Canadian military history on display at Whoop-Up Days

In 1900, Donald Smith personally funded a new Canadian military regiment to support efforts in the Boer War in South Africa.

Located in Western Canada, Smith recruited police officers, cowboys and other frontiersmen who all had one thing in common: horse training.

The Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Royal Canadians) was formed as a cavalry unit and has remained an integral part of the Canadian Armed Forces ever since.

While the unit no longer trains troopers on horseback, it maintains a presence with horses to ensure its heritage is never forgotten.

“Just like most of history, if you don’t talk about it, it’s lost,” said Master Corporal Brennan Maddison of the LDSH(RC). “Before tanks and bullets, it was horses and swords.”

From the last great cavalry charge that helped swing the First World War in 1918 to modern conflicts in Afghanistan, the regiment’s history is deep.

The Strathcona Mounted Troop has, since the 1970’s, brought that heritage to families across Canada and the Commonwealth.

“We were reinstated as the Strathcona Mounted Troop official in 1974 and then became the official colour guard for Spruce Meadows in 1975 when they opened and then we’ve been doing this ever since.”

The Musical Ride came to Lethbridge this week during Whoop-Up Days, the first visit from the unit in years.

“We try to get ourselves into actual rodeo events. The reason for it is it’s more local, more our bread and butter and really taps into the roots of the people that originally came with the Strathcona’s,” said Maddison.

“They said they hadn’t been to Lethbridge in a long time and would like to come back and that Whoop-Up Days would be the perfect opportunity to get in front of crowds. We were like, this is a perfect fit for us, too,” said Paul Kingsmith, director of event development at Excite Lethbridge.

Members of the mounted troop are active duty soldiers trained at the modern armoured regiment, but even for those who’ve never been on a horse before, the historic troop has its calling.

“I joined because I wanted to give back to my community,” said Corporal Andy Vu. “It’s nice being able to come here, put on a show for the local population and seeing the kids smile, the parents coming up asking questions, kids coming up to us, it’s an amazing time.”

The regiment was in Lethbridge on Tuesday and Wednesday. Whoop-Up Days continues until Saturday.