The Canadian tradition of appointing Honorary Officers to units originated with the British military but has only been in practice in Canada for a little over a century.
The first Honorary Colonel appointment in Canada was that of former Queen’s Own Rifleman Lieutenant-Colonel the Honorable J.M. Gibson, a Provincial Secretary in the Ontario Government. He was appointed as Honorary Lieutenant Colonel to the 13th Battalion of Infantry in 1895.
There are different types of Honorary appointments in the Canadian Army: Colonel-in-Chief, Colonel of the Regiment, Honorary Colonel and Honorary Lieutenant-Colonel. In the Reserve Army, units usually have two Honorary positions: Honorary Colonel and Honorary Lieutenant-Colonel.
Early in the 20th century in Canada Sir Robert Borden described the practice of appointing Honouraries as “of greatest advantage to the Militia to be able to enlist the interest and sympathy of gentleman of position and wealth by connecting them to Regiments.”
That sentiment remains true today. The Honorary is seen to be the guardian of Regimental traditions and history, promoting the regiment’s identity and ethos and being an advisor to the Commanding Officer on virtually all issues excluding operations.
Units select individuals, often former serving members, who they believe will best promote the interests of the unit and request the approval for the Honorary appointment through the chain of command.
Colonels in Chief
In the British and other Commonwealth armies, the Colonel-in-Chief of a regiment is its patron and is generally a member of the British Royal Family. While they do not have operational roles, they are however kept informed of all important activities of the regiment, and pay occasional visits to its operational units.
Many Canadian Regiments are honoured by having members of British Royalty as their Colonel-in Chief, and The Queen’s Own is no exception:
- Until 1959, almost 100 years after its founding, The Queen’s Own had only one Colonel-in-Chief, Her Majesty Queen Mary served from 1928 until her death in 1953. A popular and highly intelligent individual, Queen Mary was known for setting the tone of the Royal Family at a remarkably high level.
- In 1959 Her Royal Highness, Princess Alexandra of Kent , graciously consented to assume the role of the Regiment’s second Colonel-in-Chief and continues to be a valuable asset to The Queen’s Own Rifles of Canada. Princess Alexandra’s father, Prince George, the Duke of Kent was killed in 1942, whilst on active service with the Royal Air Force. After serving as Colonel in Chief for over fifty years, she felt it was time to step down at the 150th Anniversary celebrations.
- As of January 1, 2011, our new Colonel-in-Chief, Her Majesty Camilla, Queen Consort (then Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cornwall) was already familiar with rifle green in that she was the Royal Colonel of the 4th Battalion Rifles in Great Britain. Additionally, her father, Major Bruce Middleton Hope Shand, MC and Bar was a decorated Second World War soldier who was twice awarded the Military Cross, first for his bravery in action at Dunkirk and later in North Africa
Colonels of the Regiment
Effective August 19, 1958 an amendment to Queen’s Regulations and Orders for the Canadian Army stated that in the case of a regiment having a regular Army component, a Colonel of the Regiment could be appointed. As Lieutenant Colonel Johnston was in the midst of his term as Honorary Colonel, he was appointed the following month as the first Colonel of the Regiment.
- 25 Sep 1958 to 3 Feb 1960
Lieutenant Colonel Baptist Leonard Johnston OBE, VD
(joined the QOR as a Rifleman in 1907) - 10 Mar 1960 to 7 May 1970
Colonel J. G. K Strathy, OBE, ED
Honorary Colonels
- 17 Aug 1900 to 18 Nov 1914 –
Field Marshal Earl Roberts of Kandahar, Pretoria and Waterford VC, KG, KP, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCIE - 8 Apr 1915 to 8 May 1929
General Sir William Dillon Otter KCB, CVO, VD - 20 Jun 1929 to 8 Mar 1939
Major General Sir Henry Mill Pellatt, CVO, VD - 9 Mar 1939 to 17 Dec 1949
Major General Robert Rennie CB, CMG, DSO, MVO, VD - 1 Feb 1951 to 31 Jan 1956
Colonel Reginald Pellatt VD - 1 Feb 1956 to 24 Sep 1958
Lieutenant Colonel Baptist Johnston OBE, VD
While there were Colonels of the Regiment from 1958 to 1970, there were no Honorary Colonels.
