1. This CARW2020 cache will be published about 6pm on Thursday, February 20, 2020.
2. This cache has been placed for the CARW event with the intention that it not be located prior to 9:00 a.m. Saturday February 22, 2020. The caches for the CARW event are released early so that the geocaching community has an opportunity to plan their routes and strategies prior to the event start.
3. Should you hunt and find this cache before the event start, it will not count for the event, and FTF points are only valid as of 9AM February 22nd.
Patricia Park is located on the site of former CFB Griesbach. CFB Griesbach (Griesbach Barracks) was an army base that was located in the north end of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The site was named after Major-General William Antrobus Griesbach (1878–1945), a veteran of the Second Boer War, the First World War and the Second World War. Griesbach was also an Edmonton alderman and mayor, and served as a Member of Parliament and a Senator.
The base was established in 1950 as Griesbach Barracks. In 1958, No. 14 Service Prison and Detention Barracks opened at the base and the Second Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry was relocated to Griesbach from Currie Barracks in Calgary, Alberta.
This cache centers around Patricia Park, which pays tribute to the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI).
The Founding of the Regiment
The Regiment was born during August of 1914 in Ottawa, Ontario as a result of the offer from Captain Andrew Hamilton Gault to provide $100,000 to finance and equip a battalion for overseas service.
On 6 August 1914 Captain Gault’s offer was provisionally accepted by the Canadian Government. Authority was granted on 10 August 1914 to raise and equip an infantry battalion, with the remainder of the cost being defrayed by the Department of Militia and Defence.
On 10 August 1914 the Charter of the Regiment was signed and the next day mobilization began.
LCol Francis D. Farquhar, DSO, an officer of the Coldstream Guards who was Military Secretary to His Royal Highness, The Duke of Connaught and Strathearn, The Governor-General of Canada, was selected to command the new battalion.
LCol Farquhar suggested that the Regiment bear the name of the Duke’s youngest daughter, Her Royal Highness Princess Patricia of Connaught. The request was made to the Princess, who graciously consented to the Regiment bearing her name. The “Light Infantry” came about because Captain Gault, a veteran of the South African War, liked the “Irregular Feel” it gave to the Regiment.
First World War, 1914-1918
The Regiment left Ottawa on 28 August 1914 and embarked from Montreal aboard the S.S. Megantic. The sailing was soon cancelled due to enemy action in the Atlantic and the Regiment was forced to disembark at Camp Levis, Quebec. After a few weeks of additional training, on 27 September, the Regiment again set sail from Quebec, this time aboard the S.S. Royal George. On 27 October 1914 the Regiment occupied a camp on Salisbury Plain, England.
The 27th Division landed in France on 21 December 1914, making the Patricia’s the first and only Canadian infantry regiment in a theatre of war during 1914.
The Regiment fought in many battles throughout the rest of the First World War and was part of the Canadian Corps which captured Vimy Ridge on 9 April 1917.
During the battles around Passchendaele on 30 October 1917, Lieutenant Hugh McKenzie and Sergeant George Harry Mullin both won the Victoria Cross for gallantry. The Regiment’s third Victoria Cross was won at Parvillers on 12-13 August, 1918 by Sergeant Robert Spall.
Permanent Force 1919 -1939
On 20 March 1919 the Regiment was selected to form part of Canada’s peace-time army, to be called the Permanent Active Militia and more commonly known as the Permanent Force. The Regiment’s Headquarters, “A” and “D” Companies were re-located to Fort Osborne Barracks in Winnipeg, MB in April 1920. “B” Company was located at Esquimalt, BC.
Time between the wars were lean ones for the Canadian Militia, both Permanent and Non-permanent, representing a period of official neglect and ever decreasing establishments. By 1924, the Regiment had been reduced to 209 members, all ranks. Patricia’s were concentrated at Sarcee Camp, AB to carry out battalion training on only four occasions within twenty years.
Each summer the Winnipeg companies went to camp, first to Camp Hughes and later to Camp Shilo, to carry out company training. On the west coast, “B” Company trained at Heal’s Range and other points on Vancouver Island, BC.
Each year the Regiment was called on to provide instructors and to conduct qualifying courses for Officers and Non Commissioned Officers of the Non-Permanent Active Militia. Instructors were also provided for contingents of the Canadian Officers Training Corps at the universities of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba.
Second World War, 1939-1945
The Patricia’s were mobilized for active service on 10 September 1939. Recruiting in Winnipeg and on Vancouver Island, the Battalion was brought up to strength in October and concentrated in Winnipeg under the command of LCol W.G. (Shorty) Colquhoun, MC. The Regiment sailed from Halifax on 21 December 1939, on the S.S. Orama as part of 2nd Brigade, 1st Canadian Infantry Division.
