Royal Canadian Infantry Corps
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Royal Canadian Infantry Corps | |
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![]() Badge of the Royal Canadian Infantry Corps | |
Active | 1942–present |
Country | Canada |
Branch | Canadian Army |
Type | Personnel branch |
Role | To close with and destroy the enemy. |
Size | 9 Regular Force battalions, 51 Reserve Force battalions |
Motto(s) | Latin: Ducimus, lit. 'We lead' |
Colours | Red and white |
March | "The Canadian Infantryman" |
Anniversaries | Founded 2 September 1942 |
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The Royal Canadian Infantry Corps (French: Corps d'infanterie royal canadien) is the infantry corps of the Canadian Army and includes regular and reserve force regiments.
Originally formed as the Canadian Infantry Corps on 2 September 1942 to encompass all existing infantry regiments, including regiments of foot guards, in the Canadian Army. The corps was granted its "royal" designation in 1947 and was designated Royal Canadian Infantry Corps 30 April 1947, to be redesignated The Royal Canadian Infantry Corps 22 March 1948, and revert to Royal Canadian Infantry Corps 17 February 1964.[1]
The badge of the Royal Canadian Infantry Corps consists of Argent three maple leaves conjoined on one stem within an annulus Gules fimbriated and inscribed INFANTRY • INFANTERIE in letters Or, the whole ensigned by the Royal Crown proper set above a scroll Or inscribed with the Motto in letters Sable and surmounted by two rifles in saltire Or. The three maple leaves conjoined on one stem, taken from the Royal Arms of Canada, represent service to Canada, and the Crown, service to the sovereign. The crossed rifles denote infantry and have been used in badges of infantry units as well as of the officer cadet programme. Red and white are the national colours of Canada. "INFANTRY" and "INFANTERIE" are a form of the bilingual branch title and "DUCIMUS" is the motto of the corps.
In 1968, with the unification of the Canadian Army into the Canadian Armed Forces, the name of the Royal Canadian Infantry Corps was changed to simply the "Infantry Branch". As of April 2013, the traditional designation "Royal Canadian Infantry Corps" has been officially restored. Today, the administration and training of both the regular and reserve infantry that form part of the Canadian Army is the responsibility of the Infantry School (French: Ecole d'infanterie), which runs officer classification courses as well as NCO and Warrant Officer trades training at CFB Gagetown.
Role[]
To close with and destroy the enemy. Well armed individuals with fighting spirit and dogged determination constitute the backbone of the infantry battalion. All the rest - vehicles, stores and equipment - merely exist to assist the infantry soldier to carry out the mission. It is by determination and the skillful use of weapons and ground that the battalion succeeds in battle.
Tasks[]
- To destroy the enemy in close combat
- To defend a position by the holding of ground
- To fight as covering force troops
- To act as all or part of a reserve to counter-attack or block
- To participate in airmobile, airborne and amphibious operations
- To establish surveillance and conduct patrols
- To conduct security tasks, including rear area security
- To exploit the effects of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/RCIC_Flag_High_Res.tif/lossy-page1-300px-RCIC_Flag_High_Res.tif.jpg)
Regular Force[]
The 3rd Battalion Royal Canadian Regiment is the sole airmobile battalion of the Regular Force. The two other regular force regiments both retain a parachute company in their respective 3rd battalions.
- The Royal Canadian Regiment
- 1st Battalion (CFB Petawawa) - mechanized infantry
- 2nd Battalion (CFB Gagetown) - mechanized infantry
- 3rd Battalion (CFB Petawawa) - light infantry/airmobile (two parachute companies, air assault company, mountain operations company)
- Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry
- 1st Battalion (CFB Edmonton) - mechanized infantry
- 2nd Battalion (CFB Shilo) - mechanized infantry
- 3rd Battalion (CFB Edmonton) - light infantry (parachute company, air assault company, mountain operations company)
- Royal 22e Régiment
- 1st Battalion (CFB Valcartier) - mechanized infantry
- 2nd Battalion (Quebec City) - mechanized infantry
- 3rd Battalion (CFB Valcartier) - light infantry (parachute company, air assault company, mountain operations company)
After the Second World War the infantry was expanded to meet Canada's global responsibilities as part of NATO. Initially, the militia regiments provided men to a number of composite battalions:
- 1st and 2nd Canadian Infantry Battalions
- 1st and 2nd Canadian Rifle Battalions
- 1st and 2nd Canadian Highland Battalions
In 1953 it was decided that the composite battalions would be regimented. The two Canadian Infantry battalions were amalgamated with the 3rd Battalions of both The Royal Canadian Regiment and Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry to form a new, four battalion regiment of foot guards, The Canadian Guards. The Rifle and Highland battalions were regimented by forming Regular Force units of the senior rifle and highland regiments of the Militia, The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada and The Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada.
