A “Stand of Regimental Colours” consists of the Sovereign’s Colour and a Regimental Colour. The Sovereign’s Colour includes the sovereign’s crown and the regimental numeral or designation in the centre. Since 1985 the Sovereign’s Colour is based upon the Canadian flag, and incorporates the St. Edward’s crown and the Royal cypher. The Regimental Colour has a solid background with the regimental crest in the centre and is inscribed with twenty-two of the 48th Highlanders’ fifty battle honours.
The 48th Highlanders’ first Stand of Colours was made by the Ladies of Toronto and presented by Lord Stanley of Preston, the Governor General of Canada at a ceremonial parade on the grounds of the University of Toronto on 24 May 1892.
The regiment retired this first Stand of Colours and was presented with the second Stand on 24 May 1925. For this ceremony both Stands had been emblazoned with ten of the twenty-one Battle Honours from the First War. The first Stand was laid up in St. Andrew’s Church on 15 May 1927 to hang in the chancel. In 1997, with their fabric beginning to shred with age, they were stabilized and moved to the Regimental Museum. The second Stand was carried for a further thirty-four years. This Stand was retired in 1959 to hang in the chancel of St. Andrew’s.
The third Stand was presented to the regiment in Ottawa in 1959 by its Colonel-in-Chief, Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. Twenty-one Battle Honours were emblazoned on the Regimental Colour for the ceremony. For their roles in the Second World War the regiment had been awarded twenty- seven Battle Honours, twenty-six in 1956 and another, Landing at Reggio, in 1958 just in time for the presentation. Ten were placed on the Colour to join the ten Honours from the Great War. Also on the Colour for the first time was South Africa 1899-1900, awarded in 1933 for those who had formed the core of the Royal Canadian Regiment of Infantry.
Interestingly the third Stand displayed the battle honour Passchendaele, whereas the prior stands bore Scarpe in its place. It appears that the regimental committee, wanting the Honours on the Colour for their presentation in 1925, selected the ten Honours to be emblazoned on the first and second Stands before the final recommendation was prepared for submission to the Crown. As Scarpe was included twice for battles in 1917 and 1918 they would have been confident it would be approved. When Passchendaele received Royal approval in 1928, it could have been seen as less important than the 1918 Scarpe but ahead of the 1917. Further, the regimental committee may have discovered that their participation in the fourth battle of Scarpe was not in the August 26-30 1918 official period of the battle but in its continuation on August 30- September 1 which was known as Drocourt-Queant Line. Many battles flowed into another and while fourth Scarpe was mainly British, the Canadians led the D-Q battle. Since Drocourt-Queant was a Battle Honour of the 15th Battalion (48th Highlanders), and emblazoned on the Colours, it would account for the removal of Scarpe. The discovery would have been too late for the two Stands of Colours. Thus the third Stand, created in 1959, was the first opportunity to reflect the preferred choice. The third Stand was retired in May 1991 and was laid up in St. Andrew’s Church in October, to hang beside the second.
The active regiment carries the regiment’s fourth and current Stand with the Sovereign’s Colour now based on the Canadian flag and has the battle honour Afghanistan added. When not on parade the Colours are displayed in the Officers’ Mess.
These four Stands of Colours represent service to Canada since 1891 by thousands of Highlanders.