I live near the Canadian Military Cemetery in Holten... Each year before Christmas a very large portion of villages around will come together. About a thousand children will all have a little lantern and place it near to a grave. It's to make sure to let these heroes known they're not forgotten...ever. It's beautiful.

"You have to have been occupied to appreciate what freedom really means! And when you do you never forget who gave it to you!" Words of wisdom and truth.

My grandfather was a Canadian liberator in the Netherlands, he had a 6 week affair with my grandmother after my city was liberated. That was just enough to get her pregnant, at that time is was not socially accepted to have a child from a foreign soldier without being married, after this she married a dutch man that came back frome the Indonesian war, and he adopted my father as his own, this was possible du to a special law they had made for overseas soldiers. My father asked my grandmother many times about his real father, but she didn't tell him much. He tried a couple of times with special search organisation's but he didn't succeed in finding him. My father died 2 years ago, but still when I see pictures of Canadian liberators I find myself looking for facial features that might look like my father. Although I didn't know my real grandfather, I am still proud that I'm his grandson

Every single grave of the fallen soldiers at the Dutch war cemeteries are adopted by Dutch families who take care of the graves and bring flowers to them and are often in touch with the soldiers families. Even today there are waiting lists of people who want to fulfill this honour.....that is how we feel about our liberators!

I am now a Dutch Canadian, i was born in the beginning of the war, i remember the last two years of the war. I became a Royal Dutch navy man ( 7 YEARS ) and a diver (frogman ). And proud to have served . Now living in Canada for fifty two years and a proud member of the Royal Canadian legion for over fifty years and proud of it.

I'm weeping watching this. I'm so proud to be Canadian.

My grandma actually remembers when the canadians came into our neighbour town. They soon came to my small town and they handed her chocolate. The first chocolate she ever had, and the best, so she says

A good friend was a child living in an orphanage in Zwolle Netherlands during the war eating potato peaks and cabbage leaves. His town was liberated by a single Canadian soldier. Leo Major the one eyed scout.

My grandparents took a Canadian veterinarian in their house after the war, we visited him in Canada and he came back here a few times, he sadly passes away a few years ago, but I will never forget his stories. Each year on may 5th we hang the Canadian flag outside that he gifted to us. He was an amazing man and I will never ever forget him. His daughters still visit us every single year!

🥲 great men and women who risked their lives for a country they’d never been to and a people they didn’t know. Eternal gratitude 🇳🇱 ❤️🇨🇦

My grandmother summed it up like this “we owe them a life debt, we and our children and our childrens children, that we may never forget.”

I was born after the war. As an adult, I met a man in his 80s who now lived in Canada. When I told him my father was one of the Canadian soldiers who liberated 2 places in The Netherlands, he started to cry and hugged me so hard. He wanted to meet my father, who unfortunately had died several years before. I'll never forget that.

I am a Canadian with Dutch relatives. They never let me forget what our country did for them. Thank you for this. 🇨🇦 🍁

We're not only thankfull for what the Canadian soldiers did, but also for the American and British soldiers

this brings back memories , in my childhood about 45 years ago , every year The canadian soldiers stay with dutch gast family,s during theyre time in the netherlands .we welcomed a airgunner ) thats how we called the canadian pilots in our home .,every year he came back , i will never forget his name . Mr Charles Huff . i think for 7 years in a row he stayed with us . we showed him our country and guide him to the memorial appointments . we stayed in touch with letters during the years until his son wrote that he has passed away. a great memory of one of the great men that liberate us

Shoutout to Peter Mansbridge for this segment. He always does a fantastic job

The Dutch know more about Canada's role during WW2 than most Canadians. I remember seeing that parade on the CBC with the Vets. There were tears everywhere including self here at home.

This is my hometown (Apeldoorn). I am a child of a war generation (my parents were 15 and 18 at the start of WWII). The house of my kids' grandparents still has German bullets in the walls. Evidence of what happend 76 years ago is still here. We learned what freedom is the moment we lost it. That is why it is important to teach our children about freedom, and pass on the memories. 'Lest we forget'. (and of course, the Dutch like to party. Give them an opportunity, and they will use it ;-) ) Thank you for this reaction video.

