List of Sergeants-at-Arms of the Canadian House of Commons

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The Sergeants-at-Arms of the House of Commons of Canada is a senior officer for the legislative body appointed by Governor General-in-Council through letter patent under the Great Seal of Canada.[1] The Sergeant-at Arms assists the Clerk of the House of Commons as head of parliamentary precinct services, performing certain administrative and ceremonial functions, and maintaining order and security in the parliamentary buildings.[1]

Ceremonial functions performed by the sergeant-at-arms includes administering the Canadian oath of allegiance to newly elected members of the House of Commons.[1] Additionally it is the sergeant-at-arms’ responsibility to bring the ceremonial mace into the legislative chambers before the Speaker of the House of Commons enters the chambers.[1] The sergeant-at-arms occupies a bar in the chambers until proceedings are completed, after which he removes the ceremonial mace from the chambers.[1]

Ten individuals have been appointed to the position since Canadian Confederation in 1867. All previous appointees previously held positions in the Canadian military or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police;[1] although there is no requirement that requires appointees to be drawn from these services. The current Sergeant-at-Arms is Pat McDonell, who was formally appointed to the position in July 2019.[2]

List of sergeant-at-arms[edit]

No. Image Name Branch/Service Appointed[1] Left office Notes
1 Lieutenant-Colonel Donald William MacDonnell Canadian Militia[note 1] 2 November 1867 Appointed to the position during the first session of the Parliament of Canada. Previously served as the Sergeant-at-Arms of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada from 14 June 1854 to 1 July 1867.[1]
2 Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Robert Smith Canadian Militia[note 1] 13 January 1892 20 September 1917 Previously served as Deputy Sergeant-at-Arms for the House of Commons of Canada from 1872 to 1892.[1]
3 Lieutenant-Colonel Henry William Bowie Canadian Militia[note 1] 5 March 1918 Previously served as Deputy Sergeant-at-Arms for the House of Commons of Canada from 1891 to 1918.[1]
4 Lieutenant-Colonel Harry Judson Coghill Canadian Militia[note 1] 26 July 1930 9 January 1934 Died in office
5 Major Milton Fowler Gregg[note 2] Canadian Militia[note 1] 13 February 1934 Gregg was recalled to active service with the Canadian Army during the Second World War, requiring the Clerk of the House of Commons, Arthur Beauchesne to assume the acting role of Sergeant-at-Arms while Gregg was on active duty.[1]
6 Lieutenant-Colonel William John Franklin Canadian Army 24 August 1945 1960
7 Lieutenant-Colonel David Vivian Currie Canadian Army 7 January 1960 1978
8 Major General Maurice Gaston Cloutier Canadian Army 27 April 1978 24 March 2005 Left office due to illness after consultating with the Clerk to the House of Commons. After Cloutier's departure, Audrey O'Brien, the Deputy Clerk of the House of Commons, served as the acting sergeant-at-arms from March 2005 to September 2006.[1]
9 Chief Superintendent Kevin Vickers Royal Canadian Mounted Police 1 September 2006 January 2015 First civilian with no military background to be appointed to the position. Previously served as a chief superintendent with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.[1]
10 Assistant Commissioner Pat McDonell Royal Canadian Mounted Police 4 July 2019 Incumbent Previously served as the acting sergeant-at-arms from January 2015 to July 2019, when he was formally appointed to the position.[2]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e The Canadian Militia was renamed the Canadian Army through an Order in Council in November 1940.[3]
  2. ^ Held the rank of major when initially appointed as a sergeant-at-arms. He was later promoted to the rank of brigadier while serving during the Second World War.

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Sergeant-at-Arms of the House of Commons since 1867". www.ourcommons.ca. Parliament of Canada. 2009. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  2. ^ a b Paas-Lang, Christian (4 July 2019). "New sergeant-at-arms appointed in Ottawa". CBC News. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
  3. ^ Stacey, Charles Perry (1955). "The Army Programme for 1941" (PDF). Official History of the Canadian Army in the Second World War Volume I: The Army in Canada, Britain and the Pacific. Ministry of National Defence (Canada). p. 89.
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