Rob Probert does not have a definitive answer to the question: why? Why has it taken almost a century for Carleton Place, a sleepy small town not far from the nation’s capital, full of red brick Victorian homes and red maple trees, to celebrate the memory of Captain Roy Brown, a First World War ace, a fly-boy, a hockey player and a handsome Canuck who fought an air-duel to the death with Manfred (Red Baron) von Richthofen.
Yes, that Red Baron, the one and only Red Baron, the German with the red tri-plane, aristocratic roots and reputation for blasting the good guys out of the sky until our guy from Carleton Place got the better of him — before being mostly forgotten in the dustbins of the nation’s collective history.
Read it all.
h/t Maz2
An unsung hero?
Must have been a Conservative.
An interesting article. But it is noteworthy that the “sleepy small town” of Carleton Place has a cenotaph with about 100 names of the dead of two world wars, (making it much like any town in Canada)meaning Capt Roy Brown is just one hero among many produced by that town. making a fuss about him would be unseemly.
Although Captain Roy Brown’s action certainly was influential in the death of the Red Baron, it is less than certain he actually shot him down. The bullet wound to Richthofen was more in line to Vickers gunner Sergeant C.B. Popkin’s claim he had shot him down with groundfire.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/military/red-baron-theories.html
Let’s not nit pick now. Next thing, someone will claim Snoopy shot down the Red Baron.
A disputed kill if there ever was one…
While it is hotly debated if Roy Brown shot down the Red Baron it is beyond doubt the the Red Baron was chasing Wop May. It was Wop May, a few years later, who rescued my aunt’s cat from a tree.
I knew about Brown and Von Richthofen. Doesn’t everybody?
/sarc off/
My Grampa was an artilleryman and probably killed more Germans than Brown did before getting his leg blown half off. Nobody knows about him either.
But I do.
What has always amazed me was that the famous Sopwith Camel probably was responsible for killing more Allied pilots than German pilots.
It’s brief nadir of success was in 1916…as newer designs made it obsolete/obsolescant.
It’s basic trim/design made it a tricky, treacherous mount…terribly unstable…a sure killer of inexperienced, unwary trainee pilots but in the hands of an experienced pilot, who exploited it’s will-othe-wisp ability to suddenly change direction, a deadly weapon….
Then the was that rotary (not radial) engine….the cylinders turned with the prop and the crankshaft fixed…the actual mounting. There was NO THROTTLE….ignition switch the only control… on or off….to reduce power for landing involved brief ingnition stops….to long a pause resulted in the engine exploding on reignition….scary…
No armour, no parachute…no place to hide…
Insanity was not a requirement but it sure must have helped.
Years ago, I met an old fellow who was donating some scraps of doped fabric from the Baron’s plane to the Canadian War Museum, when it was still in its old location.
He had picked them up from the wrecked plane when his group was tasked to move the wreckage. I am sure there are loads of souvenirs from that plane out there..
I think Brown’s success is quite an accomplishment. Worthy of celebration and praise. But I am not surprised that Canada does not like heros and many actively seek to dimisnish any success or accomplisment with revision and relativism… what shocks me is how closely this attitude resembles the ‘you didn’t build that!…” meme of the now dominant American culture. And they said we were different!
Why has it taken almost a century for Carleton Place…to celebrate the memory of Captain Roy Brown…who fought an air-duel to the death with Manfred (Red Baron) von Richthofen.
Suspect it has something to do with the squeamishness and plain yellowness that has infected much of our nation. You know, the Yanks can appreciate and applaud our snipers in Afghanistan, but the bed-wetters in Ottawa can’t.
Another lingering stench from Trudeau’s legacy. He who hides Behind a Tree (Pierre’s Indian name)wanted to hear nothing about military valour.
Don’t be bitter,Phantom,there were lots of us whose Grandfather fought and were seriously wounded in that butcher shop they call WW1.
Some got medals,most didn’t. The pensions the government handed out for disability were nothing to write home about either.
I’ve read dozens of articles on the Roy Brown/Richthofen battle,in the end it seems there are two viable theories,Brown,or the ground based gunner. It’s one of those things we’ll never know for certain.
Roy Brown was a hero, saved Wilf “Wop” May’s life,and May went on to a pretty substantial flying career,WW1 “ace”,among many accomplishments.
May flew out of my home town briefly one Summer,on contract to Forestry, back in the 1920’s It was a big deal to the town to have such a notable flyer in town for a while.
Agree, JM, the legacy of PET casts a pall over our history.
Captain Roy Brown just wasn’t gay enough I guess.
Otherwise there’d be a Mall/Library/College/Bridge named after him.
I lol’d at the guy’s name. Robert Probert. At least his parents had a sense of humour. And like so many things in this country, it’s a shame our real heroes don’t get the recognition they deserve.
I suspect the people who write and broadcast heroic stories in this country, prefer their heros along the political lines and accomplishments of Brown’s contemporary Norman Bethune.
Smokey Smith
David Hornell
Andy Mynarski
Fred Hall
Jack Layton
Leo Clarke
Robert Shankland
John Foote
Ask the average school kid today which name does NOT belong on that list. I wonder how many would get it right.
If this was America 10 films would have been made of him by now.
There is no reason why a film or play about Roy Brown couldn’t be made now. Has anyone seen the play or the movie made of the play, “Billy Bishop goes to War” starring Eric Peterson?
Every Canadian schoolchild should see it, and would if current there were any patriots left in the school boards or even among the parents.
dmorris:
I went to a David Hornell School.It’s closed now.
Where’d you find that name?
A film has been made of Roy Brown; see highly fictionalized 1971 movie Von Richthofen and Brown by Roger Corman.
Eastern Paul, we were taught about David Hornell VC, in our Grade six school reader. The story was called “Heroic Hornell”.
We were also taught in various grades about why Valour Road is called that instead of Pine Street,and about many other War heroes,Andy Mynarski, General Crerar,John Weir Foote,and many others.
In those days,they didn’t seem like names from history,but real heroes who our Dads and Uncles had served with not that long ago.
I’m pleased to hear they named a school after Mr.Hornell,made my day. Thanks for that info,EP.