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CANADA’S BLACK WATCHAn Illustrated History of theRegular Force Battalions, 1951-1970by SIMON FALCONERGOOSE LANE EDITIONS521-3 Black Watch pp 1-168 TO PRESS.indd 37/16/2008 6:32:03 PM

Copyright 2008 by Simon Falconer.All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means,electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any retrieval system, without the priorwritten permission of the publisher or a licence from the Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency(Access Copyright). To contact Access Copyright, visit www.accesscopyright.ca or call 1-800-893-5777.Edited by Barry Norris.Printed in Canada.10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in PublicationFalconer, SimonCanada’s Black Watch: an illustrated history of theRegular Force battalions, 1951-1970 / Simon Falconer.Includes index.ISBN 978-0-86492-521-3 (hard cover)ISBN 13: 978-0-86492-526-8 (slip case)1. Canada. Canadian Army. Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada — History.2. Canada. Canadian Army. Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada — Pictorial works.I. Title.UA602.R6.F35 2008356’.10971C2008-903952-1Goose Lane Editions acknowledges the financial support of the Canada Councilfor the Arts, the Government of Canada through the Book PublishingIndustry Development Program (BPIDP), and the New Brunswick Departmentof Wellness, Culture and Sport for its publishing activities.Goose Lane EditionsSuite 330, 500 Beaverbrook CourtFredericton, New BrunswickCANADA E3B 5X4www.gooselane.com521-3 Black Watch pp 1-168 TO PRESS.indd 47/16/2008 6:32:03 PM

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Chapter 1THE GENESIS: Germany, 1951-19531. The thistle shoulder flash of 1CHB.2. Lieutenant-Colonel Rutherford, OBE,conducts a traditional “drumhead”service.3. Corporal Harry Wright and auniversal carrier (Bren gun), bothbearing the thistle emblem of1CHB.From a military perspective, the idea wasunusual and was probably without precedent anywhere in the Commonwealth: ahighland battalion drawing on five reserveunits.Formed in May 1951, it was simply calledthe First Canadian Highland Battalion(1CHB) and it was an amalgam. “A” Company would come from the Black Watchin Montreal, “B” Company from the 48thHighlanders in Toronto, “C” Company fromthe Seaforth Highlanders in Vancouver, “D”Company from the Canadian Scottish inVictoria, and Support Company from theNorth Nova Scotia Highlanders. Headquarters Company and Battalion Headquartershad no specific regimental affiliation — theywere drawn from the five regiments thatmade up the rifle companies, or they camefrom other Canadian highland regiments.The commanding officer, LieutenantColonel R.L. (“Dickie”) Rutherford, was aQueen’s Own Cameron Highlander. Thesecond-in-command, Major Mac Reid, was21from the Calgary Highlanders. WO1 BobWatson, the RSM, was also a Cameron andhe was later to be replaced by the legendaryRon Finnie. The pipes and drums also worethe Cameron kilt.Virtually all of the captains and majorshad operational experience but the majority of the subalterns, many of whom laterbecame senior officers in the Black Watch,had come from the reserve forces or directly from Officer Candidate School (OCS)in Camp Borden. Like many others in thebattalion, they had joined the Army in anticipation of serving in the Korean War butfound themselves in 1CHB instead.Many of the soldiers joining the battalion had been in the Second World War andthere were few surprises for them: weaponswere the same as those they had left behindin 1945, changes in uniforms were minor,and the battalion was structured and run inthe same fashion as any Second World Warbattalion. But not all the soldiers were veterans; some, including corporals and a few

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1sergeants, were barely out of their teens.One sergeant who was later to become aregimental sergeant major was nineteenyears old. Many of those younger menwere destined to become distinguishedNCOs and warrant officers and, in theprocess, leave an indelible mark onthe Black Watch that followed the FirstCanadian Highland Battalion.1CHB mustered and trained in Valcartierin the summer of 1951 along with the remainder of 27 Brigade, destined for Germanyas part of the NATO forces lining up againstthe Soviet Bloc. The battalion grew instrength to 38 officers and 932 other ranksand, in December 1951, 1CHB departed forGermany to be part of 1 British Corps in theBritish Army of the Rhine.Everyone signed on for three years, although a great many continued to serve longafter their term with the Highland Battalionwas finished, and more than a few were stillmembers of the Black Watch in 1970 whenthe regular battalions were disbanded. Sincewives were not permitted to accompany theirFacing page1. Medals of Captain Don Fisher.2. Regimental Sergeant Major Finnie.3. Warrant officers and sergeants from the1 Canadian Highland Battalion, 1952.2husbands to Germany, married men couldrequest a discharge after one year’s overseasservice, and many did. Single men couldleave after two years, and some did. Others,a little uncertain about what was in store,hastened the process of getting married before they left Canada, assuming an optionwould be useful if things did not go quiteas planned.Germany was something of a shock,even for the veterans who had served theresix years earlier, but especially for the newsoldiers. Hannover, where the battalionwas to be located, still bore the scars ofwar — streets were filled with rubble andpeople were living in cellars and bombed-out231. A “housewife”: standard issue for all recruits.2. Members of the Black Watch training with theBrowning automatic rifle in Valcartier, 1951.3. The standard-issue steel pocket mirror.3

123b uildings. There was another complication:since the battalion was virtually identicalto a British unit, there was a degree of resentment on the part of the Germans, whoinitially saw the Canadians as occupiers notunlike the British Army.The barracks, a former German officer training facility, was a joy. RenamedChatham Barracks, it was far better thananything in Canada at the time: threestoried, centrally heated barrack blocks, agymnasium, a swimming pool, a theatre,tennis courts, soccer fields, and a massiveparade square. A few years later, whenCamp Gagetown was opened, soldiers whoserved in 1CHB marvelled at how much thestate-of-the-art Canadian facilities remindedthem of the Chatham Barracks that hadbeen built by the Germans in the 1930s.It was serious soldiering: two hours’ notice24to move, operating for forty-eight hourswithout support, endless route marches,and intensive field training. New trainingareas — Putlos, Munsterlager, Sennelager,Soltau — entered the soldiers’ vocabulary,names that would become familiar to allranks of both battalions of the Black Watchwho served in Germany in the 1960s. TheGerman training areas had been in use bythe Wehrmacht for decades (in some casessince early in the century) and had beenmuch improved during the 1930s; as a result,they were easily the best anywhere in theworld. Seeing the facilities for the first time,veterans of the Second World War servingin 1CHB were astounded at their high quality, and some were heard to comment thattheir standards and layout, especially forfield firing, accounted in some measure forthe German army’s high level of trainingduring the war. Like the German barracks,the training areas served as a model for thefuture Camp Gagetown.But it was not all training. Half the battalion at a time was allowed evening passes,and Hannover offered many diversions eventhough those on pass had to wear their uniform. The attraction of German beer andGerman friendship — the locals had nowbegun to differentiate the Canadians fromthe British — led to casual liaisons and, in

41. Relaxing at Chatham Barracks,1953.2. Officers of 1CHB, wearinggreatcoats and 37-patternweb equipment, en route toGermany.3. 1CHB obstacle course atSennelager, 1953.4. Medals and decorations awardedto Lieutenant-Colonel H.J.(Harry) Harkes MC, CD.5. 1CHB officers in Germany,1953.525

Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada — History. 2. Canada. Canadian Army. Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada — Pictorial works. I. Title. UA602.R6.F35 2008 356’.10971 C2008-903952-1 Goose Lane Editions acknowledges the financial support of the Canada Council for the Arts, the Government of Canada through the Book .

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