Canadian Forces

Canadian Guards of German POW's

Gerry Sellars

These men are typical of the guards in the Canadian POW camps. They are members of a unit called The Veterans Guard. These men usually were First World War veterans too old to serve in frontline combat units Most of the men in this photo are wearing service ribbons that would have been earned in the trenches of france in WW1. They all appear to be decorated veterans except for the sour looking overweight Oliver Hardy lookalike second from the right. A fairly large number of these men actually died while in service, many from heart attacks and other deseases related to respiratory ailments etc. These men should have been living out their old age in relative comfort but instead volunteered to perform these duties to free up younger men to fight. Some might say this photo should be in the Canadian section but I think it relates to the few posts I have put up in the German forces section.