Hundreds of guests, including veterans from the Royal British Legion, the High Commission of Canada, the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and families of those Canadians buried in the churchyard joined local residents, as well as governors and parents from the school for the two events.

It began with a service at St Mary’s Church, which included a parade of standards, the Bible reading, poems read by children from Liphook CofE Junior School, and a sermon by the rector, the Rev Valentine Inglis-Jones.

He said: “We were honoured that our friends from Canada came far from home and gave everything for us who are here today. We honour them with our most precious gift – our children – who every year research about a specific soldier so that we and they can remember those stories.”

Dignitaries then processed to the special plot in the churchyard maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, where the Canadian soldiers are buried. Each of those laying a wreath was flanked by two children from the school. There was then an Act of Remembrance, including a one-minute silence and the Kohima Exhortation read by pupils from the school.

At Liphook CofE Junior School, HRH Princess Anne was presented with the Fourth Clasp to the Canadian Forces’ Decoration by Brigadier-General Dwayne Parsons, the equivalent of 42 years of service. Then in the main hall, the pupils presented their moving tribute to the service of Canadian Forces during the two world wars. As well as singing wartime songs, they also sang the Canadian National Anthem.

Dressed in wartime outfits, they told the story of Ernest Ede, who was born in Bramshott in 1891, emigrated to Canada in 1912, and then enlisted in the Canadian Expeditionary Force in 1915. He found himself in the Bramshott camp in 1916 and was sent to France, fighting in the battle of Passchendaele. He was injured and discharged.

He returned to Bramshott church where he married Winifred in 1920, and eventually moved back to British Columbia in 1924. But his connection to Bramshott survive through his son Ronald, who served in the Second World War.

Headteacher Jacky Taylor said: “This work is a reflection of how our children learn from the past. They don’t just remember, they understand. They have each researched the history behind an individual buried in the churchyard, walking in their shoes for the past three months.”

During the First World War, Bramshott was one of the largest Canadian military camps in the UK. Many who passed through Bramshott served in France and Flanders. Since 1942, the village has hosted an annual Canada Day service, which has helped to develop lasting bonds between the village and Canada. Maple trees are planted in St Mary’s churchyard and along the nearby A3 as a tribute.

And for the past 20 years, pupils from Liphook CofE Junior School have recalled those sacrifices in a variety of ways. Their Year 4 pupils visited the graves at St Mary’s and selected a Canadian soldier to research. They have drawn sketches and written letters, prayers and poems around each individual as part of the three-month project. They then rehearsed their presentation for the past three weeks.