The Perth Regiment was 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 ...

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...

of the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the 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 respo ...

. It is currently on the

Supplementary Order of Battle In the Canadian Army, a regiment is placed on the Supplementary Order of Battle when the need for the regiment's existence is no longer relevant. When placed on the Supplementary Order of Battle, a regiment is considered "virtually disbanded", and ...

Lineage

Lineage of The Perth Regiment:

The Perth Regiment (Overseas Battalion)

*Originated 22 Dec as 110th (Overseas) Battalion, CEF *Disbanded 17 Jul 1917 *Originated 1 Sep 1939 as The Perth Regiment (Machine Gun), CASF *Redesignated 2 Nov 1940 as 1st Battalion, The Perth Regiment (Machine Gun), CASF *Redesignated 11 Feb 1941 as 1st Battalion, The Perth Regiment (Motor), CASF *Redesignated 31 Jan 1943 as 1st Battalion, The Perth Regiment,

CIC CIC may refer to: Organizations Canada * Cadet Instructors Cadre, a part of the Canadian Armed Forces * Canadian Infantry Corps, renamed in 1947 to Royal Canadian Infantry Corps * Canadian International Council * Canadian Islamic Congress * Chemi ...

, CASF *Disbanded 31 Jan 1946

The Perth Regiment (Reserve Battalion)

*Originated 14 Sep 1866 as 28th (Perth) Battalion of Infantry *Redesignated 8 May 1900 as 28th Perth Regiment *Redesignated 29 Mar 1920 as The Perth Regiment *Amalgamated 15 Dec 1936 with C Company of the 2nd Machine Gun Battalion, CMGC and redesignated as The Perth Regiment (Machine Gun) *Redesignated 7 Nov 1940 as 2nd (Reserve) Battalion, The Perth Regiment (Machine Gun) *Redesignated 1 Apr 1941 as 2nd (Reserve) Battalion, The Perth Regiment (Motor) *Redesignated 1 Apr 1946 as The Perth Regiment *Amalgamated 1 October 1954 with The Highland Light Infantry of Canada and renamed The Perth and Waterloo Regiment (Highland Light Infantry of Canada) *Amalgamation ceased 1 April 1957 and resumed as The Perth Regiment *Assigned to the Supplementary Order of Battle 28 Feb 1965, and reduced to nil strength

Lineage Chart

, - , style="text-align: left;", class="wikitable" + Abbreviations used in the chart - ! Abbreviation !! Phrase - Bn Battalion - CASF

Canadian Active Service Force Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

- CEF

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 ...

- CIC

Canadian Infantry Corps 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 en ...

- CMGC

Canadian Machine Gun Corps The Canadian Machine Gun Corps (CMGC) was an administrative corps of the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) and of the Canadian Militia. It was part of the CEF sent to France during World War I. The Canadian Permanent Machine Gun Brigade was or ...

- Coy Company - Infy Infantry - MG Machine gun - Regt Regiment

Perpetuations

110th Battalion (Perth), CEF The 110th Battalion (Perth), CEF, was an infantry battalion of the Great War Canadian Expeditionary Force. The 110th Battalion was authorized on 22 December 1915 and embarked for Great Britain on 31 October 1916, where, on 2 January 1917, its pers ...

History

Early history

In 1838, the Third Regiment of Huron was organized in the territory which is now the south part of

Perth County, Ontario Perth County is a county in the Canadian province of Ontario in Southwestern Ontario, west of Toronto. Its population centres are Listowel, Mitchell and Milverton. The City of Stratford and the Town of St. Marys are within the Perth census di ...

. This was a paper organization of the compulsory militia, to which every able-bodied male citizen in theory belonged. It did not have equipment, did not train, and while it continued to exist after the voluntary militia was formed, it was distinct from the volunteers. The Stratford Volunteer Rifle Company was formed in 1856, elected its own officers, and carried on entirely at the expense of its members for two years, before it was officially recognized in 1858. In response to the Fenian Raids, a temporary battalion-sized composite unit was formed in 1866 at

Thorold Thorold is a city in Ontario, Canada, located on the Niagara Escarpment. It is also the seat of the Regional Municipality of Niagara. The Welland Canal passes through the city, featuring lock 7 and the Twin Flight Locks. History The first s ...

