CANADIAN FORCES MANUAL OF DRILL AND CEREMONIAL
A-PD-201-000/PT-000
(Supersedes A-PD-201-000/PT-000 dated 1976-02-10)
Issued on Authority on the Chief of the Defence Staff
(Other Chapters at the link above)
SECTION 2 - COMPLIMENTS
120. GENERAL
1. Compliments are formal marks of respect and courtesy, i.e., salutes.
2. The military salute is a traditional demonstration of trust and respect. Although the method of saluting varies with circumstances, the paying of compliments is a fundamental requirement that is indispensable to service discipline.
3. In general, military compliments are paid to the Sovereign; the Sovereign's representative in Canada, the Governor General; the Head of Government, the Prime Minister of Canada; Cabinet members for defence, the Minister and Associate Minister of National Defence; Lieutenant-Governor; commissioned officers; and consecrated colours. See also article 124.
4. Service individuals receiving a compliment shall acknowledge it.
5. Detailed instructions on the techniques of paying individual compliments are found elsewhere in this publication as follows:
a. at the halt - Chapter 2;
b. on the march - Chapter 3;
c. when bearing arms:
1. rifle - Chapter 4,
2. carbine - Chapter 5,
3. sword - Chapter 6; and
d. when carrying pace stick or cane - Chapter 6.
121. FORMED MILITARY GROUPS
1. Compliments on behalf of a formed military group are normally given by the person in charge of the group.
2. At the halt:
a. The person in charge will order the group to attention before saluting.
b. When the group is armed, it shall be brought to attention and then may be brought to the shoulder arms position before the person in charge gives the appropriate salute.
3. On the march:
a. The person in charge of a formed military unit shall personally salute when passing junior officers (Captains and Lieutenants) superior to himself in rank. When passing senior officers superior to himself in rank, the person in charge shall order EYES RIGHT/LEFT and salute with the hand while turning head and eyes in the required direction.
b. When bearing arms at the trail, the person in command shall shoulder arms before proceeding as detailed in sub-paragraph a. above.
122. INDIVIDUAL
1. Officers shall salute all officers of higher rank and shall return all compliments paid them. Senior officers receiving compliments from marching troops on a ceremonial parade shall hold the salute as each individual component passes directly by in review.
2. Non-commissioned members shall salute all commissioned officers.
3. Officers and non-commissioned members not part of a formed military group shall pay individual compliments to an approaching higher ranking officer (see also paragraph 4). The senior officer receiving the salute shall return the compliment, while military persons accompanying that officer give an eyes right/left in the same manner as saluting without headdress (paragraph 7) during the exchange of compliments or greetings.
4. When an officer approaches a group of non-commissioned members, the senior of the group or the person who recognizes the officer first, shall take command and call the group to attention: the senior or person in charge shall then alone salute. Junior members shall draw their senior's attention to approaching officers if the circumstances require and allow.
5. Individual compliments to a formed military group on the march and under the command of an officer shall be paid by halting, turning to face the group and saluting. The salute should be maintained until the entire group has passed.
6. While bearing arms, individuals shall pay compliments to officers by saluting at the shoulder arms position. Sentries shall pay compliments in accordance with article 1030.
7. When in uniform and not wearing headdress, compliments shall be paid by standing at attention. If on the march, arms shall be swung and the head turned to the left or right as required.
8. White nurses caps are considered marks of qualification rather than headdress. Nursing officers and medical associates wearing this cap shall pay compliments as if they had no headdress.
123. CIVILIAN DRESS
1. Appropriate compliments shall be paid when recognizing an officer dressed in civilian clothing.
2. When dressed in civilian clothes, all members shall stand at attention, and male members (less Sikhs) shall remove headwear, on any occasion when a salute would be correct in uniform and extreme winter weather conditions allow. On the march, the headwear is raised or removed, if applicable, and the head turned right or left. When headdress is not worn, it is correct to turn the head as required and offer a polite greeting.
124. SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES
1. Buildings. Salutes are not given indoors in either public or service buildings except on parades, ceremonial occasions, in areas so designated by base commanders, or when entering or leaving the office of an officer who should be paid compliments by virtue of his rank or appointment. Further:
a. It is correct to turn the head and offer a polite greeting when meeting an officer in the common area of a public or service building.
b. It is not customary for those other than Sikhs working in a building to wear headdress when visiting another office in the same building. In this circumstance, compliments are paid by briefly coming to attention at the office door.
