The mystery of the Thames Victoria Cross

Story by Stephen J. Thorne

In December 2015, a “mudlark” treasure-hunting along the bank of the Thames River in southern England found a corroded metal cross buried in the ooze exposed at low tide. His name was Tobias Neto, and the hunk of rusty metal was none other than a Victoria Cross.

Or was it?

“It was covered in mud,” Neto recalled. “I kept it and carried on detecting. Only when I got home did I realize I had a VC medal in my hands—I could read the writing ‘For Valour’ below the crown.

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Armoured vehicle serves as a working memorial

Story by Sharon Adams

A contingent of Canadian tanks and armoured vehicles set out before dawn on Sept. 24, 2007, to push insurgents from a trouble spot in the Panjwaii district in Afghanistan.

The move was in aid of Operation Sadiq Sarbaaz (Honest Soldier), a joint operation with Afghan troops to build police stations throughout the area, in hopes a permanent police presence would provide some stability to one of the most dangerous districts in the country.

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September 23, 1958

Prime Minister John Diefenbaker announces the RCAF is to be equipped with BOMARC missiles.

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Choose our cover for the next
issue of Canada’s Ultimate Story!

The next issue of Canada’s Ultimate Story is Canada and the Victoria Cross. Help choose the cover by casting your vote.

No one ever set out to earn a Victoria Cross, which is awarded for “valour in the face of the enemy.” They were mostly spontaneous acts in the heat of battle. Of 98 Canadian recipients, 36 received their award posthumously. For dozens of action-packed accounts of valour and sacrifice on the battlefield, pick up a copy of Canada and the Victoria Cross, to be released on newsstands in November 2020.

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UN calls out Canada for helping
perpetuate Yemen war

Story by Stephen J. Thorne

Canada has been selling armoured vehicles to Saudi Arabia, and as a result has been included on a list of countries called out by a United Nations panel for perpetuating the war in Yemen.

The three-member panel says third-party states continue to profit from the unrelenting fighting, despite previous admonishments. It’s the first time the experts have named Canada in their annual assessment.

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The firestorm of 2003

Story by Sharon Adams

In the summer of 2003, British Columbia was ablaze.

Some 2,500 separate forest fires burned through more than 250,000 hectares of trees, fields, vineyards and crops—an area about half the size of Prince Edward Island.

Hundreds of homes and dozens of businesses burned. More than 30,000 people were evacuated in the path of a destructive fire so hot that whole trees burst instantaneously into flame.

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September 18, 2008

After an ambush in Afghanistan, Master Corporal Mike Trauner leaves cover and engages attackers
to protect pinned-down comrades. He is awarded the Military Medal of Valour.

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