Royal Canadian Armour Corps (RCAC): Major-General Frederic Franklin Worthington MC, MM, CD
Major-General Frederic Franklin Worthington MC, MM, CD
(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 4232403)
Fox Armoured Car Mk I, with Major-General Frederic Franklin Worthington MC, MM, CD.
Major-General Frederic Franklin WorthingtonMC, MM, CD (17 Sep 1889 – 8 Dec 1967), nicknamed "Worthy" and"Fighting Frank", was a senior Canadian Army officer. He isconsidered the father of the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps.
Worthington was born in Peterhead, Scotland. His military career began,somewhat unofficially, as a mercenary. He served in the Nicaraguan Army in thewar against San Salvador and Honduras, but when the Nicaraguan Republicangovernment fell, the army dissolved and Worthy left the country to avoidcapture. He later found work sailing on cargo steamers.
The life of a mercenary was appealing to Worthy, and he soon found himself backin the thick of things, this time gunrunning to Cuba for which he was imprisonedin Cuba in 1908. In 1913, Worthy fought on the side of Francisco Madero in theMexican Civil War against the Diaz government. His war service was short-lived however, as he was wounded in a battle.
Worthington served in the Canadian Machine Gun Corps in 1917. He was awarded the Military Medal for actions near Vimy Ridge, on 6 January 1917 for holding his position during a German advance. He was later awarded a bar to his MM.
Bruce Forsyth conducted extensive research into MGen Worthington's military history. he wrote, "In 1916, Worthy shipped to France with the Black Watch and into the trenches a Kemel Hill. Worthy saw tanks used for the first time on 15 Sept 1916, during the Battle of the Somme. The idea of a mechanized fighting force was born out of the cavalry regiments of the 1800’s. At that time, tanks were called His Majesty’s Land Ships and manned by personnel from all service branches, including Marines. Their use was a partial success, as numerous broke down before getting to the front lines, but their potential was quite evident.
Worthy, now with the Machine Gun Corps, was awarded the Military Medal for actions near Vimy Ridge, on 6 January 1917 for holding his position during a German advance, initially alone, but a soldier he knew only as “Quigley” from the 44th Battalion soon joined him. Worthy had gone forward to check on another section, but when he returned to his own section, he discovered that they had been ordered to withdraw. Ironically, “Quigley” would later receive 28 days field punishment for abandoning his post to come to Worthy’s aid. When Worthy heard this, he immediately protested to the soldier’s Commanding Officer that “Quigley” be cleared and awarded the Military Medal too. Army records have no mention of “Quigley” ever receiving the Military Medal.
In the spring of 1918, Worthy earned a bar for his Military Medal and a promotion to 2Lt. This unit was later to be absorbed into the 1st Canadian Motor Machine-Gun Brigade (CMMB), established by former French Army officer Raymond Brutinel, an engineer who lived in Canada prior to WWI. Brutinel first proposed a mobile force with armour protection and funded it with money raised privately. It was also under Brutinel that machine guns were first used like artillery.
Worthy further saw the potential of tank warfare during the battle of Amiens on 1 July 1918 when the Australian Tank Corps won a decisive victory using the “whippet” tank for the first time (a “whippet” tank can be found on display at Borden). Tanks has succeeded in creating fear in the Germans, but Worthy was one of a few British officers who realized this potential, and development of this new form of warfare never took off. Ironically, it was the Germans who would develop them into an effective fighting tool in the years leading up to the Second World War.
It wasn’t until early 1918 that the Canadian Tank Corps was formed, equipped with British Mark V’s and French Renault tanks. The end of WWI in November 1918 meant the end Canada’s first foray into an armoured corps, as all armoured units were disbanded.