Canadian, visited the Nederlands for th first time as a kid in 1980, first time I learned all about Canada's role in liberating Holland and how important it was in the country still. Then as an adult I visited again in the late 90s; walking through a small town past an elementary school, the windows plasterd with all the kids' paintings project: "Thank You Canada." We just walked by. looking at them all, in silence but teary-eyed. Felt good.

From when i was i child i remember being taught to allways show respect to the Canadians for what they did for our country. Ofcourse also for the other allies but Canada allways stood out.

Those two guys at 3:57…..They are veterans from the 48th Highlanders of Canada. I know them both. I served in that regiment from 1967 till 1974.

Check out the story of a Canadian hero called Leo Major. This guy liberated the city of Zwolle single-handed, he prevented the shelling of the city while taking over a hundred POW.

For those who remember the wonderful actress Audrey Hepburn, she was liberated by the Canadian army in Velp, Holland in April 1945. She and her family were hiding in the basement when Audrey decided she had to go upstairs and look outside. She found Canadian soldiers outside her doorway, and surprised them when she popped out. This was dangerous because you can end up getting shot when you come through a doorway unexpectedly as a battle passes by. The Canadians gave her what food they could from what they carried with them, mostly quick energy food like chocolate bars. Audrey wolfed down some of the chocolate (or it may have been a small tin of cream) because she had been starving for months during the "hunger winter" of 1944-45--and promptly vomited it back up. Her body's system simply could not digest the dairy product due to the many days and months of no real food whatsoever. She weighed a mere 88 pounds! Many people are convinced that her thin frame originated during that winter, and that the malnutrition she suffered then may have eventually led to her developing cancer and dying at age 63. Around 7,000 Canadians died liberating Holland. Many Dutch people emigrated to Canada after the war, and were always happy and full of praise for the country that sent soldiers to liberate them. Anyway, I thought some people might like to know that. 👌

My grandparents were in the resistance, they've told me so many stories about that period One story which made me particularly proud is that my grandfather found a young wounded German soldier in the fields hysterically crying for his mother My grandfather never forgot the pure horror and panic in that soldiers his eyes. My grandpa didn't harm him instead they took care of him and his injuries. He actually survived! In that same period they also found a American paratrooper hanging in the trees with broken arms and ribs. He too was rescued by my grandfather The german and the american soldier shared a room eventually at my families farm both recovering from their injuries

It was a great experience to meet the Canadian liberators every time in my city Apeldoorn. And they were so grateful for us sanding there for them, but I can't even imagine how days we're for them during the war...just boys coming here, risking their life for us...for me! 🙏❤

If you know your history you really start to appreciate the Canadians

as a canadian travelling in holland in 1990 i was only 25 but when dutch people (especially older) knew that i was from canada they went out of their way to let me know how much canada meant to them

I'm a 35 year old Canadian and a few years ago I saw on the news how the Dutch have parades to celebrate and honour Canadian soldiers. I never had any relatives that were in the war but it made me cry. It was so touching.

I'm from apeldoorn, And my girlfriend is from canada. And every where we go in apeldoorn she saw something canadian, And i had to translate it for her.

"The little thing we did" is the understatement of the century. Because of them we can enjoy life like we do now. They are the true hero's in this world and we will never forget what they have done for us!

Everytime i see this video i have tears in my eyes and i'm still thank full to Canada 🙏🥺😇🇳🇱

A few weeks ago in Zutphen, a small memorial stone was placed where a New Zeeland pilot crashed and died liberating the The Netherlands. The epitaph reads: "All I want to do is help".

My dad was in the medical corps with the Canadian army in the Netherlands. Thanks very much for showing this. Did you know that the Dutch queen was evacuated to Canada and had a baby there? The Canadian government declared the delivery room Dutch territory for a day so the girl would be eligible to become queen when she grew up.

Every year they still give tulips to us in Canada. We have a special bond with them still!

"War is hell on all sides" Those are some powerful and wise words, sir!

