The 103rd Regiment (Calgary Rifles) was an

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and m ...

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...

of the Canadian Non-Permanent Active Militia, authorized at

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, maki ...

, Alberta, Canada, by General Order on 1 April 1910.

History

The 103rd Regiment was raised in Calgary as a militia unit. The first commanding officer was Lieutenant-Colonel W.C.G. Armstrong. The regiment was approved to train six companies of 50 men each, and later expanded to eight companies. The unit initially paraded at the former Calgary General Hospital building (today known as the Rundle Ruins) before being ordered to vacate in September 1910. The unit then moved into the former drill hall of the Canadian Mounted Rifles on Centre Street and 12th Avenue SE. In 1911 a new armoury was found, in a former German-Canadian club a block south of their former home at the General Hospital. After Mewata Armouries was completed during the First World War, the regiment moved its offices to that location.

War Service

At the outbreak of

World War I 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, ...

the regiment was not mobilized but served as a recruiting depot to raise battalions for the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF), the first being the 10th Battalion, CEF. The regiment also provided soldiers to man the internment camp at Castle Mountain. These soldiers were also employed full time as part of the Active Militia. A number of reinforcement battalions were commanded by former 103rd Regiment officers, including Lieutenant-Colonel William Charles Gordon Armstrong (

56th Battalion (Calgary), CEF The 56th Battalion (Calgary), CEF, was an infantry battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force during the First World War. The 56th Battalion was authorized on 7 November 1914 and embarked for Britain on 20 March 1916. It provided reinforcements ...

) and Lieutenant-Colonel George Morfitt (

137th (Calgary) Battalion, CEF The 137th Battalion, CEF, was a unit in the Canadian Expeditionary Force during the First World War. Based in Calgary, Alberta, the unit began recruiting in late 1915 in that city. After sailing to England in August 1916, the battalion was abs ...

Reorganization

The 103rd Regiment was reorganized into two regiments in 1920 (the Calgary Regiment and The Alberta Regiment), each of which was reorganized into two regiments a few years later. None of the new units adopted the rifle regiment traditions of the 103rd.

Perpetuations

One of the resulting four regiments (the North Alberta Regiment) was disbanded in the 1936 reorganization of the Militia, but three present-day regiments claim descent from the 103rd: the South Alberta Light Horse, the King's Own Calgary Regiment (RCAC) and the Calgary Highlanders. These regiments perpetuate the 10th, 31st, 50th, 56th, 82nd, 89th and 137th Battalions of the Canadian Expeditionary Force all of whom were either raised in, or contained soldiers from, Calgary. Descendants of the 103rd Regiment "Calgary Rifles"

References

* Knight, Darrell. ''The Canadian Regimental Badge Book''. (Calgary: private publication, 2008) {{Reflist Rifle regiments of Canada Military units and formations established in 1910 Military units and formations disestablished in 1920 Military units and formations of Alberta Calgary Highlanders King's Own Calgary Regiment South Alberta Light Horse