OTTAWA, ROYAL CANADIAN NAVY (RCN) MONUMENT, RICHMOND ISLAND, SUNDAY, JUNE 28, 2026: A solemn remembrance ceremony was held at the Royal Canadian Navy Monument on Richmond Island to commemorate the 108th Anniversary of the Sinking of HMHS Llandovery Castle, the deadliest Canadian naval disaster of the First World War.

On June 27, 1918, HMHS Llandovery Castle was sailing from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to Liverpool, England, when it was torpedoed off southern Ireland by German submarine SM U-86. Of the 258 souls on board, 234 were lost. Only 24 survived.

Richmond Island and Victoria Island are linked through the historic Ottawa River corridor near the Chaudière Falls, a place of deep Indigenous, cultural, and strategic significance. The presence of Douglas Cardinal, the world-renowned Blackfoot architect, joined by his wife Adoia Cardinal to lead a Land Acknowledgement Ceremony, grounded the commemoration in respect for Indigenous history, place, and remembrance.

Following the remembrance ceremony, a reception took place at Mill Street Brew Pub, where a scene from Llandovery Castle, the Canadian opera that premiered in June 2018 on the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the hospital ship, was performed. Librettist Paul Ciufo also provided a presentation on researching and co-creating the opera with composer Stephanie Martin. The opera focuses on the fourteen Nursing Sisters who lost their lives in the tragedy.

The commemoration is part of a broader global maritime and veterans integration strategy that has grown over more than 35 years of heritage preservation, veterans’ recognition, national remembrance, and international outreach.

This strategy connects Canada’s commemorative work to national and international maritime observances, including India’s National Maritime Day, the United States National Maritime Day, the IMO Day of the Seafarer, China National Maritime Day, World Maritime Day, and Merchant Navy Day observances recognized in Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand.

The next major national remembrance event will be Merchant Navy Veterans Day, to be held at the National War Memorial in Ottawa on Sunday, September 13, 2026. The ceremony will honour Canada’s Merchant Navy veterans, Allied merchant mariners, naval veterans, and all who served at sea in defence of freedom and humanity.

About the Merchant Navy Commemorative Theme Project
The Merchant Navy Commemorative Theme Project is a Canadian-led remembrance initiative dedicated to honouring the service and sacrifice of the Canadian Merchant Navy, Allied merchant mariners, naval personnel, and the broader global maritime community.

About Memoria Global
Memoria Global is an emerging remembrance platform connecting remembrance, veterans’ recognition, heritage preservation, youth engagement, and support for the living.