, Ontario. It consisted of companies from Stratford,

Chatham Chatham may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Canada * Chatham Islands (British Columbia) * Chatham Sound, British Columbia * Chatham, New Brunswick, a former town, now a neighbourhood of Miramichi * Chatham (electoral district), New Brunswic ...

Ingersoll Ingersoll may refer to: People *Ingersoll (surname) *Ingersoll Lockwood (1841–1918), American lawyer and writer Places Canada * Ingersoll, Ontario United States * Ingersoll, Oklahoma * Ingersoll, Wisconsin * Ingersoll Township, Michigan * ...

, St. Thomas and

Guelph Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as "The Royal City", Guelph is roughly east of Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Highway 6, Highway 7 and Wel ...

. A general order of the Militia Department of the

Province of Canada The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British North America, British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham ...

, dated 14 September 1866 authorized a regimental headquarters. Robert Service of Stratford was promoted to

Lt Col Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

and appointed to command. The Stratford Volunteer Rifle Company became No. 1 Company of the regiment. Other

companies A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared go ...

were in

Listowel Listowel ( ; , IPA: �lʲɪsˠˈt̪ˠuəhəlʲ is a heritage market town in County Kerry, Ireland. It is on the River Feale, from the county town, Tralee. The town of Listowel had a population of 4,820 according to the Central Statistics Of ...

and St. Marys The principle of Militia units was voluntary service and year-round training while carrying on with civilian life. The Perth Regiment maintained this principle throughout its peacetime service.

First World War

On 6 August 1914, during events which led to the

First World War 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 ...

, details of the regiment were placed on active service for local protection duties. The

(CEF) was organized in 1914 and 1915 using numbered battalions, which had little connection with the existing militia regiments. The

was authorized on 22 December 1915. The Perth Regiment recruited the 110th Battalion from Perth county. The 110th Battalion embarked for

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

on 31 October 1916 with a strength of 679 all ranks. On 2 January 1917, personnel of the 110th Battalion were absorbed by the 8th Battalion, CEF to provide reinforcements for the Canadian Corps in the field. The 110th Battalion was disbanded on 17 July 1917.

Second World War

The 1st Battalion, The Perth Regiment, was mobilized 1 September 1939 for service in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. The 1st Battalion embarked for Great Britain on 9 October 1941. It landed in Italy on 8 November 1943, as part of the 11th Infantry Brigade, 5th Canadian Division. The 1st Battalion transferred with the

I Canadian Corps I Canadian Corps was one of the two corps fielded by the Canadian Army during the Second World War. History From December 24, 1940, until the formation of the First Canadian Army in April 1942, there was a single unnumbered Canadian Corps. I ...

North-West Europe Northwestern Europe, or Northwest Europe, is a loosely defined subregion of Europe, overlapping Northern and Western Europe. The region can be defined both geographically and ethnographically. Geographic definitions Geographically, Northwe ...

in March 1945, where it fought until the end of the war. It returned home under command of a Perth militia officer, Lt Col MW Andrew and was disbanded on January 31, 1946. The 2nd (Reserve) Battalion, headquartered in Stratford, was authorized in 1940 and trained recruits for the 1st Battalion.

Post War

In 1954, as a result of the Kennedy Report on the Reserve Army, this regiment was amalgamated with The Highland Light Infantry of Canada to form The Perth and Waterloo Regiment (Highland Light Infantry of Canada). This was not a successful amalgamation, and in 1957 the two units reverted to their former designations. In June 1964, The Commission on the Reorganization of the Canadian Army (Militia), commonly called the Suttie Commission, issued its report. The Commission proposed the

to maintain the name of deactivated units and to facilitate reactivation. The commission further recommended that the Perth Regiment be transferred to the

and that the regiment's personnel be absorbed by 3 RCR (now 4 RCR). On 28 February 1965, The Perth Regiment was reduced to nil strength and placed on the Supplementary Order of Battle. At the time it was inactivated, The Perth Regiment consisted of a company in Stratford and a support platoon in St Marys. Before being moved to the Supplementary Order of Battle, The Perth Regiment its final

Order of Precedence An order of precedence is a sequential hierarchy of nominal importance and can be applied to individuals, groups, or organizations. Most often it is used in the context of people by many organizations and governments, for very formal and state o ...

as 16.