On arrival in England, the Regiment moved to Aldershot Camp and spent New Year’s Eve in Cove, England. Immediately upon arrival in England, LCol Colquhoun reported to the Colonel-in-Chief at Bagshot Park. On 10 February 1940, the Colonel-in-Chief inspected her Regiment for the first time in 21 years.
The Regiment spent three years in the United Kingdom, most of which was spent in coastal defence and training in various parts of the country.
On 10 July 1943, 1st Canadian Infantry Division landed in Sicily as part of the British 8th Army. The Patricia’s were re-indoctrinated to war at Leonforte, the Regiment’s first Battle Honour of the Second World War. Following the capture of Sicily by the Allies, the Regiment landed on Italy’s toe on 4 September 1943. The first two months were spent advancing inland (northward) with the Regiment’s progress slowed by demolished bridges and German rear guards. During December 1943, the Patricia’s were heavily involved in the operations of Villa Rogatti and the Gully, winning many individual and unit honours in the process, and spent Christmas in the Ortona area. The next major offensive came at the Hitler Line, west of Monte Cassino, in late May 1944 during the Allied advance to Rome. The Regiment, the rest of the division and the recently arrived 5th Armoured Division, was now part of the newly formed I Canadian Corps. Towards the end of August, the regiment moved back to the Adriatic coast and took part in the assaults on the Gothic Line, San Fortunato and Rimini. The rugged terrain and seemingly never ending river crossings took their toll, both in men and equipment.
Over the next five months, the Patricia’s campaigned yet further north, in the Romanga, a wide valley crossed by numerous small and medium sized waterways, winning three more Battle Honours in the process. Savio Bridgehead 20-23 September 1944, Naviglio Canal 12-15 December 1944 and Fosso Munio 19-21 December 1944. It was during the Italian Campaign that the Regiment renewed its traditions of professionalism, tenacity and aggressiveness that it demonstrated so aptly in the Second World War.
The Italian Battle Honours on the Colours show proof of the sacrifices made and victories gained by the rank and file of the Regiment. The Patricia’s, along with the rest of the corps, embarked to North-West Europe on 13 March 1945 to join the First Canadian Army already fighting there.
Travelling on a scenic, non-battle scarred route through southern and central France, the Regiment made its way to Boisschot, Belgium.
Following eleven days of light activity, the Regiment was again on the move with 1st Canadian Division to liberate Holland, and on April 11th, co-leading, the division crossed the Ijssel River, and then played an important part in the capture of Apeldoorn. The Patricia’s, having stood fast in Barneveld, were on hand as security and logistical organizers for the historic Achterveld Conference between the Allies and the Germans on 30 April 1945. Victory in Europe (VE) Day was 8 May 1945, and on that same day LCol Clark and his Patricia’s were the first Allies into Amsterdam.
The Regiment had fought throughout the Second World War as part of the 2nd Brigade with its old friends and worthy comrades, The Loyal Edmonton Regiment (formerly 49th Battalion) and the Seaforth Highlanders of Canada from Vancouver, who share many Battle Honours.
Canadian Army Post-War
In 1946, the “Interim Force” was gradually abolished in order to reconstitute the Canadian Army Active Force. Once the wartime battalion was stood down, the “Second Battalion” prefix was dropped.
The Regiment moved from Camp Shilo to Camp MacDonald, MB in January 1946.
The arrival of the Patricias in Calgary, AB on 10 June 1947 and the establishment of Currie Barracks as the new “home station” of the Regiment marked the commencement of a productive period in the history of the Regiment.
In 1948, in order to meet the requirements of a rapidly changing world situation, the government decided to convert the Regular Army brigade to an Airborne Mobile Striking Force. In August, the Vice-Chief of the General Staff visited the Patricias, the first unit selected to convert to parachute duty, to seek volunteers. “The response was no mere proportion of the unit: it was complete 100 percent”, with every officer, NCO and soldier volunteering.
The transition was eased by the fact that many Patricias had already served during the First World War with the First Canadian Parachute Battalion, and by the spring of 1949 training was complete; establishing PPCLI as Canada’s first peacetime parachute battalion.
Korea
On 15 August 1950, following the invasion of the Republic of Korea (ROK or South Korea) by the Chinese Communist-dominated North Korea, the Second Battalion of the Regiment was formed as part of the Canadian Army Special Force. On the same date, the serving unit was designated First Battalion.
