Rome — Dozens of Canadian veterans of the Second World War were greeted by Govenor-General Adrienne Clarkson and Italian officials as they returned to Italy for the first time in 60 years on Monday.
The former soldiers are part of a Veterans Affairs tour of the country they liberated from fascism and Nazi domination between 1943 and 1945.
Most came to the Italian capital aboard a Canadian Forces Airbus along with Ms. Clarkson, Veterans Affairs Minister Albina Guarnieri and other Canadian dignitaries.
Veterans Affairs is paying for part of the cost of the trip.
Governor-General Adrienne Clarkson greets Victoria Cross-winner Ernest (Smoky) Smith, 90, in Rome on Monday. (Stephen Thorne/CP)
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The veterans will be attending commemorative ceremonies at war cemeteries in Cassino, Ortona and Rimini and other battle sites.
Canadian and other allied troops fought for more than 20 months beginning in Sicily and on up to Rome itself. They were met by highly trained and determined German troops ensconced in mountain positions throughout the country.
About 93,000 Canadians fought in Italy during the campaign. There were nearly 20,000 wounded and almost 6,000 killed.
They were known as the D-Day Dodgers because they missed out on the invasion at Normandy on June 6, 1944. Most of the Canadians in Italy were transferred to northwest Europe before the fighting ended.
Canada's last living winner of the Victoria Cross, Ernest (Smoky) Smith, 90, will be honoured later this week with a plaque near the site at Cesena, where he singlehandedly fought off more than 60 Germans in October, 1944.
