Somewhere in this city there’s a single pane of glass that does its most important work for one minute, once a year. Here’s where to find it, plus everything else happening in Ottawa this Remembrance Day.
There’s a particular kind of quiet that settles over our nations’ capital on the morning of November 11. The traffic thins, the shops stay shuttered, and thousands of people in dark wool coats drift toward Confederation Square with poppies pinned over their hearts. If you’ve never stood in that crowd when the clock hits 11, put it on your list. It stays with you.
This year Remembrance Day falls on a Wednesday, and the capital has a full morning planned. Here’s your guide to where to go, what you’ll see and hear overhead, and how to get downtown without getting stuck behind a barricade.
The big one: the National Remembrance Day Ceremony
The heart of it all is the National Remembrance Day Ceremony at the National War Memorial, starting at about 10:30 am on Wednesday, November 11. Come in person (dress warmly and arrive early, since the best spots go fast), or watch it live on the Royal Canadian Legion’s Facebook page and on local and national news broadcasts.
A few moments to watch, and listen, for:
- Around 11 am: a 21-gun salute fired from the east side of Parliament Hill, near the Rideau Canal. If you live or work nearby and hear booms across the core, that’s what it is.
- Around 11:05 am: four CF-18 Hornets roar over the National War Memorial and the National Military Cemetery of the Canadian Armed Forces.
- Around 11:30 am: a Black Hawk helicopter follows the same route, and it may fly as low as 300 feet above the ground. Look up; you’ll feel this one in your chest.
When the official ceremony wraps, stay for one of my favourite Ottawa traditions: members of the public walk up to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and leave their poppies on it. By early afternoon the tomb is covered in red.
The mystery window at the Canadian War Museum
Now, about that pane of glass.
The Canadian War Museum at 1 Vimy Place has a room called Memorial Hall, built around the original headstone of Canada’s Unknown Soldier. The architects lined up a single window so that at exactly 11 am on November 11, sunlight pours through it and frames that headstone. Every year. On cue. (Clouds permitting, of course. Ottawa in November doesn’t always cooperate.)
Visitation starts at 10:40 am, and the museum livestreams the moment for anyone who can’t be there. The museum is also showing a broadcast of the national ceremony in the LeBreton Gallery from 10 am to noon, so you can see both under one roof. Admission is free on Remembrance Day, but you’ll want a timed ticket, so book ahead on the museum’s site.
Ceremonies closer to home
Not everyone wants to brave the downtown crowds, and you don’t have to. Royal Canadian Legion branches host Remembrance Day ceremonies in communities right across Ottawa. Check the Legion’s ceremony listings to find one in your neighbourhood. These smaller gatherings are often the most moving: local names, local faces, and a cup of something hot afterward.
Over in the east end, the National Military Cemetery at Beechwood Cemetery holds its annual Remembrance Day service, and military members from across the National Capital Region, along with their families and friends, are invited to attend. It’s also on the fly-past route, so you’ll catch the jets and the Black Hawk overhead.
Flags, poppies and half-mast
Keep an eye on the flagpoles this week. To mark Veterans’ Week, the Poppy Flag is flying at City Hall and these City facilities from Thursday, November 5 to Wednesday, November 11:
- Nepean Client Service Centre
- Orléans Client Service Centre
- Mary Pitt Centre
- Metcalfe Client Service Centre
- West Carleton Client Service Centre
- North Gower Client Service Centre
On Remembrance Day itself, all flags at City facilities will be lowered to half-mast from sunrise to sunset to honour all Canadians, past and present, who have served and sacrificed for the country.
Getting around: road closures and transit
Here’s the practical bit about getting around on Remembrance Day. If you’re heading downtown, plan ahead, because the following streets will be closed from 7 am to 2 pm on Wednesday, November 11:
- Queen Elizabeth Driveway, between Somerset Street and Laurier Avenue West
- Elgin Street, from Laurier Avenue to Wellington Street
- Wellington Street, from Bank Street to Rideau Street/Sussex Avenue
- Daly Avenue, between Colonel By Drive and Nicholas Street
- Nicholas Street, between Daly Avenue and Laurier Avenue
OC Transpo bus riders, take note: OC Transpo routes 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 17, 18, 19 and 20 will be detoured between 6:30 am and 1:30 pm because of the closures on Rideau and Elgin streets.
Honestly, transit is the way to go. And here’s a lovely touch: through Veterans’ Week (November 5 to 11), Veterans ride free when they wear their medals or uniform or show ID. That covers OC Transpo buses, all O-Train lines, Para Transpo and STO buses, and companions travelling with a Veteran ride free too. Details are on OC Transpo’s website.
Running errands? Read this first
Remembrance Day is a federal statutory holiday but not a provincial one in Ontario, so it can be a confusing day, especially in the nation’s capital. Federal offices are closed, and you can expect banks and Canada Post to be closed as well. Ottawa also has its own Remembrance Day bylaw that keeps most retail businesses closed until 12:30 pm, so if you need groceries, aim for the afternoon.
One more date worth honouring
Remembrance Week also took in Indigenous Veterans Day on Sunday, November 8, when flags at all City facilities flew at half-mast from sunrise to sunset. It honours the more than 12,000 First Nations, Inuit and Métis Veterans who served Canada. If you missed it, carry that thought with you to the cenotaph on Wednesday.
However you mark the day, whether that’s shoulder to shoulder at the War Memorial, in a Legion hall down the street, in a sunlit room at the War Museum or simply in a moment of silence at your desk at 11, Ottawa will be remembering with you. Lest we forget.
