Stand on Guard for Thee

In “Stand on Guard for Thee” artist Kanwar Singh focuses on the role of Sikhs during World War One. Sikh soldiers participated in most of the key battles of the Great War, whether in the trenches of France, or the deserts of Mesopotamia. To mark the 100th Anniversary of World War One, the artist drew inspiration from the emblematic story of Bukham Singh, a farm labourer living in Canada, who volunteered for Canadian Expeditionary Force in the spring of 1915. Private Buckam Singh served with the 20th Canadian Infantry Battalion in the battlefields of Flanders during 1916. He was a genuine Canadian hero because not only did he serve, he was also wounded twice in two separate battles. Private Buckam Singh received treatment at a hospital run by one of Canada’s most famous soldier poets, the Doctor Lt. Colonel John McCrae. While recovering from his wounds in England, Private Buckam Singh contracted tuberculosis and spent his final days in a Kitchener Ontario military hospital, dying at age 25 in 1919. His grave in Kitchener is the only known World War One Sikh Canadian Soldier’s grave in Canada. His family, living in the remote Punjabi village from Northern India where he embarked for Canada at age 14, knew nothing about his national service in the Great War. They just received a notice of his death some years later. The title of the painting, taken from the Canadian National Anthem, reflects upon the willingness of Sikhs to fight against oppression throughout history. It is a testament to the spirit of Guru Gobind Singh, which forever emboldens the Khalsa to strive towards a greatness that surpasses humble beginnings.