Dury Memorial, Canadian war memorial in Dury, France
The Dury Memorial is a Canadian war memorial centred on a 13-tonne cube-shaped block of white-grey granite quarried near Stanstead, Quebec. The block, carved with wreathes on two opposing sides, stands on a low stepped base of pale stone set into a lawn, with a low stone border running across the grass in front. It marks the point where the Drocourt-Quéant Line crossed the Arras-Cambrai road, just south of Dury in the Pas-de-Calais.
The memorial commemorates the Canadian Corps' part in the Second Battle of Arras, from 26 August 1918, and its assault on the Drocourt–Quéant Line on 2 September. Tanks pulled hooks to tear gaps in the barbed wire, and the 1st and 4th Divisions broke through; seven Canadians won the Victoria Cross that day. The corps then advanced to the Canal du Nord, at a cost of 11,000 casualties.
The memorial's granite block is carved with wreaths on two opposing sides, and an inscription around its base reads "Honour to the Canadians who on the fields of Flanders and France fought in the cause of the Allies with sacrifice and devotion". Brief English and French descriptions of the battle are inscribed on its sides.
The memorial is open year-round and can be reached via the D939 road that connects it southeast of Arras. A parking area is available for visitors who are exploring the war sites of the region.
The memorial block is a 13-tonne cube of white-grey granite quarried near Stanstead, Quebec, one of six identical blocks erected at Canadian battle sites in France and Belgium under architect Percy Erskine Nobbs. Each carries the same inscription around its base and differs only in the battle text on its sides and the layout of its small park.
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