First World War 16th Canadian Scottish postcard
Congratulations to The Canadian Scottish Regiment (Princess Mary’s) who celebrate 100 years this weekend!
The 16th Battalion C.E.F was formed in August 1914 from four Canadian militia regiments, the: 50th Gordon Highlanders (Victoria), 72nd Seaforth Highlanders (Vancouver), 79th Cameron Highlanders (Winnipeg) and the 91st Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (Hamilton). In December 1914 the 16th applied for and received approval to use the title “The Canadian Scottish“.
The Canadian Scottish entered the trenches near Fleurbaix in March 1915 before moving to the Ypres salient in early April. It was here, during the Second Battle of Ypres and the attack on Kitchener’s Wood that “Ypres and the guns were saved“. The battalion went on to fight in every major battle of the First World War, earning 4 Victoria Crosses and suffering 5491 casualties.
On March 15, 1920 the Canadian Scottish were reorganized and headquartered in Victoria, BC. The 50th Gordon Highlanders and the 88th Fusiliers, the latter of whom were formed in September 1912 and served in the 7th Battalion CEF during WW1, were officially amalgamated. On April 24, 1930 Her Royal Highness Princess Mary became Colonel-in-Chief.
The Canadian Scottish saw action throughout the Second World War and its members have served in Korea, Yugoslavia, the Middle East and Afghanistan.
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Doing Our Bit 
My Father wasa D-Day veteran, landing with C Company in the first wave. I was a member of both the cadet corp and the Regiment before I joined the Regukar Army (RCEME). I now livein rural Ontario, about 45 kms from RMC. In the RMC Library there is a display of WW1 plaques of capbadges, including the 16th Bn. On that plaque it says “Winnipeg” is the place where the regiment was declared. I know that one of the contributing units came from there, but why not declare Victoria?
Agreed, labelling it as “Winnipeg” makes no sense. Either list all four cities or list only Victoria as it is home to the regiment that perpetuated the 16th Battalion. Thanks very much for bringing this to our attention.