Lieutenant-Colonel A. Canning
3rd Bn., Leinster Regiment (Royal Canadians)

His departure was sorely regretted by all ranks, for during the twelve months he had been with the 7th, his capabilities as a commander had only been surpassed by his solicitude for the men’s welfare, so that he had made his way into out hearts as a popular soldier.

(Capt. S.J. Wilson, The Seventh Manchesters: July 1916 to March 1919, 4)

Born on 3 October 1861 in Wiltshire, England, Albert Canning was a veteran of the Anglo-Egyptian War (1882) and the Sudan campaign (1884-5). He had joined the ranks of the 19th Hussars in 1881, received a commission in the South Wales Borders in 1888, became a captain with the Leinster Regiment in 1895 and retired as a major in 1911. He came out of retirement on the outbreak of the Great War to take command of the 3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion.

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