Distinguished Speaker Event BGen Mark Parsons, Comd 5 Cdn Div

RUSI NS invites you to its third presentation of the year. This presentation will be in hybrid format with the in-person event being held at Cambridge Military Library and a virtual event by MS Teams at 1400 hrs to 1530 hrs ATLANTIC TIME on Wednesday, 19 March 2025

The topic will be 5 Canadian Division, also known since the Second World War as the Mighty Maroon Machine based on the maroon coloured, rectangular patch identifying the division. During the War it participated in the Italian campaign as part of 1^st Canadian Corps and consisting of the 4^th Canadian Armour Brigade and 11^th Infantry brigade as its manoeuvre formations.

It was reestablished in 2013 and was formerly known as Land Force Atlantic Area. Its main components are 6 Canadian Combat Support Brigade in Kingston Ontario consisting of units previously considered divisional troops, now brought together for administrative purposes. It is a force generation organization. It also contains two reserve brigades 36, 37 brigades and 5^th Canadian Division Support Base Gagetown, all in the Atlantic Provinces plus other organizations.

It is one of a kind as a formation and as a key force generator of occupations that are found in no other formations. It therefore seldom misses an overseas deployment.

BGen Mark Parsons will also discuss his time as the senior Canadian to Op PROTEUS in the Middle east as well as his career to date and the division and how it operates to meet operational requirements. Lastly, observations on the current situation. His biography is attached.

Registration is required at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. not later than 1800 hrs 15 March 2025 and the MS Teams instruction will be provided on 17 March 2025 (Happy Saint Patrick’s Day). The registration should be addressed to Distinguished speaker 19 March 2025.There is a possibility that a Canadian election will be called around the same time. If this occurs, the presentation will be postponed until after the election. The weather is still a major factor especially for the in-person event. If the weather deteriorates, the presentation will continue as a virtual event only. In either case, a separate email will be sent out to conform the way ahead. I look forward to hearing from you.