The Princess Louise Dragoon Guards was a heavy cavalry regiment of the

Non-Permanent Active Militia The Non-Permanent Active Militia (NPAM) was the name of Canada's part-time volunteer military force from 1855 to 1940. The NPAM (also called "the Militia" though that term could also encompass the full-time standing army known as the Permanent A ...

of the Canadian Militia (now 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 ...

). First formed in 1872 as an independent cavalry troop, in 1903 it became a full regiment. In 1936, the regiment was Amalgamated with the 4th Hussars of Canada to become the

4th Princess Louise Dragoon Guards The 4th Princess Louise Dragoon Guards is an inactive armoured regiment of the Canadian Militia / Canadian Army. It is currently on the Supplementary Order of Battle. Lineage Several independent troops of cavalry in the Province of Canada's vo ...

Lineage

The Princess Louise Dragoon Guards

* Originated on 1 January 1903, in

Ottawa, Ontario Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

, as the Princess Louise Dragoon Guards. * Redesignated on 1 February 1903, as the 5th Princess Louise Dragoon Guards. * Redesignated on 15 March 1920, as The Princess Louise Dragoon Guards. * Amalgamated on 15 December 1936, with the 4th Hussars of Canada and Redesignated as the 4th Princess Louise Dragoon Guards.

Perpetuations

* 8th Regiment, Canadian Mounted Rifles

History

Early History

On 23 May 1872, the Ottawa Troop of Cavalry was formed as an Independent Cavalry Troop and on 15 November 1878, the unit was Redesignated as a Troop of Dragoon Guards. A year later on 3 January 1879, the Troop was expanded to a full Independent Cavalry Squadron and Renamed as The Princess Louise Dragoon Guards in honour of its patron; the

Princess Louise, Marchioness of Lorne Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll, (Louisa Caroline Alberta; 18 March 1848 – 3 December 1939) was the sixth child and fourth daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. In her public life, she was a strong proponent of the arts and highe ...

: vice-regal consort of the

Governor General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

the

Marquess of Lorne A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman wi ...

. As the only cavalry unit in Ottawa, the PLDG would have the honour to provide the mounted escort for the Governor General of Canada within the capital.

South Africa

During the Second Boer War, volunteers from the PLDG served with the 2nd (Special Service) Battalion, The Royal Canadian Regiment; the

1st Battalion, Canadian Mounted Rifles The 1st Battalion, Canadian Mounted Rifles, CEF, was an infantry battalion of the Canadian Army. Raised for service during the First World War as part of the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF), it was formed in November 1914, in Brandon, Manitob ...

; and the

South African Constabulary The South African Constabulary (SAC) was a paramilitary force set up in 1900 under British Army control to police areas captured from the two independent Boer republics of Transvaal and Orange Free State during the Second Boer War. Its first ...

from 1899 to 1902.

Early 1900s

On 1 January 1903, The Princess Louise Dragoon Guards would be expanded to a full Regiment and later that year on 1 February, would be Redesignated as the 5th Princess Louise Dragoon Guards, taking over the regimental number and order of precedence from the former 5th Dragoons which had been Amalgamated with the

6th Duke of Connaught's Royal Canadian Hussars The 6th Duke of Connaught's Royal Canadian Hussars was a light cavalry regiment of the Non-Permanent Active Militia of the Canadian Militia (now the Canadian Army). First formed in 1855 as an independent cavalry troop, in 1879 it became a full reg ...

in 1901.

The First World War

The 5th Princess Louise Dragoon Guards wouldn't be mobilized for service during the First World War but would by sending volunteers to help raise the 8th Canadian Mounted Rifles for service with the Canadian Expeditionary Force. On 15 March 1915, the 8th Regiment, Canadian Mounted Rifles, CEF was authorized for service and on 8 October 1915, the regiment embarked for the United Kingdom. After its arrival in the UK, on 29 January 1916, its personnel were absorbed by the 39th Reserve Battalion and a draft was sent to the 4th Battalion, Canadian Mounted Rifles, CEF on the Western Front. This draft would serve with the rest of the 4th CMR at the

Battle of Mont Sorrel The Battle of Mont Sorrel (''Battle of Mount Sorrel'', ''Battle of Hill 62'') was a local operation in World War I by three divisions of the British Second Army and three divisions of the German 4th Army in the Ypres Salient, near Ypres, Bel ...

in June 1916, which would later qualify the PLDG post-war for the battle honour Mount Sorrel. On 8 December 1917, the 8th CMR was disbanded.

1920s-1930s

As a result of the

Otter Commission The Otter Commission, or Otter Committee, was established after the First World War to tackle a problem created by the chaotic mobilization of the Canadian Expeditionary Force. In 1919 units of the CEF, intended as a wartime expeditionary force, ret ...

, on 15 March 1920, the regiment was Redesignated once again as The Princess Louise Dragoon Guards. On 15 December 1936, as a result of the 1936 Canadian Militia Reorganization, The Princess Louise Dragoon Guards were Amalgamated with the 4th Hussars of Canada to become the

Alliances

* - 10th Royal Hussars (Prince of Wales's Own) (Until 1936)

Uniform

Since the 1870s, the Princess Louise Dragoon Guards wore a full-dress uniform similar to that of the

Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards) The Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards) was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. It was formed in 1685 as the Lord Lumley's Regiment of Horse. It was renamed as His Majesty's 1st Regiment of Carabiniers in 1740, the 3rd Regiment of Horse (Carabi ...

. This consisted of a dark blue dragoon tunic with white collar and cuffs, facings and piping, and dark blue trousers with white double stripes. The regimental headdress consisted of a brass cavalry helmet with a white horsehair plume. Their undress dark blue peaked cap had a scarlet band and piping, which was a unique distinction granted to this regiment. After its Amalgamation with the 4th Hussars in 1936, the newly formed 4th Princess Louise Dragoon Guards continued to use this uniform in Full Dress until they were placed 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 ...

in 1965.

Battle Honours

South African War

South Africa, 1900 The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the South ...

The Great War

Mount Sorrel The Battle of Mont Sorrel (''Battle of Mount Sorrel'', ''Battle of Hill 62'') was a local operation in World War I by three divisions of the British Second Army and three divisions of the German 4th Army in the Ypres Salient, near Ypres, Bel ...

Notable Members

* Lorne W. R. Mulloy

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Princess_Louise_Dragoon_Guards 4th Princess Louise Dragoon Guards Dragoon regiments of Canada Canadian ceremonial units Military units and formations of Ontario