Units and formations in which these characteristics are evident can take on any task and quickly improve their readiness levels simply by increasing the time and resources available and the intensity of activity. They can prepare for any possibility by adjusting their focus. They can adapt quickly to new weapons and equipment, and the leaders can assume responsibilities two levels up.

Units and formations lacking any these indicators are most assuredly not training properly. If they have not mastered these requirements, then they should go back to the drawing board and rebuild. They should train until they meet the specified standards and achieve these criteria.

TRAINING - THE FUNDAMENTAL ACTIVITY

Training is not just one more activity performed in the Army. When not engaged in operations it is the fundamental activity. It is the raison d'etre of an army in peacetime and the. most important activity in preparing for operations and war. Even if assigned frequent taskings in para-military roles and non-warfighting missions and even if the support in money, equipment and other resources is not at the optimum, officers, both commissioned and noncommissioned, must keep the profession of arms alive through training. That is the responsibility of the leadership of the army and training is the means by which the character, soul, spirit and muscle of the Army is molded, exercised and developed.

Through effective training, brigade and unit commanders can learn from the past, build on lessons learned and prepare for the inevitable strains, challenges and opportunities of the future. Sound training will build strong teams which will succeed no matter the task. The most important team in the Canadian Army is the unit, the regiment, or the battalion. I encourage commanders and leaders in the Army to train their units hard and train smart.

Lieutenant-General Sir Francis Tuker in his book, Approach to Battle, remarks:

“Train hard: fight easy On the day of battle every officer and every man will bless the leader who has held fast to this motto and lived up to it. They will grumble in peace and rejoice in war, but in both peace and war they will have the self-respect that all men have who are true masters of their craft.” 24

APPENDICES:

BOOKS TO READ ON COLLECTIVE TRAINING

There is not a lot written on the subject of collective training in the army. I would recommend the following books:

NOTES

1. Stacey, Colonel C.P. The Official History Of The Canadian Army in the Second World War, Vol. 1, Six Years of War, Ottawa: Queen's Printer, 1967. P253;

2. Simonds, Lieutenant-General, G.G. Commentary and Observations, The Canadian Military: A Profile, ed., Hector Massey, Toronto: Copp Clark, 1972. P 267;

3. Millet, A.R. and Murray, W. Military Effectiveness, Volume III, The Second World War, Boston: Allen & Unwin, 1988.P125;

4. Sullivan, General G.R. and Harper, Colonel M.V. Hope Is Not A Method, New York: Random House, 1996. P 235;

5. Canadian Army Manual of Administration and Discipline: 1957, Ottawa: Queen's Printer. P 1;

6. Kitching, General George, Mud and Green Fields, Langley B.C: Battleline Books, 1985. P128;

7. English, Lieutenant-Colonel John, Failure In High Command: The Canadian Army and The Normandy Campaign, Ottawa: The Golden Dog Press, 1995. P 315;

8. Ibid. P317;

9. Worthington, Lieutenant-General, F.F. Instructions to Officers, 1945, Toronto Sun, Peter Worthington, 7 July, 1997, P11;

10. Blackburn, George, Where the Hell Are the Guns? Toronto: McClelland & Stewart Inc, 1997. P76;

11. Tuker, Lieutenant-General Sir Francis, Approach To Battle, London: Cassell & Company Ltd, 1963;

12. English. Op Cit. P317;

13. Millet and Murray. Op Cit. P112;

14. Sullivan and Harper. Op Cit. P 190;

15. Granatstein, J.L. The Generals, Toronto: Stoddart Publishing Company Limited, 1993. P30;

16. P. LaRose-Edwards, J. Dangerfield, J. Weekes, Non-Traditional Military training in Canadian Peacekeeping, The Commission of learning into the Development of Canadian Armed Forces to Somalia, Ottawa: Minister of Public Works of Government Service, 1997

17. Whitaker, Brigadier-General D. And Shelagh, Dieppe: Tragedy To Triumph, Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 1992. P72;

18. Granatstein, Op Cit. P67;

19. English. Op Cit. P 308;

20. Montgomery, Field Marshal, A History Of Warfare, Great Britain: George Rainbird Ltd, 1968. P 23;

21. Dunlop, Major W.A.S. The Fighting Soldier, London & Toronto: William Heinemann Ltd, 1940. P4;

22. Sullivan and Harper. Op Cit. P 143;

23. Ibid. Op Cit. P 193; and

24. Tuker. Op Cit. P391.