FOUNDING OF THE REGIMENT

FOUNDING OF THE REGIMENT

The formation of the Regiment was initiated by a letter written on June 5, 1872, by Major Thomas Ross to the Adjutant General of Militia. Ross argued that a volunteer infantry force was needed for state occasions due to “the absence of Queen’s troops at the Capital” and the lack of military music at Government House.

Just two days later, on June 7, 1872, Militia General Order 16 officially authorized the raising of the “First Battalion Governor General’s Foot Guards”.

On June 18, 1872, Numbers 1 and 2 Companies of the pre-existing Civil Service Rifles were officially disbanded as independent rifle companies and absorbed to form the core of the new battalion.

The Regiment’s very first duty was providing a Guard of Honour for the departing Governor General, Lord Lisgar, on June 25, 1872. When the new Governor General, the Earl of Dufferin, arrived shortly after, the Regiment provided another Guard of Honour. Because their new scarlet uniforms had not yet arrived, the Guardsmen performed both of these historic parades wearing the old green uniforms of the Civil Service Rifles and carrying their rifles at the “slope” to signify their new status.

The Regiment chose to model its uniform and accoutrements after the Coldstream Guards of the British Imperial Army. This included the use of gold lace, which sparked a public uproar and resentment among other senior officers, as Canadian Militia law at the time required militia officers to wear silver lace. After a year-long inquiry, Governor General Lord Dufferin officially ruled that the Regiment would be allowed to retain its unique gold lace.

The Earl of Dufferin essentially acted as the “god-father” of the new Regiment. He took a keen interest in its progress, strongly supported its special uniform distinctions, and his wife, the Marchioness of Dufferin and Ava, presented the Regiment with its first stand of Colours on May 24, 1874.