National War Memorial

National War Memorial

Philip Konoval Philip Konowal, V.C.

Philip [Pylyp] Konowal: born in 1887 in Ukraine, immigrated to Canada in 1913. He enrolled in the Canadian Armed Forces in 1915 and served in France with the 77th Battalion. In August 1917 he was awarded the Victoria Cross for his actions during the battle for Hill 70, near Lens, France. The Victoria Cross, the highest honour of the British Empire, was bestowed to Konowal on October 15, 1917 by King George V in London.

Ordens After being hospitalized in England, Konowal was officially assigned for a time as an assistant to the military attache of the Russian Embassy in London. Later he was transferred to the 1st Canadian Reserve Battalion, served with the Canadian Forestry Corps and eventually with the Canadian Siberian Expeditionary Force against the Bolsheviks. He returned to Vancouver on June 20,1919.
After the war Konowal found employment as a junior caretaker in the House of Commons, a humble job, but, in the years of the Great Depression, a welcome one. Spotted washing floors of the Parliament building by Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King, Konowal was reassigned as the special custodian of Room No. 16, the Prime Minister's office. He held this post until his death.
Konowal was again acknowledged for his valour during the 1939 Royal Tour when His Majesty King George VI shook his hand during the dedication of the National War Memorial, in Ottawa.

Plague Trilingual historical plaques honoring Philip Konowal were unveiled across Canada in 1996. The first unveiling was at Cartier Square Drill Hall of The Governor General's Foot Guards in Ottawa (15 July 1996), then at The Royal Canadian Legion Branch 360 in Toronto (21 August 1996) and eventually another was placed in New Westminster, British Columbia. In English, French and Ukrainian the plaques read:

Philip Konowal, a Ukrainian Canadian who enlisted in the 77th Battalion, while serving as a corporal with the 77th Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force, fought with exceptional valour in August 1917 near Lens, France. For this His Majesty King George V personally conferred the Victoria Cross on him in London on 15 October 1917.

Filip Konowal died on 3 June 1959, aged 72. Konowal was buried from the St. John the Baptist Ukrainian Catholic Church, with full military honours by his regiment, in Lot 502, Section A, at the Notre Dame Cemetary, in Ottawa.