Foulkes, Charles, born 03-01-1903 in Stockton-on-Tees, England one of eight children His family moved to Canada, eventually settling at 230 Hill Street in London, Ontario. He completed his secondary school education at the London Collegiate Institute before going to the University of Western Ontario. Charles joined the Canadian Army in 1926. In 1937 he attended the Staff College in Camberley, England. In 1939, Foulkes was serving as a major with the 3rd Brigade of the 1st Canadian Infantry Division
. Infantry battalions of the 1st Division suffered 52.559 casualties during its years in the field, some 15.055 of them fatal—statistically, representing almost the original strength of the entire division. Twenty-four soldiers of the division were awarded the Victoria Cross
. Foulkes went on to be a General Staff Officer with 3rd Canadian Infantry Division. After serving as a Brigade Commander from August 1942, he was appointed General Officer Commanding 2nd Canadian Infantry Division in January 1944 and led the division through the Normandy Campaign. He succeeded General John Hamilton “Ham” Roberts
CB, DSO, MC who died age 71, in 1962. When the Germans began the Battle of France in May 1940. Roberts managed to save his regiment’s guns while evacuating from Dunkirk. He was later promoted to Major General and appointed General Officer Commanding the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division
in 1941. In November 1944 Foulks was made General Officer Commanding I Canadian Corps in Italy, where he succeeded General Eedson Louis Millard “Tommy” Burns, CC DSO OBE MC CD.
Tommy Burns died old age 88, on 13-09-1985. On 05-05-1945, Foulkes summoned German Generaloberst der Infanterie, Johannes Blaskowitz
to the Hotel de Wereld (“Hotel the World”) in Wageningen to discuss the surrender of German forces in the Netherlands (see About).
His Royal Highness Bernard von Lippe Biestervelt,
acting as commander in chief of the Dutch Interior Forces, attended the meeting as well. Blaskowitz agreed with all of the proposals made by Foulkes. However, nowhere in the building, some sources claim: nowhere in the whole town, could a typewriter be found. Thus the surrender document could not be typed. The next day both parties returned, and in the presence of both General Foulkes and Prince Bernhard
, Blaskowitz signed the surrender document which in the mean time had been typed.
Death and burial ground of Foulkes, Charles.
After the war, Foulkes was appointed Chief of the General Staff and in 1951, first Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff. He retired in 1960. In 1968 he was made a Companion of the Order of Canada. He died in Ottawa on 12-09-1969, at the age of 66, and is buried on the Cemetery Beechwood in Ottawa.


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