The 116 th Battalion, Canadian Expeditionary Force (raised in Ontario County and perpetuated by the Ontario Regiment) had two commanding officers in its existence: Lieutenant Colonel Samuel S. Sharpe and Lieutenant Colonel George R. Pearkes. There were a few similarities between the two commanders, but many more differences.
A picture of each man can be formed based on the existing archival sources. Sharpe often wrote letters to the local newspapers to provide an update on the development and training of the Battalion. He regularly corresponded with friends and family. Some of this correspondence is held at the Uxbridge Historical Centre. Pearkes’ letters have not been published, but due to his longevity and postwar prominence, he was often interviewed. A detailed interview regarding his First World War service was made for the 1964 CBC radio documentary “In Flanders Fields”. He was also interviewed by historian Reginald Roy for a biographical book. Finally, there are also several postwar interviews with veterans of the 116 th Battalion in which they provide their view of each commanding officer.
Each man had a quite different background and life prior to the war. Sharpe was born in Zephyr, Ontario in 1873 and spent his life in the Uxbridge area. His military career began at the age of 16 when he joined the 34 th Ontario Battalion as a private. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Uxbridge company in 1893. At the outbreak of the First World War he had reached the rank of major and previously commanded the Uxbridge company for a number of years. His company was known as one of the top performing ones in the Battalion. In civilian life he was a lawyer, served as Uxbridge town solicitor for ten years and had been the Member of Parliament for the riding of North Ontario since 1908. By contrast,
Pearkes was born in Watford, England in 1889. He immigrated to Canada in 1906 and started farming. He grew bored with farming and joined the Royal North-West Mounted Police in 1911 and was a constable when he joined the CEF in 1915.
The path to commanding the 116 th Battalion was quite dissimilar for each man. At the outbreak of the war Sharpe was the recruiting officer of the 34 th Ontario Regiment and its deputy commanding officer. He continued recruiting for the CEF until late in 1915 when he was authorized to raise and recruit the 116 th Battalion from Ontario County. The new battalion was organized and trained through Sharpe’s drive and he was its first commanding officer. Many of the officers and soldiers were long-time friends. Sharpe would have known the parents of many of the younger soldiers. It is clear from his statements that Sharpe was intensely proud of his Battalion.
Pearkes joined the CEF as a private in the 2 nd , Canadian Mounted Rifles and later transferred to the 5 th , Canadian Mounted Rifles. He had worked his way up to the rank of acting major in late October 1917 when his actions during the Battle of Passchendaele resulted in him being awarded the Victoria Cross. Pearkes arrived at the 116 th Battalion in late November 1917 as the new deputy commanding officer, replacing the outgoing Major A.W. McConnell. By the time of Pearkes’ arrival, the 116 th Battalion was battle-tested. While Sharpe knew many of the original members their entire lives, Pearkes was coming in completely cold. He had lived in western Canada since he immigrated and had almost no knowledge of
Ontario County. Upon meeting a soldier from Oshawa, Pearkes inquired about the man’s hunting history and being surprised when the soldier didn’t provide much detail Pearkes asked, “Coming from Oshawa, haven’t you shot a moose?” Fifty years later, he elaborated that, “I thought Oshawa was in the jungles somewhere. I’d never heard of the place before this, a day or two after I’d gone to the Battalion.”
One area of similarity between Sharpe and Pearkes is the praise provided by the veterans of the 116 th Battalion. Numerous veterans referred to the bravery of both men. This is verifiably true as Pearkes won the Victoria Cross before transferring to the 116 th Battalion and both commanding officers were awarded the Distinguished Service Order. Lieutenant Colonel Sharpe endeavoured not to be labeled a “political colonel”. This was a derisive term of the era to refer to anyone who used their political connections to be given military appointment, without any personal danger. The veterans described both commanders as the sort of officer who would never ask anyone to do any task that they wouldn’t do themselves.
Both Sharpe and Pearkes gave the highest priority to the welfare of their soldiers. Sharpe attended funerals of soldiers who died in England and visited those in the hospital. He traveled to France prior to February 1917 for an inspection tour and managed to find some former 116 th Battalion soldiers who had transferred to other battalions. Captain Joe Hughes recalled to author Reginald Roy that Pearkes was “always interested in the comfort of his men and their training”. Arthur Elford concurred by saying that, “the comfort and welfare of his other ranks was his chief concern”.
The veterans’ comments describe Sharpe as something of a fatherly figure. His political skills were often acclaimed, especially his ability to keep the 116 th Battalion together in a time when all other battalions were being broken up for reinforcements. Pearkes was always described a pure soldier. It was noted that Sharpe was somewhat lax in his enforcement of dress standards, while Pearkes was stricter.
The 1916 inspection report of the 116 th Battalion at Niagara described Sharpe as a “fairly good C.O.” and “apparently keen and willing”. These reports typically did not hold back in their assessment; if an officer was lacking in any way, the report clearly stated it. These words were a reasonably strong endorsement of Sharpe, by the standard of these reports. The inspection reports did not continue once a battalion went
into combat, so there is no equivalent for LCol Pearkes.
The legacy of each commanding officer also differs considerably. Sam Sharpe suffered from what is recognized today as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The breakdown in his mental health led him to being hospitalized in England and then sent back to Canada. His mental health deteriorated further and he leapt to his death from the window of a Montreal hospital in 1918.
Mark Carmichael, who documents the lives of the members of the 116 th Battalion, has written a detailed analysis of the events that led to Sharpe’s death in an article that can be referenced here. In recent years, as society has learned more about PTSD and mental health in general, Sharpe’s
struggles are better understood. Member of Parliament Erin O’Toole hosted an annual Sam Sharpe breakfast from 2014-2022. Port Perry-based artist Tyler Briley created a bronze relief of LCol Sharpe, which was presented to the House of Commons in Ottawa in late 2018. In 2019 the provincial courthouse in Oshawa was renamed the “Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel Sharpe, DSO, MP Courthouse”.
George Pearkes stayed in the peacetime army and rose to the rank of major-general, retiring in 1945. He served as Member of Parliament for Nanaimo, British Columbia from 1945 to 1960 and served as Minister of National Defence from 1957 to 1960. After leaving politics he was appointed as the Lieutenant-Governor of British Columbia in 1960 and continued until 1968. His name has been memorialized on
several buildings, a mountain, various roads, as a Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker and Department of National Defence Headquarters in Ottawa. Pearkes regularly attended the reunions of the 116 th Battalion, when his schedule allowed. George Pearkes passed away in 1984 at the age of 96.
What of Major Dougall Carmichael who briefly commanded the 116 th Battalion in the last few weeks of the war? The March 2024 article will cover why he was not an official commanding officer of the 116 th Battalion.
Rod Henderson
Rod Henderson is the Regimental Historian of the Ontario Regiment. He served as a Sergeant in the Regiment and is the author of “Fidelis Et Paratus: The History of The Ontario Regiment RCAC”.