Eswyn Lyster

Eswyn wrote Most Excellent Citizens, A History of the Canadian War Brides of World War II (title taken from a comment by the war historian C.P. Stacey). It was published posthumously in May 2010 by Trafford Press.

She was a long-time member of the Anglican Church of Canada, an avid alpine gardener, and a member of several gardening clubs. She died in Victoria General Hospital July 18, 2009.

Following emigration, her family lived in Regina and Edmonton when her daughter and younger son were born. In the 1950s, Eswyn began writing about her experiences and family. From 1956 to 1969 she lived in North Vancouver, British Columbia. In 1969 she and her husband retired to Qualicum Beach on Vancouver Island where she maintained an active writing career.

In 1943 she met Company Sergeant Major (CSM) Bill Lyster of the Calgary Highlanders, a Canadian regiment stationed in her home town of Aldwick, Sussex. They were married later in the year. In April 1945, Bill, now commissioned and with the rank of captain, was badly wounded and repatriated to Canada. In February 1946, Eswyn and her infant son joined the stream of 44,000 war brides travelling to Canada.

Many ships, like the Queen Mary, were pressed into service for this massive emigration: Eswyn crossed the Atlantic Ocean on the RMS Mauretania (1938), the first dedicated war bride crossing, to Pier 21 in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Bill was from Empress, Alberta, and she and her son traveled by train from Halifax to join his family there.

In the same book is “Ten Days and Seven Thousand Miles”, her account of her journey to Canada on the first all-warbride sailing of the RMS Mauretania (1938) in February 1946.

Coral Eswyn (née Ellinor) Lyster, (September 27, 1923 – July 18, 2009) was a British-born Canadian author best known for writing extensively on the Canadian war bride experience. She also published articles on the Dieppe Raid in World War II, as well as a book on genealogy.