Mint Apologizes for Commemorative Coin Veterans’ Group Calls Flawed

Canadian veterans take part in a parade in Dieppe, France, on Aug. 19, 2007, to mark the 65th anniversary of the Dieppe Raid. CP Photo/Paul Chiasson

DIEPPE, N.B.—It was officially code-named Operation Jubilee and the Allied attack on the German-occupied port of Dieppe in France was a pivotal moment in the Second World War. But 75 years later, a battle is brewing over just what to call the bloody assault that claimed the lives of nearly a thousand Canadian soldiers.

The Royal Canadian Mint issued a collector coin in May commemorating the Battle of Dieppe, prompting outcry from a New Brunswick veterans’ group that says the attack is called the Dieppe Raid.

After months of growing tension over the silver coin, which depicts a soldier rushing ashore with explosions in the distance, a truce has been called.

The mint said July 24 it understands the concerns expressed by the veterans’ group and apologized if the coin offended anyone. It also plans to produce a Dieppe Raid collector coin in 2018.

But the current coin, roughly 28 grams of pure silver with a price tag of about $93, will continue to be sold as part of the mint’s Second World War battlefront series, something a military historian calls a mistake.

“That’s a bad idea,” Dieppe Military Veterans’ Association historian Ronald Cormier said. “The coin is wrong. It’s like showing a picture of the Parliament Buildings and calling it the House of Commons. It’s inaccurate.”

The 913 Canadians who died on the beaches of Dieppe during the raid would be misrepresented in history.

— Keith Brewer,  Dieppe Military Veterans' Association