Regimental Thinking

The Military Museums in Calgary is the second-largest museum of Canadian military history. When I first visited almost twenty-five years ago, its name was the Museum of the Regiments, and it consisted of four separate institutions in one building, each devoted to the history of units that had their birth in or strong connections to the city. What struck me at once was the difference in the quality of each regiment’s displays. The Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry’s story was professionally designed and beautifully presented. The Calgary Highlanders’ space was similarly well done, and the Lord Strathcona’s Horse exhibits were very good. Only the King’s Own Calgary Regiment museum had an amateurish feel.

Why the differences? Money, of course. The Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry and the Calgary Highlanders had wealthy patrons, honorary colonels, or veterans who had done well and contributed to the non-public funds controlled by a regimental...