- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 410
The Usual Diclaimer and mods permission to move:
Legendary Vandoos ‘do the job right'
MATT HARTLEY AND JOANNA SMITH
Globe and Mail Update
July 16, 2007 at 1:06 AM EDT
For many Quebeckers, the Royal 22nd Regiment, known as the Vandoos, are to the military what Maurice Richard was to hockey – a valiant symbol of francophone identity and an integral part of Québécois culture.
About 200 troops from the Royal 22nd Regiment left CFB Valcartier for Kandahar Sunday. More than 2,000 Vandoos, from a total of 2,500 troops, will take over Canada's mission over the next seven weeks.
As the Vandoos ship out, they fight not just for Canada, but for the reputation of all francophones, according to Roch Legault, a professor of Canadian military history and strategy at Kingston's Royal Military College.
“They're like our team,” he said. “They know they carry the burden of representing French Canadians at war.”
For many in Quebec, the Vandoos are more than just a regiment in the army; they are the army, Mr. Legault said. “They're bigger than life.”
The deployment of the Vandoos and other Quebec-based soldiers from CFB Valcartier has been met with opposition in the province. Anti-war demonstrators took to the streets of Quebec City on June 22 to protest the deployment, in an attempt to interrupt a planned march to show support for the departing soldiers.
Canada has 2,500 soldiers on the ground in Afghanistan. Since the war began in 2002, approximately 14,900 troops have been sent to the region. Troops are rotated every six to nine months. Altogether, 66 Canadian soldiers and one diplomat have lost their lives in Afghanistan since 2002.
A Strategic Counsel poll conducted for The Globe and Mail in May showed that only 24 per cent of Quebeckers support sending troops to Afghanistan, while 73 per cent said they were opposed. The largest group of respondents, 40 per cent, were those who said they were “strongly opposed” to the deployment of troops.
Some have speculated that those numbers could prompt the military to alter tactics in Afghanistan to minimize Vandoos casualties in an effort to avoid further backlash in a province with the lowest war-approval ratings.
Such special treatment is unlikely, Mr. Legault said.
“You can see the polls and I think the brass read the polls as well, but the Vandoos will not want to do less than the other regiments,” he said. “They will not be asked to do less. That's not something that will be envisioned. It would destroy the esprit de corps. You don't do that.”
The Royal 22nd Regiment was founded shortly after the outbreak of the First World War and has become emblematic of Quebec's contribution to the Canadian Forces.
The nickname “Vandoos” derives from a corrupted version of vingt-deuxième, French for 22nd.
“French Canada identifies with the military, then the infantry and then the Vandoos,” Mr. Legault said.
During the First and Second World Wars, the Vandoos fought like they had something to prove to the rest of the mostly English-speaking military, and that attitude has been passed down to the troops who serve today, Mr. Legault said.
The Vandoos are one of the most disciplined and professional regiments in the Canadian military, but they have a certain reputation among military ranks for bringing a unique swagger and bravado to their work, he said. “They like to brag about things more than the others … and have a reputation to whine a little bit more than the others, but they do the job right.”
Mr. Legault said the brass in charge of the Vandoos are very conscious of the regiment's place in Quebec's public consciousness, and strive to make their soldiers mindful of that responsibility.
About 1,200 Quebeckers signed up to fight overseas in the First World War, but they were scattered across different English-speaking groups, and the alienation they felt did little to boost their numbers or support for the war back home.
Believing national unity was at stake, dozens of influential French-Canadians, including Liberal opposition leader Sir Wilfrid Laurier, lobbied the federal government to create a permanent French-speaking regiment. Quebec businessman Arthur Mignault donated $50,000 of his own money to fund the cause.
“French Canada decided they were not represented well enough, and they wanted to be together, to have their own contribution,” Mr. Legault said.
Conservative prime minister Robert Borden gave his consent to create the regiment in October, 1914, and the Vandoos were born.
On the crest of the Vandoos, which depicts a beaver atop a piece of wood, is emblazoned their motto: Je me souviens (I remember). Those same words appear on the provincial licence plates of Quebec.
For the Vandoos, the words are a constant reminder of their francophone heritage and the special status the regiment holds with the people of Quebec.
“It is to remember who you are,” Mr. Legault said. “You're kind of special. You may be different from the others.”
