On the west side of the road from Caen to Falaise, the N158 in Normandy – France, lies a Canadian war cemetery. It lies about 14 kilometers South of Caen and just North of Cintheaux.
There are 2958 World War Two graves here, the majority of them Canadian. 87 graves contain unidentified fallen soldiers. Bretteville-sur-Laize is one of the larger Canadian War Cemeteries of the Second World War in Europe.
The Battle for Normandy
Most of the fallen soldiers on this field of honour fell on later stages during the Battle for Normandy.
They fell during the assault on Caen, near Saint-André-sur-Orne and during the fight to close the Falaise gap. This thrust southwards was led by the 4th Canadian Division who fought alongside the 1st Polish Armoured Division.
Soldiers from nearly every unit in the Canadian 2nd Corps are present in this cemetery together with 80 British soldiers, some Australian soldiers, a French soldier and a soldier from New Zealand.
Canadian soldiers who were killed in the earlier stages of the Battle of Normandy are buried near Juno Beach.
Place Gérard Doré
In front of the cemetery is an area which is named, “Place Gerard Doré”, in honor of Private Gerard Doré who volunteered for the Canadian Army and joined the regiment “Les Fusiliers Mont-Royal” at the age of 15.
Gerard Doré was killed on the 23rd July 1944 when he was only 16 years old. He has his final resting place in this cemetery.
Visit
Follow the N158 from Caen to Falaise and you will find the cemetery just North of Cintheaux.
