Extreme devotion to duty in the presence of the enemy - Part IV
Babble on.
Hill 70 near Lens, France, saw a great deal of Canadian bravery in August of 1917.
Acting Corporal Filip Konowal (47th Bn., British Columbia Regiment, Canadian Expeditionary Force)
For most conspicuous bravery and leadership when in charge of a section in attack. His section had the difficult task of mopping up cellars, craters and machine-gun emplacements. Under his able direction all resistance was overcome successfully, and heavy casualties inflicted on the enemy. In one cellar he himself bayonetted three enemy and attacked single-handed seven others in a crater, killing them all.
On reaching the objective, a machine-gun was holding up the right flank, causing many casualties. Cpl. Konowal rushed forward and entered the emplacement, killed the crew, and brought the gun back to our lines. The next day he again attacked single-handed another machine-gun emplacement, killed three of the crew, and destroyed the gun and emplacement with explosives. This non-commissioned officer alone killed at least sixteen of the enemy, and during the two days' actual fighting carried on continuously his good work until severely wounded.
In related news, we've finally got his VC back.
November 11th shouldn't be the only day we remember.
Babble off.
posted by Babbling Brooks @ 11:47 a.m.
2 comments
2 Comments:
Not necessarily that it shouldn't be the only day we remember, but it should be different in how we remember it. Stories like this need to be published in the newspaper or something for people to read on this day. The day off of school should be followed by why they got that day off.
But this story is so, so...violent, and so, well...divisive. Enemies? They were just people from other cultures, reaching out to us in the only way they knew how. And we rejected them. It's all so terribly hurtful. How would celebration of this terrible day promote diversity, and make people like, hug each other, and stuff?
carbuncle off
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