2. Cenotaphs. Officers and men shall salute individually, and formed military groups shall pay compliments when passing the National War Memorial and cenotaphs to military dead.
3. Colours. Individuals and formed military groups shall pay compliments to uncased colours, except when the colour is part of an escort to the deceased during a funeral (see subparagraph 5 a.).
a. Halted armed groups shall present arms.
b. Military groups marching past uncased colours shall give eyes right/left.
c. See also paragraph 12.
4. Religious Services and Buildings. Conventional marks of respect and courtesy shall be observed during religious services and in places of worship, depending on the customs of the religion involved. In particular, female members are not required to remove their headdress in a church, synagogue or other place of worship, male members of the Jewish faith may wear the yarmulke, and Sikhs are not required to remove headdress.
5. Funerals. The following compliments shall be paid at state, military and civilian funerals:
a. The remains of the deceased take seniority and alone receive compliments during a funeral.
b. Members shall wear headdress and pay respects by saluting when passing the casket at a vigil.
c. Formed military groups shall be halted and turned to face a passing funeral procession, and the officer or man in charge will salute the bier as it passes. Individual compliments shall be paid in a similar fashion.
d. Individuals and formed military groups bearing arms shall salute a passing funeral procession by presenting arms.
e. Salutes, as above, shall be accorded the casket during interments.
f. At the end of a Service funeral, the officiating chaplain will proceed to the foot of the grave to pay his respects. Service members should then proceed to the foot of the grave, in order of seniority, to pay individual respects by saluting. When numbers warrant, members may approach in small informal groups.
g. See also paragraph 8.
6. Guards and Sentries. Detailed instructions for paying compliments by guards and sentries are found in Chapter 10.
7. Courtesy Salutes:
a. Foreign officers shall be saluted in the same manner as Canadian officers unless the circumstances clearly dictate otherwise.
b. Service members may express their respect for individual civilians by using a salute as a formal means of greeting or farewell.
8. Memorial Services and Funerals. Compliments to the dead shall be paid during the sounding of the calls Last Post and Reveille when they are used in memorial services and funerals. Compliments will commence on the first note and terminate on the last of each call when sounded. Compliments shall be paid as follows:
a. All ranks who are not part of a formed military group shall salute.
b. Formed military groups will be brought to attention and all officers shall salute. A Royal or General Salute will be ordered if appropriate. If the group is armed, the troops shall present arms. In this latter case the salute shall be held for the silent interval between Last Post and Reveille.
c. On defence establishments, all vehicles in the vicinity shall be stopped and the occupants shall dismount and pay compliments.
9. Lecture Rooms.
a. When a visiting officer or dignitary senior to the instructor enters a lecture room, theatre, etc, the instructor or senior member present shall call the group to attention. All members of the class shall sit at attention, arms straight at the side, head and eyes to the front, and heels together.
b. Where it may be impracticable or hazardous to call the group to attention, the order, STAND FAST, will be given. Members of the group shall suspend all possible action, without causing physical danger to themselves or damage to equipment, until the order CARRY ON is given.
10. Anthems. When the Royal Anthem, Vice Regal Anthem, National Anthem (see A-AD-200-000/AG-000) or the national anthem of a foreign country is played, all shall stand and:
a. All ranks who are not part of a formed military group shall salute. The salute shall commence with the playing of the first note of music and shall be cut away at the end of the last note.
b. Formed military groups shall be called to attention and all officers or the person in charge shall salute; formed military groups bearing arms shall present arms.
c. On defence establishments, all vehicles within hearing distance shall be stopped and the occupants shall dismount and pay compliments.
11. National Flag. When the National Flag is hoisted or lowered at defence establishments, all ranks within view shall face the flagpole or mast, stand at attention and pay compliments as follows:
a. All who are not part of a formed military group shall salute.
b. Unarmed military groups shall be halted facing the flagpole, and the officer or non-commissioned member in charge of the group shall salute.
c. Armed parties shall present arms.
d. Motor vehicles in view shall be stopped, and the occupants shall dismount and pay compliments.
12. Parades. Officers and men who are spectators at a parade shall:
a. Stand at the arrival and departure of a reviewing officer or dignitary. When troops on parade are armed, the signal to stand at the arrival shall be the parade commander's order to SHOULDER ARMS. At the departure all ranks will remain standing after the last Royal/General Salute until the reviewing officer or dignitary leaves the parade area.
b. Salute when uncased colours pass directly in front of them. Guns are the colours of formed artillery units and will be treated as such when they roll past in review on formal ceremonial parades.
c. Salute during the playing of National Anthems and Royal Salutes.
d. Stand at attention during the playing of the General Salute.
