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Remembrance Day ceremonies on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and at city halls, places of worship and military bases across Canada today are commemorating the end of the First World War a century ago.
CBC coverage for the national ceremony in Ottawa started at 10 am ET.
Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan headed the ceremony, which starts around 10:55 AM in sub-zero temperatures, as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is in Paris on Sunday for other world leaders.
Sajjan arrived at the National War Memorial along with Gov. Gen. Julie Payette, who recently returned from Belgium, where she attended additional commemorative events.
Among those Payette greeted Sunday as the ceremony got underway was Winnipeg resident Anita Cenerini, who was named to the 2018 National Silver Cross mother, representing all of the military mothers who have lost a child to war. Cenerini fought for her son, Pte. Thomas Welch, to receive full military honors after his suicide. This is the first time the legion has chosen a mother who has lost a child to suicide for the year-long designation. After serving in Afghanistan in 2003, the 22-year-old ended his life on May 8, 2004, at the army base in Petawawa, Ont.
At 11 am Sunday, a dark silence was broken by the beginning of a 21-gun salute and the deep toll of a bell marking the occasion. A flyover of five CF-18 Hornet aircraft from Cold Lake, Alta., Also appeared on the crowd at the National War Memorial in a "missing man" formation. The crowd paused at 11 am to reflect on the sacrifices of Canadians who gave their lives in conflict around the world.
During the First World War, more than 66,000 Canadians died on the battlefields of Europe. The Remembrance Day ceremonies acknowledge the contributions of all Canadians.
Trudeau 's Wife Sophie Gré goire Trudeau, accompanied by Senator Peter Harder, Jonathan Vance, Chief of the Defense Staff, Liberal MP Karen McCrimmon from Veterans Affairs Canada and Thomas Irvine, National President of Royal Canadian Legion.
'Very special Remembrance Day'
As the Ottawa Children's Choice Blood In Flanders Field, wreaths were laid at the foot of the war memorial to remember the fallen. Payette put down the first wreath, followed by Cenerini on behalf of "The Mothers of Canada," then Sajjan on behalf of the government, as well as others representing various federal departments, and even one representing the young people of Canada and another on behalf of Indigenous people.
In an interview before the ceremony, Sajjan told CBC's Hannah Thibedeau that this is a "very special Remembrance Day" because of the 100th anniversary of the signing of the armistice, ending the so-called Great War.
It was a chilly but sunny day in Ottawa on Sunday for the ceremony 100 years since the First World War ended with the signing of the Armistice. (Chris Rands / CBC)
"Even today, our men and women in Armed Forces are deployed all over the world.
Sajjan also stressed the important role of peacekeepers.
"World War I was a consequence where peace was not found … when we look at the work they do, we're proud of the resilience in not only reducing conflict, but also preventing it."
Honoring the fallen
In a statement Sunday from the Prime Ministers' Office, Trudeau emphasized the role Canadians played in WW I.
"One hundred years ago today, the Armistice between Germany and the Allies ended the First World War." As we commemorate the 100th anniversary of the armistice, we also mark Canada's Hundred Days, "his statement says, in part.
"During the '100 Days Offensive,' Canadians are spearheaded attacks that overcame the last lines of German defenses and paved the way to final victory. "
Trudeau also encouraged people in Canada to take a break from their lives for two minutes of silence, to "remember every Canadian who has sacrificed their future for generations beyond their own.
Poppies are pinned to a cross at Remembrance Day ceremonies at the Grand Parade in Halifax on Sunday, one of the many events across Canada. (Andrew Vaughan / Canadian Press)
"Lest we forget."
In Toronto, the city is one of the most important cities in the city, with the primary ceremony for Old City Hall starting at 10:45 am ET, with Mayor John Tory in attendance. First Doug Ford will host Ontario's Queen's Park Remembrance Day ceremony.
On the East Coast, ceremonies included ones in Nova Scotia, where crowds of people filled the square at Halifax's Grand Parade. As the clock struck 11 am AT, the gun on nearby Citadel Hill fired the first of 22 shots.
Mayor John Tory participates in a wreath ceremony during the sunrise Remembrance Day service at the Prospect Ceremony in Toronto on Sunday. (THE CANADIAN PRESS)
And in Prince Edward Island, Hundreds in Charlottetown to Honor the Fallen. The dark crowd stood in the distance, and those that have come since.
Montreal's main ceremony at the Quebec Provincial Command at 10:30 am ET, at Place du Canada. Plains of Abraham at 10:30 a.m. until about noon, with Premier Francois Legault in attendance.
With files from The Canadian Press
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