The Legion of Frontiersmen is a civilian organisation formed in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

in 1905 by Roger Pocock, a former constable with the

North-West Mounted Police The North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) was a Canadian para-military police force, established in 1873, to maintain order in the new Canadian North-West Territories (NWT) following the 1870 transfer of Rupert’s Land and North-Western Territo ...

and

Boer 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 Sou ...

veteran. Prompted by fears of an impending invasion of Britain and the

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

, the organisation was founded to be a field intelligence corps that would watch over and protect the boundaries of the Empire. Headquartered in London, the Legion of Frontiersmen formed branches throughout the Empire to prepare enlistees for war and to foster vigilance in peacetime. Despite efforts, the Legion never achieved significant official recognition; in part because many Commonwealth nations' laws prohibit militia groups. Casualties in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

devastated the Legion of Frontiersmen, and except for a brief resurgence in the interwar period, a series of schisms and sectarianism prevented attempts to reinvigorate the movement. In the late 1930s, the Legion of Frontiersmen in Canada was formally affiliated with the

Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; french: Gendarmerie royale du Canada; french: GRC, label=none), commonly known in English as the Mounties (and colloquially in French as ) is the federal and national police service of Canada. As poli ...

, but after a schism split within the Canadian Frontiersmen, the RCMP severed formal ties. Various Legion of Frontiersmen groups still exist throughout the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

, but as a whole, it has been unable to define its niche post

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

; especially because the organisation generally refuses to provide information about its activities to prospective applicants.

First World War

Daniel Patrick Driscoll Vanity Fair 15 February 1911

During the First World War, the Legion of Frontiersmen helped raise and fill the ranks of the

Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI, generally referred to as the Patricia's) is one of the three Regular Force infantry regiments of the Canadian Army of the Canadian Armed Forces. Formed in 1914, it is named for Princess Patrici ...

, the

19th Alberta Dragoons The 19th Alberta Dragoons was a cavalry regiment and later an armoured regiment of the Canadian Militia and later the Canadian Army. It was placed on the Supplementary Order of Battle in 1965. In 2006, it was taken off the Supplementary Order of ...

, the 49th Battalion - Canadian Expeditionary Force (today's

Loyal Edmonton Regiment The Loyal Edmonton Regiment (4th Battalion, Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry), or L EDMN R, is a Primary Reserve infantry unit of the Canadian Armed Forces based in Edmonton, Alberta. The Loyal Edmonton Regiment is part of 3rd Canadi ...

), the 210th Battalion (Frontiersmen), - Canadian Expeditionary Force, the

25th (Frontiersmen) Battalion, Royal Fusiliers The 25th (Frontiersmen) Service Battalion, Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) was a British Army unit that served during World War I. It was raised by the Legion of Frontiersmen. The battalion served in the African Theatre of the war fr ...

, and the

Newfoundland Regiment The Royal Newfoundland Regiment (R NFLD R) is a Primary Reserve infantry regiment of the Canadian Army. It is part of the 5th Canadian Division's 37 Canadian Brigade Group. Predecessor units trace their origins to 1795, and since 1949 Royal New ...

. Despite the nature of the organisation, many of its members had no military experience and were probably no better (or worse) than other recruits to other wartime raised units.

Uniforms

The earliest official description of an authorized uniform for a Canadian unit is noted in ''The Frontiersman'', (December 1912, page 223) describing Vernon and Okanagan Command’s uniform as follows: “Shirt Tunic – To be of substantial material, colour navy blue; leather buttons; nickel shoulder chains. Breeches or (Trousers) – Any shade of khaki. Footwear – Brown leather; any combination that affords cover as high as the calves. Headdress – Straight brim Stetson, any shade of brown, with leather band and regimental crest and monogram. Accessories – Brown leather fringed gauntlets; silk blue and white “bird’s-eye” neckerchief; regulation LF holster.”

Decorations

Branches of the legion, in different parts of the Commonwealth award medals within their units and occasionally to external branches, commands, or units. The Australian Division awards a decoration called the "Australian Medal of Merit" and within the organisation has used the

post nominal letters Post-nominal letters, also called post-nominal initials, post-nominal titles, designatory letters or simply post-nominals, are letters placed after a person's name to indicate that the individual holds a position, academic degree, accreditation, ...

AMM. On occasion, such medal names and use of post nominal letters has caused controversy.Australian and New Zealand Military Imposters

Members

Patrick William Forbes Patrick William Forbes (1861–1918) was a leader of the paramilitary British South Africa Police, who commanded a force that invaded Matabeland in the First Matabele War. Life Born in 1861 at Whitechurch, England, he was educated at Rugby, Wa ...

William Le Queux William Tufnell Le Queux ( , ; 2 July 1864 – 13 October 1927) was an Anglo-French journalist and writer. He was also a diplomat (honorary consul for San Marino), a traveller (in Europe, the Balkans and North Africa), a flying buff who officiat ...

Basil Lubbock Alfred Basil Lubbock MC (9 September 1876 – 3 September 1944 at Monks Orchard, Seaford) was a British historian, sailor and soldier. He was a prolific writer on the last generation of commercial sailing vessels in the Age of Sail. He was an e ...

* Pocock, (Henry) Roger Ashwell * Ethel Pritchard * Charles G. D. Roberts * John Shiwak * Francis Morphet Twisleton *

Arthur Owen Vaughan Lt. Colonel Arthur Owen Vaughan, (6 September 1863 – 15 October 1919), also known by his bardic name Owen Rhoscomyl, was an English-born writer, soldier and Welsh nationalist. Born as Robert Scowfield Mills in England, Owen Rhoscomyl was influ ...

John Bruce John Bruce may refer to: * Sir John Bruce, 2nd Baronet (before 1671–1711), Commissioner to the Parliament of Scotland; MP * John Bruce (historiographer) (1745–1826), Scottish politician, East India Company historiographer and Secretary to the ...

Sources

* Christopher M. Andrew, ''Secret Service: The Making of the British Intelligence Community''. London: Trafalgar Square, 1985. *Robert H. MacDonald, ''Sons of the Empire: The Frontier and the Boy Scout Movement, 1890–1918''. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1993. *John Fisher. ''Gentleman Spies: intelligence agents in the British Empire and beyond.'' Stroud, UK: Sutton, 2002. *Geoffrey A. Pocock. ''One Hundred Years of the Legion of Frontiersmen.'' Chichester, UK: Phillimore, 2004.

References

External links

History of the Frontiersmen

Australian Division

NZ Command Pro Patria

Scottish Command 1st Highland Brigade LOF Vols (Yeomanry)

Countess Mountbatten's Own

3e Régiment de Lanciers

Canadian Corps of Frontiersmen

Far East Command
{{DEFAULTSORT:Legion Of Frontiersmen 1905 establishments in the United Kingdom Civil defence organisations based in the United Kingdom Civil–military relations Mutual organizations Political organisations based in the United Kingdom Paramilitary organisations based in the United Kingdom Patriotic societies