13. Personal Attendants. Officers in personal attendance on a dignitary shall not salute during a Royal or General Salute to that dignitary or when a National Anthem is played as a salute for that dignitary. Those in personal attendance are defined as aides, equerries and the like closely accompanying a dignitary at a reviewing stand, parade, etc.
14. Reporting.
a. When reporting to an officer or dignitary the following procedure shall be observed:
1. march forward, halt two paces in front of the officer or dignitary;
2. salute, remain of attention, await acknowledgement;
3. deliver the message, receive instructions, etc, (see subparagraph b. below);
4. salute, await acknowledgement; and
5. turn right and march off.
b. At an investiture, or when receiving a decoration, take one pace forward to receive the award and one pace back following the presentation.
c. When a non-commissioned member reports to someone senior, other than an officer, the procedure outlined above shall be followed without the salute.
15. Vehicles.
a. Compliments shall be paid to passengers in staff cars bearing distinguishing flags or general officer car plates.
b. The senior passenger in a staff car and the passenger in the front seat of other vehicles shall salute.
c. Service personnel driving a vehicle, motorcycle or bicycle shall not salute.
d. Passengers riding in the rear of trucks shall pay compliments by sitting at attention.
16. Other Occasions. Compliments shall be paid on other occasions as notified from time to time in the appropriate regulations, orders and instructions.
125. MILITARY HONOURS AND GUN SALUTES
1. Further information on this subject is contained in A-PD-200-000/PT-100.
2. Gun salutes are normally paid independent of other honours, and need not accompany or be accompanied by other honours.
3. Gun salutes shall normally commence at an appropriate time so as to terminate with the receiving dignitary's arrival in location.
4. If the location is one in which troops have been drawn up for review or a guard of honour has been mounted, the point of arrival is normally the dais.
5. When gun salutes and arms drill salutes are connected in the same ceremonial event, the event commander can coordinate the two, as well as the musical salute, for best effect. When circumstances prevent adequate warning of the dignitary's approach, it may be most effective to render the gun and arms drill salutes together. On these occasions, the gun salute shall normally commence on the final movement of the present arms, and the arms salute shall be concluded in the normal manner and the parade continued regardless of the fact that the gun salute may still be underway.
6. Gun salutes shall not be fired so as to cause aural discomfort to the receiving dignitary.
126. COMMISSIONED WARSHIPS AND BOATS
1. Service personnel shall salute when:
a. boarding or leaving a commissioned warship; and
b. mounting the quarter deck.
2. Compliments in boats shall be paid as follows:
a. The officer in charge of a boat or the coxswain shall salute. One member of the boat's crew shall be detailed to salute if the design of the boat places the officer or coxswain in an inconspicuous position.
b. In service whalers under oars, compliments are paid by giving the order, OARS. One stroke after the order is given, the crew sit to attention with their oars horizontal and at right angles to the fore and aft line of the boat with blades feathered. In service boats under sail, the sheets are let fly. In service boats under power, engines are throttled down to idle and the propeller drive disengaged to take way off the boat.
c. When a boat is alongside a landing place or accommodation ladder, or is made fast, the boatkeepers shall sit to attention and the senior occupant shall salute. All passengers and crew who are not engaged in keeping the boat alongside shall:
1. in a decked-in power boat, stand at attention facing the officer or dignitary being saluted; and
2. in an open boat, sit at attention.
d. Salutes shall not be exchanged when boats carrying officers of equal rank pass each other.
e. All compliments paid by or in boats shall be discretionary having due regard to safe seaman-ship practices.
3. The Side shall be piped when the following personnel board HMC ships between the hours of colours and sunset:
a. the Sovereign;
b. member of the Royal Family of equivalent rank of Captain (N) or above when in naval uniform;
c. the Governor General of Canada and the Lieutenant-Governors of Provinces within their areas of responsibility;
d. Canadian and Commonwealth officers of the rank of Commodore or Brigadier-General and above when in uniform;
e. all officers in uniform holding an appointment in command of a formation or group of ships, or an officer in command of a single ship;
f. members of a court martial attending or leaving the court;
g. the officer of the guard when flying his pennant;
h. all naval officers of other than Commonwealth nations in uniform at all hours; and
i. a body when being brought aboard or sent out of ship, at all times.
4. The Side is normally piped for an officer entitled to it even though accompanying an officer holding a senior rank or appointment who is not so entitled.
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