In early 1919, when most troops were being demobilized, Worthy accepted an offer to join the Permanent Force Army. His first posting was to Montreal to re-organize two militia machine-gun units. From there he was posted on 1 January 1920 to Ottawa in the rank of Captain and to Rosedale Barracks in Toronto in 1921, with summer training at the Canadian Small Arms School at Rockcliffe Ranges in Ottawa, the current site of the RCMP Barracks. In 1923, Worthy was posted to the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry at Fort Osborne Barracks in Winnipeg.
Worthy married Clara Dignum in 1924. Clara, known to all as “Larry”, bore Frederic a son Peter in 1927 and a daughter Robin in 1929. Peter would later go on to serve in both the Royal Canadian Navy during the last years of WWII and with the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry in the Korean War, before embarking on a career in journalism. Readers of the Toronto Sun will know Peter Worthington as a columnist and founding editor.
Worthy had repeatedly stated a need for mechanization of the Army and by 1930, a mechanized Army force was finally established, resulting in the purchase of 12 Machine-gun carriers “Carden-Lloyds”, which were sent to Kingston for training courses.
Worthy was posted to Toronto in 1934 as Deputy assistant, Adjutant and QM General for Militia District #2 and in 1935, he was posted to Ottawa to administer PM Bennet’s Unemployment Relief Camps.
By 1936, with the threat of another European war looming, the idea of a Tank Corps for the Canadian Army was revived. Worthy was chosen to organize and command a training centre.
On 1 November 1936, the Canadian Tank School was established at Wolseley Barracks in London, Ontario. Worthy became the first Commandant of the new school, overseeing a complement of seven officers, eighteen NCOs, 12 machine gun carriers but had no tanks. Engines were acquired form numerous sources for maintenance practice.
Worthy, now an Acting Major, was posted to Bovington Army Camp in England to learn more about tanks.
The Canadian Tank School’s stay in London was short lived due to a shortage of adequate training space. The school re-located to Camp Borden on 1 May 1938, where it was re-named the Canadian Armoured Fighting Vehicle School. Worthy was posted to Camp Borden along with the school.
During the winter of 1938 – 39, now-Lieutenant Colonel Worthington arranged for training courses for members of the non-permanent active militia across the country, with practical training at Borden the following summer.
With the outbreak of World War II, the School became an important training centre for Canada’s emerging Armoured Corps. The school went through several name changes, including the Canadian Armoured Fighting Vehicles Training Centre, before finally settling on A-33 Canadian Armoured Corps Training Establishment.
As the school had no tanks to use for training, Worthy went to the U.S. looking for assistance. With the help of General George Patton, Worthy unofficially bought 265 Renauld tanks, built in 1917 but still in new condition, from the storage facility at the Rock Island Arsenal. As the U.S. was still neutral at this time and could not officially sell arms to other countries, the tanks were sold as scrap metal and shipped to the Camp Borden foundry under the name of “Mr. F.F. Worthington”.
The armoured corps school got off to a rocky start, however. In early 1940, National Defence Headquarters (NDHQ) ordered the Tank School to close and convert to infantry training. Worthy saw this as a big mistake, and did not disband the tactics, wireless and gunnery training sections of CAVFTC, something that NDHQ did not notice this for a long time.
The ill-advised decision to terminate armoured training was reversed on 13 August 1940, with the official formation of the Canadian Armoured Corps. Hitler’s success with armoured units in France lead to the reinstatement of the Canadian armoured training program. Former Calvery units were then converted to Armoured units.
Two additional schools were also established at Camp Borden: “A-27 & A-28 Canadian Armoured Corps Training, although A-27 CACTC moved to Camp Dundurn in Saskatchewan in January 1942.
Range facilities were constructed at Borden for the Armoured School, but proved inadequate due to other training going on at the same time. As a result, the Meaford Armoured Fighting Vehicle Range, known locally as “The Meaford Tank Range” opened in 1942 on 17,500 acres of land on the shores of Georgian Bay.
