moved:
That the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage prepare and report a bill to this House, in accordance with Standing Order 68(4)(b), no later than ninety (90) days following adoption of this motion, that will create a memorial recognizing the outstanding contribution of Lieutenant Colonel William (“Billy”) Barker (deceased), V.C., World War I flying ace, and hero of Canada and the Commonwealth.
Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to have the opportunity to debate this bill today. Unfortunately this bill was not made votable. First I thank the members who will be speaking on behalf of this motion today.
Yesterday I was flipping through some clippings and I came across a book review in the Globe and Mail of November 8. There was a very appropriate caption. This review was on the book written by Wayne Ralph called Barker VC: William Barker, Canada's Most Decorated War Hero which was released this past fall.
The heading for this book review was “The greatest air ace you've never heard of”. Below that in bold was “How Canada's most decorated hero slowly became an unknown soldier”.
Is that not appropriate when we talk about Lieutenant Colonel Barker, VC? I want to tell this House and the Canadian people why we are debating this motion at this time. This has been a personal project of mine since 1996. As a former mayor of Dauphin I began writing all the politicians associated with heritage, certainly the Minister of Canadian Heritage and the historic sites and monuments board of Canada requesting that national historic significance be conveyed on Lieutenant Colonel William Barker, VC.
For those who do not know anything about Lieutenant Colonel William Barker, VC, which is not a surprise to Canadians, this man was the most decorated soldier, not Canadian soldier but soldier, of the first world war, in the world. Yet we are not familiar with his name.
I wrote to the historic sites and monuments board. I received a negative response from the executive secretary, Mr. Friend. He refused to acknowledge Barker's outstanding contributions during the first world war. He said: “Lieutenant Colonel Barker's post-war career does not appear to have been remarkable”.
I will give a couple of pieces of evidence to show how remarkable his post-war career really was. It appears to me with this kind of response that Mr. Friend did very little research, certainly his department did very little research.
Lieutenant Colonel William Barker was the first president of the Toronto Maple Leafs, installed in 1924. He was also the first acting director of the Royal Canadian Air Force at its founding in 1924. If that is not an incredible post-war career, I do not know what is.
If the historic sites and monuments board did its job, I would not be standing here today to talk about this. If the minister took an interest in this subject I would not be standing here talking about it. Unfortunately no one on the side of government took an interest.
I have been asked by the media why am I so interested in this topic, whether it is because he was born in Dauphin. Obviously I am interested because he came from Dauphin, Manitoba. But more important, I am interested because as a country we need to recognize the real heroes of this country, people who have put their lives at stake so we can be free and enjoy the standard of living we have today.
Lieutenant Colonel William Barker was the most decorated soldier not only in this country but in the Commonwealth of Nations during that period. He is remembered not by Canadians but by our European allies, people in Great Britain, in France, in Italy. He is a household name in England but not in his own country.
Canadians have heard of Billy Bishop because of the CBC production which most of have seen at one time or another. Ironically Bishop, as famous as he was, paid William Barker the ultimate accolade and labelled him the greatest fighter pilot the world has every known. Is it not astonishing that most well known fighter pilot and war hero in this country, Billy Bishop, labelled Lieutenant Colonel William Barker, VC the greatest fighter pilot the world has ever known? It is amazing. Yet no one seems to know who Lieutenant Colonel William Barker is.
I want to read a couple of paragraphs from an article written by William W. Walker on the same topic. He asked was this just one Canadian going overboard on the ability of another fellow countryman. If Barker deserved Bishop's appellation of the greatest, why is he almost unheard of today? That is a fair question.
Barker seemed to shun publicity about himself and his exploits. He left no memoirs in contrast to many of the aces who meticulously set down their autobiographies.
There are no known definitive biographies of him or even of the RCAF. The air ministry at Ottawa has only the barest history of one of the most illustrious warriors of World War I.
Perhaps the reason there is only fragmentary information about Barker stems from the fact that he had very little use for systems and no patience for protocol. His job was fighting and killing Germans. It was an employment he pursued with relentless, wholehearted enthusiasm. He lived for the thrill of the chase in combat and for the final blazing minute of the kill which was the pay-off, the raison d'être of the fighter pilot. Each victory spurred him on to new goals. In the air he was as courageous and reckless as any of the young hellions skimming the clouds over France and Germany.
However, once out of the cockpit he seemed more withdrawn, sombre and reserved. He was different from his more lively compatriots who liked all the carousing and wenching they could crowd into the short hours between flights. Most of them reasoned that death would join them in the cockpit soon enough, so why not live it up.
As the squadron commander, Barker was always concerned about his charges. He was anxious to teach them the combat tactics that would enable them to survive. When occasion demanded he would celebrate and drink with them, but unbridled celebrations and uninhibited acts so typical of the flying Galahads just did not fit in with his personality. Compared with some of the more flamboyant young blades like Lufbery, Udet and Frank Luke, Barker was quite restrained on the ground.
Barker's score of 58 was not the highest, but he pioneered fighter pilot tactics that were widely used in the second world war and he blueprinted a plan for fighter armaments that was used by the British in the battle of Britain in 1940. Few airmen have left such a legacy.
I will read a short passage written by Peter Warren, a Manitoba freelance journalist and broadcaster. He asked this question in his column: “Why is this Dauphin man the unknown hero for Canadians? My God, he took a British cabinet minister and dropped one of the allied spies behind enemy lines in August 1918”.
Barker was told by King George V at his investiture on March 1, 1919 that he had set a new record by receiving six gallantry awards, two more than the king had previously presented to any soldier in the British empire.
Mr. Warren raises this question: “Somebody out there help me explain”. I do not know if there is an explanation, except that this country has basically ignored Lieutenant Colonel William Barker. Government after government has forgotten his contribution.
As Canadians we tend to look elsewhere for our heroes, across the border and across the ocean. We are a relatively young nation. As a young nation matures we need to recognize and learn from our history. One lesson we must learn is to acknowledge our heroes, those who can be positive role models for all of us.
Mr. Speaker, I would ask for unanimous consent to make Motion No. 251 a votable motion.
