Regiments
The term Regiment
has a distinctly complicated explanation in the context of the
Canadian Army.
Administrative
Administrative regiments are organizations that manage the
recruiting, training, employment, and basic identity of soldiers in
a given role. The Canadian Army's Regular Force has grouped
infantry, artillery, cavalry and engineer soldiers, among others,
into numerous distinctive Regiments since the end of the First World
War. The reserves in Canada have also used a regimental structure.
The "regimental system" dates back to the British Cardwell Reforms,
which structured British infantry units such that several battalions
of men having the same regimental identity were created, with some
tasked for overseas deployment and others remaining in the United
Kingdom training.
Proponents of this regimental system point to the loyalty and pride
engendered by this system. Detractors feel that the system promotes
exclusivity and promotions based on regimental loyalties rather than
true ability or the needs of the Army as a whole.
The Canadian Army partially abandoned the regimental system in the
First World War, creating numbered units for the Canadian
Expeditionary Force separate from the existing regiments in Canada.
During the Second World War, the regimental system was maintained,
though men and officers were often reassigned between regiments as
needed.
Regular vs. Reserve
Regiments of the Regular Force (full-time military) and the Militia
(reserve, or part-time military) were in theory structured
similarly, though in peace-time practice were very different.
Militia regiments tended to consist of fewer sub-units, while the
Regular units were nominally organized to their full organizational
strength.
Regimental Family
Within the regimental system, soldiers, and usually officers, are
usually posted to a tactical unit of their own regiment whenever
posted to field duty. In addition to combat units, other
organizations make up the extended regimental family: regimental
battle schools, serving members on "extra-regimental employment"
such as peacekeeping operations or Regimental Support Staff postings
to Militia units, regimental associations (retirees, sometimes
referred to as "veteran's" associations), regimental bands and
associated cadet corps.
In the British
and Canadian armies, "the regiment" is an extended family that
reaches backwards in time and outwards in space to encompass
those soldiers who have come to identify with its collective
memories and traditions. Each regiment develops a culture that
is partly rooted in the place from which it draws its members
and partly in a set of values and mores that have been created
for the sole purpose of making it different from other
regiments. Above all, the regiment perpetuates the memory of the
battles it has fought. The battle honours on the regimental
standard commemorate those battles and remind members of the
regiment's unique history. People die, but the regiment lives...
This may be confusing to civilians, but it is axiomatic for
Canadian soldiers. For the most part, their life and loyalty
centre on the regiment - not on the army. As one captain in the
Strathconas said, "Find somebody in the street who looks like a
soldier...and say, 'What do you do for a living?' He might say,
'I'm a soldier,' but he's more liable to say, 'I'm a soldier in
the Strathconas, I'm a soldier in the PPCLI.' Rarely have I
heard people say, 'I'm a soldier in the Canadian Armed Forces',
because that's too big for people. I'm a Strathcona, been a
Strathcona for thirteen years, that's my regiment, that's my
family, that's my home."1
Other Aspects
Most regiments have a symbolic Colonel-in-Chief (often a member of
the British Royal Family), as well as a Colonel of the Regiment (for
regular force units) or Honorary Colonel (for reserve units - some
of which have an Honorary Lieutenant Colonel in addition to the
Honorary Colonel) who represent the regiment in political matters,
government lobbying, and protects the traditions and interests of
the regiment.
The Regiment's traditions include Battle Honours which are shared
regardless of which battalion/tactical unit earned them, special
dress distinctions, common uniform and insignia components, and a
distinctive regimental march.
Regiments usually have a regimental headquarters, located in a
historically significant home station, which supports the regimental
committee (sometimes called the Regimental Senate) and administers
to the regular members and the association(s) of retired members. A
Regimental Kit Shop is often part of this headquarters also,
providing private purchase kit such as regimental accoutrements for
dress uniforms or field kit emblazoned with regimental insignia.
Tactical Units
Infantry
The Regiment as a tactical unit of infantry does not exist in
Canada; in foreign armies of the 20th Century, a regiment was simply
a brigade-sized formation.
