The South Saskatchewan Regiment

The South Saskatchewan Regiment was an infantry regiment of the Canadian Forces formed in 1936 by the amalgamation of The Weyburn Regiment and The Saskatchewan Border Regiment. It was reduced to nil strength and placed on the Supplementary Order of Battle (i.e., virtually disbanded) in 1968. They participated in the 1942 Dieppe Raid, during which they undertook a supplementary, secret mission to guard, and if necessary, kill, a radar technician trying to discover vital information on the German radar station outside Dieppe.

The South Saskatchewan Regiment (SSR)
The cap badge of the South Saskatchewan Regiment.
ActiveMilitia July 3, 1905 – September 1, 1968; Supplementary Reserve September 1, 1968 – present
CountryCanada
BranchArmy, Supplementary Reserve
TypeInfantry
SizeNil strength
Garrison/HQEstevan, Saskatchewan
March"Warwickshire Lads"
Battle honoursArras, 1917; Hill 70; Dieppe; Bourguebus Ridge; St. André sur Orne; Falaise; Falaise Road; The Laison; Forêt de la Londe; Dunkirk, 1944; Antwerp–Turnhout Canal; The Scheldt; Woensdrecht; South Beveland; The Rhineland; The Hochwald; Xanten; The Rhine; Groningen; Oldenburg; North-West Europe 1942, 1944–45.

History

The regiment traces its lineage to July 3, 1905, when an infantry regiment was authorized in the District of Assiniboia and the District of Saskatchewan, which later that year became the province of Saskatchewan. The regiment was eventually organized as the 95th Saskatchewan Rifles, in Regina. After the First World War the 95th merged with the 60th Rifles of Canada (in Moose Jaw) to become the South Saskatchewan Regiment, which expanded to five battalions with the creation of units in Weyburn (3rd Battalion), Moosomin (4th Battalion) and Estevan (5th Battalion).

In 1924, each of the battalions became a distinct regiment, and the name "South Saskatchewan Regiment" went out of use. In the 1936 reorganization of the Militia, the Weyburn Regiment and the Saskatchewan Border Regiment (in Estevan) re-amalgamated into a new South Saskatchewan Regiment.

During the Second World War, The South Saskatchewan Regiment participated in many major Canadian battles and operations, as part of the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division. The South Saskatchewan Regiment fought in the Dieppe Raid of 1942, Operation Atlantic, Operation Spring, Operation Totalize, Operation Tractable, and the recapture of Dieppe in 1944. They, along with the 8th Reconnaissance Regiment liberated the Westerbork transit camp on 12 April 1945.

During the Dieppe Raid they also undertook one of the more unusual missions of the war. They provided a bodyguard for an RAF radar expert, Jack Nissenthall, who had volunteered to try penetrate a German radar station on a cliff above “Green Beach”. Because Nissenthall knew the secrets of British and US radar technology, he was awarded a personal bodyguard of South Saskatchewan sharpshooters. Their orders were to protect him, but in the event of possible capture to kill him. He survived and his action enabled vital information on the state of development of the German radar to be discovered. The full story, along with graphic, first-hand descriptions of the South Saskatchewan Regiment's actions during the raid are told in James Leasor's book, "Green Beach".

After the regiment was placed on the Supplementary Order of Battle in 1968, the queen's and regimental colours were deposited at Estevan Comprehensive School in 1969.[1]

Lineage of the South Saskatchewan Regiment:[2]

Lineage
1905Regt of inf.
190795th Regt
190995th Saskatchewan Rifles
191295th Saskatchewan Rifles105th Regt
191360th Rifles of Canada
19201st Bn, The South Saskatchewan Regt2nd Bn, The South Saskatchewan Regt3rd Bn, The South Saskatchewan Regt4th Bn, The South Saskatchewan Regt5th Bn, The South Saskatchewan Regt
1924The Regina Rifle RegtThe King's Own Rifles of CanadaThe Weyburn RegtThe Assiniboia RegtThe Saskatchewan Border Regt
 
1936The South Saskatchewan Regt
1939The South Saskatchewan Regt, CASF
19401st Bn, The South Saskatchewan Regt, CASF
19412nd (Reserve) Bn, The South Saskatchewan Regt
1945DisbandedThe South Saskatchewan Regt
1968Supplementary Order of Battle
2021

Perpetuations

Battle honours
The regimental colour of the South Saskatchewan Regiment.

Battle honours in small capitals are for large operations and campaigns and those in lowercase are for more specific battles. Bold type indicates honours authorized to be emblazoned on the regimental colour.

First World War
  • Arras, 1917
  • Hill 70

Second World War
  • Dieppe
  • Bourguébus Ridge
  • St. André sur Orne
  • Falaise
  • Falaise Road
  • The Laison
  • Forêt de la Londe
  • Dunkirk, 1944
  • Antwerp–Turnhout Canal
  • The Scheldt
  • Woensdrecht
  • South Beveland
  • The Rhineland
  • The Hochwald
  • Xanten
  • The Rhine
  • Groningen
  • Oldenburg
  • North-West Europe 1942, 1944–45

[4]

Alliances

The regiment was formerly allied with these regiments, but these alliances automatically expired when the British regiments amalgamated with other regiments.

Notable members

Music

"We're the boys of the S.S.R." words by Isabel McCrae Parker and music by Arthur Clare Parker was published in Weyburn, Saskatchewan by A.C. Parker, circa 1939 and was dedicated to the officers and men of the South Saskatchewan Regiment. First line: "We're the boys who have gathered from near and far".[5]

Media
  • The March of the Prairie Men: A Story of the South Saskatchewan Regiment by Lt. Col. G. B. Buchanan (1900)

Literature
  • Leasor, J. (1975). Green Beach. London: Heinemann. ISBN 0-434-41024-1. OCLC 1354236.

References
  1. "Stories behind the carvings". Estevan Mercury. September 7, 2016.
  2. "The South Saskatchewan Regiment". Official Lineages: Volume 3: Combat Arms Regiments, Part 2: Infantry Regiments. Directorate of History and Heritage. October 2010. Retrieved October 13, 2011.
  3. "Perpetuation of C.E.F. Units – Infantry – 151st Bn to 200th Bn". Retrieved November 25, 2007.
  4. Canadian Forces Publication A-DH-267-003 Insignia and Lineages of the Canadian Forces. Volume 3: Combat Arms Regiments.
  5. "We're the boys of the S.S.R." Retrieved February 13, 2016.
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