In the final months of World War II, Canadian forces were given the critical and deadly task of liberating the Netherlands from Nazi occupation. From September 1944 to April 1945 the Canadians fought on the Scheldt estuary, opening the port of Antwerp for Allied use, and then cleared northern and western Netherlands of German troops, allowing food and other relief to reach millions of desperate people. Today, Canada is celebrated and remembered by the Dutch for ending their oppression under the Nazis. On May 5th the annual Anniversary of this event is taking place in virtually all areas of the Netherlands.

In keeping with the Thomega Canada Remembers theme and educational presentations, this special documentary encompasses archival footage and stories by surviving Veterans who participated in those deadly conflicts, helping bring a better understanding to all Canadians why children from this foreign region ‘to this day, 76 years later’, still honor and respect Canadian heroes, both fallen and surviving. There will never be another occasion to thank so very few remaining Canadians for their service and sacrifice.

More than 7,600 Canadian soldiers, sailors and airmen died fighting in the Netherlands. They are buried in official war cemeteries across the country. The largest, Groesbeek Canadian War Cemetery, near the city of Nijmegen, holds the graves of more than 2,300 Canadians.

Canadians are fondly remembered by the Dutch as both liberators and saviors who rescued millions from sickness and starvation in 1945. The joyous "Canadian summer" that followed, forged deep and long-lasting bonds of friendship between the two countries.

Footage revealing the Canadian-Dutch bond that is celebrated every summer during the Nijmegen March (an annual, international military marching competition) highlights the Netherlands' liberation by Canadian soldiers; this bond, maintained and relished every single day for 76 years, is warmly and gratefully remembered within the Canada Remembers Documentary Series.