LCol Henry Smith, 1894



Major-Genral Henry Smith: The Royal Canadian Who Became JAG

  Fellow Royals

On 01 October 2011 the Judge Advocate-General's Branch will commemorate the 100th anniversary of the founding of this particular Branch of the CF. The event which marked the creation of this Branch was the appointment of one Major-General Henry Smith as the very first Judge Advocate-General on 01 October 1911. It will come as a surprise to many Royal Canadians that Henry Smith is actually one of us. After the founding of the Infantry School Corps on 21 December 1883, Major Henry Smith became one of the founding officers of this Permanent Force corps that went on to become The Royal Canadian Regiment. Smith commanded C Company at the Toronto station under none other than William D. Otter from 1883-87. During the North-West Rebellion of 1885, Major Smith commanded C Company in battle and was Mentioned in Despatches for his gallantry and leadership under fire during the engagement at Fish Creek, 24 April 1885.

In 1887 Smith was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel and named the very first Comandant of the Regimental station of the Infantry School Corps at Wolseley Barracks, London, Ontario, thus beginning our very long association with the city of London. This was a command that he held until 1896. As there was no Commanding Officer of the Infantry School Corps/The Royal Canadian Regiment until 1896, Henry Smith, along with such senior officers as Otter and George Maunsell, was one of a very small number of Commandants who determined the culture, framework, and early traditions of the The RCR as it truly began to develop as a Regiment during the 1890s.


Officers of The Royal Canadian Regiment, Levis Camp, 1894

Asked to provide biographical and career details about Henry Smith during his years with The RCR by the Judge Advocate-General's Branch, I began carrying out research last December. It seemed to me that Smith should not only be remembered by the JAG, but was certainly someone whom our own Regiment might care to take a longer and more possessing look at. His career as an army officer incredibley spanned the years 1862-1919 and he played a pivotal role in the development of both the The Royal Candian Regiment and the JAG during the formative years of both institutions. For anyone interested in Henry Smith and how this early infantry officer of The RCR went on to become the very first JAG, I would humbley offer a biographical article (see attachment) I have written about Smith, "Major-General Henry Smith:The Royal Canadian Who Became JAG." In researching this article I was absolutely fascinated by the huge role that politics and political patronage played in the early develpmental history of our army.

As well as my biographical artice, I have attached three pictures of Henry Smith.

Pro Patria

Ross Appleton
Captain
Regimental Adjutant
The Royal Canadian Regiment

Major-General Henry Smith: The Royal Canadian Who Became JAG Biography