32 Canadian Brigade Group (32CBG) of the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army (french: Armée canadienne) is the command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also respo ...

is part of the

4th Canadian Division The 4th Canadian Division is a formation of the Canadian Army. The division was first created as a formation of the Canadian Corps during the First World War. During the Second World War the division was reactivated as the 4th Canadian Infant ...

. It is centred on the

Greater Toronto Area The Greater Toronto Area, commonly referred to as the GTA, includes the City of Toronto and the regional municipalities of Durham, Halton, Peel, and York. In total, the region contains 25 urban, suburban, and rural municipalities. The Greater ...

, as well as Niagara Region and

Brantford Brantford ( 2021 population: 104,688) is a city in Ontario, Canada, founded on the Grand River in Southwestern Ontario. It is surrounded by Brant County, but is politically separate with a municipal government of its own that is fully independ ...

. It is headquartered at LCol George Taylor Denison III Armoury in Toronto, Ontario.

Brigade Command

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

Daniel Stepaniuk, CD, is the Commander of 32 CBG whilst

Chief Warrant Officer Chief warrant officer is a military rank used by the United States Armed Forces, the Canadian Armed Forces, the Pakistan Air Force, the Israel Defense Forces, the South African National Defence Force, the Lebanese Armed Forces and, since 2012, th ...

David Turnbull, CD, is the Brigade

Sergeant-Major Sergeant major is a senior non-commissioned rank or appointment in many militaries around the world. History In 16th century Spain, the ("sergeant major") was a general officer. He commanded an army's infantry, and ranked about third in the ...

. Brigade Headquarters has a staff of approximately 40 full-time and 20 part-time members, both military ( Regular and

Reserve Reserve or reserves may refer to: Places * Reserve, Kansas, a US city * Reserve, Louisiana, a census-designated place in St. John the Baptist Parish * Reserve, Montana, a census-designated place in Sheridan County * Reserve, New Mexico, a US ...

) and civilian.

History

Second World War

32nd (Reserve) Brigade Group was created, within 2 Militia District, on 1 April 1942 when the reserve force in Canada was reorganized for the war. Like today, the formation consisted of part-time soldiers who paraded and trained on evenings and weekends. The brigade group was closed down on 30 January 1946 and the headquarters itself closed on 2 April 1946. During its existence, the brigade group was headquartered in Toronto and it held the following organization: *Canadian Infantry Corps **2nd (Reserve) Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Canada **2nd (Reserve) Battalion,

48th Highlanders of Canada , colors = , march = " 48th Highlanders Slow March"; Quick – "Highland Laddie" , mascot = , battles = Second Boer WarFirst World WarSecond World ...

**2nd (Reserve) Battalion, The Irish Regiment of Canada **2nd (Reserve) Battalion,

The Toronto Scottish Regiment The Toronto Scottish Regiment (Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother's Own) is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army. It is part of 4th Canadian Division's 32 Canadian Brigade Group. Lineage File:Tor Scots Colour.jpg, The regimen ...

(MG) *Canadian Armoured Corps ** 11th (Reserve) Armoured Regiment (Ontario Regiment) *Royal Canadian Artillery **32nd (Reserve) Field Regiment, RCA *Royal Canadian Engineers ** 2nd (Reserve) Field Company, RCE *Royal Canadian Army Service Corps **Brigade Group Company, 2nd (Reserve) Divisional, RCASC *Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps **No.2 (Reserve) Field Ambulance, RCAMC *Royal Canadian Corps of Signals **E Section, A (Reserve) Corps Signals, RCCS **J Section, 2nd (Reserve) Divisional Signals, RCCS *Royal Canadian Ordnance Corps / Royal Canadian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers **No.2 Group, No.1 (Reserve) Divisional Workshop, (RCOC) RCEME **No.5 (Reserve) Light Aid Detachment, (RCOC) RCEME **No.6 (Reserve) Light Aid Detachment, (RCOC) RCEME **No.7 (Reserve) Light Aid Detachment, (RCOC) RCEME **No.8 (Reserve) Light Aid Detachment, (RCOC) RCEME

1997 to Present

32 Canadian Brigade Group (CBG) was recreated on 1 April 1997, with its headquarters located in Toronto, replacing the Toronto District Headquarters. Resulting from a major restructuring of the army, it was established as one of ten reserve brigade groups organized across Canada. Although 32 CBG has a short history, this cannot be said of its units. Regiments like The

48th Highlanders of Canada , colors = , march = " 48th Highlanders Slow March"; Quick – "Highland Laddie" , mascot = , battles = Second Boer WarFirst World WarSecond World ...

