In April 1917, Archer took part in the Battle of Vimy Ridge as a member of the 4th Canadian Division, 11th Infantry Brigade. It’s there that he earned his Military Medal for continuing to operate his Lewis Gun after the rest of his crew was either injured or killed.
Archer’s brave conduct only tells part of the tale, though. In letters home, another side emerges: that of a strongly religious son who seeks to reassure his mother that, despite wartime’s many temptations, he would remain morally pure.