On 25 November 1950 under the command of LCol J.R. Stone, DSO, MC, the battalion sailed from Seattle on the USNS Private Joe P. Martinez bound for Pusan, South Korea.
On 30 November 1950, a Third Battalion of the Regiment was formed. This battalion trained in Wainwright, Camp Borden and Ipperwash, Ontario. It provided replacements for both the First and Second Battalions during their tours of duty in Korea.
The Second Battalion arrived in Korea on 8 December and spent the next eight weeks undergoing training in mountain warfare and small unit tactics.
On 6 February 1951, Second Battalion joined the 27th British Commonwealth Brigade, IX Corps, U.S. Eighth Army and became the first Canadian infantry battalion to be involved in the Korean conflict.
On 22 April 1951, the Chinese began a major offensive against the United Nations Forces. The Chinese immediately broke through the first line of defences, held by the 6th ROK Division. All that stood between the Chinese army and the South Korean capital of Seoul was 2 PPCLI, Third Battalion Royal Australian Regiment and A Company 72nd US Heavy Tank Regiment. All three units were tasked to defend the Kapyong Valley. The Chinese attacked in overwhelming force and eventually managed to push the Australians off their position. Second Battalion was then cut-off but held off the Chinese forces and by doing so saved Seoul and countless UN lives. In recognition of “outstanding heroism and exceptionally meritorious conduct,” a United States Presidential Unit Citation was awarded to Second Battalion, the Australians and the American tank company for their actions at Kapyong on 24-25 April 1951.
Afghanistan
(Op Apollo, Athena, Archer)
As a response to the events of 11 September 2001, 3 PPCLI with C Coy, 2 PPCLI attached was sent to Afghanistan as part of Canada’s
contribution to the War on Terror. It marked the first time since the Korean War that Canada had sent soldiers overseas on a combat specific operation. 3 PPCLI operated out of Kandahar Airfield (KAF) as part of the US 187th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division. The Third Battalion performed numerous combat operations against Al-Qaeda and Taliban insurgents. The 3 PPCLI BG served on OP APOLO from 4 February to 30 July 2002. In 2004, B Company, 1 PPCLI and Reconnaissance Platoon, 3 PPCLI deployed as part of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) on OP ATHENA, ROTO 2 in Kabul, Afghanistan. Both PPCLI elements returned from the mission in February, 2005.
In 2005 the CAF moved back to southern Afghanistan, concentrating its efforts on Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRT), Operational Mentoring and Liaison Teams (OMLT) and BG operations under OP ARCHER. The first PRT was built around B Coy, 3 PPCLI and deployed to Kandahar from July 2005 to February 2006. In February 2006, 1 PPCLI with B Coy, 2 PPCLI formed the nucleus of Task Force (TF) 1-06 and deployed as the first Canadian mechanised BG in Kandahar Province. February 2006 was also marked by the transfer of command of Regional Command South (RC South) from U.S. Colonel Kevin Owens (173rd (US) Airborne Bde) to Brigadier-General David Fraser (PPCLI). BGen Fraser commanded RC South until November 2006. However, individual augmentation from the Regiment to the muti-national HQ continued until 2011.
During 2006 and 2007, Patricia battalions supported two RCR BGs with attached companies. In 2008 the 2 PPCLI BG deployed with the 3 PPCLI OMLT and 1 PPCLI returned to Kandahar in 2009 as last Patricia BG, along side the second 3 PPCLI OMLT. As the combat mission concluded in 2011, B Coy, 1 PPCLI deployed with the Mission Transition Task Force (MTTF) as the CAF focus once again returned to training the Afghan National Army (ANA) in Kabul. It was there that 3 PPCLI once again took the lead on TF 1-11 in establishing OP ATTENTION Roto 0. The majority of 3 PPCLI was deployed for 10 months and assisted in training and fielding ANA combat units. The summer of 2013 marked the Regiment’s last major contribution to OP ATTENTION, when 2 PPCLI formed the nucleus of TF 2-13.
In Order to log this cache, the cacher must find the answers to the following questions in Patricia Park:
- At the bottom of the stairs into Patricia Park are small grey monuments to the right and the left. These represent some of the battle honours that the regiment have been awarded during its history. What is the 10th battle honour to the right of the stairs?
- WHat is the 7th battle honour to the left of the stairs
- On the north side of the time capsule, a plaque mentions another regiment. What regiment is it?
- When was the park dedicated
Answers can either be sent to me via email or via the messaging service on the Geocaching website.
Virtual Rewards 2.0 - 2019/2020
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between June 4, 2019 and June 4, 2020. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 2.0 on the Geocaching Blog.
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