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| A
Short History of The Kangaroos |
| Part
III: The End |
| FOR
ALL INTENTS and purposes, the Kangaroos' shooting war ended in the middle
of April, although there were isolated incidents of fleeting contacts with
remnants of the defeated and fleeing enemy until the end of the month. |
| At that point,
after the Allied armies had broken out of the Rhine bridgehead, there simply
was very little organized resistance in the West. By the end of April,
the Regiment had had its tasking changed from support of the British XXX
Corps to support of the 1st Canadian Army. 'A' Squadron was in Holland
with the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division, while 'B' Squadron was in Germany
with the 4th Canadian Armoured Division. |
| By the beginning
of May, both squadrons of the Kangaroos were both more-or-less in the same
area in northern Germany, although still operating independently. At 2000
hours on May 4th, the Cease Fire Order was passed down, to be effective
at 0800 the next morning. For some - a wild celebration; for others - quiet
jubilation and sober contemplation of all which had come and gone over
the past 10 months. |
| The war was
over. |
| SEVENTEEN
of their number had given their lives from January to May, with 71 more
wounded. In balance, the number of lives saved is incalculable. Elements
of 54 separate British and Canadian infantry regiments had been CARRIED
INTO BATTLE, in every major ACTION
in that time. |
| By the middle
of May, the Regiment was out of Germany, headquartered at Enschede, Holland,
where the long process of stand-down began. The first ten days in June
saw the first small draughts of long-service men transferred to repatriation
camps; shortly thereafter, the vehicles themselves, now completely refurbished,
were formally released by the Regiment and transferred elsewhere. |
| Other members
of the Regiment were transferred to other duties within the occupation
army, and more still went home. The C.O. left officially on 19 June 1945. |
| A quiet end
for an illustrious unit. The following constitutes the unit's final Routine
Order: |
On authority from H.Q.
Army Troops dated June 17, 1945, the 1 Canadian Armoured Carrier Regiment
is disbanded with effect from 2359 hours, 20 June, 1945.
All personnel disposed of and
posted through 13 Bn C.B.R.
All equipment turned back through
proper "Q" channels.
Signed
F.W.K. Bingham, Major
Acting Commanding Officer
1 CACR
20 June 1945
Enschede, Holland
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| The end had
come, and one by one, the men went home. |
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Editor's Note:
having no formal home in Canada, the Regiment truly did 'cease to exist'
as of 20 June 1945. There was no homecoming, save on an individual basis,
no association, and no formal regimental affiliations which served so many
other veterans so well. The Kangaroos were a forgotten entity, except by
those they carried. Their members had dispersed to points all across Canada,
in the end, as they were in the beginning, 'just' a collection of individuals
- volunteers all - who did what their country bid.
Shortly after the war,
however, a small, very unofficial group of ex-Kangaroos began meeting annually
in Toronto on or about 11 November. This 'tradition' continues to this
day, although the whereabouts of the majority of the approximately 550
men who served in the Squadron or Regiment is currently unknown.
On 5 May 1995, the anniversary
of the Cease Fire, a permanent memorial to the Kangaroos was unveiled in
Mill, the Netherlands. Created from a derelict Ram Kangaroo recovered from
a British artillery range, it was wholly conceived and executed by a group
of Dutchmen who also hadn't forgotten. Former Trooper Arthur Bell was on
hand for the UNVEILING,
and participated in the dedication of this monument.
There is no such memorial
in Canada, but with the new ASSOCIATION,
we're working on it.
Many Kangaroos are gone,
but their memories live on. The surviving members of this elite unit are
now all in their mid-seventies and early-eighties; but the spark of pride
still shines in their eyes. Through the miracle of the internet, their
story survives and spreads.
Let them never be forgotten.
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