Joseph Thomas Keable, VC, MM (5 May 1892 – 9 June 1918) 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 ...

soldier during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Keable was a recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to

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and

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forces. He was the first French Canadian soldier to be decorated with the VC and Military Medal. Mostly wrongly spelled Kaeble in English, his actual name at baptism was Keable. His name is also oddly spelled Kable in a page of the 1911 Census of Canada.

Biography

He was born on 5 May 1892 in Saint-Moïse, Quebec. He joined the

Canadian Expeditionary Force The Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF; French: ''Corps expéditionnaire canadien'') was the expeditionary warfare, expeditionary field force of Canada during the First World War. It was formed on August 15, 1914, following United Kingdom declarat ...

in March 1916. Kaeble was a

corporal Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...

in the 22e Battalion (Canadien Francais), CEF. On 8 June 1918 at

Neuville-Vitasse Neuville-Vitasse () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France southeast of Arras. Population See also *Communes of the Pas-de-Calais department The following is a list of the 887 communes of ...

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 ...

, Kaeble performed an act of bravery for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross. He died whilst doing so.

Citation

Burial and legacy

Kaeble was buried in the

CWGC The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations mil ...

extension of Wanquetin Communal Cemetery - Plot II, Row A, Grave 8 - which is found about eleven kilometres (seven miles) west of

Arras Arras ( , ; ; historical ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department, which forms part of the region of Hauts-de-France; before the reorganization of 2014 it was in Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The historic centre of the Artois region, with a ...

. At

CFB Valcartier 2nd Canadian Division Support Base Valcartier (2 CDSB Valcartier), formerly known as and commonly referred to as Canadian Forces Base Valcartier (CFB Valcartier), is a Canadian Forces base located in the municipality of Saint-Gabriel-de-Valc ...

, honours to Keable include Mount Keable, just east of Camp Vimy; a street on the base; and the Keable Club, the privates' and corporals'

mess The mess (also called a mess deck aboard ships) is a designated area where military personnel socialize, eat and (in some cases) live. The term is also used to indicate the groups of military personnel who belong to separate messes, such as the o ...

Wanquetin Communal Cemetery Extension-12

On 10 February 2011, the

Canadian Government The Government of Canada (), formally His Majesty's Government (), is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. The term ''Government of Canada'' refers specifically to the executive, which includes ministers of the Crown ( ...

announced the commissioning of a new Hero Class of mid-shore patrol vessels to serve in the

Canadian Coast Guard The Canadian Coast Guard (CCG; ) is the coast guard of Canada. Formed in 1962, the coast guard is tasked with marine search and rescue (SAR), communication, navigation, and transportation issues in Canadian waters, such as navigation aids and i ...

. The nine ships of the class would bear the names of

Canadian Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...

RCMP The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; , GRC) is the Law enforcement in Canada, national police service of Canada. The RCMP is an agency of the Government of Canada; it also provides police services under contract to 11 Provinces and terri ...

, Coast Guard and

Department of Fisheries and Oceans Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO; ) is a department of the Government of Canada that is responsible for developing and implementing policies and programs in support of Canada's economic, ecological and scientific interests in oceans and inland ...

personnel who had performed exceptional, heroic acts.
The second vessel was named CCGS ''Caporal Keable V.C.'' in his honour, and was presented to the Coast Guard on 13 November 2012.

References

External links

Joseph Keable's digitized military service fileBiography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''Joseph Keable
biography on the Canadian Virtual War Memorial
Joseph Thomas Keable
biography on DND's Directorate of History and Heritage
Legion Magazine Article on Joseph Keable
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaeble, Joseph Canadian World War I recipients of the Victoria Cross 1892 births 1918 deaths Canadian military personnel killed in World War I Canadian recipients of the Military Medal People from Bas-Saint-Laurent Canadian people of German descent Francophone Quebec people Canadian Expeditionary Force soldiers Canadian military personnel from Quebec

Biography

Citation

Burial and legacy

References

Further reading

External links