The Canadian Grenadier Guards originated in Montreal, Quebec on 17 November 1859 as the First Battalion Volunteer Militia Rifles of Canada.

[2] The Sixth Battalion Volunteer Militia, Canada was called out on active service from 8 to 31 March and from 1 to 22 June 1866 and served on the South-eastern frontier.

participated and served during the Second Boer War, most (16) being attached to 'E' Company of The Royal Canadian Regiment of Infantry, 2nd (Special Service) Battalion.

On 12 February 1900, the Royal Canadian Regiment of Infantry, 2nd (Special Service) Battalion joined the 19th Brigade to march and fight in the great British offensive aimed at capturing Pretoria, the capital of the Transvaal.

The battalion was soon in action at Paardeberg Drift, suffering heavy casualties on 18 February, and mounting the famous attack that led to the surrender of General Cronje's Boer forces on the 27th.

After the Battle of Paardeberg the 2nd Battalion RCRI fought in the British advance on the Boer capitals of Bloemfontein and Pretoria, gaining in experience and reputation all the while.

By the time they marched past Lord Roberts in Pretoria on 5 June 1900, it was considered by many observers as good as any battalion in the British Army.

While other contingents were also recruited for France and Flanders: the 87th Battalion (Canadian Grenadier Guards), CEF was authorised on 22 December 1915 and embarked for Britain on 23 April 1916.

[2] The regiment contributed a large number of volunteers for the Canadian task forces contingents during the War in Afghanistan.

The history of the Canadian Grenadier Guards parallels in many ways the evolution of Canada as a nation, beginning in the early days after the Treaty of Paris in 1763.

[5] On 12 March 1764, Colonel Frederick Haldimand ordered, from Trois-Rivières, Quebec, the formation of a volunteer unit to aid in the defence of Canada.

The Prince of Wales became the Honorary Colonel, an appointment he continued to hold after his coronation as King Edward VII in 1902.

Active recruiting began on 23 October, and in seven weeks the battalion was raised and ready for its winter training in barracks at Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec.

During the War, it earned 17 Honorary Distinctions, and Private John Francis Young was awarded the Victoria Cross.

[5] After the Battle of Vimy Ridge in April 1917, the increasing difficulty of finding replacements for the English-speaking battalions from Montreal became acute.

On 22 November 1918, King George V granted the title of "Guardsman" to Private soldiers of the Brigade of Guards, and this distinction extended to the Canadian Grenadiers.

In 1924, The Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII) became the Colonel-in-Chief, and was able to inspect the regiment during a visit to Canada in 1927.

[5] At the outbreak of the Second World War, the regiment furnished 20 officers and 125 other ranks to other units before its own mobilisation in 1940 when, as 1st Battalion, the Canadian Grenadier Guards, it reached full strength in three weeks.

In September, proudly wearing the black beret of the Armoured Corps, 22 CAR moved to England where it would continue to train in a number of areas until deployed to Normandy on 21 July 1944.

From that time until VE Day on 8 May 1945, 22 CAR fought throughout the battles around Falaise, the move into Belgium and the Netherlands and finally across the Rhine, earning 12 Honorary Distinctions.

The peacetime routine of training, garrison duties and parades was highlighted by the appointment of King George VI as Colonel-in-Chief, the acceptance of the honorary colonelcy by Field Marshal The Viscount Alexander of Tunis (himself a guardsman), the opening by him of the Regimental Museum as a memorial to the dead in 1950 and the participation by members of the regiment in Korea.

With the formation of the Canadian Guards (a regular unit of four battalions) in 1953, the regiment became the 6th Battalion, under which title it received a new stand of colours from Queen Elizabeth II, the Colonel-in-Chief, in 1959 (the first occasion where a Militia unit received a stand of colours in Canada from the hand of a reigning sovereign).

2 (CGG) Company has participated in the Changing of the Guard on Parliament Hill and Rideau Hall during the summer months.

Members served with and in support of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan; the Canadian name for that mission was Operation Athena.