I wish I could know your name, man! I am a Canadian. While I have not served in the military myself. I humbly, say you are the most honest with your opinions and reactions of any veteran, I have met. Our country of Canada will always be humbled that the school children of the Netherlands, look after the graves of our fallen soldiers!🙏😥💔 The Queen of Holland was a Canadian, and the Royal Family took refuge in our Canadian Capital of Ottawa before the invasion of the Nazi’s. We are so proud, as a Country that we could liberate their Country….and the thanks they continue to give us leaves us all humbled. The Netherlands have sent us Millions of tulip bulbs for decades! We have an annual Tulip Festival in Ottawa every year, in the spring! The City of Ottawa, Canada is draped in various colours of tulips, so much so it becomes a tourist attraction, in itself! They have donated paintings by the Dutch masters that grace our museums. There gratitude of their masterpiece’s of historic art is viewed by thousands every year! I have experienced all of their gratitude, as a common citizen of Canada. I am proud of the sacrifice of the Canadian men and the nurses that answered the call to Duty! I am so humbled by the decades long appreciation of the people of the Netherlands!😔🇨🇦

During the war my grandfather got the news that he had to go work in a german factory (a lot of Dutch men were forced to do this)and he flat out refused to do that.So he had to dissapear.The resistance helped him to go 'underground'.They didn't tell my grandmother because they knew that that would be dangerous.They were right: She got arrested by the Gestapo( german police) and was 'interrogated' by them for 3 days and nights. Meaning she was severely tortured... When the germans realised that she was clueless about were her husband was they send her home. My mom knows this story because grandma's best friend told her when she was all grown up. She's the one that took care of my grandmother when she same home, badly wounded all over her body. My grandmother died when she was 93. Not once, not ever, like NEVER did she speak about the things that happened to her. We can only guess the horrors she had to endure....Being alone with a baby and a todler( my mum) and without an income, life was brutal during the war.They survived on gifts (food) from neighbours and friends. And from the resistance,send by my grandfather. She wasn't easily showing her emotions. Hardly ever cried. But she was always very emotional on remembrance day (may 4th) and liberation day (may 5th). There are millions of stories about the impact of the war and about the Nazi regime in our county. These stories will live on. And so will our immense gratitude towards the brave men that saved us.

In the small town I was born, a Scottish born, Canadian sergeant lost his life on april 19th just weeks before the war ended. A monument in his honor was placed there years ago. To this day young schoolchildren attend a ceremony every year and place flowers thanking serg. Walter Strang and the liberating forces.

When a Canadian SGT was killed in Afghanistan, a whole town in Bosnia held a memorial for this Canadian soldier. They still produce heroes, our true north, strong and free.

This is really special. I'm from Apeldoorn my self, and never seen these video's. I've been to memorials and exhibitions, but that was alway photo's. This hits so close to home. Literally. One of the reasons we remember, is because we still feel the effects of it in our daily life. I only found out my grandfather was Jewish two years ago. Not even my father, his son knew. My grandfather never said one word about the war, and I completely understand that. But ever since I found out, I feel like there's a big hole in my family history, in myself. And it will never be filled, because there's no one left to fill it.

I live in Arnhem and every year we remember the battle and liberation. Young and old pay there respect for those that riskt and lost there lives for our future. There are parades and in the past there were also veterans from ww2. The applause from the spectators and the hospitality make me proud of my country. We will never forget what they sacrificed for us to be able to live in freedom.

So many sacrifices… we owe everyone who did his or her part to free our country in any way, shape or form… our eternal gratitude, love and respect. For my generation it is important to touch base with this part of our history every once in a while so that we will never forget what circumstances created this war and how coming together with multiple nations got us out of it.

We know this story well in Canada but this popped in my feed, I watched and this Canadian cried watching. You’re a sweetheart too thank you for your service to all of our values.

My father is 83 and was 7 when the war ended. There are not alot of memories left in him but he still talks about the day the canadians rolled through Winterswijk (5km from the german border) and he and his friends and parents where standing on the sidewalk cheering!

liberating people from the horrors of war , isn't an act of courage , but one of nobility ... from a Canadian who served in the U.S.M.C , Semper Fi .

1:30 And now you understand why Dutch people invented tools like the "flessenlikker" (bottle scraper), from yesterdays video about Dutch tools. They knew what true hunger is, and wasting even a single drop or crumb of food was practically offensive to people who lived through that time.

It brings me to tears know that they respect them so much

I was there in 1995. In Amsterdam that is. The whole country was on the streets that day on may 5th. In the neighborhood my grandparents lived during the war. I did not understand it really at the time, but I did understand the Canadians were special to us and we had to respect those men. I saw them as our saviors without knowing what it ment. Ironically that was why I joined the army later, but I was never seen as a savior by locals over there. It turned out they were right in the end.

