Memorial Chamber

To stand in the Memorial Chamber is to stand on the same ground as those lost in service to our country. The stones that form a cross in the floor were hewn from the battlefields that ring loudly in the collective memories of Canada’s First World War sacrifice— Vimy, the Somme, Ypres, and others.
Photo gallery for Solemn Space photo 1
© © HOC-CDC, 2018

Solemn Space

The Chamber was designed by architect John Pearson, and there could hardly be a more solemn space in the Parliamentary Precinct. Every day at 11 a.m., as the bells of the carillon toll overhead, the pages are turned in the eight Books of Remembrance that record the names of more than 118,000 Canadian war dead.


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Memorial Cross

Visitors enter through a short corridor of carved stone and pass beneath a replica of the Memorial Cross awarded to the mothers of the fallen.

Objects from the collection

Photo gallery for Central Altar photo 1
© HOC-CDC

Central Altar

The central altar is built of Hoptonwood limestone that was a gift from Great Britain. Other materials were donated by Belgium and France in gratitude for Canada’s contribution to their liberation.

Objects from the collection

Photo gallery for "In Flanders Fields" photo 1
© HOC-CDC

"In Flanders Fields"

The words of John McCrae’s poem “In Flanders Fields” are carved into a marble wall panel. Here too, poppies grow in the intricately carved stonework, illuminated by magnificent stained glass windows designed by Frank Hollister, who fought for Canada during the war.

Objects from the collection