An Infantry Regiment, however, may produce more than one tactical
unit; usually an Infantry Battalion. The Canadian Army generally had
single-battalion infantry regiments, the major exceptions being the
Second World War, and the peacetime regular Canadian Army after
1945.
During the Second World War, the Canadian Infantry Corps was created
as a larger administrative organization to oversee all infantry
regiments, and provide trained reinforcements outside the regimental
training stream.
Cavalry/Armour
Cavalry (and later, Armoured) regiments were usually composed of one
tactical regiment. One exception was the two tactical regiments of
Le 12e Régiment blindé du Canada and Le 12e Régiment blindé du
Canada (Milice), one Regular Force and one Militia battalion of the
same Regiment. Given the single unit nature of these units, there
has been a tendency also for soldiers to identify with the (Royal)
Canadian Armoured Corps as a whole; visible signs of this are the
standard black beret adopted across the corps and jealously guarded.
Like infantry units, armoured regiments are granted Battle Honours.
Artillery
Artillery regiments have traditionally been felt to belong to a
single regiment, the Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery. However,
artillery units are also designated as numbered regiments. These
regiments, however, share a common cap badge and uniform, and
soldiers tend to identify with the artillery as a whole rather than
specific numbered units. Artillery regiments are not granted battle
honours, and the artillery pieces are considered to be the
equivalent of the Colours of an infantry regiment or guidon of an
armoured regiment.
Engineers
Engineers also have used tactical units designated "Regiments" but
like the artillery, a common cap badge is worn. These regiments are
not entitled to battle honours, though they have adopted the legend
"UBIQUE" (latin for "everywhere") as a form of honour and the word
appears on cap and collar badges.
History
The Infantry Regiment was the basic unit of European armies by the
1700s, with major militaries heavily influenced by the French army
of the time. French, Prussian, Austrian and Russian regiments were
organized on similar lines (generally referred to as the
"Continental system", which was also employed by the US Army in the
20th Century) while the British developed their own unique
regimental system.
The Continental
System
The Continental system provided armies with the means to organize
their combat units administratively and tactically. While precise
establishments of regiments would vary as new weapons were
introduced in the 18th, 19th, and 20th Centuries, the basic regiment
in Continental-styled armies was made up of two to four battalions.
In time of war, new regiments could be raised by forming around
cadres of existing units. The new regiments would be named after
their commander (and often had been funded by him), though once
large standing armies became economically and politically feasible
(or necessary), units began to be numbered or named after the
geographic location of their home station, sometimes with the
addition of an honorific indicating an elite status such as Guards,
or based on the types of weapon employed such Grenadier, Fusilier,
Musketier, etc.
Grenadier companies and light infantry companies in European
regiments of infantry became commonly re-employed in action,
sometimes as entire battalions. Modern weapons eventually erased the
distinctions of these units, and Continental-styled armies
crystallized into a three-battalion organization by the First World
War, fighting under a single commander. They would be organized into
higher formations such as brigades and divisions, though brigades
were phased out in most armies, a notable exception being the
Schützen Brigades of German armoured divisions early in the Second
World War.
By the Second World War, the tactical nature of Continental
regiments was made obvious; German infantry regiments superficially
adopted traditional names from the "Old Army" pre-1918, but with the
exponential growth of the Wehrmacht in the years leading up to the
Second World War, and then the stresses of combat employment, many
traditions went by the wayside. Regiments became tactical combat
organizations, with the permanent assignment of supporting companies
of infantry guns, anti-tank guns, heavy mortars, anti-aircraft guns,
and engineers.
The British system
The British adopted a unique regimental system for several reasons.
Historically, the British Army has been a small force by European
standards, and the retention of three battalions per regiment was
not possible, without reducing the number of regiments.
Rather than treating the regiment as a tactical entity (which would
have suffered in comparison to continental regiments of three
battalions), the British concentrated on using the regiment as a
recruiting tool. By the 20th Century it was not uncommon for
multiple generations of individual families to have been represented
on the rolls of particular regiments.
And when practice of naming Regiment for their Colonels ceased in
1751, and became linked to particular counties in 1782 (with the
attendant advantage of some counties being able to support more
than one regiment), the newly named Regiments were able to give a
stronger sense of identity to the soldiers who joined.
