Sherbrooke Hussars
Encyclopedia
The Sherbrooke Hussars is a Primary Reserve armoured
regiment of the Canadian Forces
.
in 1914. The following year, it provided the bulk of the 117th (Eastern Townships) Battalion, CEF
, formed initially as a mounted unit, but quickly converted to infantry. This battalion became the first Empire unit to provide the King's Guard at Buckingham Palace
in London. The 117th was then broken up to provide reinforcements for several other Canadian units in France.
In 1920, the Sherbrooke Regiment was reformed with two battalions – the 1st Battalion perpetuated the traditions of the 117th CEF. In 1940, parts of the regiment amalgamated with Les Fusiliers de Sherbrooke
to form the Sherbrooke Fusiliers Regiment
(this is in error - singular, not possessive) (27th Canadian Armoured Regiment) which was roled as an armoured regiment, while the Sherbrooke Regiment continued as infantry.
After the end of the Second World War, The Sherbrooke Regiment re-roled as armour, becoming the 12th Armoured Regiment (Sherbrooke Regiment), perpetuating the traditions of the Sherbrooke Fusiliers. In 1958, the number was dropped, and the regiment became The Sherbrooke Regiment (RCAC), before, in 1965, it amalgamated with the 7th/XI Hussars to become the Sherbrooke Hussars.
. The regiment itself became the 16th (Reserve) Armoured Regiment, before being disbanded in 1943, with its personnel absorbed by the 5th Canadian Armoured Division.
In 1946, the regiment was raised again, perpetuating the 16th Armoured Regiment, as 16th Reconnaissance Regiment (7th/XI Hussars). The regiment converted to armour in 1954, and became simply the 7th/XI Hussars in 1958, before amalgamating with the Sherbrooke Regiment to form the Sherbrooke Hussars.
The 117th Battalion, which was authorized on 22 December 1915 as the 117th Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force and embarked for Britain on 14 August 1916. It provided reinforcements for units in the field until 8 January 1917 when its personnel were absorbed by the 23rd Reserve Battalion, CEF, with the battalion being disbanded on 30 August 1920.
In July 1940, the 7th/11th Hussars contributed about half its officers and men to The Royal Rifles of Canada
which fought in Hong Kong. From the elements not sent overseas, an armoured squadron was mobilized as the 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade Headquarters Squadron (7th/11th Hussars) CASF (1941). This subunit was disbanded overseas in 1943 and personnel were reassigned.
The 7th/11th Hussars mobilized an armoured squadron designated known as the 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade Headquarters Squadron (7th/11th Hussars), CASF, for active service on 27 February 1941. This unit departed Canada for the United Kingdom on 9 October 1941. The squadron was disbanded on 1 January 1943 and its personnel absorbed by Headquarters, 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade.
, Ancre Heights
, Arras
1917–1918, Vimy
1917, Hill 70, Ypres
1917, Passchendale, Amiens
, Scarpe
1918, Hindenburg Line
, Canal du Nord
, Cambrai
1918, Valenciennes
, Sambre
, France and Flanders 1915–1918, Normandy Landing, Authie
, Caen
, The Orne, Bourguebus Ridge, Faubourg de Vaucelles, Saint-André-sur-Orne
, Falaise
, Falaise Road, Clair Tizon, The Laison, Antwerp-Tournout, The Scheldt, The Lower Maas, The Rhineland, The Hochwald, Xanten
, The Rhine, Emmerich-Hoch Elten, Zutphen, Deventer
, North-West-Europe 1944–1945, Honorary Distinction Hong Kong 1941
The 7th/11th Hussars originated in Sherbrooke, Quebec on 21 September 1866, when the Sherbrooke Battalion of Infantry was authorized to be formed. It was redesignated the 53rd Sherbrooke Battalion of Infantry on 15 March 1867. On 22 March 1867, it was reorganized as two separate battalions, designated the 54th Sherbrooke Battalion of Infantry and the 53rd Melbourne Battalion of Infantry. It was redesignated as the 54th "Richmond" Battalion of Infantry on 10 May 1867 and the 54th Richmond Regiment on 8 May 1900. It was converted to cavalry and redesignated the 11th Hussars on 1 August 1903. On 1 April 1936, it was amalgamated with the 7th Hussars and redesignated as the 7th/11th Hussars. It was redesignated the 2nd (Reserve) Regiment, 7th/11th Hussars on 27 February 1941, then the 16th (Reserve) Armoured Regiment, (7th/11th Hussars) on 1 April 194 and then the 16th Reconnaissance Regiment (7th/11th Hussars), RCAC on 1 April 1946 following the Second World War. It was redesignated the 7th/11th Hussars (16th Reconnaissance Regiment) on 4 February 1949, then as the 7th/11th Hussars (16th Armoured Regiment) on 1 September 1954 and finally the 7th/11th Hussars on 19 May 1958. On 15 February 1965, it was amalgamated with The Sherbrooke Regiment (RCAC) to form the Sherbrooke Hussars.