- The Canadian Guards
- 1st Battalion - 1953-1968 (3rd Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment)
- 2nd Battalion - 1953-1970 (3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry)
- 3rd Battalion - 1953-1957 (1st Canadian Infantry Battalion)
- 4th Battalion - 1953-1957 (2nd Canadian Infantry Battalion)
- The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada
- 1st Battalion - 1953-1970 (1st Canadian Rifle Battalion)
- 2nd Battalion - 1953-1968 (2nd Canadian Rifles Battalion)
- The Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada
- 1st Battalion - 1953-1970 (1st Canadian Highland Battalion)
- 2nd Battalion - 1953-1970 (2nd Canadian Highland Battalion)
- The Canadian Airborne Regiment - 1968-1995
Primary Reserve[]
- The Governor General's Foot Guards
- The Canadian Grenadier Guards
- The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada
- The Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada
- Les Voltigeurs de Québec
- The Royal Regiment of Canada
- The Royal Hamilton Light Infantry (Wentworth Regiment)
- The Princess of Wales' Own Regiment
- The Hastings and Prince Edward Regiment
- The Lincoln and Welland Regiment
- The Royal Canadian Regiment
- 4th Battalion
- The Royal Highland Fusiliers of Canada
- The Grey and Simcoe Foresters
- The Lorne Scots (Peel, Dufferin and Halton Regiment)
- The Brockville Rifles
- The Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry Highlanders
- Les Fusiliers du St-Laurent
- Le Régiment de la Chaudière
- Royal 22e Régiment
- 4th Battalion
- 6th Battalion
- Les Fusiliers Mont-Royal
- The Princess Louise Fusiliers
- The Royal New Brunswick Regiment
- 1st Battalion
- The West Nova Scotia Regiment
- The North Shore (New Brunswick) Regiment
- The Nova Scotia Highlanders
- Le Régiment de Maisonneuve
- The Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa (Duke of Edinburgh's Own)
- The Royal Winnipeg Rifles
- The Essex and Kent Scottish
- 48th Highlanders of Canada
- Le Régiment du Saguenay
- The Cape Breton Highlanders
- The Algonquin Regiment
- The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada (Princess Louise's)
- The Lake Superior Scottish Regiment
- The North Saskatchewan Regiment
- The Royal Regina Rifles
- The Rocky Mountain Rangers
- The Loyal Edmonton Regiment (4th Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry)
- The Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders of Canada
- The Royal Westminster Regiment
- The Calgary Highlanders
- Les Fusiliers de Sherbrooke
- The Seaforth Highlanders of Canada
- The Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary's)
- The Royal Montreal Regiment
- The Irish Regiment of Canada
- 2nd Battalion [2]
- The Toronto Scottish Regiment (Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother's Own)
- The Royal Newfoundland Regiment
- 1st Battalion
- 2nd Battalion
Supplementary Order of Battle[]
Regiments on the Supplementary Order of Battle legally exist but have no personnel or materiel.
- The Canadian Guards
- Victoria Rifles of Canada
- The Royal Rifles of Canada
- The Perth Regiment
- The South Saskatchewan Regiment
- The Winnipeg Grenadiers
Order of precedence[]
External links[]
- Canadian Forces Recruiting
- Canadian Forces and Department of National Defence
- List of Canadian organizations with royal patronage
- Monarchy of Canada
- List of Civilian organizations with prefix "Royal" - Heritage Canada.
- List of civilian organizations with the prefix "royal" prepared by the Department of Canadian Heritage
References[]
- ^ The Regiments and Corps of the Canadian Army. Ottawa: Queen's Printer. 1964.[page needed]
- ^ The 1st Battalion was disbanded and added to the Supplementary Order of Battle on 31 March 1965; the 2nd Battalion was formed the same year by the conversion of the 58th Field Regiment, RCA, to infantry. The 1st Battalion has never been reformed.(canadiansoldiers.com 1965 Unit Listing)
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- Canadian Armed Forces personnel branches
- Corps of the Canadian Army
- Organizations based in Canada with royal patronage
- Military units and formations established in 1942
- Military units and formations of Canada in World War II
- Military history of Canada