Edit to add link:http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070716.wvadooshist16/BNStory/Front
Legendary Vandoos ‘do the job right'
MATT HARTLEY AND JOANNA SMITH
Globe and Mail Update
July 16, 2007 at 1:06 AM EDT
For many Quebeckers, the Royal 22nd Regiment, known as the Vandoos, are to the military what Maurice Richard was to hockey – a valiant symbol of francophone identity and an integral part of Québécois culture.
About 200 troops from the Royal 22nd Regiment left CFB Valcartier for Kandahar Sunday. More than 2,000 Vandoos, from a total of 2,500 troops, will take over Canada's mission over the next seven weeks.
As the Vandoos ship out, they fight not just for Canada, but for the reputation of all francophones, according to Roch Legault, a professor of Canadian military history and strategy at Kingston's Royal Military College.
“They're like our team,” he said. “They know they carry the burden of representing French Canadians at war.”
For many in Quebec, the Vandoos are more than just a regiment in the army; they are the army, Mr. Legault said. “They're bigger than life.”
The deployment of the Vandoos and other Quebec-based soldiers from CFB Valcartier has been met with opposition in the province. Anti-war demonstrators took to the streets of Quebec City on June 22 to protest the deployment, in an attempt to interrupt a planned march to show support for the departing soldiers.
Canada has 2,500 soldiers on the ground in Afghanistan. Since the war began in 2002, approximately 14,900 troops have been sent to the region. Troops are rotated every six to nine months. Altogether, 66 Canadian soldiers and one diplomat have lost their lives in Afghanistan since 2002.
A Strategic Counsel poll conducted for The Globe and Mail in May showed that only 24 per cent of Quebeckers support sending troops to Afghanistan, while 73 per cent said they were opposed. The largest group of respondents, 40 per cent, were those who said they were “strongly opposed” to the deployment of troops.
Some have speculated that those numbers could prompt the military to alter tactics in Afghanistan to minimize Vandoos casualties in an effort to avoid further backlash in a province with the lowest war-approval ratings.
Such special treatment is unlikely, Mr. Legault said.
“You can see the polls and I think the brass read the polls as well, but the Vandoos will not want to do less than the other regiments,” he said. “They will not be asked to do less. That's not something that will be envisioned. It would destroy the esprit de corps. You don't do that.”
The Royal 22nd Regiment was founded shortly after the outbreak of the First World War and has become emblematic of Quebec's contribution to the Canadian Forces.
The nickname “Vandoos” derives from a corrupted version of vingt-deuxième, French for 22nd.
“French Canada identifies with the military, then the infantry and then the Vandoos,” Mr. Legault said.
During the First and Second World Wars, the Vandoos fought like they had something to prove to the rest of the mostly English-speaking military, and that attitude has been passed down to the troops who serve today, Mr. Legault said.
The Vandoos are one of the most disciplined and professional regiments in the Canadian military, but they have a certain reputation among military ranks for bringing a unique swagger and bravado to their work, he said. “They like to brag about things more than the others … and have a reputation to whine a little bit more than the others, but they do the job right.”
Mr. Legault said the brass in charge of the Vandoos are very conscious of the regiment's place in Quebec's public consciousness, and strive to make their soldiers mindful of that responsibility.
About 1,200 Quebeckers signed up to fight overseas in the First World War, but they were scattered across different English-speaking groups, and the alienation they felt did little to boost their numbers or support for the war back home.
Believing national unity was at stake, dozens of influential French-Canadians, including Liberal opposition leader Sir Wilfrid Laurier, lobbied the federal government to create a permanent French-speaking regiment. Quebec businessman Arthur Mignault donated $50,000 of his own money to fund the cause.
“French Canada decided they were not represented well enough, and they wanted to be together, to have their own contribution,” Mr. Legault said.
Conservative prime minister Robert Borden gave his consent to create the regiment in October, 1914, and the Vandoos were born.
On the crest of the Vandoos, which depicts a beaver atop a piece of wood, is emblazoned their motto: Je me souviens (I remember). Those same words appear on the provincial licence plates of Quebec.
For the Vandoos, the words are a constant reminder of their francophone heritage and the special status the regiment holds with the people of Quebec.
“It is to remember who you are,” Mr. Legault said. “You're kind of special. You may be different from the others.”
Edit to add link:http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070716.wvadooshist16/BNStory/Front