Armoured warfare
Armoured warfare or tank warfare is the use of armoured fighting vehicles in modern warfare. It is a major component of modern methods of war....
regiment of the Canadian Forces
Canadian Forces
The Canadian Forces , officially the Canadian Armed Forces , are the unified armed forces of Canada, as constituted by the National Defence Act, which states: "The Canadian Forces are the armed forces of Her Majesty raised by Canada and consist of one Service called the Canadian Armed Forces."...
.
Sherbrooke Regiment
The Sherbrooke Regiment was initially formed in 1866 as the Sherbrooke Battalion of Infantry, becoming the 53rd (Sherbrooke) Battalion in 1867. The regiment provided volunteers for the 12th Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary ForceCanadian Expeditionary Force
The Canadian Expeditionary Force was the designation of the field force created by Canada for service overseas in the First World War. Units of the C.E.F. were divided into field formation in France, where they were organized first into separate divisions and later joined together into a single...
in 1914. The following year, it provided the bulk of the 117th (Eastern Townships) Battalion, CEF
117th (Eastern Townships) Battalion, CEF
The 117th Battalion, CEF was a unit in the Canadian Expeditionary Force during the First World War. Based in Sherbrooke, Quebec, the unit began recruiting in late 1915 through the eastern counties of Quebec...
, formed initially as a mounted unit, but quickly converted to infantry. This battalion became the first Empire unit to provide the King's Guard at Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
in London. The 117th was then broken up to provide reinforcements for several other Canadian units in France.
Les Fusiliers de Sherbrooke
Les Fusiliers de Sherbrooke is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Forces. It is based in Sherbrooke, Quebec, with a sub-unit in Granby.-Armourial description:...
to form the Sherbrooke Fusiliers Regiment
Sherbrooke Fusiliers Regiment
The Sherbrooke Fusilier Regiment was a World War II Canadian armoured regiment created in 1940 with officers and men from two Militia regiments in Sherbrooke, Quebec. The name is a blend of Les Fusiliers de Sherbrooke, a francophone infantry unit, and the Sherbrooke Regiment, an English-speaking...
(this is in error - singular, not possessive) (27th Canadian Armoured Regiment) which was roled as an armoured regiment, while the Sherbrooke Regiment continued as infantry.
After the end of the Second World War, The Sherbrooke Regiment re-roled as armour, becoming the 12th Armoured Regiment (Sherbrooke Regiment), perpetuating the traditions of the Sherbrooke Fusiliers. In 1958, the number was dropped, and the regiment became The Sherbrooke Regiment (RCAC), before, in 1965, it amalgamated with the 7th/XI Hussars to become the Sherbrooke Hussars.
7th/XI Hussars
The 7th/XI Hussars was formed in 1936 through the amalgamation of the 7th Hussars and XI Hussars. In 1940, 400 of its men were mobilised as infantry with the 1st Battalion, Royal Rifles of CanadaRoyal Rifles of Canada
The Royal Rifles of Canada was a rifle regiment in the Canadian Army and fought alongside the Winnipeg Grenadiers in the Battle of Hong Kong during World War II....
. The regiment itself became the 16th (Reserve) Armoured Regiment, before being disbanded in 1943, with its personnel absorbed by the 5th Canadian Armoured Division.
In 1946, the regiment was raised again, perpetuating the 16th Armoured Regiment, as 16th Reconnaissance Regiment (7th/XI Hussars). The regiment converted to armour in 1954, and became simply the 7th/XI Hussars in 1958, before amalgamating with the Sherbrooke Regiment to form the Sherbrooke Hussars.
The Great War
Details of the 53rd Sherbrooke Regiment were placed on active service for local protective duty on 6 August 1914. The 5th Regiment, Canadian Mounted Rifles, CEF was authorized on 7 November 1914 and embarked for Britain on 18 July 1915, arriving in France on 24 October 1915, where it fought as part of the 2nd Brigade Canadian Mounted Rifles until 3 January 1916. The Regiment was converted to infantry and became part of the 8th Infantry Brigade, 3rd Canadian Division. The regiment was redesignated the 5th Canadian Mounted Rifles Battalion, CEF on 24 December 1915. The battalion fought in France and Flanders until the end of the Great War and was disbanded on 30 August 1920.The 117th Battalion, which was authorized on 22 December 1915 as the 117th Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force and embarked for Britain on 14 August 1916. It provided reinforcements for units in the field until 8 January 1917 when its personnel were absorbed by the 23rd Reserve Battalion, CEF, with the battalion being disbanded on 30 August 1920.
