, we reflected on just how thankful we should be for the lives we now lead." The grave of Richard Nelson (Image: Submitted) The quartet are also raising money for three charities - the Royal British Legion, Children in Need and St Ann's Hospice. To donate, click here: As of Friday, June 16, they have completed 566 miles of the journey and have raised £2,455. For more information on the Western Front Way, visit the Western Front Association's website: The quartet, who will all turn 65 this year, met when they were schoolboys at Rivington and Blackrod School, and will visit the graves of 16 of the 24 young men from their old school who died during the war. Colin Higham was struck by the idea after reading The Path of Peace: Walking the Western Front Way by Anthony Seldon.
Daily Mirror
5 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mirror
The £2 coin worth an incredible £1,000 if it has an error
An expert shared exactly how to spot this valuable error coin An expert has urged people to keep an eye out for a rare £2 coin that could be worth £1,000. This piece, from 2014, is highly sought after by collectors due to a specific error. The coin was created to commemorate the start of the First World War. On its reverse (the tail side) it features the image of Lord Kitchener, the former British Secretary of State for War. While this may be 'easy to spot' in your change, it is only particularly valuable if it has the error. An expert, known online as the Coin Collecting Wizard, explained: 'The Lord Kitchener £2 coin from 2014 is easy to spot with its bold 'your country needs you' design. 'And most of them are only worth £2 but there's a rare error version that collectors go crazy for.' This error can be found on the obverse of the coin (the head side). He continued: 'On the Queen's side the words 'two pounds' are supposed to be there but on some they're completely missing. 'his little mistake turns an ordinary coin into something worth over £1,000. 'So next time you're checking your change take a proper look, you might just be holding a small fortune without even knowing it. Just remember it's only the rare mule error that's worth serious money - that means the coin must be completely missing the 'two pounds' wording on the Queen's side. 'If your coin has the full design with £2 clearly shown then it's just the standard version and worth exactly that, £2.' He issued a warning: 'Don't get caught out by listings online trying to sell the regular ones for silly prices, it's the error that makes the difference.' In February last year a misprinted Lord Kitchener £2 coin sold for a staggering £1,000 at auction. Prior to being sold it was authenticated by the Royal Mint, according to This Money. There have only been two reports of these error coins being found in circulation. Lockdales Auctioneers officiated the sale of one back in March 2020 to the value of £500.
