About 1188 RCACC

The 1188 is an army cadet corps located in Oakville, Ontario. Established 1924. Our affiliated unit is The Lorne Scots (Peel, Dufferin and Halton Regiment) Our corps sponsors are the Oakville Historical Society and the Halton Regional Police Association.

Regimental Marches

The Campbells are Coming

John Peel

Royal Canadian Army Cadets

Canada started conducting voluntary military training of its youth over 140 years ago. The first cadet units were formed in schools as early as 1861 (six years before Confederation). However, these early units could have included members from 13 to 60 years of age, making them more like officer training corps or auxiliary militia units than youth organisations.

High school cadets were separated from the adult militia in 1879. 74 "Associations for Drill in Educational Institutions" were formed for young men over 14 years of age still enrolled in school. This is the date that is recognised as the official founding of army cadets in Canada.

In 1910, Sir Donald Alexander Smith- Lord Strathcona- the Canadian High Commissioner to Britain, set up a trust fund of $500 000 for army cadet training. The trust fund is a demonstration of Lord Strathcona's good faith in the youth of Canada. Today, nearly a century later, the Lord Strathcona trust is still providing equipment for cadet training.

During World War One, over 40 000 former army cadets served in Canada's armed forces. Of the 64 Victoria Crosses awarded during the war, 25 were awarded to former army cadets. During World War Two, it is estimated that nearly 124 000 former army cadets served in the forces, with more than 27 000 awarded decorations.

In 1942, in recognition of the significant contribution of former cadets to the war effort, His Majesty King George VI conferred the title "Royal" on the Canadian Army Cadets.

Today, there are 20 000 army cadets enrolled in 451 corps across Canada. Each corps has a distinguished history of service to their communities. Together, these cadet corps are making history as part of the Royal Canadian Army Cadets.