The Canadian Light Horse (CLH) was a

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

regiment 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 ...

during the First World War.

History

The CLH was formed as the Canadian Corps Cavalry Regiment in May 1916, by the amalgamation of three divisional cavalry squadrons: the 1st Divisional Cavalry Squadron (19th Alberta Dragoons), the

2nd Divisional Cavalry Squadron (1st Hussars) The 1st Hussars is an armoured Primary Reserve regiment of the Canadian Armed Forces, based in London, Ontario, London and Sarnia, Ontario. Regimental seniority Despite "1st" in the title, the regiment is not the most senior armoured unit. With t ...

, and the

3rd Divisional Cavalry Squadron (16th Light Horse) The 16th Canadian Light Horse was a light cavalry regiment of the Non-Permanent Active Militia of the Canadian Militia (now the Canadian Army). First formed in 1905 as the 16th Mounted Rifles, the regiment was Redesignated in 1908 as the 16th Li ...

. In March 1917 the regiment was renamed the Canadian Light Horse. After amalgamation, the each squadron of the regiment continued to wear the

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 w ...

of its founding militia unit: * A Squadron: 19th Alberta Dragoons * B Squadron: 1st Hussars * C Squadron: 16th Light Horse The CLH participated in the

Battle of Vimy Ridge The Battle of Vimy Ridge was part of the Battle of Arras, in the Pas-de-Calais department of France, during the First World War. The main combatants were the four divisions of the Canadian Corps in the First Army, against three divisions o ...

and 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 ...

. The regiment's duties included mounted patrol work, dispatch riding, escort duties, and traffic control, as well as pursuit of the enemy during offensive operations. On October 10, 1918, at 2:15 pm, A and C Squadrons charged the enemy with 280 horses at Iwuy, a village 9 km northeast of

Cambrai Cambrai (, ; pcd, Kimbré; nl, Kamerijk), formerly Cambray and historically in English Camerick or Camericke, is a city in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department and in the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, regio ...

. This was the last combat charge in the history of Canadian cavalry. Commanding officers: *Lieutenant-Colonel J.H. Elmsley (19 May 1916 - 26 June 1916) *Lieutenant-Colonel C.T. Van Straubenzee (26 June 1916 - 13 March 1917) *Lieutenant-Colonel E.I. Leonard (13 March 1917 - 14 February 1919)

References

Mounted Regiments of the Canadian Expeditionary Force Military units and formations disestablished in the 1910s {{Canada-mil-hist-stub

History

See Also

Further reading

References