Original Canadian WWII Era Royal Canadian Dragoon Fur Busby Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. A very nice fur parade busby with brass Canada button and yellow wool bag denoting Royal Canadian Dragoon issue. Original size label still intact and reads 7 1/8. Features a wide leather sweatband and satin/rayon interior. One area of noticeable fur loss and some fading but in overall good condition.

At the start of the Second World War, The Royal Canadian Dragoons were still horse cavalry and would remain so until the regiment finally dismounted in August, 1940. On 24 May 1940, the regimental headquarters and one squadron mobilized together with the headquarters and one squadron of Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Royal Canadians) to form the short-lived 1st Canadian Motorcycle Regiment, CASF (RCD/LSH (RC)). On 21 September 1940, this regiment was redesignated as Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Royal Canadians) CASF and the Dragoons returned to the regiment. The regiment subsequently mobilized as an armoured car regiment, The Royal Canadian Dragoons (Armoured Car Regiment), CASF, on 21 September 1940. It was initially earmarked to serve in the 5th Canadian Armoured Division and embarked for Britain on 13 November 1941. The RCD landed in Sicily on 8 November 1943 and moved to mainland Italy on 5 January 1944. There it fought as the armoured car regiment for I Canadian Corps until being transferred to the 1st Canadian Infantry Division as the divisional armoured car regiment on 14 July 1944. Due to the mountainous terrain of Italy, the regiment fought much of its time there in a dismounted role as infantry.

In March 1945 the regiment moved with the I Canadian Corps to North-West Europe as part of OPERATION GOLDFLAKE, and the regiment resumed its role as the I Canadian Corps armoured car regiment. The regiment was heavily engaged in operations in the Netherlands and Germany until the end of the war. The RCD was the first Allied unit to advance through Holland to the North Sea, famously liberated the city of Leeuwarden and fought off an attempted German amphibious assault. The fighting was so intense and chaotic that two of the squadron sergeants-major, WOII Deeming and WOII Forgrave, were separately awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal (second in precedence to the Victoria Cross) for dismounting the members of their supply convoys and fighting through enemy infantry positions to get fuel, ammunition, water and rations forward to their squadrons.