June 1989 - Volume 1 No. 2

The following piece comes from Forgotten Soldiers by Fred Gaffen (Theytus Books, Penticton, B.C.), an account of Native soldiers' involvement in the two World Wars.

TWO LARGELY INDIAN BATTALIONS

114th Battalion

Many members of the Six Nations from the Brantford area enlisted voluntarily in the 114th Battalion, nicknamed "Brock's Rangers". The 114th was authorized December 22, 1914. Recruits joined from Haldimand County as well as from the Six Nations Reserve. A considerable number of Iroquois also came from Caughnawaga and St. Regis. Some 350 Indians all joined the battalion. A few received commissions. Two crossed tomahawks surmounted by an Indian head were chosen as the regimental badge. The 114th, like many other battalions, was broken up about a year later in England and its members were dispersed as reinforcements, some of the Indian members going to the 107th Battalion.

Attached to the 114th Battalion was a thirty-piece band of whom most were Indians from the Six Nations Reserve at Ohsweken. The band followed the battalion to Camp Borden and then overseas to England where it toured for ceremonial purposes. A feature of their concert was Indian war dances performed by some of the bandsmen. In 1917 the band was broken up and many of its members were assigned to combat units.

107th Battalion

More than 500 Indians of many different tribes from all across Canada served in the 107th Battalion. Raised in December 1915 in the Winnipeg area, with support of the Indian Department, this battalion was at first envisaged as an all Indian unit with white officers. The person largely responsible for raising and recruiting the battalion was the tall and stately Glen Lyon Campbell, Chief Inspector of Indian Affairs in the Department of Indian Affairs in Winnipeg. He was fluent in several native languages and had served in the militia during the North-West Rebellion. Lieutenant Colonel Campbell, a non-Indian, became the first officer commanding the battalion in July 1915 and he helped train the men in Canada and England. The other commissioned officers were also white to the best of my knowledge.

Quite soon it was found that there were insufficient Indian recruits to make the 107th Battalion an entirely Indian unit so non-Indian reinforcements were added. The battalion embarked from Halifax on September 18, 1916, and arrived at Liverpool a week later. On February 1st, 1917, the unit was converted to a pioneer battalion and on February 25th it crossed to Bologna. It saw action in France and Belgium under Lieutenant Colonel Campbell. At Hill 70, near Lens, in August of 1917, the 107th Battalion dug communication trenches under intense fire between the Canadian and German front lines. Casualties were heavy. During the assault on Hill 70, Private Andrew William Anderson from Punnichy, Saskatchewan, a Cree in the 107th Pioneers, earned the Military Medal. The citation reads.

On August 15, 1917, Private Anderson accompanied Major Warren across "No Man's Land" under exceptionally heavy fire. He assisted in taping out the communication trenches to be constructed and although shells were bursting all around, bravely carried on with his task. His utter disregard of danger was a magnificent example of coolness and determination. Later, during the work, he carried wounded out of shell fire, and throughout the engagement was invaluable assistance to the working party and to the wounded.

Colonel Campbell, who received the Distinguished Service Order, died of illness at the front on October 20, 1917. In 1918 the 107th Pioneer Battalion was disbanded and its members were absorbed into a brigade of engineers. Thus came to a quiet end a unit with significant numbers of Indians.

Should there have been a Canadian Indian battalion in the Great War? Practical considerations such as distance, rivalries among the various Indian groups in Canada and recruitment problems would have made it a difficult if not impossible undertaking. One's views as to whether this country's military force should serve as a cultural melting pot may affect each reader's opinion.

Maori battalions were formed in New Zealand in both World Wars, notably in World War II. In contrast, the Americans integrated Indians within the army. They followed this course as a result of an unsuccessful experiment in 1892 of separate Indian infantry and cavalry units in the regular army.1 A special study was undertaken by Lieutenant John R Eddy, a former agent with the northern Cheyenne, as to the best utilization of the Indians in the American forces. It recommended "that recognition of the scouting qualifications of the Indians be officially indicated wit a view to having his services more generally made use of in the battalion scout platoons." This proposal was never acted upon. The overwhelming view in the United States among both Whites and Indians was in favour of integrating the American Indian soldier among the white units.2

Thus two battalions, the 114th and 107th, which had large concentrations of Indian recruits, were not notably successful. However, many soldiers of native ancestry shone individually within the various battalions as excellent scouts and snipers. This was in keeping with their traditional way of life and culture where individual feats of heroism in battle were held in high esteem. Life in the forces helped promote integration as well as assimilation.

1 J. C. Wise, " The American Indians in the World War", U.S. Army Military History Institute, m.d., unpublished, p. 14.