Why a Poppy?

Each November, Poppies bloom on the lapels and collars of millions of Canadians. 

The significance of the Poppy can be traced back to the Napoleonic Wars in the 19th century, over 110 years before being adopted in Canada. Records from that time indicate how thick poppies grew over the graves of soldiers in the area of Flanders, France. Fields that had been barren before battle exploded with the blood-red flowers after the fighting ended. During the tremendous bombardments of the war, the chalk soils became rich in lime from rubble, allowing the “popaver rhoeas” to thrive.

When the war ended, the lime was quickly absorbed and the Poppy began to disappear again. 

The person who first introduced the poppy to Canada and the Commonwealth was Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae of Guelph,
Ontario, a Canadian Medical Officer during the First World War.
John McCrae penned the Poem “In Flanders Fields” on a scrap of paper in May, 1915 on the day following the death of a fellow
soldier. Little did he know then that those 13 lines would become enshrined in the hearts and minds of all who would wear them. 

During a visit to the United States in 1920, a French woman named Madame Guerin learned of the custom and decided to make and sell poppies to raise money for children in war-torn France. The Great War Veteran’s Association in Canada (our predecessor) officially adopted the poppy as its Flower of Remembrance on July 5, 1921.

The Poppy is also the recognized symbol for the Legion’s Poppy Campaign, which raises funds to support Veterans and their dependents. Through the trademark, the Legion ensures that the Remembrance Poppy is not used to commercialize, politicize, or dishonour those who served or to misrepresent the Poppy Campaign and the donations it raises.

In Flanders Fields
by Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae
May 3, 1915

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn,
    saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved,
    and now we lie

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep,
    though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

(As published in Punch Magazine,
December 8, 1915)