Harold Crowchild, also known as Iron Shield (March 18, 1915 – January 12, 2013) was a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

Tsuu T'ina Nation elder and veteran of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Crowchild was the last surviving Tsuu T'ina veteran of World War II, as well as the last surviving veteran of the war from any of the

Treaty 7 Treaty 7 is an agreement between the Crown and several, mainly Blackfoot, First Nation band governments in what is today the southern portion of Alberta. The idea of developing treaties for Blackfoot lands was brought to Blackfoot chief Cro ...

First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...

Biography

Crowchild began appearing in the

Calgary Stampede The Calgary Stampede is an annual rodeo, fair, exhibition, and festival held every July in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The ten-day event, which bills itself as "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth", attracts over one million visitors per year a ...

prior to World War II. He continued to participate in the Stampede until he was in his 80s. In 1942, Crowchild voluntarily enlisted in the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also re ...

at the Currie Barracks in

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

. His desire to join the armed forces was questioned by the Tsuu T'ina Chief and other tribal leaders, as there were few area members of the First Nations in the military at the time. Crowchild dismissed their criticisms, later telling the ''Kainai News'' in a 1987

interview An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" re ...

, "We wanted to fight, what the hell." Crowchild was a member of the

4th Canadian Armoured Division Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'', a 1972 Soviet drama ...

Headquarters during World War II, serving in the

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France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, the

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, and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. He operated

Sherman tank The M4 Sherman, officially medium tank, M4, was the medium tank most widely used by the United States and Western Allies in World War II. The M4 Sherman proved to be reliable, relatively cheap to produce, and available in great numbers. I ...

s and guarded

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prisoners-of-war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

. Crowchild received five service medals for his service in the North West Europe Campaign, The

1939-1945 Star World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, The

France and Germany Star The France and Germany Star is a military campaign medal, instituted by the United Kingdom in May 1945 for award to Commonwealth of Nations, British Commonwealth forces who served in France, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands or Germany and a ...

, The Defence Medal, The

Canadian Volunteer Service Medal The Canadian Volunteer Service Medal is granted to persons of any rank in the Naval, Military or Air Forces of Canada who voluntarily served on Active Service from September 3, 1939, to March 1, 1947. The medal was established on October 22, 194 ...

with Overseas Clasp, and The

War Medal 1939-1945 War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organize ...

. Harold Crowchild died on January 12, 2013, at the age of 97. A

memorial service A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects such as home ...

was held at his home on the Tsuu T'ina Nation reserve followed by a traditional funeral at the Sarcee Seven Chiefs Complex. Tsuu T'ina Chief Roy Whitney called his death "a sad week for the Tsuu T'ina Nation and for Canada."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crowchild, Harold 1915 births 2013 deaths 20th-century First Nations people Canadian Army personnel of World War II Canadian Indigenous military personnel People from Calgary Region Tsuut'ina people Canadian Army personnel