More than a century after he was killed in battle during World War I and listed as missing in action, a Jewish Canadian soldier has finally been laid to rest in a full Jewish funeral in France.

Private Albert Henry Detmold, who was killed during the Battle of Hill 70 in August 1917, was buried with full military honors on July 9, 2026, at a British military cemetery in France—nearly 109 years after his death.

Canadian military personnel stood in an honor guard as the fallen soldier was finally given a proper burial.

Rabbi Nuta Glogauer, the Canadian Armed Forces’ senior Jewish chaplain, described the ceremony as a deeply meaningful and historic occasion.

“As the senior Jewish chaplain of the Canadian Armed Forces, it was both a tremendous privilege and a profound responsibility to take part in this historic event,” Rabbi Glogauer wrote. “This was not only the burial of a Canadian soldier—it was the return of a Jewish soldier to his people.”

For more than a century, Detmold was listed among Canada’s missing soldiers, with his name engraved on the Vimy Memorial alongside thousands of servicemen whose final resting places were unknown.

Born on July 9, 1884, in Hamburg, Germany, to Frederick William and Nelly Detmold, he grew up in England before immigrating to Manitoba, Canada, with his brother at age 18. When World War I broke out, he enlisted in the Canadian Army in 1916.

He served with the 107th Battalion, helping build roads, lay communication lines, and dig trenches under enemy fire. On August 15, 1917, during the Battle of Hill 70 near Lens, France, he was killed while expanding a communications trench under heavy shelling. He was 33 years old.

His remains were discovered on August 20, 2020, during a construction project in Loos-en-Gohelle, France.

Following years of historical, genealogical, archaeological, anthropological, forensic, and DNA analysis, assisted by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, the Canadian Museum of History, and the Canadian Armed Forces, the remains were positively identified in December 2025.

Researchers also uncovered compelling historical and genealogical evidence confirming that Detmold had been born into a Jewish family in Hamburg. His Jewish birth records and extensive family research established his heritage, despite his military enlistment papers not listing a religion.

Historians note that many Jewish soldiers during World War I chose not to identify themselves as Jewish because of widespread antisemitism within the military.

That evidence ultimately ensured that Private Albert Henry Detmold received the Jewish burial he had been denied for more than a century.

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