The RCR is ranked first in the order of precedence amongst Canadian Army infantry regiments, but in a quirk of the rules of seniority, its 4th battalion is ninth.

The RCR was originally authorized as the Infantry School Corps on 21 December 1883, and established its first three company stations at Fredericton, New Brunswick; St Jean, Quebec; and Toronto, Ontario.

The Infantry School Corps' first battle honours were earned during the North-West Rebellion in 1885, where it fought at Batoche and Cut Knife Creek.

Upon returning to Nova Scotia, its members attested for overseas service with the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF), arriving in France in October 1915 to fight in WW1.

Having delivered the first unqualified good news of the war for the British Empire, the Regiment also distinguished itself on the march north, arriving first at the gates of Pretoria.

In 1914, the regiment was deployed to the Imperial fortress colony of Bermuda for garrison duties, replacing the 2nd Battalion, Lincolnshire Regiment, from September 1914 (arriving at Bermuda on 3 September, 1914, aboard HMCS Canada, escorted by HMCS Niobe) to August 1915, when it was replaced by the 38th Battalion (Ottawa), CEF and returned to Halifax and reattested for overseas service.

Battle honours awarded to The Royal Canadian Regiment for its actions in the First World War included: "Mount Sorrel, Somme, 1916, Flers-Courcelette, Ancre Heights, Arras, 1917, 18, Vimy, 1917, Hill 70, Ypres, 1917, Passchendaele, Amiens, Scarpe, 1918, Hindenburg Line, Canal du Nord, Pursuit to Mons, FRANCE AND FLANDERS, 1914–18".

[11] Among the honours and awards to members of the regiment in the First World War was the Victoria Cross (VC) won by Lieutenant Milton Gregg.

On 1 September 1939 the regiment was mobilized as part of the Canadian Active Service Force as Canada prepared for participation in the Second World War.

When war was declared on September 10, the RCR had already been allocated to the 1st Canadian Infantry Brigade, a formation made up entirely of Ontario units.

Moving to the United Kingdom in December 1939 as a component of the 1st Canadian Infantry Division, the RCR saw hard training for almost four years.

After the 38-day campaign on the island was completed, the regiment was involved in another amphibious landing (codenamed Operation Baytown) at Reggio di Calabria, as part of Allied invasion of the Italian mainland in September.

The RCR fought in several battles of the Italian campaign, including key engagements in the Moro River valley near Ortona in December 1943.

The regiment was transferred to northwest Europe in February 1945 during Operation Goldflake and took part in the liberation the Dutch city of Apeldoorn.

At the same time, the 2nd Battalion of The RCR was relocated to CFB Gagetown, New Brunswick, and reconstituted from the soldiers of the Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada as its two battalions there were also reduced to nil strength and removed from the active regiments in the army's Regular Force order of battle.

During the 1950s and 1960s, battalions of The RCR were stationed as part of 4 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group at Fort York, Germany.

The 2nd Battalion, as part of 5 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group, deployed to the Montreal region to partake in Operation Salon.

These companies were employed on airfield and field hospital security duties.In 1992, soldiers from the English-speaking N Company of the 3rd Battalion (Major Devlin), based in Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Baden-Soellingen in Germany, as an attachment to the French-speaking Royal 22e Régiment, operationally secured the Sarajevo airport during the Yugoslav wars.

This operation saw a redeployment of the entire battle group from Croatia to Sarajevo, under the command of General Lewis MacKenzie.

I want to say a special word about the brave Canadian soldiers who today seek to bring peace, under the United Nations auspices, to a dangerous situation in Bosnia.

The Commendation was officially presented to the unit by Her Excellency, the Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson, CC, CMM, COM, CD, Governor General of Canada and Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Forces during a ceremony which took place at the Citadel in Quebec City on 9 September 2002 ...".

In 2000, the 2nd Battalion had the honour of mounting the Queen's Guard at Buckingham Palace, when a detachment came to London to commemorate the Canadian involvement in the Second Boer War, and to celebrate the re-opening of Canada House.

As the United States prepared to launch military actions against Iraq, 2 RCR formed a provisional battle group and was warned off that if the government decided to participate, it would deploy.

In August 2003, the 3rd Battalion deployed to Kabul Afghanistan as part of Operation Athena for a six-month tour of duty.

When a royal or imperial cypher forms part of the badge of a regiment it is normal for it to change with each succeeding sovereign.

In 1919, George V granted The Royal Canadian Regiment permission to wear "VRI" in perpetuity – a unique privilege.

It also played at events as diverse as the 1980 Silver Broom curling championship in Fredericton, during the Royal Visit to New Brunswick in 1984, and at the 40th anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands in 1985.

[citation needed] In its earlier forms, it was guided by the Standing Orders of The Royal Canadian Regiment of 1935, which constituted its activities.

[34] A notable member of the band is Jean-Pierre Montminy, an officer who has served in La Musique du Royal 22e Régiment as well as at the Canadian Forces School of Music.

First World War: The Regiment perpetuates a number of units of the Canadian Militia and the Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) of the First World War:[39] Regular Force: Reserve Force: It has been suggested in a Canadian professional military journal that the regiment's third battalion (3 RCR) could be adapted to become a specialized light infantry battalion that is able to deploy parachute infantry and marine infantry company groups to support the protection of Canada's sovereignty in the Arctic.