IN SEARCH of MINERVA's OWL Canada‟S Army and Staff
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IN SEARCH OF MINERVA’S OWL Canada‟s Army and Staff Education (1946-1995) by HOWARD GERARD COOMBS A thesis submitted to the Department of History in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Queen‟s University Kingston, Ontario, Canada January, 2010 Copyright © Howard Gerard Coombs, 2010 ABSTRACT The intellectual history of the Canadian Army from 1946 to 1995 can be traced through the curriculum utilized by the Canadian Army Staff College and the Canadian Forces College to educate the Canadian Army staff officer in conducting warfare within theatres of war. This body of knowledge was analogous to what today comprises the operational level of war. It is a structured vision of conducting conflict that was reaffirmed and sustained by institutional memory created in the crucible of the Second World War and traces its antecedents to the military operations of the Napoleonic Age. These ideas were preserved almost unchanged throughout the Cold War until the introduction of operational art in the late 1980s, as a result of United States influence. The ability of the Canadian Army to maintain this professional knowledge, as a coherent, unchanging whole throughout a period buffeted by social and political change indicates the separateness of the military profession within Canada. This arose from the absence of consistent and durable political guidance during the immediate post war era. As a result the use of the Canadian military as an instrument of national power became disjointed. By default, the unifying factor in Canadian defence activities was maintaining relevance within alliances, particularly in supporting the Pax Americana. This influence can be discerned by applying theories of knowledge transmission and change to the Cold War curriculum used to educate Canadian Army staff officers. i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This work is the result of years of research and thought into the nature of intellectual change within the Canadian military, particularly the Army. It is the product of many conversations and debates, as well as examinations of historical and contemporary records. The number of people who have assisted me throughout this journey is innumerable and I will undoubtedly miss many individuals in these brief acknowledgements and if any feel slighted by omission please accept my apologies in advance. First, I would like to thank the Department of History at Queen‟s University for affording me the opportunity to pursue graduate studies and providing the facilities and support which made possible my efforts. Along with that it is necessary to highlight a number of other institutions that provided invaluable assistance in the completion of these studies. They include the Canadian Forces College, the Canadian Forces Leadership Institute, the Canadian Forces Directorate of History and Heritage, and the Fort Frontenac Library (formerly the Canadian Forces Land Command and Staff College Library). I would also like to express my gratitude to my supervising professor, Dr. Allan English, as well as Drs. Jackie Duffin and Jane Errington for their perspectives, ongoing advice and encouragement, throughout the entire process. Moreover, it is essential to acknowledge the tolerance and support of my bride of twenty years, Donna, in addition to my children, Leo and Lindsay, who while not always fully apprised concerning the details of this project ensured that I was able to complete it. In a large cast of supporters my long standing friend and colleague Lieutenant- ii Colonel John Conrad deserves special mention for his yeoman service in devoting many hours to proof reading my final efforts. Also, I owe a debt of appreciation to those soldiers, Non-Commissioned officers and officers of not only the Canadian Army, but also allied armies, who I have the privilege of knowing over the last three decades. These men and women enabled me to better appreciate knowledge transmission and intellectual change within military environments. Without those perspectives this work would not have been possible. Finally, I would like to acknowledge my parents, Leo and Margaret Coombs for teaching me to appreciate the value of education. The perspective that they imparted has served me well over the years and assisted me greatly with bringing this document to completion. I thank-you both for your advice and wish that you were here today to see that your persistence with a sometimes intransigent offspring eventually did bear fruit. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract...........................................................................................................................i Acknowledgements........................................................................................................ii Table of Contents..........................................................................................................iv List of Tables.................................................................................................................vi Chapter 1 Introduction: The Importance of Professional Military Education...............1 Chapter 2 Mars and Minerva........................................................................................22 Chapter 3 Supporting the Pax Britannica: Canadian Army Staff Education Prior to the Second World War (1867-1938)............................................................................42 Chapter 4 Creating the “Brain” of an Army: Canadian Army Staff Education During the Second World War (1939-1945)............................................................................73 Chapter 5 Separate and Distinct: Canadian Military Developments of the Cold War (1945-1990)..................................................................................................................96 Chapter 6 A Canadian Vision of Professional Military Education: Establishing the Army Staff College (1946-1958)...............................................................................133 Chapter 7 Paths Found and Lost: Canadian Army Staff Education (1959-1973).....181 Chapter 8 New Beginnings: Inter-service Staff Education at the Canadian Forces College (1974-1986)..................................................................................................229 Chapter 9 Following Another Paradigm Shift: The Canadian Forces College and the Operational Level of War (1987-1995)......................................................................260 Chapter 10 Conclusion: In the Arms of Empire.........................................................299 Bibliography...............................................................................................................319 Appendices – Appendix A Canadian Military Ranks.......................................................................345 Appendix B Canadian Army Organization................................................................346 Appendix C 1926 Criteria for Selection to Attend the Staff Colleges, Camberley and Quetta.........................................................................................................................348 Appendix D Grading - Canadian War Staff Courses.................................................350 iv Appendix E Extracted from 1941, 1942 and 1943 Criteria for Selection to Attend Canadian War Staff Courses......................................................................................352 Appendix F Chronology - Second World War Canadian War Staff Courses............355 Appendix G: Canadian Army Staff Courses/ Canadian Land Forces Command and Staff Courses 1946-1973............................................................................................357 Appendix H: List of Foreign Officers Who Attended the Canadian Army Staff Courses/Canadian Land Forces Command and Staff Courses 1946–1973................358 Appendix I: Extracted from CANADIAN ARMY ROUTINE ORDERS Nos. 6831-6835..........................................................................................................373 Appendix J: “TRAINING STANDARDS FOR ARMY OFFICERS”.....................377 Appendix K: Extracted from “A new Professional Development System for Canadian Forces Officers”.........................................................................................................379 Appendix L: Extracted from “The Officer Professional Development System” THE CANADIAN LAND FORCES STAFF COURSE (CLFSC)…………………….....384 Appendix M: Extracted from Royal Canadian Air Force Staff College Calendar Course 23: 1958-1959...............................................................................................389 Appendix N: Extracted from Canadian Forces College Staff College Calendar Course One, 1966-67.................................................................................................393 Appendix O: Extracted from “The Officer Professional Development System” THE COMMAND AND STAFF COURSE (CSC)...................................................396 v LIST OF TABLES Table 6-1 CASC/CLFCSC Instructors 1946-1973.....................................................141 Table 6-2 CASC/CLFCSC Students 1946-1973........................................................142 Table 6-3 Rank upon Retirement 1946 CASC DS.....................................................145 Table 6-4 CASC Entrance Examination Results........................................................154 Table 6-5 CASC/CLFCSC Course Mark Distribution...............................................158 Table 7-1 The Staff College Examination..................................................................221