Grave of Canadian soldier from First World War identified in cemetery in France

OTTAWA — The Department of National Defence says it has confirmed that a previously unidentified grave in France for a Canadian First World War soldier belongs to Sgt. Norman McLennan.

The headstone at the Courcelette British Cemetery in northern France, which says only that the plot was for a sergeant of the “Great War Royal” Canadian regiment, will now be rededicated to McLennan in a ceremony.

McLennan enlisted with the Royal Canadian Regiment in Quebec in 1905 but conflicting data on his exact date of birth suggests he may have been underage at the time.

He was deployed to Bermuda at the beginning of the war but his unit was dispatched to the Western Front in France in late 1915, where it served for nearly a year.

His unit fought in the Battle of the Somme and was one of eight Canadian battalions tasked with capturing a major German trench that fortified higher ground.

He was last seen on Oct. 8, 1916, when the Canadians seized the trench and fought off at least three German counterattacks before being forced to retreat.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 25, 2026.

Canadian Press Staff, The Canadian Press