- 8 May 1970 to Dec 1975
Colonel C. O. Dalton DSO, KStJ, ED - 11 Dec 1975 to 3 Oct 1984
Colonel H. E. Dalton DSO, CD - 3 Oct 1984 to Nov 1989
Brigadier General J. N. Gordon DSO, CD - Nov 1989 to Apr 1991
Colonel J. F. Lake QC, CD - 28 Apr 28 1991 to Apr 1994
Colonel H. F. C. Elliot CD - 01 Apr 1994 to 2001
Major General H. C. Pitts, MC, CD - 2001 to 2005
Brigadier General D. A. Pryer, CD - 2005 to 29 Nov 2012
Colonel P. F. Hughes CD - 29 Nov 2012 to 26 Nov 2016
Captain Lawrence N. Stevenson - 26 Oct 2016 to Oct 2020 (Unofficially until Jun 2022)
Major General Walter Holmes, MBE, MSM, CD - Jun 2022 to Present
Major-General David Fraser, CMM, MSC, MSM, CD
Honorary Lieutenant Colonels
1st Battalion
- 1924 to 20 Jun 1929
Major General Sir Henry Mill Pellatt, CVO, VD - 20 Jun 1929 to 1931 – Vacant
- 1931 to 15 Dec 1936
Major General Robert Rennie CB, CMG, DSO, MVO, VD
2nd Battalion
- 1924 to 4 Dec 1931
Major General Robert Rennie CB, CMG, DSO, MVO, VD - 5 Dec 1935 to 15 Dec 1936
Colonel Arthur J. E. Kirkpatrick VD
Single Battalion
- 15 Dec 1936 to 8 Mar 1939 –
Major General Robert Rennie CB, CMG, DSO, MVO, VD - 15 Dec 1936 to 9 Mar 1939 (Supernumary Lieutenant Colonel)
Colonel Arthur J. E. Kirkpatrick VD - 9 Mar 1939 to 16 Dec 1946
Colonel Arthur J. E. Kirkpatrick VD - 16 May 1947 to 1 Apr 1950
Brigadier John G. Spragge DSO, OBE, ED - 1 Feb 1951 to 31 Jan 1956
Lieutenant Colonel Baptist L. Johnston OBE, VD - 4 Oct 1956 to 6 Oct 1961
Lieutenant Colonel Ian M. Macdonell MBE, VD - 2 Mar 1962 to 12 May 1966
Colonel H. C. MacKendrick OBE, ED, CD - 10 Aug 1966 to 1968
Lieutenant Colonel William T. Barnard ED, CD - 14 Dec 1968 to 7 May 1970
Lieutenant Colonel C.O. Dalton DSO, KStJ, ED - 7 May 1970 to 10 Dec 1975
Lieutenant Colonel E.A. Dunlop OBE, GM - 10 Dec 1975 to 19 Oct 1980
The Honorable Lieutenant Colonel Barney Danson PC, CC - 19 Oct 1980 to 13 Mar 1988 (Become HCol Nov 1989?)
Lieutenant Colonel J. Lake - 14 Mar 1988 to 28 Apr 1991
Colonel H. C. F. Elliot CD - 29 Apr 1991 to 21 Apr 1994
Brigadier General D.A. Pryer, CD - 22 Apr 1994 to 18 Feb 2000
Major General H. C. Pitts MC, CD - 19 Feb 2000 to 25 Apr 2005
Lieutenant Colonel P. F. Hughes, CD - 26 Apr 2005 to 25 Apr 2011
Lieutenant Colonel R. Cowling CD - 26 Apr 2011 to 3 Oct 2015
Honorary Lieutenant Colonel Brendan T. Caldwell - 03 Oct 2015 to 11 Sep 2019
Honorary Lieutenant Colonel Lionel J. Goffart, QC, OStJ - 11 Sep 2019 to Feb 2022
Honorary Lieutenant Colonel Vicky Sunohara - Sep 2022 to Present
Honorary Lieutenant Colonel Manjit Minhas
My grandson has recently joined the Canadian navy. We are extremely proud of him.
We are also from Calgary.
Our family has a very strong history with the Canadian Armed Forces.
It is important to us to maintain this history.
We are very happy to see such a great ambassador.
She is a self made Canadian success story.
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