Description
This 2017 $20 one ounce pure silver coin issued by the Royal Canadian Mint honours the valorous spirit of the Canadians who fought at Dieppe, and their selfless acts of heroism against all odds. Mintage is limited to 7,500 coins. As a pure silver coin issued by the Royal Canadian Mint, this item is GST/HST exempt.
They came by sea and by air on August 19, 1942, nearly 5,000 Canadians were at the forefront of “Operation Jubilee,” when Allied forces launched a large-scale assault on the occupied French port of Dieppe. It was to be Canada’s first army offensive of the European campaign; but against a well-fortified enemy, Canada suffered its heaviest single-day losses of the Second World War.
The Design:
The reverse design by Canadian artist Alan Daniel uses a first-person perspective to bring the viewer into the midst of the action on the fateful morning of August 19, 1942. Disembarking from the landing craft, the soldiers of the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry rush onto the main beach area (dubbed “White Beach”) during the frontal assault on the occupied French town of Dieppe. In the engraved background is the well-fortified casino—this becomes a focal point for the Canadians, who must struggle up the rocky beach and pass two lines of razor wire while under relentless enemy fire. In the distant sky, the bombers and fighter planes of the Royal Air Force and the Royal Canadian Air Force are faintly seen as they engage enemy aircraft to support the ground assault. The intensity of the fight and the barrage of fire are visible in the explosions along the seawall, and in the tense expression on the face of the soldier in the foreground. Clutching his Lee Enfield rifle in one hand, this brave Canadian rushes into action but briefly turns his head towards the viewer, urging us to press forward and join the fray. The obverse features the effigy of King George VI by T. H. Paget.
