RRMC Memories

75th Anniversary of Royal Roads  – April 2015 75th Anniversary of Royal Roads will be celebrated in 2015. Royal Roads will celebrate its 55 years as a military institution and the 20th anniversary as Royal Roads University. For the occasion, a sunset ceremony will be held in April (Exact dates TBA) on the former parade…

  Restoring history… Generous donations funded the Rose Garden wall restoration project. The Rose Garden at Royal Roads University is beautiful by design. Part of the original Dunsmuir Estate, the garden was designed by landscape architects Brett and Hall in 1913. Concentric circles form the base for the beds, with near countless blooms arranged by…

The Paverstone Project was initiated by the Vancouver Island Ex-Cadet Club to create a striking visual reminder of the military heritage of what is now Royal Roads University. With the cooperation of Royal Roads University and the help of Navy craftsmen at CFB Esquimalt, the mast which once stood in front of the Castle was…

Fishing in the RRMC Lakes By James (Jim) Cooling, 4889 (RRMC 1956-58, RMC 1958-60) The story begins in 1958 when I was a Senior Cadet at Royal Roads. My mother had died the previous December and my father, a long serving senior NCO in the RCAF, had moved out of Permanent Married Quarters back into…

  Cadet photo albums now online RRU continues to develop and promote its RRMC heritage. Shaggy-haired 1970s recruits getting their first military haircuts. Muddy runners completing the obstacle course. Uniformed cadets at the formal dance. These were some of the people photographed each year at the former Royal Roads Military College. Until now, most of…

Skylarks and life lessons By: Amy Dove Royal Roads Military College had a reputation for being tough. And purposely so. The learning was based on teamwork, leadership and high standards to prepare cadets for career and life. Photo credit: Bradbury collection, RRMC fonds, RRU Archives It always started with the click of boots in the…

Boys from ’63 Return for 50th FRONT ROW [LAYING DOWN]: Dick Wright, Jack Harris and Bruce Corbett SECOND ROW: Jim Kempling, Reg Bird, Keith Ambachtsheer, Steve Buridge, Stu Smart, John Wilson, Gerry Presley BACK ROW: Dallas Mowat, Bob Beardmore, Roman Jakubow [partially hidden], Steve Arnold, Brent Abbott, Bob Jekinson, George Brown, Bill Leggitt, Ken Clarkson,…

Ex-Cadet Biographies A project dedicated to preserving the written history of ex-cadets Royal Roads University staff are collecting stories, biographies and photographs of ex-cadets and former RRMC staff people to be placed in a special binder accessible to museum visitors. If you wish to participate, please submit the following information: name of individual cadet number…

In 1940, HMCS Royal Roads was created as a stone frigate to train naval reserve officers for service in the Second World War. Shortly thereafter, a bell was cast and hung in the porte-cochere in front of Hatley Castle. Traditionally, the ship’s bell is integral to the identity and heritage of a ship, and as…

Christmas at Royal Roads Military College By Karen Inkster Vance, Royal Roads University Karen.Inkster@royalroads.ca For Royal Roads cadets Christmas was synonymous with exams, the Christmas ball and leave to go home. Fitting in time to study was essential since passing (or failing) exams would decide whether or not a cadet would return to Royal Roads…