The 16th Battalion (Canadian Scottish), CEF was a unit of the First World War

Canadian Expeditionary Force The Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF; French: ''Corps expéditionnaire canadien'') was the expeditionary warfare, expeditionary field force of Canada during the First World War. It was formed on August 15, 1914, following United Kingdom declarat ...

. It was organized at

Valcartier 2nd Canadian Division Support Base Valcartier (2 CDSB Valcartier), formerly known as and commonly referred to as Canadian Forces Base Valcartier (CFB Valcartier), is a Canadian Forces base located in the municipality of Saint-Gabriel-de-Valca ...

on 2 September 1914 and was composed of recruits from the

91st Regiment Canadian Highlanders The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders of Canada (Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll, Princess Louise's), or A & SH of C, is a Primary Reserve Scottish regiment, Highland infantry regiment of the Canadian Armed Forces, based at John W. Foote VC A ...

, the 79th Cameron Highlanders of Canada, the

72nd Regiment "Seaforth Highlanders of Canada" The Seaforth Highlanders of Canada is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The regiment is subordinate to 39 Canadian Brigade Group, 3rd Canadian Division. Based at the Seaforth Armoury on ...

, and the 50th Regiment "Highlanders".

History

The 16th Battalion served in the 3rd Canadian Brigade of the

1st Canadian Division The 1st Canadian Division (French: ) is a joint operational command and control formation based at CFB Kingston, and falls under Canadian Joint Operations Command. It is a high-readiness unit, able to move on very short notice, and is staffed and ...

. Since its early beginnings, the battalion had a high standard of conduct on the battlefield and was commanded by outstanding leaders. One such was Lieutenant-General Sir

Arthur Currie General Sir Arthur William Currie, (5 December 187530 November 1933) was a senior officer of the Canadian Army who fought during World War I. He had the unique distinction of starting his military career on the very bottom rung as a pre-war ...

, KCMG, who rose to command the Canadian Corps during the Great War. Currie was a master tactician whose skills led the Canadians to victory at Vimy Ridge and Amiens. Lieutenant-Colonel

Cyrus Wesley Peck Cyrus Wesley Peck & Medal bar, Bar (26 April 1871 – 27 September 1956) was a Canadians, Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth of Nat ...

commanded the battalion for many months in the trenches. Four members of the 16th Battalion were awarded the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

: Piper

James Cleland Richardson James Cleland Richardson Victoria Cross, VC (25 November 1895 – 8/9 October 1916) was a Scottish-born Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be award ...

, Private

William Johnstone Milne William Johnstone Milne Victoria Cross, VC (21 December 1892 – 9 April 1917) was a First World War Canadians, Canadian soldier. Milne was a posthumous recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in ...

, Lance-Corporal William Henry Metcalf, and Lieutenant-Colonel Cyrus Peck. Piper James Richardson was just 18 years old when he enlisted, and was killed during the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (; ), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and the French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 Nove ...

shortly after having played his company through No Man's Land. He disappeared in shellfire after going back to retrieve the

bagpipes Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, N ...

he laid aside to bring back a wounded comrade. Medals21

The battalion fought on the northern flank of the 3rd Brigade during the attack on Vimy Ridge. Several German positions survived the pre-attack artillery barrage and, though the 16th achieved its objectives, it paid a heavy price with 333 killed and wounded. Eric Kennington - The Conquerors CWM 19710261-0812

Eric Kennington - The Conquerors CWM 19710261-0812

The Canadian historian René Chartrand noted that despite the fact that

black Canadians Black Canadians () are Canadians of full or partial Afro-Caribbean or sub-Saharan African descent. Black Canadian settlement and immigration patterns can be categorized into two distinct groups. The majority of Black Canadians are descendants ...

were only supposed to serve in construction units, one of the soldiers in the painting ''The Conquerors'' is a black man, suggesting that at least some black Canadians served as infantrymen in World War I. The battalion returned to England on 27 March 1919, disembarked in Canada on 4 May 1919, was demobilized on 8 May 1919, and was disbanded by General Order 149 of 15 September 1920.

