Navy

The Queen’s Colour – pride, honour and devotion

For the fourth time in 70 years, the Navy will gather to accept a Sovereign’s Colour (consecrated flag) – a compelling reminder to all ranks of their loyalty and duty to Sovereign and country.

A replacement Queen’s Colour will be consecrated and presented to Maritime Command in a June 27 ceremony in Halifax, marking a significant and historic event for the Navy.

“Colours are traditionally recognized as a unit’s most prized possession,” says Lieutenant-Commander Graeme Arbuckle, the Navy’s heritage officer. “In olden times, they were a rallying point for a unit on the battlefield. When a ship of the line struck her colours in battle, it was the recognized symbol of defeat. Today, while no longer carried into action, the preservation of the Queen’s Colour as a military icon of significance is a visible demonstration of pride, honour and devotion to Sovereign and country.”

All units of the CF are allowed Colours, says LCdr Arbuckle, and many Army regiments have their own. The Navy, however, has only one. “The Queen’s Colour is highly valued, carefully guarded and treated with great respect,” he says.

The presentations of the first three Colours were occasions of great ceremony for the Navy. When King George VI presented his Colour to the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) in Victoria in 1939, just before the Second World War, it was the first time a sovereign had personally made such a presentation outside of Great Britain. In 1959, Queen Elizabeth II presented her Colour to the RCN in Halifax. With the adoption of a truly national Canadian flag and a change from the RCN to Maritime Command, a significantly altered Queen’s Colour was presented by the Queen Mother in Halifax in 1979, before a crowd of 60 000. Now, having served for 30 years, the current Queen’s Colour is ready to be replaced.

It coincides with an historic time for the Navy. “In June, we will gather to accept the Queen’s Colour, just one year before we celebrate the Navy’s centennial,” says Captain(N) Craig Walkington, Maritime Forces Atlantic coordinator of the Canadian Naval Centennial. “This will be a once-in-a-career experience. Her Excellency, the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, Governor General and Commander-in-Chief of Canada, will preside over the ceremony. Four hundred sailors representing Maritime Forces Pacific, Maritime Forces Atlantic and the Naval Reserve will parade in a display of military discipline, pomp and ceremony. One hundred musicians of a massed band formed from the Navy’s Naden, Stadacona and Naval Reserve bands will provide the musical backdrop, while a 21-gun vice-regal salute, a feu de joie [a spectacular display of timing and sequenced rifle and artillery fire] and flypast of maritime aircraft will enhance the spectacle for the viewing public expected to gather in the Garrison Grounds at the foot of historic Citadel Hill.”

The consecration and presentation of the Queen’s Colour is a significant event in the continuing story of Canada’s Navy, says Rear-Admiral Nigel Greenwood, Assistant Chief of the Maritime Staff. “It is the perfect way to acknowledge, formally, the past, while looking ahead to the future,” he says. “It allows us to pay homage to the hundreds of thousands of men and women who have served Canada aboard Her Majesty’s ships, in maritime aircraft and ashore. It also sends a strong signal of pride in service, esprit de corps and unity of purpose to our sailors serving overseas in Afghanistan, off Somalia and in many other missions.”

For all Canadians and, more poignantly, for those in the Navy, RAdm Greenwood says, it is a strong reminder of the great personal sacrifices made by sailors who rose to confront significant challenges through the 70 years since the first Sovereign’s Colour was presented. “It really is an enduring symbol in an ever-changing world,” he says.