Being a veteran myself every year I walk beside them in Wageningen. It is the biggest honour.

"The little thing we did" is the understatement of the century. We owe our freedom to the Allies and will be forever grateful to them. As for you, I am so sorry for everything you went through in Afghanistan. Thank you!! You have my deepest respect.

As a Canadian, I thank you for your service, American Canadian, we are brothers, I have numerous family who have served , including WW2

my grandmother survived the starvation winter. people no longer realize what those people have suffered. I will forever thank Canada for their sacrifices. and maybe one day we can repay the debt

I'm so thankful. Its not a tiny thing. They did a great and heavy job. We are free in a free country.

I think it's fair to say we celebrate all the liberators through the Canadians. Not just because they liberated the largest part of the Netherlands while Americans went to fight elsewhere, which had to be done too, but also because the Canadians didn't come with baggage that could somewhat influence the celebrations. No cold war in the way like would have been with the Polish liberators for decades, Vietnam didn't go down that well in the left wing Netherlands of that time and you just don't want any politics in the celebrations. The Nazi occupation also left the Netherlands with a negative attitude towards militarism, allthough that might have been a bit older. They do marching and parades to but the Canadians just don't carry any of those associations.

I remember the stories... I SAW THE MARKS.... i felt the pain of my parents and grandparents.... They made me never to forget the why and the how... Our liberators have our neverending love and gratitude... Always in our 💕

I remember the stories my grandma told me about the war.. Luftwaffe shooting up the train she was in, dropping bombs on her block and the day the Canadians rolled in. The smile she had when talking about the Canadians was priceless.. She would also yell at me "You Don't know what hunger is.." when I said I was hungry as a child 😅 She was 15 to 20 during the war.

Vimy Ridge in France is also very big... it is now Canadian soil, in France, dedicated to those who fought and died for their freedom.

he doesnt get enough credit in my opinion so im just gonna shortly put his story here: Sergeant Léo Major and his buddy went to scout the city of Zwolle and hopefully to spare the city from artillery fire. his buddy got killed and, on his own, this one soldier imprisoned every nazi left in the city by causing chaos and making multiple trips with his prisoners back to the canadian camp. he singlehandedly liberated a city, sidenote, that city is the capital city of the province its in. he has his own streetsign, it says: the first liberator of Zwolle.

My father was 11 years old when the war started and sufferd from hunger during the war. It amazed me how he could enjoy eating a slice of bread with just butter on it or sugar, or eating a potato dipped in gravy. During his youth butter, sugar or fat was wealth. We are so spoiled now flooded with dozens of brands of the same product in our stores. I thought about this when i saw you reaction video about Dutch tools yesterday when the people in that video started laughing about the "flessen-likker" tool to scrape out the last bit out of a bottle. And I can't blame them, nowadays that tool does look a bit silly. I never used it, but i'll bet the people from my fathers generation did! I guess it wasn't a tool for getting the most for your money, it was a tool to survive.

My Father's eldest brother, who was with the First Canadian Army (the ones with the polar bear flash) was one of the 7600 Canadians who perished in the liberation of Holland. He rest with his comrades in the Groesbeck Canadian War Cemetery near Nijmegen. Such is the price of freedom. God Bless King Willem-Alexander and the courageous people of the Netherlands. ☮

The presenter of the piece is Peter Mansbridge, a legendary news anchor in Canada. He is basically our Walter Kronkite. He retired a few years ago.

You've hit the spot Paul. It's not just upholding a tradition, that would be empty.😒 The British, American, Canadian and Polish Army did their "little thing" for The Netherlands, but with massive, enormous, humongous result!🤗🤗🤗

Respect From a Dutch Army Veteraan yes we are all Femaly Brothers and Sisters in arms

You need to check out what Canadian soldier, Leo Major, did after D-Day. Ever heard of one man liberating a city on his own? Leo and the city of Zwolle.

13:15. The little thing we did..Don’t know why that gets me right in the feels so much. Sir, what you accomplished was one of the greatest things ever, sure wasn’t little. As you said Paul, still so humble. Great, great men they were.

