A royal name change for Canada's navy and air force will be announced Tuesday, and the army will also be renamed, in a move that taps Canada's military heritage.By: Shelldrake
The Maritime Command and Air Command will again be known as the Royal Canadian Navy and Royal Canadian Air Force, while the Land Force Command will be renamed the Canadian Army.
The name changes will be officially announced Tuesday by Defence Minister Peter MacKay, and events marking the transition are scheduled to take place simultaneously across the country.
According to a Canadian Forces document obtained by CBC News on Monday, the move restores the historic names of the three branches of the Forces, and the initiative is being billed as "an important and recognizable part of Canada's military heritage."
"These were the services that fought and emerged victorious from the Second World War and Korea and contributed to the defence of Europe and North America from the early days of the Cold War. These were also the services that paved the way in terms of international peacekeeping missions," says the note, which appears to have been sent to Canadian Forces members.
The branches were renamed in 1968 when they were unified under one central command named the Canadian Armed Forces. That unified command is expected to remain in place when the old names are restored.
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16 August 2011
Royal Again After Over 40 Years!
Once again, Canada will have a Royal Canadian Navy and Royal Canadian Air Force. Sounds a lot better than Maritime Command and Air Command, eh?
I'm sure there's a reason, but why not the "Royal Canadian Army"?
ReplyDeleteFor the same reason that there is a (British) Royal Navy, and Royal Air Force, but not a Royal Army. These portions of the military are under the control of the Sovereign, but the Army is traditionally regarded as a collection of regiments. Of course, many regiments and corps have the title "Royal", but not the Army as a whole.
ReplyDeleteYes, this renaming does respect tradition, and it doesn't cost much, but it is also a blatant political move by the governing party in response to every veteran who got sore when the Canadian military was unified 43 years ago, and has never forgotten it or moved on. Public policy in this country is beginning to reflect the views of that curmudgeonly old ex-Navy or Air Force guy (usually it's a squid or zoomie) sitting in the corner of practically every Tim Horton's in the country, holding forth about how the country began to fall apart in 1968.
I thought they were just part of the furniture at Tim Horton's. There's one in the corner of the one across the highway from Batelle in Columbus on King St.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I guess when they open a new Timmy's, if there isn't such a local character they get issued one from Corporate HQ in Hamilton.
ReplyDelete