|
The United Empire
Loyalists who settled in the county of Hastings and Prince Edward
organized the first local Militia units for self-defense. The Hastings
and Prince Edward Regiment is the modern descendant of those Militia
units...
 1800
Col. A Macdonnell forms the 1st Regiment of Prince Edward Militia.
|
|
|
1804
Col. J Ferguson forms the 1st Regiment of Hastings Militia.
|
|
The above Regiments
provided units which served in the War of 1812 and the McKenzie
Rebellion of 1837-8. During the 1860's, time of the Fenian threat,
the Canadian Government authorized the formation of new independant
infantry companies.
| 1862 In December,
LCol. Ponton gathered together a number of these infantry
companies in Belleville. |
|
| 1863 In January,
those infantry units were formed into the 15th Argyllshire Light
Infantry. |
|
1863 1st Prince
Edward was re-designated the 16th Battalion of Volunteer Militia
(Infantry) of Canada and then redesignated...
1867 16th Prince Edward Battalion of Infantry, then redesignated
yet once more as...
1900 16th Prince Edward Regiment
 |
|
| 1864 All Regiments
supplied detachments for active service during the Fenian Raids. |
|
| 1866 1st Hastings was
re-designated the 49th Regiment (Hastings Rifles). |
|
| 1885 The 15th Argyll
formed 'H' Coy in the Midland Battalion for service during the
Northwest Rebellion. This service is the source of the Battle
Honour which is part of the current day Regimental Battle Honours:
North-West Canada 1885. A number of individuals served with the
Royal Canadian Regiment during the Boer War. |
|
| |
|
|
World War
I |
|
| |
|
|
Few Canadian
Regiments served as such overseas in WWI. Men were enlisted in
Battalions designated only as numbers. Militia-men from the
Quinte region formed the 39th, 80th, 136th, 155th, and 254th
Infantry Battalions as well as the 21st and 77th Infantry
Battalions and the 1st Forestry Battalion. Their valor in action
earned them the following Battle Honours:
SOMME 1916 |
|
| ARRAS
1917 - 18 |
|
| HILL 70 |
|
| YPRES
1917 |
|
| AMIENS |
|
|
HINDENBURG LINE |
|
| PURSUIT
TO MONS |
|
|
The Great War also
saw the first official service by women in the Canadian Army,
mainly as nurses... |
|
|
Between the wars
1920 The 16th Prince
Edward Regiment and The 49th Hastings Rifles were amalgamated to
form The Hastings & Prince Edward regiment, which now consisted
of three Battalions.
  |
|
The armorial elements
of the 16th PER and the 49th Hastings Rifles cap badges, seen
above, were combined to create the cap badge of the new Regiment
as shown below: |
|
|
The capbadge has been
worn to this day with the only change being to the crown after the
Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.
|
|
|
1934 The Regiment
received new Colours presented by LGen Sir Archibald McDonald.
The Regiment also affiliated with the
Royal Sussex Regiment and was granted the honour of using
their colours of old gold and royal blue.
The
Royal Sussex Regiment was amalgamated with several other
regiments to form
The Queen's Regiment in 1966. It, in turn, was absorbed by
the modern
Princess of Wales Royal Regiment ( See another website for
the PWRR Here ) |
|
| |
|
|
World War II |
|
| |
|
|
The Regiment
mobilized on September 2, 1939 and began training with the relics
of WWI leftover uniforms and equipment. Some had to make do with
sticks in place of rifles and supplied their own boots and
clothing... But by the time they embarked on the HMT Ormonde on
December 19, they were a fully equipped trained unit. |
|
|
1940-43 The Regiment trained in Great
Britain with the exception of a brief foray into France where the
fierce Blitzkrieg waged by the Germans cost them most of their
vehicles and the Regimental mascot, Little Chief. A new mascot
Chief Petawawa-Much was taken on strength on October 30, 1940
with the service number C.0001. (Little Chief's number had been
C.0000). |
|
|
July 10, 1943 The Hasty P's part of
Canadian Army 1st Division landed on Green Beach, Sicily and
earned eight Battle Honours at the cost of many men, including a
Commanding Officer. |
|
|
September 3, 1943 An unopposed
landing was more than made up for by a vicious running battle with
seasoned German Army troops up through the Italian Peninsula as
part of the British 8th Army. The Regiment earned twenty more
Battle Honours at fearful cost. |
|
|
1945 The Regiment departed Italy and
went to Northwest Europe and joined the 1st Canadian Army where
they took active part in the liberation of Holland. Among the
Regiments accomplishments was the capturing of the Dutch Summer
Palace at Apeldoorn. |
|
| |
|
|
Post-War |
|
| |
|
| 1951 Two
companies were raised for NATO service in West Germany as part of
the 27th Brigade. |
|
| 1954
Government cutbacks had the Regiment - now headquartered in
Belleville - absorb the Midland Regiment, the 34th Battery, and
the Argylls. |
|
| 1957 In
October, more than twelve years after the end of the war,
Canadian Army Orders finally announced the the Regiment had been
awarded 31 Battle Honours, ten of which were emblazoned onto the
Regimental Colours. |
|
| 1969
More cutbacks closed six more Regimental armouries. The armoury
in Peterborough remained open, but the 50th Field Regiment and
the 28th RCEME were struck off the Order of Battle and their
personnel formed 'B' Coy of the Hastings and Prince Edward
Regiment. The regiment now occupied only two armouries... |
|
| 1992 The
Cobourg Armoury officially opened it's doors in January and
provided a home for 'C' Coy of the Hastings & Prince Edward
Regiment. |
|
|
Farley Mowats published
history of the Regiment in WWII (THE REGIMENT) is a
worthy recounting of the Regiment's accomplishments. Mowat
himself was a platoon commander in the Regiment, and later on in
the war, an intelligence officer in England... A 'must read'
for anyone interested in the history of the Regiment. |
|
| |
|
|
The following
prayer was written by Major Alex Campbell, O.C. of "A"Coy during
a lull in battle. He later was killed in Ortona.... |
|
| |
|
|
Prayer
before Battle
|
|
|
By Major Alex
Campbell
|
|
| When 'neath the rumble
of the guns, |
| I lead my men
against the Huns, |
| 'Tis then I feel so
all alone and weak and scared, |
| And oft I wonder
how I dared, |
| Accept the task of
leading men. |
|
|
| I wonder, worry, fret,
and then I pray, |
| Oh God! Who
promised oft |
| To humble men a
listening ear, |
| Now in my spirit's
troubled state, |
| Draw near, dear God,
draw near, draw near. |
| |
| Make me more willing
to obey, |
| Help me to merit
my command, |
| And if this be my
fatal day, |
| Reach out, Oh God,
Thy Guiding Hand, |
| And lead me down that
deep, dark vale. |
| |
| These men of mine must
never know |
| How much afraid I
really am, |
| Help me to lead them
in the fight |
| So they will say,
"He was a man". |
|