Thank you. Greetings from a random dutch guy. Never forget this

America: "we just passing trough on our way to Berlin" Canada: "We will do our utmost best to liberate the entire country before moving on" Not to piss on America, but in a way they did leave us to fend for our self's only in search of glory. I am proud to cheer on Canada and these heroes that liberated us. I do plan to visit Canada at some point in the hope I can still meet at least one of these heroes and give a little time to talk to that person, listen to the stories and thank that person for their actions in the war. Perhaps if I'm lucky place flowers at a few grave sites for these heroes.

Iff I see these people each and every time.... I feel liberated. Each and every year again.

We will never forget. If you want to, you can do the Canadian Walk here in Apeldoorn. A tour guided by QR-codes. More than impressive. Back in 1995 I had the honour to talk with one of those heroes. He had to take out nazi machine gun nests with his flame thrower around the royal palace. That is the neighbourhood where I live now. He said he still saw and smelled the young guys he enflamed. He knew the difference between Germans and nazis. He was the only living super hero I ever met. Thanks to all veterans, then, now, future. This civilian salutes you.

I've seen this video a few times and it keeps moving me. Then I think of my father. Born in 1916 (first world war) and first in the army in 1936. Then again in 1939 and in 1940 he had to fight against the mighty German army. With a bent rifle and only five bullets against German tanks. It was an unfair fight. He stayed out of the hands of the Germans for five years. His brothers and brothers-in-law were all deported to Germany. My father has often been in hiding. He was also once shot in the buttock by someone from the Grüne Polizei. He survived. His brothers and brothers-in-law also miraculously survived. Immediately after the liberation, my father volunteered to join the army to collect stolen goods in Germany. That was quite dangerous when all the German troops did not want to surrender. They raided allied transports from the woods. My father drove there with a sten gun in his lap.

My grandma worked as a volunteer during WW2 feeding the hungry in sort of a mega soup kitchen. After the war she received a plate as a token of gratitude with her name on it. It hangs in my parents' kitchen now. / It's always been so touching to see Canadian veterans in the Netherlands to celebrate and memorate the war and our freedom. And it's sad there's coming an end to that because they're either to old to travel or dead by now. But that doesn't stop us Dutchies to honor these brave people who gave us our freedom back!

And we still celebrate liberation day every year. One big party nationwide 🍻🇳🇱

First i want to say i subscribed because at 1:48 i saw a REAL emotional MAN showing EMPATHY :) i'm a Canadian 39 years old ( my grandfather was too young to serve but he tried... )This story is important because the NETHERLANDS people are very grateful and me as a young Canadian i just want to say : THANK YOU NETHERLANDS for being grateful and thankful it means alot to Canada! :) we love you NETHERLANDS :)

We never forget..this boys saved our lives,we see them as familie..❤❤.

To this day here in Canada 🇨🇦 the capital city of Ottawa gets Tulip 🌷 bulbs from the Netherlands 🇳🇱 every year and they are planted in front of parliament hill .

Thank you for watching this video. It ,s very heartbreaking

As a Dutchie. I cried again. Always thankfull. 🇨🇦❤

🙏 for every soldier, who served in a war, or were stationed in countries , who had to be liberated or protected, like you in Afghanistan, you are our angels on this earth and that’s why you are our heroes, thank you for that, and for being the loving man you are 🥰 I wish you all the best in life ❤️

My mom never talked about the horror of the war until she was deep into her seventies. My dad only told funny stories and never spoke of the fear and the hunger. My father in law never revealed that he went to Berlin as a war laborer, until he was dyeing. I pieced together our history by the small remarks made at family gatherings, when drinks we’re served. So my gratitude is immense and so is my children’s and grandchildren’s. It has been a privilege to be able to thank those men who liberated us. And made it possible to raise my children in freedom.

There is a special bond we have with the Dutch people, every year they send us a huge amount of tulip bulbs that bloom beautifully at the Parliament Building in our capital. Ottawa.

An emotional hug for you and for all those men and women who gave me freedom! 🙏🥰

Im 40 years old now, and I never knew about this. I was crying like a little kid. Thank you, thank you so much from the bottom of my heart and soul you beautiful, beautiful people. Do I parents my sister can have a life. There are no words how thankfull I am to Canada.

