European Diary:The white sandstone pylons are visible from 30km (18 miles) away. Towering over the lush Somme valley in northeast France, the Canadian National Vimy Memorial catches the sunlight from its perch on the Vimy Ridge, acting as a beacon for tourists.
It is one of hundreds of war memorials scattered throughout this region, which was the location for some of the bloodiest battles of the first World War. More than one million people died or were injured during a five-month allied offensive beginning July 1st, 1916, known as the Battle of the Somme. Millions more died in other battles scattered along a 40km (24 miles) front close to the River Somme between 1914-1918.
The huge loss of life and the terrifying conditions endured in the trenches in the war have transformed many of the memorials into pilgrimage sites. "My great-uncle died here in 1918 and is buried in the Vimy cemetery," says Gerry Sumara, a weekend visitor to the site from Toronto. "I wanted to visit the spot where he lies." But in some states, such as Canada, the war is also intertwined with national identity.
"It gives me goose bumps just being here," says Glenn Rising, a tourist from Alberta, Canada, visiting the Vimy memorial with his wife. "We fought for the British during the war against Germany and the event really marked the birth of Canada as a nation."
The memorial marks the scene of a famous Canadian victory in April 1917 when Canadian troops successfully took the strategic Vimy Ridge. Reopened last month after a two-year renovation project costing €20 million, the memorial is a tribute to the 66,000 Canadians who died in Europe fighting the Central Powers - Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire - on behalf of its colonial master Britain.
At the time, Canada had been granted dominion status by Britain but deferred to it on foreign affairs. The battle of Vimy Ridge was the first time that Canadian troops fought together under Canadian command against foreign enemies. Their success, together with the loss of 3,500 men in three days of fighting, inspired strong feelings of identity among the men, according to contemporary reports by their commanders.
"It was Canada from the Atlantic to the Pacific on parade. I thought then . . . that in those few minutes I witnessed the birth of a nation," said Brig Gen Alexander Ross, who later proposed the first veterans' postwar pilgrimage to the Vimy Memorial when it was eventually completed after the war in 1936.
Buried 20m under the site at Vimy Ridge is further evidence of how the war helped to foster a Canadian national identity. Etched by a soldier into the chalky walls of a tunnel used by troops to get to the front line is a piece of graffiti, a maple leaf. Canadian soldiers fought under the Red Ensign, along with the Union Jack, during the first World War. But they began distinguishing themselves from other troops by using the maple leaf as a symbol. It was later adopted for Canada's national flag in 1965.
At the opening of the memorial last month, Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper paid tribute to the brave Canadians who fought in the war and their impact on Canada.
"Every nation has a creation story. The first World War and the Battle of Vimy Ridge are central to the story of Canada," said Harper in a speech to a large crowd.
The Somme has also become a crucial part of Protestant identity in Northern Ireland. Just a few kilometres away from the Canadian National Vimy Memorial, nestled on the edge of Thiepval wood is Helen's Tower, otherwise known as the Ulster Tower.
The memorial commemorates the men of the 36th Ulster division who took part in the Battle of the Somme. Despite initial success, the Ulstermen were savagely beaten back by the Germans, and in the process suffered 2,000 dead and 3,000 injured.
The battle has become Northern Ireland's "blood sacrifice", an event which proved Ulster's loyalty to the crown and guaranteed its place in Britain rather than a Home Rule Ireland. A memorial to the Orange Order in a garden behind Helen's Tower and a signed declaration against Home Rule on the wall at the memorial's visitors' centre highlight the importance of the Battle of the Somme to Ulster Protestant identity.
After years of neglect the Republic has also woken up to Ireland's place in the war. Constructed in 1998, the Island of Ireland Peace Park near Ypres in Belgium commemorates all the Irish who died in the war.
The tower memorial is close to the site of the June 1917 battle for the Messines Ridge, a battle where Irish Catholics and Protestants fought side by side.
Ninety years on, memories of the first World War may be fading but its contribution to national identity lingers on.