The 2784 Governor General's Foot Guards Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps is an

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

-based paramilitary youth program jointly sponsored by the

Canadian Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...

and the Army Cadet League of Canada. The cadets, as their name implies, are affiliated with the

Governor General's Foot Guards The Governor General's Foot Guards (GGFG) is the senior reserve infantry regiment in the Canadian Army. Located in Ottawa at the Cartier Square Drill Hall, the regiment is a Primary Reserve infantry unit, and the members are part-time soldiers. ...

(GGFG), which is one of three Royal

Household Division The Household Division forms a part of the British Army's London District (British Army), London District and is made up of five regiments of foot guards#United Kingdom, foot guards and two Household Cavalry regiments. The division is responsible f ...

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation. In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...

s in the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also re ...

. As an affiliated unit, the cadets may wear the badges of the GGFG. The cadet corps currently parade at Cartier Square Drill Hall alongside their GGFG counterparts and

The Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa (Duke of Edinburgh's Own) The Cameron Highlanders of Ottawa (Duke of Edinburgh's Own) is a Canadian Army Primary Reserve infantry regiment. Regimental badge The regimental badge is laid out as follows: within a wreath of thistles and maple leaves, the figure of St And ...

Background

The GGFG Cadet Company was founded by Major Harold Blackman in September 1965. It was formed under the sponsorship of the Governor General's Foot Guards Regiment and has continued to parade with the regiment. The Kiwanis Club of Ottawa became the Sponsor of the cadet corps beginning in the late 1990s thru to 2016, as a result of the negotiations between the club and former commanding officer, Major Robert Barrette. The Corps also maintains a good sponsor affiliation with the Royal Canadian Legion's Strathcona Branch 595. The corps also has had a past affiliation with Royal Canadian Legion Eastview (Vanier) Branch 462. The Corps is currently searching for new sponsorships that are being coordinated by the Army Cadet League Liaison Officer.

Optional Activities

In addition to mandatory Wednesday night training, 2784 supports several optional teams as extracurricular activities. Among these are a marksmanship team, which competes using the Daisy 853c air rifle, as well as a biathlon team. The corps also retains a unit pipes & drums band.

Summer Camps

The cadet corps provides free summer camp course for cadets who wish to receive training during the summer. The General Training Course only applies to cadets who have completed their first training year, and includes activities such as a field exercise, team-building, air-rifle range, adventure training, and recreational sports. The corps also provides a ceremonial training course for those who wish to learn basic drill requirements and the fundamentals of Canadian marching drill. The two course are two and three weeks long respectively.

Regimental Distinctions

As an affiliate unit to a regiment of guards, 2784 are entitled to certain regimental distinctions such as

uniform A uniform is a variety of costume worn by members of an organization while usually participating in that organization's activity. Modern uniforms are most often worn by armed forces and paramilitary organizations such as police, emergency serv ...

accessories and

rank A rank is a position in a hierarchy. It can be formally recognized—for example, cardinal, chief executive officer, general, professor—or unofficial. People Formal ranks * Academic rank * Corporate title * Diplomatic rank * Hierarchy ...

names.

Ranks

Guardsman

Upon completing five months of service with the Army Cadet Program, cadets receive the rank of Guardsman (Gdsm). It is equivalent to the rank of Lance Corporal in the wider RCAC, Leading Air Cadet in the

Royal Canadian Air Cadets The Royal Canadian Air Cadets () is a Canadian national youth program for young individuals aged 12 to 18. Under the authority of the National Defence Act, ''National Defence Act'', the program is administered by the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) ...

, or Able Cadet in the

Royal Canadian Sea Cadets The Royal Canadian Sea Cadets (RCSC; ) is a Canadian national youth program sponsored by the Canadian Armed Forces and the civilian Navy League of Canada. Administered by the Canadian Forces, the program is funded through the Department of Nati ...

Colour Sergeant

Colour Sergeant (CSgt) is awarded to cadets who have completed at least six months of service as a Sergeant, successfully completed the Gold Star training program, achieved a minimum of “completed without difficulty” in PO 403 (Leadership), and participated in the Cadet Fitness Assessment.

Uniform

Upon a cadet's promotion to Guardsman, they receive their

cap badge A cap badge, also known as head badge or hat badge, is a badge worn on uniform headgear and distinguishes the wearer's nationality and/or organisation. The wearing of cap badges is a convention commonly found among military and police forces, as ...

, colloquially referred to as a "guard star," and a new

beret A beret ( , ; ; ; ) is a soft, round, flat-crowned cap made of hand-knitted wool, crocheted cotton, wool felt, or acrylic fibre. Mass production of berets began in the 19th century in Southern France and the north of History of Spain (1808 ...

with a guards flag backing. In addition, when they receive their promotion to Master Corporal, they are issued a

lanyard A lanyard is a length of cord, webbing, or strap that may serve any of various functions, which include a means of attachment, restraint, retrieval, activation, and deactivation. A lanyard is also a piece of rigging used to secure or lowe ...

bearing the colours of the guards flag, and brass maple leaf shoulder badges which are worn on the epaulettes. Sgts receive

forage cap Forage cap is the designation given to various types of military undress, fatigue or working headwear. These vary widely in form, according to country or period. The coloured peaked cap worn by the modern British Army for parade and other dress occ ...

s with white bands, and those NCOs with senior parade appoints receive drill canes with the badge of the regiment emblazoned near the top. Master and Chief Warrant Officers receive drill canes as well as forage caps with the

Regimental Sergeant Major Regimental sergeant major (RSM) is an appointment that may be held by a warrant officer (WO) in the British Army, the Royal Marines, and the armies of many other Commonwealth and former Commonwealth nations. It is also an actual rank in the Iri ...

of the corps wearing an old style of GGFG officer's cap badge. The Drill Sergeant Major receives a pace stick in lieu of a drill cane. The unit badges on the shoulder of the tunic of the full dress uniform are red with white text to reflect the status of the corps as one of guards. Although authorized for the use of khaki berets, no cadets have yet been issued them as corps staff are waiting for the affiliated unit to fully distribute them before issuing them to the lower priority cadets.

Obsolete Uniforms

Prior to the revamp of the army cadet uniform in 2017, GGFG cadets wore shoulder titles bearing the letters "GGFG," as well as senior cadets wearing ascots with the regimental colours.

Drill Hall

References

External links

Official siteArmy Cadet League of Canada

Royal Canadian Army Cadets History – Army Cadet League of CanadaThe GGFG official site
{{Cadets Canada Military of Canada Army cadet organisations Canadian Cadet organizations Youth organizations based in Canada Organizations based in Ottawa Governor General's Foot Guards