Canadian Forces Land Force Command
Canadian Forces Land Force Command (
LFC) is responsible for army operations within the
Canadian Armed Forces. LFC maintains bases across Canada and is responsible for the largest component of the Canadian Forces Reserves â€" the Army Reserve, often referred to as the "militia".
LFC is the descendant of the
Canadian Army which was the name of Canada's land forces from
1940 until
February 1,
1968. At the time of unification all army units were placed under
Mobile Command (
MC), later changed to Force Mobile Command (FMC) in
1975 when tactical air units were assigned to newly-created
Air Command. The name was changed from FMC to Land Force Command in a
1997 reorganization of the Canadian Forces.
Following unification of the three armed services in 1968, Canada's Mobile Command became in effect the "Canadian Army" though the "Army" did not find favour until the 1980s when it became once again unofficially used to refer to Canada's land forces, both Regular and Reserve. The early organization of Mobile Command included tactical ground attack fixed and rotary wing aircraft, in addition to ground forces, and was akin to the integrated warfare approach of the
United States Marine Corps. In a 1975 reorganization of the Canadian Forces,
Air Command was created and all air assets were reassigned to that organization. Mobile Command was renamed Force Mobile Command and became an exclusive ground force. In 1997, Force Mobile Command was officially redesignated Land Force Command of the Canadian Forces.
*
CFB Edmonton, Alberta (
1 CMBG, CTC Wainwright)
*
CFB Suffield, Alberta *
CFB-TC Shilo, Manitoba*
LFWA TC Wainwright, Alberta*
CFB Kingston, Ontario*
CFB Petawawa, Ontario (2 CMBG)
*LFCA TC Meaford, Ontario
*CFB Montreal, Quebec
*CFB Farnham, Quebec
*
CFB Valcartier, Quebec (5 CMBG)
*
CFB Gagetown, New Brunswick (CTC)
*LFAATC Det Aldershot, Kentville Nova Scotia
*
CFB Trenton, Ontario Canadian Parachute Centre (CPC)
Canadian infantry and armoured regimental traditions are strongly rooted in the traditions and history of the
British Army. Many regiments were patterned after regiments of the British Army, and a system of official "alliances", or affiliations, was created to perpetuate a sense of shared history. Other regiments developed independently, resulting in a mixture of both colourful and historically familiar names. Other traditions such as Battle Honours and Colours have been adopted by Canadian regiments as well.
Armoured
Regular Force units include:
*
The Royal Canadian Dragoons*
Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians)*
12e Régiment blindé du CanadaArtillery
Canada's regular field artillery has traditionally been called the Royal Canadian Horse Artillery. Canada currently has four Regular Force regiments:
*
1st Regiment, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery *2nd Regiment, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery
*5
e Régiment d'artillerie légère du Canada
*4th Air Defence Regiment, Royal Canadian Artillery
Combat Engineers
*1 Combat Engineer Regiment
*2 Combat Engineer Regiment
*4 Engineer Support Regiment
*5 Combat Engineer Regiment
Infantry
*1st, 2nd, and 3rd Battalions,
The Royal Canadian Regiment*1st, 2nd, and 3rd Battalions,
Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry*1
er, 2
e, et 3
e Bataillons,
Royal 22e RĂ©gimentBetween
1953 and
1971, the regular Canadian infantry consisted of seven regiments, each of two battalions (except the Royal 22
e RĂ©giment, which had three, and the Canadian Airborne Regiment, which was divided into three "commandos"). The three present regular infantry regiments were augmented by two battalions each of the
Canadian Guards, the
Queen's Own Rifles of Canada and the
Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada. After 1971, the regular force battalions of the QOR and the Black Watch were dissolved (their Militia battalions remained in Toronto and Montreal, respectively) with their personnel distributed between the RCR and PPCLI, while the Canadian Guards were disbanded. The Canadian Airborne Regiment was disbanded in 1995.
Special forces
*
Canadian Special Operations Regiment*
Joint Task Force 2See Article
Structure of the Canadian Army.
Vehicles
Weapons
*
C9 machine-gun*
C7A1 rifle/C8A1 carbine/C-7A2 rifle*
C6 machine-gun*
Browning .50 calibre heavy machine-gun*
Browning-HP 9 mm pistol* Long Range Sniper Weapon (LRSW)
*
C3A1 sniper rifle* C13 fragmentation grenade
*
M-203 grenade launcher*
TOW anti-tank missile*
Carl Gustav*
M72 anti-tank weapon*
81 mm mortar* 60 mm mortar
*
ERYX short-range anti-armour weapon (heavy)
*
Javelin short-range air defence missile*
LG1 Mark II 105 mm towed howitzer*
M777 lightweight 155mm howitzer*
Skyguard / 35 mm twin-gun low-level air defence
* C1 close support howitzer
* C3 close support howitzer
* P225, 226 (naval boarding parties, pilots and JTF operators)
Comparison of ranking structure available at
Ranks and insignia of NATO. Not shown are the various appointment badges for specialist positions such as master gunner, drum major, etc. Many ranks are associated with specific appointments; for example a
regimental sergeant major is usually a chief warrant officer. The title of master corporal also, technically, refers to an appointment and not a rank.
>
* 1 Honorary/War time rank. |
The Canadian Army has participated in the following campaigns as a combatant:
*
Second Boer War*
First World War**France and Flanders 1915-1918
**Siberian Expedition
*
Second World War**
Battle of Hong Kong**
Dieppe Raid**
Sicily and
Italy**
Northwest Europe***
Juno Beach***
Battle of Normandy***
Battle of the Scheldt***
Rhineland*
Korean War*
Gulf War*
U.S. Invasion of Afghanistan**
Operation Apollo**
Operation Mountain Thrust*
Land Force Command (Defence page)*
army.ca -
Army.ca a web forum and interactive wiki dealing with both current and historical issues related to the
Canadian Army.
*
Canadiansoldiers.com*Canadian Military Journal: http://www.journal.forces.gc.ca
*Canadian Army Journal: http://www.army.forces.gc.ca/caj/
*
History of the Canadian Army*
Canadian Forces*
Regimental nicknames of the Canadian Forces*
army.ca - unofficial website to which forum has passed
