Royal Canadian Military Institute: 100 Years

J.L. Granatstein is a professor of History at York University and author
of Pirouette: Pierre Trudeau and Canadian Foreign Policy.

The Royal Canadian Military Institute was formed in Toronto in 1890 as a
club for militia officers and a vehicle for fostering Canada’s
military spirit. That such an organization has lasted a century in this
most unwarlike of societies is a tribute to those who believe that in a
world of carnivores it is best to be prepared.

This centenary volume features a combination of text and photographs.
The text, by Desmond Morton, is an account of the Institute and its
development; it is also a brief history of Canada’s military past in
the last hundred years and, because it is written by a leading military
historian, it is full of revealing anecdotes and information. The
photos, however, tend to be a hodgepodge; illustrating not so much the
rcmi as the history of Canada’s military involvement, from the South
African War to un peacekeeping. They are good photographs, but the
captions are poorly done and the logic behind the selection is nowhere
explained. The illustrations of Institute activities, which complete the
volume, will be of interest to past and present members only.