Military Parade

History
Ceremonial tasks in Ottawa began in 1959 with the inaugural Changing of the Guard Ceremony mounted for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on Parliament Hill. The ceremony is centuries old and is still performed today.

The Canadian Guards Regiment, a regular army infantry unit made up of four battalions with strong affiliations to the British Brigade of Guards conducted the first performance. The Canadian Guards carried-out public duties in the Nation’s capital until the unit was reduced to nil-strength in 1970.

In 1971, the responsibility for the Changing of the Guard ceremony fell to two army reserve regiments – the Canadian Grenadier Guards (CGG) and the Governor General’s Foot Guards (GGFG). Both units contributed a company of infantry soldiers for public duties throughout the summer months.

In 1980, the Ceremonial Guard was created to plan, prepare and execute the prestigious task of public duties in the National Capital Region during the summer. This new unit retained the traditional ties to the Guards who performed the parade the previous decade - the CGG and GGFG. The uniforms of these regiments can still been seen today and consist of scarlet tunics and bearskin caps that represent Canada’s Household troops; a cogent symbol of Canada’s relationship to the monarchy and one of Ottawa’s most treasured icons. In 2016, the Ceremonial Guard ceased to be an independent unit and was reformed as a sub-unit within the GGFG. Further, Ceremonial Guard has become a summer task which is force generated from across the Canadian Army, and consists of members of both the Regular and the Primary Reserve Forces.