Standing on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River, just west of Cornwall, Ontario, one is awestruck by the vistas of lush pastures and farms. Remarkably, one can traverse nearly 1,000 miles eastward and 3,000 miles westward from there and find similar peaceful scenes, on an international border with no sign of soldiers—the longest undefended border on the planet.
It was not always this way. At various points along the border, old fortresses and monuments to battles are seen—mute witness to a less peaceful era, when thousands died in order to defend their homes from invaders.