Alliances

The Perth Regiment was allied to the Cameronians, the Otago Regiment of

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, 26th Battalion of

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, and the

Witwatersrand Rifles The Bambatha Rifles (formerly the Witwatersrand Rifles) is a reserve mechanised infantry regiment of the South African Army. History Origin The Witwatersrand Rifles (often familiarly known as the "Wits Rifles or the Wit Rifles") was formed by ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

Uniform

They wore

Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals * Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking *Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civi ...

kilt, green

glengarry The Glengarry bonnet is a traditional Scots cap made of thick-milled woollen material, decorated with a toorie on top, frequently a rosette cockade on the left side, and ribbons hanging behind. It is normally worn as part of Scottish military ...

with green & white diced border, grey sporran with three black points, Douglas hose, and green garter flashes.

Battle Honours

In the list below, battle honours in small capitals were awarded for participation in large operations and campaigns, while those in lowercase indicate honours granted for more specific battles. The battle honours written in bold are emblazoned on the regimental colour.

Colours

The first set of colours was presented by the 28th Regiment Chapter IODE, on 15 June 1927 at Queen's Park Stratford, Ontario. The second set of colours was presented by the Honourable

John Keiller MacKay Lieutenant-colonel (Canada), Lieutenant-Colonel John Keiller MacKay (July 11, 1888 – June 12, 1970) was a Canadians, Canadian soldier, lawyer and jurist. MacKay served as the List of lieutenant governors of Ontario#Lieutenant Governors ...

Lieutenant Governor of Ontario The lieutenant governor of Ontario (, in French: ''Lieutenant-gouverneur'' (if male) or ''Lieutenante-gouverneure'' (if female) ''de l'Ontario'') is the viceregal representative in Ontario of the , who operates distinctly within the province bu ...

on 30 June 1962 at Queen's Park Stratford, Ontario. Both sets of colours are laid up at St. James' Anglican Church, Stratford, Ontario.

Commanding Officers

Overseas Battalion:

*1915 - LCol JL Youngs *1917 - Disbanded *1939 - LCol SH McComb, ED *1940 - LCol (later Col) GW Little, MVO, OBE, MC, ED *1942 - LCol (later BGen) ISH Lind, DSO, ED *1943 - LCol (later Col) HET Doucet, OBE, ED (May - Sep) *1943 - LCol (later BGen) WS Rutherford, ED *1944 - LCol (later BGen) ISH Lind, DSO, ED (Mar - May) *1944 - LCol (later BGen) WW Reid, DSO *1944 - LCol MW Andrew, DSO, ED, QC *1946 - Disbanded

Reserve Battalion

*1866 - LCol Robert S Service *1872 - LCol WM Smith, VD *1881 - LCol D Scot *1885 - LColl RS McKnight *1898 - LCol AAW Whight *1903 - LCol WG Moscrip, VD *1908 - LCol GT Cooke *1912 - LCol WM Lawrence, VD *1920 - LCol JL Youngs, MC *1923 - LCol AW Deacon, MC *1928 - LCol RM Trow *1933 - LCol H Denroche *1933 - LCol A Garrod, MC, ED *1939 - LCol SH McComb, ED *1940 - LCol GDL Rice, ED *1944 - Maj TW Orr *1946 - LCol John S Whyte, ED *1950 - LCol (later B Gen) WH Hempell, CD *1954 - LCol EM Hutchinson, CD *1959 - LCol FW Savage, CD *1962 - LCol EB Burnett, ED *1964 - LCol EC Skowby, CD *1965 - Assigned to Supplementary Order of battle and reduced to nil strength

Photo Gallery

File:Private of the Canadian Perth Regiment advancing through forest north of Arnhem with Bren gun 1945.jpg, Private H.E. Goddard of The Perth Regiment, carrying a

Bren gun The Bren gun was a series of light machine guns (LMG) made by Britain in the 1930s and used in various roles until 1992. While best known for its role as the British and Commonwealth forces' primary infantry LMG in World War II, it was also use ...

while advancing through a forest north of Arnhem, Netherlands, April 1945 File:PteKOEarlPerthRegimentArnhem15April1945.jpg, Private K.O. Earl of The Perth Regiment resting in the forest north of Arnhem, Netherlands, April 15, 1945 File:Houtsnijwerk Perth Regiment.jpg, ''Audax et Cautus''

References

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Perth Regiment Infantry regiments of Canada Scottish regiments of Canada Military units and formations of Ontario Military units and formations established in 1866 Military units and formations disestablished in 1965 1866 establishments in Canada Infantry regiments of Canada in World War II Supplementary Order of Battle