The Governor General's Horse Guards The Governor General's Horse Guards is an armoured reconnaissance regiment in the Primary Reserve of the Canadian Army. The regiment is part of 4th Canadian Division's 32 Canadian Brigade Group and is based in Toronto, Ontario. It is the most sen ...

, The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada,

The Queen's York Rangers la, celer et audax, lit=swift and bold , colors = Green and amethyst blue , identification_symbol = , identification_symbol_label = , march = "Braganza" , notable_commanders ...

, The Royal Regiment of Canada,

The Lorne Scots The Lorne Scots (Peel, Dufferin and Halton Regiment) is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army. It is part of the 4th Canadian Division's 32 Canadian Brigade Group. Organization The sub-units of the Lorne Scots are situated in ...

, and

The Lincoln and Welland Regiment , colors = , identification_symbol_2 = , identification_symbol_2_label = Tartan , identification_symbol_4 = , identification_symbol_4_label = Abbreviation , march = "The Lincolnshi ...

were all founded before

Confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign groups or states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical iss ...

. Most units have served in almost all of the military campaigns involving Canadians: Fenian raids, Red River Expedition,

North-West Rebellion The North-West Rebellion (french: Rébellion du Nord-Ouest), also known as the North-West Resistance, was a Resistance movement, resistance by the Métis people (Canada), Métis people under Louis Riel and an associated uprising by First Natio ...

South African War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the South ...

, both World Wars and the

Korean War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Korean War , partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict , image = Korean War Montage 2.png , image_size = 300px , caption = Clockwise from top:{ ...

. Since the 1980s, they have been contributing to UN and NATO missions around the world. Many soldiers of 32 Canadian Brigade Group have served on operations around the world. Nearly 70 members of the brigade deployed to

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...

in August 2006 and more than 120 served in

Kandahar Kandahar (; Kandahār, , Qandahār) is a city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on the Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city after Kabul, with a population of about 614,118. It is the c ...

during the winter of 2008–2009. The brigade has also played a big role in disaster relief at home, helping Canadians during the

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

floods and the January 1998 ice storm. It remains prepared to back up the emergency services of the

and

Central Ontario Central Ontario is a secondary region of Southern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario that lies between Georgian Bay and the eastern end of Lake Ontario. The population of the region was 1,123,307 in 2016; however, this number does not in ...

whenever needed.

Role

The role of 32 CBG is to produce well-trained Reserve soldiers to enhance Canada's combat capability. Like all Reserve brigades and units, it trains part-time soldiers to serve as the basis of national mobilization, to respond to emergencies in Canada and to augment the Regular Force overseas, and to be the army's link to the community. 32 CBG comprises part-time soldiers plus a small cadre from the Regular Force who help plan and execute the training. Soldiers of the Army Reserve ― traditionally, the Militia ― train an average of one night a week and one weekend a month. Many Reservists train full-time during the summer, because many of the younger soldiers are students.

Brigade composition

Overview

32 CBG is an infantry-heavy brigade with 2100 soldiers in 10 units based in Toronto, Aurora, Brantford, Scarborough, St. Catharines, Brampton, Oakville, Georgetown and Mississauga. It has two reconnaissance regiments, two field artillery regiments, a field engineer regiment and six infantry battalions. The brigade recently added two new, temporary armouries. The Queen's Own Rifles now have an infantry company in Scarborough, while the Toronto Scottish have established a company in Mississauga.

Regiments

Armouries

In the Canadian Forces, an

armoury An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostl ...

is a place where a reserve unit trains, meets, and parades.

References

External links

Official Brigade Website
{{Canadian Forces Land Force Command Brigades of the Canadian Army Military units and formations of Canada in World War II