The 1st Canadian Armoured Carrier Regiment - The Kangaroos
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Courtesy of Bill Miller of Calgary
|
It may surprise you to learn that there were/are Canadian
Kangaroos - a whole Regiment of them. The name is not the sole
distinguishing characteristic as they were also the only Canadian
regiment never to set foot in Canada having been formed in Holland
in 1944 and disbanded in Germany, June 20th, 1945. Unfortunately,
those Kangaroos of the human kind are disappearing quickly. The
Elgin Military Museum is very proud to help keep their spirit alive
and provide an opportunity for future generations to appreciate
this unique Canadian contribution to the Second World War effort.
The surprise doesn't end there. These Kangaroos are not only
Canadian but arguably, the very first modern day armoured personnel
carriers - the forerunners of the M113 APC's on display on the grounds
of the Elgin Military Museum.
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| Kangaroos in Tilburg,
Netherlands an early base. |
| Courtesy of Bill Miller of
Calgary |
With D-Day (June 6th 1944) behind them, good old
Canadian ingenuity channelled by Lieutenant General Guy Simonds,
Commander of the II Canadian Corps in Northwest Europe, saw
Canadian troops modify 72 American M7 Priest
self-propelled guns (guns removed and scrounged armour plate added)
to create vehicles that could carry troops quickly and relatively
safely to the front line. They were dubbed
Kangaroos. Thus, the first of many Canadian
Kangaroos was cut and bolted together in Holland and christened
'Marion' the name of the wife of Bill Copley, a
Canadian soldier from St. Thomas, Ontario. In the irreverent
spirit of the times, these modified 'Priests" were said to be
'defrocked" and those they carried were said to be 'empouched'.
Their effectiveness proved under fire, the well worn Priest's were
retired and the Montreal built light tank the RAM
was modified to carry on the role.
On August 26, 1944, the squadron was formally designated the 1st
Canadian Armoured Carrier Regiment. While the regiment was made up
of soldiers from across Canada, for administrative purposes, it was
attached to the Canadian 25th Armoured Delivery Regiment - The Elgins
- from St. Thomas, Ontario under the command of the DCO of the
Elgins, Lieutenant Colonel Gordon M. Churchill. Success during the
break out of Normandy resulted in a further transition. Only two
months later, on October 24th, 1944, the 1st Canadian Armoured
Carrier Regiment became the core of a two Regiment team of
Kangaroos and other specialized vehicles under the 79th Armoured
Division of the British Army where they played a significant role
to the end of the hostilities in Europe.
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| BUTCH and the
Boys! |
| Courtesy of Bill
Miller of Calgary |
This example of Canadian ingenuity
saved countless lives in the final years of the gruelling
Second World War and subsequent generations of armoured personnel
carriers continue to do so today.
In September 2011, the Armoury of The Elgin Regiment in St.
Thomas, Ontario became the new home of the Kangaroo Regiment
Association as a permanent testament to the metal of these men and
their unique machine.