Locally, the Grey & Simcoe Foresters of Barrie were placed on active service in 1940. The Grey & Simcoe Foresters were broken into Two Battalions, with the newly formed 2nd Battalion remaining a reserve force regiment, providing reinforcements for the active service 1st Battalion. At the time, the Grey & Simcoe Foresters were an infantry regiment, but on 15 May 1942, 1st Battalion was re-designated an armoured regiment. Re-named 26 Army Tank Regiment, Grey & Simcoe Foresters, a designation they would hold until 1943, when the unit dispersed and it’s members assimilated with other Active Force armoured regiments."
After the First World War, he was a proponent of adopting armoured fighting vehicles. As a captain, Worthington took an eight-month course in the Canadian Armoured Fighting Vehicle School at Camp Borden in 1930, equipped with twelve Carden Loyd machine gun carriers. In 1936, then Major Worthington became an instructor at the Royal Tank School in Bovington Camp near Dorset, England, returning to Borden to assume the post of Commandant of the Canadian Armoured Fighting Vehicle School in 1938. Thanks to Worthington's determination, Canada acquired its first tanks in 1938: two Vickers light tanks, and ten more the following year.
In 1940, the Canadian Armoured Corps was formally established (the Royal prefix was granted in 1945). As its first senior officer, Colonel Worthington bought 265 US-built M1917 tanks of First World War vintage to use in training. Because U.S. neutrality laws prohibited the sale of weapons to Canada, these antiques were bought for $120 each as scrap metal from the Rock Island Arsenal by the "Camp Borden Iron Foundry".
(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 3325256)
Colonel F.F. Worthington inspecting one of the American-built M1917 tanks on arrival at Camp Borden, Oct 1940.
US M1917 tanks were purchased by the Canadian government at $20 a ton plus a 100% mark up which means that each tank actually sold for $240. The 236 tanks were shipped to Camp Borden where for nearly 2 years they proved a useful training vehicle. They were known to break down often, catch fire, and gave a bone jarring ride due to the lack of a suspension, but the soldiers learned maintenance and endurance. Since there was no onboard radio, the soldiers learned hand and flag signals and became proficient dealing with poor communications while still maintaining and executing formations.
The M1917s were described by the 8th Canadian Hussars (Princess Louise’s) Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) as “low-slung things with a sort of pillbox cab for the men.” They had no suspension tracks and consequently the men were given a pretty rough and jarring ride. There was very little room for two people inside the tank, but the second man was needed as things were “always catching fire and a bucket of water or sand had to be kept handy to put the fire out.” Although the M1917 could go 10-15 kph, they seldom got very far, due to mechanical breakdown.
During the Second World War Worthington organized the 1st Canadian Tank Brigade (later the 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade, an independent formation) and then converted the 4th Canadian InfantryDivision to an armoured division in only five months. The division served overseas under the designation 4th Canadian (Armoured) Division and included the 4th Canadian Armoured Brigade and the 10th Canadian Infantry Brigade.
In early 1944, Worthy was forced to relinquish command of the 4th Armoured Division, "officially" due to poor health, but in fact it was due tochanges in Canada's Army commanders. Worthy supported Lieutenant-General Andrew McNaughton, but it was Lieutenant-General Guy Simonds who got command of IICanadian Corps. Worthy was simply edged out in favour of others. It was the biggest regret of his career that he never commanded a Division in war. Simonds would later admit that he had made a mistake taking Worthy's command away from him (Ref: "Worthy": A Biography of Major-General F.F. Worthington CB,MC, MM by Larry Worthington).
In 1944 he returned to Canada to administer Camp Borden, where replacementswere trained for the Canadian Armoured Corps and Infantry, as well as the RoyalCanadian Army Service Corps and the Canadian Provost Corps. Worthy soondiscovered that other things had changed since he left in 1942. Black marketselling was out of control by this time, with fuel, food and building materials being the hot items. Worthy as usual had an unconventional method of stopping the stolen items from leaving the camp. He posted Provost Marshals at the gates to search vehicles leaving, forcing the thieves to take the back roads and trails to get out of camp. Worthy had the engineers dig trenches to make itimpossible for vehicles to get through.
