The Royal Canadian Navy will do away with its official marching song after many years over concerns of its lyrics which refer to colonialism and lack examples of diversity.
The British song Heart of Oak dates back to 1759, more than a century before Canada’s confederation.
It has since been inherited as the official march of the country’s navy for many years, routinely sung at parades and mess dinners.
However, the song has come under fire in recent years over its lyrics which Navy spokesperson Captain Matthew Rowe told the Globe and Mail contain “language that does not align with values and ethos of today’s Royal Canadian Navy or the broader Canadian Armed Forces.”
“Specifically, it includes references to colonialism and slavery, and language that is not representative of all those who serve in today’s Navy,” said Rowe on Thursday.
According to a Dec. 2020 internal briefing note, attempts to revamp the song first began after someone took issue with the lyric “to add something new to this wonderful year,” which refers to various British victories in 1759 “as part of colonial conquests including over the French colony of Canada.”
It also referred to the line “free men not slaves,” as it was written while “Britain and the Royal Navy were actively engaged in enslaving and selling people, until Britain officially prohibited the practice in 1807.”
According to the Navy briefing note, not acting on these lyrics would create “micro-aggressions of exclusion at each mess dinner, parade and concert.”
A separate internal briefing note dated nearly two months later addressed the issue of the song making five references to men or males, including “my lads,” “sons of the waves” and “steady boys, steady.”
The Navy initially proposed to either rewrite the lyrics to be “more inclusive,” march without singing the lyrics or select a new song altogether.
“The lyrics reflect the demographic of the Navy at that time (i.e., no women in the Royal Navy), but are now outdated and do not reflect the Royal Canadian Navy or its evolving values,” reads the second note.
Rowe said that as of last month, women account for 20.7% of Navy personnel.
After more than a year of consultations, the military decided that the song’s lyrics “are not reflective of a military which strives to be inclusive and respectful of all persons,” and began the selection process for a new one.
Navy Commander Vice-Admiral Angus Topshee is reviewing potential options, and noted that Heart of Oak has also been removed from Australia’s Navy March as well.
Heart of Oak “reflects the perspective of the British, and it doesn’t reflect the fact that the founding nations of Canada include the Indigenous peoples of Canada and the French, alongside the British,” said Topshee.
He went on to say that the “wonderful year” it references was “not a glorious year if you were a francophone or many of the Indigenous peoples of Canada.”
However, Conservative defence critic James Bezan expressed his dismay with the Navy’s decision to replace the song, arguing that this should not be a priority for a military facing personnel and equipment shortages.
“It is baffling that the government is seemingly spending years debating changing the navy’s cherished song, which has been proudly sung throughout the proud and storied history of the Royal Canadian Navy,” said Bezan.
“Adding a new song is one thing, but our history and tradition should not be erased and traded for woke agendas.”
Tosphee agrees that the song’s replacement should not be a top priority at the moment.
“When I’m talking about a personnel crisis where I’m 20% short and I got resource commitments around the world, and I need to tackle a whole list of things, this is a song. This is not the most urgent thing in the world,” he said.
“And so why is it taking so long? Because we’re doing it at the pace we can afford to do it.”
