William George Barker: Canada&#;s most decorated war hero
Canada’s most decorated war hero is being publicly recognized 81 years after his death.
On Thursday, a monument to First World War flying ace William George Barker will be unveiled in Toronto’s Mount Pleasant cemetery.
Barker’s family says today’s ceremony will finally give Barker the recognition he deserves. Barker’s grandson, Ian Mackenzie, says one of Canada’s finest war heroes shouldn’t have been hidden away in a family crypt. &#;They should have built a public monument for him&#;It’s a very fine day for us and proud day for us,&#; says Mackenzie.
Although Barker is Canada’s most decorated war hero, few Canadians are familiar with his story, which has been largely eclipsed by legendary military pilot Billy Bishop.
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Barker was born on November 3, in Dauphin, Manitoba.
As a boy he had an affinity for riding horses and shooting his service rifle at ranges in Dauphin and Winnipeg. It was no surprise then when he enlisted with the 1st Canadian Mounted Rifles at the beginning of the First World War in
In March , Barker transferred to the No. 9 Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps
BARKER,WILLIAMGEORGE, soldier, air force officer, and businessman; b. 3 Nov. in Dauphin, Man., son of George William John Barker, a farmer, and Jane Victoria Alguire; m. 1 June Jean Kilbourn Smith, and they had one daughter; d. 12 March in Rockcliffe (Ottawa) and was interred in the Mount Pleasant Mausoleum, Toronto.
The eldest of nine surviving children, William Barker was born in a log house on the family farm and was educated at schools in or near Dauphin and Russell, Man. His sister Edna remembered Willie as a boy with innate poise and self-confidence as well as an intense personality. As a teenager he displayed all the qualities that would later make him an exceptional military pilot. He was a kinaesthetic young man, attracted to risk, yet possessed of an analytical and independent mind. Gifted with exceptional eyesight, he was adept at shooting and was a skilled horseback rider. He served in the militia with the 32nd (Manitoba) Horse in After the outbreak of World War I, Barker, in his final year of high school at Dauphin Collegiate, volunteered for the Canadian Expeditionary Force, enlisting as a trooper in the 1st Canadian
The legendary victories of WWI hero pilot William Barker VC
These were early days of aerial combat and a truly exciting time for aviation design which was adapting and evolving at an unprecedented pace. When Barker joined 28 Squadron, the Sopwith Camel was the most agile plane the Royal Aircraft Factory had ever made. It became Britain’s most famous fighter of World War I.
In many ways, this was due to what William Barker was able to achieve while in the cockpit. With 3, enemy planes destroyed, the Camels were the most successful fighter aircraft deployed by any nation in WWI.
With a few flying accidents throughout his career, it might be said that Barker was not the most skilled of pilots at flying. However, what set him apart from the rest and made him the most successful WW1 pilot was his marksmanship and aggressive courage.
Both qualities flourished while he served with the Sopwith Camel unit, making him particularly victorious at dogfighting.
The unit’s first victory came shortly after Barker’s arrival. His first and the Squadron’s first victories came on 20 October, when in the middle of a dogfight, he shot the wings of a German Imperial Army’s Albatross Scout and
WW1 Canadian VC recipient William George (Billy) Barker
70 men from Canada received the Victoria Cross, Britain’s highest award for gallantry, during the First World War. As part of the Centenary Commemorations the people of the United Kingdom marked their gratitude to those courageous men by presenting a bronze memorial plaque to their home country engraved with their names. The plaque is now displayed at the British High Commission Ottawa. This archive tells their stories.
Name: William George Barker
DOB: 3 November
Place of Birth: Dauphin, Manitoba, Canada
Date of Action: 27 October
Place of Action: Foret de Mormal, France
Rank: Major
Regiment: Royal Air Force
William George (Billy) Barker was born on 3 November in Dauphin, Manitoba, Canada. He enlisted in December into the infantry, but in he transferred to what was then the Royal Flying Corps and which then became the Royal Air Force in Barker was an accomplished fighter pilot, shooting down 50 enemy planes. He was also a highly decorated officer, winning the Distinguished Service Order with one bar and the Military Cross with two bars.
Major Barker was awarded the Victoria Cross for his bravery on 27 Octobe
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