The Second World War
The Sherbrooke Regiment mobilized the No. 1 General Base Depot, Canadian Active Service Force, on 1 September 1939, which embarked for Britain on 25 January 1940 where it provided guards for vulnerable points until disbanded on 6 July 1940. The regiment then, in conjunction with Les Fusiliers de Sherbrooke, mobilized The Sherbrooke Fusiliers Regiment, CASF, for active service on 24 May 1940. It was redesignated as the 1st Battalion, The Sherbrooke Fusiliers Regiment, CASF, on 7 November 1940, then as the 1st Battalion, The Sherbrooke Fusilier Regiment, CASF, on 15 November 1940 and upon conversion to an armoured regiment, as the 27th Armoured Regiment (The Sherbrooke Fusiliers Regiment), CAC, CASF, on 26 January 1942 and 27th Armoured Regiment (The Sherbrooke Fusiliers Regiment), RCAC, CASF on 2 August 1945. The regiment served ocverseas initially in Newfoundland from 13 August 1941 to 15 February 1942, and embarked for Britain on 27 October 1942. On 6 June 1944 it landed on Juno Beach in Normandy, France as a unit of the 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade and it continued to fight in North West Europe until the end of the war. The overseas regiment was disbanded on 15 February 1946.In July 1940, the 7th/11th Hussars contributed about half its officers and men to The Royal Rifles of Canada
Royal Rifles of Canada
The Royal Rifles of Canada was a rifle regiment in the Canadian Army and fought alongside the Winnipeg Grenadiers in the Battle of Hong Kong during World War II....
which fought in Hong Kong. From the elements not sent overseas, an armoured squadron was mobilized as the 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade Headquarters Squadron (7th/11th Hussars) CASF (1941). This subunit was disbanded overseas in 1943 and personnel were reassigned.
The 7th/11th Hussars mobilized an armoured squadron designated known as the 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade Headquarters Squadron (7th/11th Hussars), CASF, for active service on 27 February 1941. This unit departed Canada for the United Kingdom on 9 October 1941. The squadron was disbanded on 1 January 1943 and its personnel absorbed by Headquarters, 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade.
Battle honours
Mount Sorrel, Somme 1916, Flers-CourceletteBattle of Flers-Courcelette
The Battle of Flers-Courcelette, was a battle within the Franco-British Somme Offensive which took place in the summer and autumn of 1916. Launched on the 15th of September 1916 the battle went on for one week. Flers-Courcelette began with the overall objective of cutting a hole in the German...
, Ancre Heights
Battle of the Ancre Heights
The Battle of the Ancre Heights was a prolonged battle of attrition in October 1916 during the Battle of the Somme. Lieutenant General Hubert Gough's Reserve Army had finally managed to break out of the positions it had occupied since the start of the Somme fighting and Gough intended to maintain...
, Arras
Arras
Arras is the capital of the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France. The historic centre of the Artois region, its local speech is characterized as a Picard dialect...
1917–1918, Vimy
Vimy
Vimy is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France.-Geography and history:Vimy is a farming town, situated some north of Arras, at the junction of the D51 and the N17 roads....
1917, Hill 70, Ypres
Ypres
Ypres is a Belgian municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Ypres and the villages of Boezinge, Brielen, Dikkebus, Elverdinge, Hollebeke, Sint-Jan, Vlamertinge, Voormezele, Zillebeke, and Zuidschote...
1917, Passchendale, Amiens
Amiens
Amiens is a city and commune in northern France, north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in Picardy...
, Scarpe
Scarpe
The Scarpe is a river in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region of France, left tributary of the Scheldt. It is approximately a hundred kilometers long, of which two thirds has been turned into canals....
1918, Hindenburg Line
Hindenburg Line
The Hindenburg Line was a vast system of defences in northeastern France during World War I. It was constructed by the Germans during the winter of 1916–17. The line stretched from Lens to beyond Verdun...
, Canal du Nord
Canal du Nord
The Canal du Nord is a long canal in northern France. The canal connects the Canal latéral à l'Oise at Pont-l'Évêque to the Sensée Canal at Arleux. The French government, in partnership with coal-mining companies in the Nord and Pas-de-Calais departments, developed the canal to help French coal...
, Cambrai
Cambrai
Cambrai is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.Cambrai is the seat of an archdiocese whose jurisdiction was immense during the Middle Ages. The territory of the Bishopric of Cambrai, roughly coinciding with the shire of Brabant, included...
1918, Valenciennes
Valenciennes
Valenciennes is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.It lies on the Scheldt river. Although the city and region had seen a steady decline between 1975 and 1990, it has since rebounded...