The most unconventional method however, was having the engineers lay landmines on the back trails, with the trigger points set back about 50 yards, thus ensuring that no one would actually get hurt. The troops got the message though, as no one wanted to take any chances with a commander who mined roadways.
The National Resources Mobilization Act (NRMA) of 1940 made military service compulsory for in-country service, but overseas service remained voluntary.Those who still refused to go active service met with Worthy's unconventional methods of training and persuasion, including being virtual targets of live-fire exercises and being forced to work so hard around the camp that they "volunteered" because it was the lesser of the two evils.
Worthington served as General Officer Commander in Chief of Pacific Command from 1 April 1945 to 26 January 1946. Later he was appointed the first Colonel-Commandant of the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps.
(Photo courtesy of Peter Worthington)
Major-General Frederic Franklin Worthington MC, MM, CD, durng the Second World War.
(Worthington Family Photo)
Shown here as a MGen, “Fighting Frank” joined the Black Watch Regiment in Montreal in 1915.
(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 4232846)
Worthy died on 8 December 1967 at Ottawa's Military Hospital. After his funeral in Ottawa, Worthy's body was flown by an RCAF de Havilland CC-108 Caribou aircraft to Camp Borden and in accordance with his wishes, was interred in Worthington Park. Four Centurion tanks fired a 13 gun salute and three RCAF deHavilland DHC-1B-2-S5 Chipmunk aircraft did a low-level "fly-past", in tribute to a great soldier and Canadian.
One of the things that his son, Toronto Sun columnist and founding editor Peter Worthington, always remembers about his father is that he used to say, "Until Vimy Ridge he really never felt Canadian, but after Vimy Ridge never felt he was anything but a Canadian."
Today Worthington Park remains as a strong reminder of the birthplace of the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps and a tribute to its father, Frederic Franklin"Fighting Frank" "Worthy" Worthington.
(Boris Spremo Photo)
Original Toronto Star caption: Arch of tank guns was formed by four massive Centurion tanks stationed by the side of road yesterday as funeral cortege for Major General F. F. Worthington moved toward his burial place on a hill near Camp Borden which he specified in his will.
After Worthington's death, he was buried at Canadian Forces Base Bordenaccording to his wishes. His wife was eventually buried beside him. TheMajor-General F.F. Worthington Memorial Park is also home to the tankcollection of the Base Borden Military Museum. The Worthington Trophy for bestCanadian armoured regiment was named after him.
He was a recipient of the Military Cross (MC) and Bar, the Military Medal (MM)and Bar and the Canadian Forces Decoration CD with two Bars. (Wikipedia)
(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 3545026)
Officers at an RCAC inspection at Camp Borden, Ontario, 8 Aug 1954. MGen Worthington, 2nd from the left.
(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 4232355)
Post war photo of Major-General Frederic Franklin Worthington MC, MM, CD.
(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 4232400)
Post war photo of Major-General Frederic Franklin Worthington MC, MM, CD.
(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 4232401)
Post war photo of Major-General Frederic Franklin Worthington MC, MM, CD.
References
"No. 36034". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 May 1943. p. 2477.
"Page 2486 | Supplement 29981, 9 March 1917 | London Gazette | theGazette".
"Page 6825 | Supplement 30172, 6 July 1917 | London Gazette | theGazette".
Worthington, Larry (1961). "Worthy": A Biography of Major-GeneralF.F. Worthington CB, MC, MM. Toronto: Macmillan.
Bruce Forsyth's Canadian Military History Page
Library and Archives Canada - Soldiers of the First World War CEF, RG150,Accession 1992-93/166, Box 10584-37, Worthington, Frederick Frank, 17 September1889, Cpt., #133314
(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 4232408)
Fox Armoured Car Mk I, with Major-General Frederic Franklin Worthington MC, MM, CD.
