History

The Irish Fusiliers of Canada (The Vancouver Regiment) was formed in East Vancouver in 1911. The Regiment was a Militia Regiment of the Canadian Army and served with distinction in the First and Second World Wars. During WWII the Irish Fusiliers Pipe Band was raised under Pipe Major James Watts and continued to be part of Fusiliers until the Regiment was disbanded in December 1964. In the 1990s a decision was made to amalgamate the name and Battle Honours of the Irish Fusiliers of Canada with the British Columbia Regiment (BCR) in order to preserve them. From the planned amalgamation came the desire to rebuild the Irish Pipes & Drums. To that end in 1997 a civilian pipe band was successfully raised which became the present day British Columbia Regiment (DCO) Irish Pipes and Drums. With the completion of the Regimental amalgamation in 2002 the pipe band is a living symbol of the Irish traditions that are now a part of the history of the BCR.

The Irish Fusiliers of Canada (The Vancouver Regiment)

The Irish Fusiliers were formed in 1911 in East Vancouver and served until being placed on the supplementary role of battle in 1964. The original Fusiliers were housed in a drill hall near Stanley Park until it was destroyed by fire in 1960. The band maintains a proud sense of honour in representing the history of Vancouver's Irish Fusiliers.

Pipe Major James Watt

James Watt has excelled in all branches of piping - as a performer, Pipe Major, teacher, composer, and administrator. Born in 1922, James began piping at an early age under the instruction of his father. He went on to take lessons from Ed Esson, Donald Maclver and John Gillies. When he turned professional in 1941, he won nearly every possible open prize including the MacCrimmon Cairn four times. Too young to be sent overseas with the Seaforths during the beginning of the war, he was transferred into the Irish Fusiliers Battalion, where he built the pipe band from the ground up. Once sent overseas, he took lessons from P-MWilliam Ross in Edinburgh.

At age 23, he became the highest-ranking Pipe Major in the British commonwealth, and likely the youngest. After the war, James was well known for his weekly "Wandering Piper": radio show on CKMO Vancouver. After taking a long break from piping to serve in the Canadian Army, James founded the Western Academy of Pipe Music in 1978. He was also fond of composing and of studying piobaireachd. His piobaireachd playing ws greatyl influenced by John Macdonald in Inverness.

The Great Wars		The Uniform
The regiment served in both world war I and II. Training in Vernon in 1914 the Irish Fusiliers were recruiting from men in British Columbia.		"A traditional form of dress in Ireland was the "leine - chroich". The leine - chroich was a tunic worn loose down to knee. The fabric was normally saffron coloured (a dye was extracted from the Crocus flower by the Celts of Northern Europe from at least the time of Christ). Over the saffron shirt a large heavy woollen cloak, known as the Great Irish Mantle, was worn.Through the centuries these articles of clothing came to be the saffron kilt and the great cloak of pipers in the Royal Irish Rangers." http://www.royalirishrangers.co.uk/uniform.html