While Continental-styled armies did have similar ties to geography,
and similarly long histories as British regiments, the raising of
new regiments in time of war often led to a lack of identity felt by
new recruits. This would plague many armies right up into the Second
World War; sometimes coupled with the practice of returning wounded
soldiers not to their own units, but to whichever regiment needed
them most.
Typical British regiments fielded just one battalion, sometimes two
in exceptional cases, with the ability to generate more in time of
war, all with strong ties to the county in which they were
headquartered. European regiments maintained more battalions within
their regiments during peacetime.
The Brigade in the British Army developed as the equivalent of the
continental Regiment, usually done out of a recognition that while
"new" battalions of British regiments were forming upon mobilization
for war, those already in existence needed to be employed together.
Just as the Continental armies fought in regiments of two, three or
four battalions, the British would meet them on the field in
Brigades similarly organized, only the battalions were drawn from
distinctly different regiments in most cases.
By 1815, the number of regiments in the British Army had grown to
over 100, with much criticism of the fact that many had only a
single strong battalion and no cadre for a second battalion worthy
of forming on in time of crisis. Some regiments struggled to
maintain even a single battalion and had to be merged -
"amalgamated" - with other units
Major reforms occurred in 1881; though about 1 in 4 of the over 100
regiments of infantry had viable second battalions, the Cardwell
Reforms suggested that all regiments should be so organized - a
status at one time the prerogative only of the Guards. And so many
regiments were amalgamated in a series of sweeping reorganizations
that ensured each regiment would have one battalion to serve abroad
throughout the Empire as needed, and one battalion at home
recruiting and training. That would not be sustainable with over 100
regiments, and more than sixty regiments, each with only a single
battalion, were amalgamated into about thirty regiments, reducing
the British Army to more manageable proportions. The last vestiges
of the old regimental system were swept away when the numbers of the
regiments were deleted (Canada would not do this until 1920). The
stage was set for the British Army and its regimental system to face
their largest tests - two World Wars.
Dictionary Definition
The entry at "The Canadian Encyclopedia" website offers a definition
by M.V. Bezeau and O.A. Cooke as follows:
In Canada the meaning of the term "regiment" is complex. Infantry
regiments are administrative parent organizations that raise one or
more battalions for service. Armoured regiments are normally
battalion-sized units, though they may have both regular and reserve
force components and administrative elements. The artillery
organizes its batteries into regiments, but it also traditionally
calls the entire artillery branch a regiment. Engineer and
communication regiments are also battalion sized. Armoured and
infantry regiments are the centre of collective pride for their
members and maintain close "family" relationships. For artillery and
others, the branch rather than the individual regiment is the
traditional family focus. In Canadian practice, a regiment's
"lifetime" is the number of unbroken years of existence, though
disbanded units (and their customs and battle honours) can be
perpetuated by others with a proven connection. Armoured and
infantry regimental precedence is determined largely by this
seniority.
Order of
Precedence
Order of Precedence
is a sequential hierarchy of the corps and regiments of the Canadian
Army. This precedence is based on the seniority of each corps or
regiment, based on the date of formation. In cases of amalgamations,
the order of precedence is generally taken from the most senior of
the units so amalgamated.
Practical applications of the order of precedence include assigning
a place on the parade ground (by tradition, senior regiments form to
the right of those junior in seniority, with the right-most place -
the "right of the line" - going to the most senior unit. The
tradition dates back to the age of swords, when the best units were
selected to take the right of the battle line. Men in battles armed
with sword and shield were vulnerable to attack from their right
flank and so the most steadfast men were needed there to ensure the
stability of an entire armed force.
Another application includes determining the order of regimental
marches to be played at a mess dinner (by tradition, the march
belonging to the regiment or corps of every officer present is
sometimes played by a military band).
Many references on badges, insignia, etc., are published in order of
precedence instead of alphabetically, and it is customary to do so.
Second World War brigades are also generally listed with the
battalions in order of precedence.
Notes
1. Bercuson, David. Significant Incident: Canada's Army, the
Airborne, and the Murder in Somalia (McLelland & Stewart,
Toronto, ON, 1996) ISBN 077101113X p.120