Perpetuations

Canadian Scottish at Canal du Nord Sept 1918 IWM CO 3289

The 16th Battalion (Canadian Scottish), CEF is perpetuated by

The Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary's) The Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary's) is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army based on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. The regiment is in Victoria, Nanaimo, and Courtenay, British Columbia. It is part of the 3 ...

.Canadian Forces Publication A-DH-267-003 Insignia and Lineages of the Canadian Forces. Volume 3: Combat Arms Regiments.

Battle honours

Ypres, 1915 The Second Battle of Ypres was fought from 22 April – 25 May 1915, during the First World War, for control of the tactically-important high ground to the east and the south of the Flemish town of Ypres, in western Belgium. The First Batt ...

, '17 * Gravenstafel * St Julien *

Festubert, 1915 The Battle of Festubert (15–25 May 1915) was an attack by the British army in the Artois region of France on the western front during World War I. The offensive formed part of a series of attacks by the French Tenth Army and the British ...

Mount Sorrel The Battle of Mont Sorrel (Battle of Mount Sorrel) was a local operation in World War I by three divisions of the German 4th Army and three divisions of the British Second Army in the Ypres Salient, near Ypres in Belgium, from 2 to 13 June ...

Somme, 1916 The Battle of the Somme (; ), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and the French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 Nove ...

Pozières Pozières (; ) is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography The commune is situated on the D929 road, northeast of Amiens between Albert and Bapaume, on the Pozières ridge. Southwest of the village ...

* Theipval *

Ancre Heights The Ancre (; ) is a river of Picardy, France. Rising at Miraumont, a hamlet near the town of Albert, it flows into the Somme at Corbie. It is long. For most of its length it flows through the department of Somme. For a short stretch near Puisi ...

Arras, 1917 The Battle of Arras, also known as the Second Battle of Arras, was a British offensive on the Western Front during the First World War. From 9 April to 16 May 1917, British troops attacked German defences near the French city of Arras on the We ...

, '18 *

Vimy, 1917 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 of ...

Arleux Arleux () is a commune in the Nord département in northern France. Geography The river Sensée joins the Canal du Nord at Arleux. Population Heraldry See also *Communes of the Nord department The following is a list of the 647 comm ...

* Scarpe, 1917, '18 *

Hill 70 The Battle of Hill 70 took place in the First World War between the Canadian Corps and attached units against five divisions of the German 6th Army. The battle took place along the Western Front on the outskirts of Lens in the Nord-Pas-de-Ca ...

* Passchendaele *

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; , or ) is a city and Communes of France, commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme (department), Somme Departments of France, department in the region ...

* Drocourt–Quéant *

Hindenburg Line The Hindenburg Line (, Siegfried Position) was a German Defense line, defensive position built during the winter of 1916–1917 on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front in France during the First World War. The line ran from Arras to ...

Canal du Nord The Canal du Nord (, literally ''Canal of the North'') is a long canal in northern France. The canal connects the Canal latéral à l'Oise in Pont-l'Évêque to the Sensée Canal in Arleux. The French government, in partnership with coal-min ...

Pursuit to Mons Pursuit may refer to: Arts and entertainment Films * ''Pursuit'' (1935 film), a 1935 American action film * ''Pursuit'' (1972 American film), a made-for-TV film directed by Michael Crichton * ''Pursuit'' (1972 Hong Kong film), a Shaw Brot ...

* France and Flanders, 1915-18

References

{{reflist

External links

Canadian Scottish Regiment Collection
at University of Victoria, Special Collections Military units and formations established in 1914 Military units and formations disestablished in 1920

016 The Home Guard Special Division 016 (; abbreviated as HV-016) is a former military unit of Norway, that was a part of the Home Guard. It was established after 1985 to "stop terror- or sabotage actions that could weaken or paralyze Norway's abili ...

1914 establishments in Canada Military units and formations of Quebec Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary's)