A wall of world leaders walked somberly through the centre of Paris today, turning the annual Nov. 11 ceremony in the French capital into a global reminder of the horrors of the First World War and the efforts to prevent it from happening again.
Holding black umbrellas, the leaders, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wearing a poppy on his lapel, walked in a cold rain with sombre, stoic faces for a ceremony commemorating the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War.
Church bells rang out as the hour turned to 11 a.m. local time, marking the moment the guns fell silent across Europe a century ago.
The more than 60 leaders departed buses and walked a few steps on the Champs-Elysees before taking up their seats beneath the iconic Arc de Triomphe, under which is an eternal flame and tomb of the unknown soldier.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin each joined the group separately once everyone was in their place to start the commemoration of the end to the "War to End All Wars."
Some 650,000 Canadians and Newfoundlanders served in the First World War, and more than 66,000 of them lost their lives. About 172,000 more were injured.
Others served behind the front lines, working with locals to aid the war effort.
Kareen Rispal, France's ambassador to Canada, said Trudeau's appearance at the ceremony -- he sat two seats to Macron's right -- is a reminder of Canada's contributions during the First World War that aren't always recognized.
"We as French, we as Europeans -- I think we don't value enough the effort made by the Canadians," Rispal said in an interview Friday.
Macron used his speech Sunday to warn of how fragile peace can be in an age where the tensions that gave rise to four years of bloody battle, costing millions of lives, appear to be festering again. In his speech, he told the assembled masses that the "traces of this war never went away."
"We must reaffirm before our peoples our true and huge responsibility," he said.
Rispal said the theme of peace, and the price needed to keep it, were central not only to the commemoration, but a newly created summit French officials hope to make an annual event. Trudeau will take part in the Paris Peace Forum, as it is being called, on Sunday afternoon in Paris.
On Saturday, Trudeau thanked Canadian soldiers past and present for their service when he visited the memorial at Vimy Ridge and walked among the tombstones in a cemetery, some of which had names, others marked with simply "a soldier of the great war."
Veterans and those in the military today carry the legacy of those who fought a century ago in the trenches of the First World War, Trudeau said, honouring the memory of all service members who have paid the ultimate price.
"You stand for the values upon which Canada was built, values like democracy, equality, justice and liberty," Trudeau said.
"You risked it all to help the most vulnerable and free the oppressed. You chose to live your life in service of others driven by profound sense of duty and for that, Canadians can never thank you enough."