Location Details

Canada has played an integral role in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) since its inception on 4 April 1949 with Bases and Wings in both France and the north of West Germany. In 1966 the French government announced the withdrawal of their military forces from NATO which resulted in the withdrawal of NATO forces stationed in France. Lahr, Germany became the new home for 1Wing and 1 Air Division Headquarters, Metz in facilities formerly occupied by the French forces. The move of the operational equipment was accomplished by March 1967 with families moving later in the year.

This was also the time when Canada set new defence priorities and with them, the decision to reduce of the size of the NATO brigade and to garrison it in southern Germany. In October 1970 the brigade group garrisoned at Werl and surrounding towns moved to Lahr.

Lahr is located in a valley on the edge of the Black Forest and the Rhine Plain on the main north-south route of the A-5 motorway (autobahn) 20 kilometers from Offenburg and 35 kilometers from Strasbourg, France.

From 1967 to 1994 over 48 Canadian dependants and post-war service members were buried in Lahr Cemetery. Unlike most of North America, in most locations in Europe plots are not acquired in perpetuity but rather for a specific period of time, normally 20 to 25 years, after which the grave marker is removed and eventually the plot is reused. In Lahr, the term for a child's grave or a row grave is 20 years although this may be extended slightly until the area is cleared as a whole. As a result of this practice, the majority of the graves are no longer marked.

The Department of National Defence through negotiations with the City of Lahr has been able to create a Canadian Section in the Bergfriedhof (Mountain Cemetery). This section has been developed in the area known as the Children’s Section. This new section is shared by both service members and children who are remembered on individual tombstones. A Memorial Cairn has been installed to include the names of those whose graves have been lost. Canada has secured a 50-year lease on the Canadian Section as well as an option for an additional 50 years.

A dedication service was held in November 2002 and the Canadian Section officially opened by the Canadian Ambassador to Germany, Her Excellency Marie Bernard-Meunier and the Oberburgermeister of the City of Lahr, Herr Dr W.G. Müller. Many Canadians participated at this ceremony.

Background Information on these sites has been extracted from: the Pinetree Line Web Site; the 2 (F) Wing RCAF Grostenquin, France Information Booklet (1957); publication 4 CMBG Canada's NATO Brigade, 1983, Moritz Schauenburg Gmbh & Co. KG.