“Lest we forget” 💜

My grandfather was actually in the Dutch Resistance during WW2, he helped hide Jews, stole potatoes from the Nazi's and he even had to shoot a soldier. After the war he'd ride a bicycle without tires for kilometers, going from farm to farm for tulip bulbs to feed his family. After that once the rebuilding started he was one of the people asked to help with the rebuilding of the city Haarlem. We still have a painting he got as payment as there was no money left to give during that time. He passed away when I was only 5 years old(31 now) so I haven't been able to ask him about that time myself, but the stories I've heard about him are ingrained in me for sure.

And we keep honoring them till the last one passes away... and perhaps even beyond.

A beautiful and touching video. I still remember seeing Canadian veterans at a similar parade when I was a young child. My city of Haarlem was liberated by the Canadians as well. My grandparents told me stories about the day they rolled into town, and the party atmosphere of that moment in May 1945. My grandfather was also starving at the end of the war, because there was simply no food in the cities anymore. Luckily the tulip fields are near Haarlem, so they dug up those to feed themselves. My grandmother was send one a barge to farmers in the north of the country, to be saved from starvation. We will never forget what the allies did for the Netherlands. Even the Russians. My other grandfather was liberated by the Red Army, because he was forced to work east of Berlin during the war. He was rounded up during a razzia in Haarlem, and was deported to Germany to be forced to work there.

My Dad was with Princess Patricia Canadian Light Infantry and was part of the force that liberated Holland. He didn't talk too much about the war but he say how grateful the Dutch people were. He lost his best friend in the unit.

If you go to Ottawa, all the tulips there are from the Netherlands. We are gifted them every year in thanks for our service. 🇨🇦🇨🇦

Check out a video when Canadians were repatriated after falling in Afghanistan it is called Highway of Heroes , This is where they were taken to their final destination from the Canadian military Air Force base along a highway going towards Toronto,

My grandmother told me that when the American and Canadian came and they handed out bread they let it stand on the kitchen table for half a day, just admiring the bread, didn't touch it, didn't eat it even though they were hungry. Just looking and feeling blessed. My grandmother never fully recovered from the war, she always kept food in odd places just to be safe, but when we as grandkids came to "oma" we could have everything there was to eat in the house. But for herself she didn't. She's with God now and I miss her. But she lives trough in our memories.

This makes me cry so much. Every year @memorial day at 20:00 , i say Thank you, so very much , for our freedom.. and that for 2 whole minutes. That will never change!!

My grandfather was in the 2nd world war. He was a chaplain in the Canadian Forces. He was born in Rotterdam and the cathedral he was baptized in was destroyed. The Dutch Royal family lived in Toronto during the war. There’s a very close relationship between the Canadians and Dutch.

Served in Afghanistan and Mali aswell, got injured, and never found a new job were I can fit in aswell, no one knows what Friends really are unless you have been in the army, fighting side by side.. greeting from the Netherlands and keep up the great word!👌

Canada also gave refuge to the Dutch Royal family during the war. Princess Margriet was born in Ottawa. Holland still sends huge amounts of tulips to Ottawa each year to show thanks.

And we will never forget .

I still remember the Canadians liberating our small town Oostvoorne, i was 5 years old!

As you can see its in Apeldoorn where I grew up. My grand pa and ma had a Hotel in the centre of Apeldoorn called 'Marktzicht' ( Market View ). When the Canadians freed Apeldoorn the command toke 'Marktzicht' as there HQ. I still have there electrical air raid sirene wich I use at Old New years day. Makes much more noise than the fireworks of the neighbors LOL. I also live now in the neighborhood of Kamp Westerbork. Praise the Canadians !

I sit at my couch, thanks to you.i will never forget your sacrifices

Great video, I come from a small town in the Eastern part of NL and we were liberated by the Canadians. We have 4 military graves of fallen soldiers from WWII, including one without a name and each year on remembrance day a huge part of the town gather to visit the graves. Even though I am 21 years old and learned about WWII in school and from stories of my grandparents I am so grateful that young men came to liberate my little town and often think about how these men died in a small town where they knew nothing about and would never see Canada again. One little edit I want to make is for the intro of the video. My grandma comes from Hilversum and told me that she and her brother went on foot to the eastern side of the country with a wagon to get food from the local farmers when they were around 6. So they made an 120 KM trip on foot to support their family. From what I remember in school, there were a lot of people doing this at the time and she always told me to be grateful for being able to eat as much as I want.

Superb video reaction my friend. Proud to be a Canadian!