, Sambre
Sambre
The Sambre is a river in northern France and Wallonia, southern Belgium, left tributary of the Meuse River. The ancient Romans called the river Sabis.-Course:...
, France and Flanders 1915–1918, Normandy Landing, Authie
Authie
Authie is the name of several places in France:*Authie, Calvados, commune of the Calvados département*Authie, Somme, commune of the Somme département*Authie , a river in northern France...
, Caen
Caen
Caen is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the Calvados department and the capital of the Basse-Normandie region. It is located inland from the English Channel....
, The Orne, Bourguebus Ridge, Faubourg de Vaucelles, Saint-André-sur-Orne
Saint-André-sur-Orne
Saint-André-sur-Orne is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.-World War II:The village was the site of an expulsion of many schoolchildren from the Maison du Clos by the Nazi army during World War II, in which case the marching children were...
, Falaise
Falaise
Falaise is the name of several communes in France:* Falaise, Ardennes* Falaise, Calvados** The Falaise pocket was the site of a battle in the Second World War* La Falaise, in the Yvelines département* The Falaise escarpment in Quebec City...
, Falaise Road, Clair Tizon, The Laison, Antwerp-Tournout, The Scheldt, The Lower Maas, The Rhineland, The Hochwald, Xanten
Xanten
Xanten is a historic town in the North Rhine-Westphalia state of Germany, located in the district of Wesel.Xanten is known for the Archaeological Park or archaeological open air museum , its medieval picturesque city centre with Xanten Cathedral and many museums, its large man-made lake for...
, The Rhine, Emmerich-Hoch Elten, Zutphen, Deventer
Deventer
Deventer is a municipality and city in the Salland region of the Dutch province of Overijssel. Deventer is largely situated on the east bank of the river IJssel, but also has a small part of its territory on the west bank. In 2005 the municipality of Bathmen Deventer is a municipality and city in...
, North-West-Europe 1944–1945, Honorary Distinction Hong Kong 1941
Expanded history
This Reserve Force regiment was formed on 21 September 1866 in Melbourne, Quebec, when the Sherbrooke Battalion of Infantry was authorized to be formed. It was redesignated the 53rd Sherbrooke Battalion of Infantry on 15 March 1867. On 22 March 1867, it was reorganized as two separate battalions designated the 53rd Melbourne Battalion of Infantry and the 54th Sherbrooke Battalion of Infantry. It was redesignated as the 53rd Sherbrooke Battalion of Infantry on 10 May 1867 and then the 53rd Sherbrooke Regiment on 8 May 1900. Following the Great War, the Regiment was reanmed The Sherbrooke Regiment on 29 March 1920 and re-roled as a machine gun battalion as The Sherbrooke Regiment (MG) on 15 December 1936. Several other changes of name took place during the Seconnd World War as Regiment was designated The Sherbrooke Regiment on 1 February 1941, the 2nd (Reserve) Battalion, The Sherbrooke Regiment on 7 November 1940. The Regiment changed from infatry to armour, becoming the 12th Armoured Regiment (Sherbrooke Regiment), RCAC on 1 April 1946, then The Sherbrooke Regiment (12th Armoured Regiment) on 4 February 1949and The Sherbrooke Regiment (RCAC) on 19 May 1958. On 15 February 1965, the Sherbrooke Regiment was amalgamated with the 7th/11th Hussars and redesignated The Sherbrooke Hussars.The 7th/11th Hussars originated in Sherbrooke, Quebec on 21 September 1866, when the Sherbrooke Battalion of Infantry was authorized to be formed. It was redesignated the 53rd Sherbrooke Battalion of Infantry on 15 March 1867. On 22 March 1867, it was reorganized as two separate battalions, designated the 54th Sherbrooke Battalion of Infantry and the 53rd Melbourne Battalion of Infantry. It was redesignated as the 54th "Richmond" Battalion of Infantry on 10 May 1867 and the 54th Richmond Regiment on 8 May 1900. It was converted to cavalry and redesignated the 11th Hussars on 1 August 1903. On 1 April 1936, it was amalgamated with the 7th Hussars and redesignated as the 7th/11th Hussars. It was redesignated the 2nd (Reserve) Regiment, 7th/11th Hussars on 27 February 1941, then the 16th (Reserve) Armoured Regiment, (7th/11th Hussars) on 1 April 194 and then the 16th Reconnaissance Regiment (7th/11th Hussars), RCAC on 1 April 1946 following the Second World War. It was redesignated the 7th/11th Hussars (16th Reconnaissance Regiment) on 4 February 1949, then as the 7th/11th Hussars (16th Armoured Regiment) on 1 September 1954 and finally the 7th/11th Hussars on 19 May 1958. On 15 February 1965, it was amalgamated with The Sherbrooke Regiment (RCAC) to form the Sherbrooke Hussars.