| The Queen's York Rangers (1st American Regiment) R.C.A.C. | |
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| Active |
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| Country | Canada |
| Branch | Primary Reserve |
| Type | Reconnaissance |
| Role | Armoured Reconnaissance |
| Size | One Regiment, including Band, Cadets |
| Part of | Royal Canadian Armoured Corps |
| Garrison/HQ | Fort York Armoury, Toronto, Ontario |
| Motto | Latin: Pristinae Virtutis Memor (Remembering their glories in former days) Celer et Audax (Latin: Swift And Bold) |
| Colors | Green and Amethyst Blue |
| March | March - Braganza |
| Anniversaries | Battle of Brandywine (11 Sep. 1777) |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander |
LCol Andrew J. Zdunich, SWASM, GCS, SSM, CPSM, UNPROFOR, CD |
| Colonel-in-Chief | HRH The Duke of York |
The Queen's York Rangers (1st American Regiment) R.C.A.C. is a Canadian Forces Primary Reserve regiment based in Toronto and Aurora. The regiment is part of Land Force Central Area's 32 Canadian Brigade Group. The regiment consists of two reconnaissance squadrons, A Sqn in Aurora and B Sqn in Toronto, and a Headquarters Service Support Squadron in Toronto. The Regimental family also includes The Queen's York Rangers Band along with two Royal Canadian Army Cadets corps. The unit motto is Pristinae Virtutis Memor - Rembering their glories in former days. Their second unofficial motto is Celer et Audax - swift and bold. Among its own members and those of other regiments, the unit is referred to as the Rangers. The name is abbreviated as QY RANG.
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The Queen's York Rangers directly trace the Regiment's roots back to Robert Rogers' "Rogers' Rangers" during the Seven Years' War. They were re-raised by Rogers in 1776 as "Queen's Rangers" to battle the rebellious Patriots in the American colonies during the American Revolution. Rogers was replaced as the unit's commander by John Graves Simcoe in 1777 with the Rangers consisting of eleven companies: eight line companies, and a grenadier, light, and Highland company as well as one squadron of hussars and three squadrons of light dragoons and a cannon. The Rangers retained their green uniform when other Loyalist forces changed to the red coats of British regulars. They served in various battles until the capitulation at Yorktown.[1]
A point of pride for the regiment is that when the British finally surrendered at Yorktown in 1781, the "colours" (banner) of the Queen's Rangers were smuggled away, never to fall into enemy hands. Today those same colours are on display in Toronto in the Officers' mess of The Queen's York Rangers in Fort York Armoury.
Following the British defeat in the American War of Independence Rogers' Rangers disbanded in 1783 with the bulk of the regiment settling as Loyalist refugees in New Brunswick. Simcoe, who had commanded the regiment through much of the Revolutionary War, later reformed the Rangers in 1791 and brought them to Upper Canada where they founded York (modern day Toronto).
In establishing what is now Toronto, the Rangers usually spent two days on regimental duties, two days on construction work and two days on their own enterprises until their disbandment in 1802. They laid out much of the city (many streets are named for Ranger officers and their family members), and built Yonge St and Dundas Street. The regiment would be revived for the War of 1812.
In 1805, disbanded African members of the York Rangers became part of the Royal African Corps which later evolved into the 3rd West India Regiment [1].
In 1837 the Queen's Rangers were reformed under Lt Colonel Samuel Peters Jarvis (the son of William Jarvis who served under Simcoe) to fight in the Rebellions of 1837.
The modern regiment would date to 1866 during the Fenian Raids and has maintained a continuous history since. Rangers contributed to several battalions of the CEF during the First World War (particularly the 20th Battalion), and some 1,500 Rangers served in the Second World War after re-badging to other units as the Rangers were not mobilized for overseas service. Today they are part of the Canadian Army as The Queen's York Rangers (1st American Regiment) R.C.A.C.. They are a reconnaissance unit, that is, a unit whose goal is to gather battlefield intelligence on the enemy.
By virtue of General Order 66 of 1920 and General Order 3 of 1927 the Queen's York Rangers perpetuate the 20th, 35th, 127th and 220th Battalions of the Canadian Expeditionary Force of the Great War and are entitled to count those battalions battle honours as their own. They have a peculiar distinction in that they are the last regiment of Her Majesty's forces to enter the United States as a regiment and in marching order. In the summer of 1953 the regiment, some 450 strong, with two bands, fixed bayonts, and the regimental colour [taking the Queens colour as well would have been a declaration of war !] marched across the bridge from Windsor Ontario into Detroit on a Saturday. On the Sunday after a church parade, the regiment marched down the main street of Detroit behind the band playing Rule Britannia, and then Trooped the regimental colour on the waterfront.
The following list are the battle honours won by the battalions perpetuated by the Rangers. They are organized by the campaign, operation or offensive they were part of. Battles in ALL CAPS appear on the regiment's guidon.
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1915 Summer Operations, 19151916 Ypres Salient, 1916Battles of the Somme, 1916
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1917 Arras Offensive, 1917
Flanders Offensive, 1917
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1918 Offensive in Picardy, 1918Breaking the Hindenburg Line, 1918
1915-1918
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| Preceded by The Ontario Regiment (RCAC) |
The Queen's York Rangers (1st American Regiment) R.C.A.C. |
Succeeded by Sherbrooke Hussars |
| The Queen's York Rangers (1st American Regiment) (RCAC) Museum | |
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| Location | Fort York Armoury, 660 Fleet Street West, Toronto, ON M5V 1A9 Canada |
| Type | Regimental Museum |
The museum preserves and displays the history of The Queen’s York Rangers (1st American Regiment) and its several predecessors for the benefit of both the members of the Regiment and the public at large.[2] The museum is affiliated with: CMA, CHIN, OMMC and Virtual Museum of Canada.
| Site | Date(s) | Designated | Location | Description | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aurora Armoury 89 Mosley Street | 1874 | 1991 Recognized - Register of the Government of Canada Heritage Buildings | Aurora, Ontario |
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| Fort York Armoury 700 Fleet Street, | 1933-35 | 1991 Federal Heritage building; on the Register of the Government of Canada Heritage Buildings | Toronto, Ontario |
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