The Republic of Canida was founded by Canids as a Representative Parliamentary Republic thanks to some influence from Ambleion in antiquity, but are nor part of the Ambleonian realm. They still have some slightly similar inclinations to Ambleion in a few cultural aspects. One of which was military ranking. The titles are fairly similar in many aspects, and have some similarity to Equestria as well. Despite Canida's fairly small population, they field a sizable military that is capable of punching far above its weight.
As Canida does not have an aristocratic class, officers can be from any walk of life, though they're likely to be from middle and upper middle class families. Some of the lower class can easily achieve officer status through field commission, which automatically guarantees them entry into the National Military Academy. NCO's are normally very experienced, and unlike European military forces - and more like Equestria - a highly ranked NCO might be in command of a full Platoon of soldiers, depending on the unit in question, and NCO's are entrusted with command responsibility and comparitively lower rank than in Europe. The Non-Commissioned School at Kinston, Skandario provides professional skill training to Professional NCO's (rank of OR-06 or higher), both in command and combat tactics, as well as professional education in trades. Warrant Officers in Canida are much like those in Equestria - educated professionals performing administrative command over enlisted specialists in specific roles, and providing collegiate-level educational experience and training to those duty posts. Warrant Officers in Canida are also the lower ranks for specific job posts, such as new pilots, Navy navigators graduating from the Naval Academy, and so on. These personnel are on track to become Officers, but are set as Warrant Officers until completion of an apprenticeship under more experienced command officers.
Canida's defense system works on two levels. First is the Canidan Forces, or the professional military. The Canadian Forces consist of seven numbered units - 1st through 7th Combat Commands. Nominally, these are staffed by Brigade-sized active duty formations. When a Combat Command needs to be readied for deployment, they call up the Canidan Republic Militia to fill out the numbered Combat Commands. Militia units are trained and set up like Active Duty units, but are based locally and entirely drawn from their local population, and often have geographic titles - like the Yellowknife Highlanders, which consists of 2 Infantry Battalions, 1 Cavalry Battalion, and 1 Logistical Services Battalion. Each one of those subordinate units "slot in" to one of the numbered formations, and can be placed anywhere on the organizational table they're needed. So, the Yellowknife Highlanders 1st Infantry Battalion could be in 1st Combat Command, while the 2nd Battalion could be in 2nd Combat Command, and so on. This grants Canida the flexibility of fielding 2 Field Armies oof different composition as the need arsise, with a reserve Combat Command to offer immediate replacement for battered units. For obvious reasons, Canida does not have a Royal Guard unit, though the CF 1st Combat Command has a Ceremonial Fife, Pipe, and Drum Regiment and the Parliament's Own Fencibles unit to provide ceremonial duty.
Below the Militia formations are the Fencibles - these are local-only self defense units of the Canidan military and are not to be deployed outside of the country. Fencibles are trained as well as the regular military, but may contain personnel too young, too old, or suffering from some injury or condition that would not allow them to serve in the Canidan Forces or Militia. It may be led by former CF or Militia personnel that have retired from active service, or by chance, local elected officials.
Unlike many militaries in NEIGHTO, Canida does not have a separate Marine Corps. Instead, it has the CF Army Maritime Division. Itself a CF national level unit, the 1 Maritime Brigade is an active duty CF unit, while 2 Maritime Brigade and 3 Maritime Brigade are militia units from Barkover (Barkover Marine Fusiliers), and Thunder Bay (Thunder Bay Longshoredogs). All Air Force units are either Fencibles or national level active duty CF units. The Canidan Navy is entirely a national level organization, though the Canidan Coast Guards is another unit under the command of the Navy Department that focuses on ocean search and rescue, but with the war, now field armed Cutters for coastal protection duties, and function similarly to Fencibles units, as they're all locally based.
The Police Services of Canida are divided between units based in major cities such as Otterwa and Terrieronto, and the Canidan Sled and Mounted Police (CSMP). The CSMP provides both national level law enforcement, and policing services in remote areas that don't have a local police force. They are a fusion of the former Northern Sled Patrol and the Canidan Republic Mounted Constabulary, and were unified in 825 C.S. The CSMP also staffs rural fire departments and ambulance services as needed. The original "Mounted Constabulary" referred to an old term for a canid carrying a large amount of supplies and gear on their backs for long trips - or being "well mounted" for explorations into the wilderness, before Canida was largely settled. |
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