The 5th Battalion Canadian Mounted Rifles were a

mounted infantry Mounted infantry were infantry who rode horses instead of marching. The original dragoons were essentially mounted infantry. According to the 1911 ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', "Mounted rifles are half cavalry, mounted infantry merely specially m ...

unit of the

Canadian Expeditionary Force The Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) was the expeditionary field force of Canada during the First World War. It was formed following Britain’s declaration of war on Germany on 15 August 1914, with an initial strength of one infantry division ...

(CEF) during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The unit was raised from volunteers of the

7th 7 (seven) is the natural number following 6 and preceding 8. It is the only prime number preceding a cube (algebra), cube. As an early prime number in the series of positive integers, the number seven has greatly symbolic associations in religion ...

and XIth (Canadian) Hussars from the

Eastern Townships The Eastern Townships (french: Cantons de l'Est) is an historical administrative region in southeastern Quebec, Canada. It lies between the St. Lawrence Lowlands and the American border, and extends from Granby in the southwest, to Drummondv ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

.Regiments.org; 5th CMR
/ref> Formed in 1915, they were transported to England later that year. In 1916, they converted to an

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...

attached to the

8th Canadian Infantry Brigade The 8th Canadian Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the Canadian Army that saw active service during World War I and World War II as part of the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division. The brigade fought on the Western Front during World War I ...

3rd Canadian Division The 3rd Canadian Division is a formation of the Canadian Army responsible for the command and mobilization of all army units in the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia, as well as all units extending westwards from th ...

, CEF (later the

Canadian Corps The Canadian Corps was a World War I corps formed from the Canadian Expeditionary Force in September 1915 after the arrival of the 2nd Canadian Division in France. The corps was expanded by the addition of the 3rd Canadian Division in December ...

). The battalion saw action in

France and Flanders France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

between 1916 and 1918.

Battle honours

In 1929–31, well after

had ended, Canada assigned

battle honours A battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags ("colours"), uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible. In European military t ...

to those units involved in pivotal battles and campaigns during the war. The 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles were accorded the following battle honours: During the

Battle of Passchendale The Third Battle of Ypres (german: link=no, Dritte Flandernschlacht; french: link=no, Troisième Bataille des Flandres; nl, Derde Slag om Ieper), also known as the Battle of Passchendaele (), was a campaign of the First World War, fought by t ...

, the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles fighting strength was reduced by 60% in a single day. Two members of the battalion were awarded the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

, the highest decoration for bravery in the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...

. The citation for

George Pearkes Major-general#Canada, Major-General George Randolph Pearkes, (February 28, 1888 – May 30, 1984) was a Canadian politician and soldier. He was a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy awarded ...

, VC, reads as follows:

"During the advance of 30/31 October 1917, as a member of the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles Battalion, Major George Randolph Pearkes of Watford, Hertfordshire, England, participated in the battle at Passchendaele. He led the troops under his command to capture and consolidate considerably more than the objectives allotted to him. Just prior to the advance, Major Pearkes was wounded in the left thigh. Regardless of his wound, he continued to lead his men with the utmost gallantry, despite many obstacles. At a particular stage of the attack, his further advance was threatened by a strong point which was an objective of the battalion on his left, but which they had not succeeded in capturing. Quickly appreciating the situation, he captured and held this point, thus enabling his further advance to be successfully pushed forward."

and for Charles Smith Rutherford, VC during the

Hundred Days Offensive The Hundred Days Offensive (8 August to 11 November 1918) was a series of massive Allies of World War I, Allied offensives that ended the First World War. Beginning with the Battle of Amiens (1918), Battle of Amiens (8–12 August) on the Wester ...

"On 16 August 1918, as a member of the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles Battalion, Lt. Charles Smith Rutherford of Colbourne, Ontario, participated in the offensive to take Munchy-le-Preux. Once the objective taken, he went forward alone to reconnoiter, some distance ahead of the assaulting party. Entering the outskirts of the village, he walked straight into an enemy machine-gun section, holding a pill-box, but which was not looking for an attack from that quarter. Lt. Rutherford called immediately for their surrender stating that if not his machine-gunners would open fire immediately. After a brief discussion, the German officer decided to surrender. Lt. Rutherford then ordered that the other German machine-gun position located a little ways up the hill also surrendered; which it was so ordered to do. The entire garrison, consisting of 2 officers and 43 men with 3 machine-guns, was thus captured single-handedly by Lt. Rutherford. When his section arrived at his location, he observed that the right assault party was held up by heavy machine-gun fire from another pill-box. This he attacked with a Lewis-gun section and captured a further 35 prisoners with machine-guns, thus enabling the assault party to continue their advance."

Perpetuation

Following

, the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles were perpetuated by the

Eastern Townships Mounted Rifles The Eastern Townships Mounted Rifles was a cavalry regiment of the Non-Permanent Active Militia of the Canadian Militia (now the Canadian Army). In 1936, the regiment was converted from cavalry to artillery and became the 27th Field Artillery Re ...

. Following the regiment's conversion to artillery in 1936 the battle honours and lineage was passed onto the 7/XI Hussars which were later merged with the Sherbrooke Regiment to form the

Sherbrooke Hussars The Sherbrooke Hussars is a Primary Reserve armoured warfare, armoured regiment of the Canadian Forces and perpetuates the Sherbrooke Fusilier Regiment of the Second World War. Lineage The Sherbrooke Regiment The Sherbrooke Regiment was initiall ...

who perpetuate them today. The memory of the original unit was also perpetuated by its original members in the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles Association. The association met annually from its formation in 1934 until it disbanded in 1969. The records of the association may be found at th
Eastern Townships Research Centre
at

Bishop's University Bishop's University (french: Université Bishop's) is a small English-language Liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Lennoxville, a borough of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. The founder of the institution was the Anglican Diocese of Quebe ...

library,

Lennoxville, Quebec Lennoxville is an ''arrondissement'', or borough, of the city of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. Lennoxville is located at the confluence of the St. Francis and Massawippi Rivers approximately five kilometres south of downtown Sherbrooke. Lennoxvi ...

.5th Canadian Mounted Rifles Association
/ref>

Notes and references

{{Reflist

External links

*War diaries of the regiment fo
29 July 1915 – 28 February 191701 March 1917 – 31 March 1918
an
01 April 1918 – 17 March 1919
can be viewed on-line, courtesy of Library and Archives Canada. *Eastern Townships Research Centr

*Land Forces of Britain, the Empire and Commonwealt

*Brief history of the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles Associatio

*Photo of the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles on parade in Sherbrooke, 4 June 191

Battalions of the Canadian Expeditionary Force, 005 Military units and formations of Quebec Military units and formations disestablished in the 1910s 7th/11th Hussars Sherbrooke Hussars

Battle honours

Perpetuation

See Also

Notes and references

External links