Training and Overseas Deployment

Heroes Remember

Training and Overseas Deployment

Transcript

Brockville was an Officers Training Unit for the, to get people ready to go overseas. It was intensive training we actually went active in the army at that point and became fully paid for our rank and studied at Brockville for three months. It was intensive training it was good, it wasn't reconnaissance training but it was army training, military training, driving wheeled vehicles, trucks, motorcycles. We knew that it became obvious pretty early on that the concept of warfare had changed greatly, digging a hole and standing in it and looking at the other guy fifty yards away was out, it was a war of movement and it was going to be a war of movement so at that time most of my confreres felt pretty happy being in a reconnaissance regiment that had mobility. Reconnaissance has been with us for all warfare but in different guises I guess. The infantry people did reconnaissance when they sent out night patrols on foot. Reconnaissance, it's the idea of contacting the enemy and assessing their positions and strengths so that the people back behind you can plan the next advances. The training was six months in duration from the 1st of April to June 30th at Brockville, and from July 1st to supposedly to September 30th in Camp Borden. But at that point, while we were at Camp Borden, a lot of research had been done about the effect of age on fighting troops and age limits came out for officers according to rank and the result of that was a bunch of officers that were already over in England with the First Canadian Division and auxiliary troops that are with it, a lot of them were over age, and they either came back as training personnel in Canada or they were given staff jobs in England, so there was a sudden shortage of officers. And the 17th Hussars had at that point been shipped overseas in September and we did not complete our course at Camp Borden, we had about two weeks to go when they called us all up and told us to, I think they gave us 48 hour's leave or something or other to go home and say goodbye, and then we were shipped over to England.

Description

Mr. Jamieson describes elements of his training at the Officers Training Unit in Brockville, Ontario. He explains the function of reconnaissance and the circumstances that led to his overseas deployment.

Douglas K. Jamieson

Mr. Jamieson was the oldest of two boys in the family and was born in Toronto on April 3, 1919. At the age of sixteen he moved to Montreal. While in university Mr. Jamieson joined the Canadian Officer Training Corps. His unit was converted to a regular force unit and he was shipped overseas as part a reconnaissance unit in the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division with whom he served in England, France, Holland and Germany.

Meta Data

Medium:: Video
Owner:: Veterans Affairs Canada
Duration:: 03:07
Person Interviewed:: Douglas K. Jamieson
War, Conflict or Mission:: Second World War
Location/Theatre:: Canada
Branch:: Army
Units/Ship:: 17th Duke of York's Royal Canadian Hussars-Recce
Occupation:: Reconnaissance Officer

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Date modified:: 2019-06-20