Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the participation of Quebeckers in one of the most famous military operations of the First World War, the Battle of Vimy Ridge, which took place from April 9 to 12, 1917. It was a resounding victory, but it came at a very high human cost as we lost 3,598 of our own.
I wanted to highlight the outstanding contributions of the French Canadians of the 22nd Battalion. According to historian Carl Pépin, as the only French-speaking unit in the entire British army, the 22nd Battalion had two wars to fight. On the one hand, they were fighting the German enemy, and on the other, they were fighting for recognition of their valour and for everyone's respect. That is a credit to Quebeckers.
We thank the French Canadians and English Canadians who fought at Vimy for their service.