Why are the Mounties always associated with Canada? It seems every country has its symbol that other countries identify them with. With the USA, I think it might be the Capitol. By why Mounties and Canada?
I have been to Canada many times in my life. And I can honestly tell you all I have never seen a single Mounty. Not even one. So apparently they are not ubiquitous in any event.
Thank you in advance for your kindly and civil replies:).
:):)
Because they’re very specific-looking. And that kind of thing builds on itself: once “Canada” and “mounties” get enough of an association to start using in media, every use reinforces the association.
The US Capitol isn’t anywhere near as representative of the US as other symbols such as Miss Libby; for starters, a bunch of buildings in the US themselves and in other countries copy it. While there are copies of her elsewhere (starting with multiples in France, one of them in Paris), the Capitol simply isn’t anywhere near as unique-looking as she is. And in media it gets used to establish “we’re in DC” much more than “we’re in the US”.
You may have seen a Mountie, though you may not have recognized him or her as such.
Most everybody outside of Canada thinks a Mountie looks like Dudley Do-Right: a red serge uniform, black trousers with a yellow stripe, a Sam Browne belt, and a typical Mountie hat. But that’s actually the Mounties’ dress uniform, worn only for ceremonial occasions–a colour guard at a sports event, for example, or citizenship ceremonies, or their Musical Ride. For everyday police work, they wear a pale green shirt with RCMP/GRC patches on the shoulder, black trousers, and peaked cap. Their police cars and other vehicles are white, with blue and yellow stripes, and with a light bar on the top.
More importantly, the Mounties serve the same role as state troopers in all provinces except Ontario, Quebec, and parts of Newfoundland (which have their own provincial police forces), and they have no jurisdiction in municipalities that have their own police forces. And when they do such typical police work, they’re not wearing their red uniforms.
and they sing famous songs 
Actually, I think the real reason the Mounties are well known is that they don’t have a lot of competition.
As Drew Carey once said while hosting the comedy Whose Line is it Anyway?:
"This is the game show where everything’s a joke and winning points doesn’t matter. The points in this game are nice to have, but totally unnecessary. Kind of like…CANADA. "
And ya know, when I think of Canada, I think of, well, let’s see now,…there’s…um, uh, well, …I, um, think, maybe…Oh yeah!!! MOUNTIES!!! they’re pretty cool lookin’ .
I’d imagine the musical Rose Marie, and more particularly Nelson Eddy, would be a major part of the explanation
Are you sure you didn’t see any? The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) or “Mounties” are Canada’s largest law enforcement agency, they operate federally throughout Canada, and are the main/sole policing force for much of our rural areas (many cities can afford supporting their own municipal policing -without contracting it out to the RCMP- and Ontario/Quebec even have provincial police forces).
They normally don’t wear their traditional red jacket (on horseback), in favour for their modern uniform and police cruisers. However their breeches hold a distinctive/defining style that they continue to wear. To this day, you can always identify an RCMP member by the “yellow stripe” on their pants.
I guess I’m pretty much repeating Spoons, here
In my case it’s because of Sergeant Preston of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. I had a deed to one square inch of land in the Yukon from a cereal box as part of a commercial tie-in with the show.
The old school type Mountie thing fulfilled a similar pop culture nook in Canada as the cowboy did in the US.
Brave men (of course) risking their lives to bring order in the chaotic early settlement stage of the “great nation”.
Good basis for novels, movies, etc.
In Vancouver, I have not only seen mounties, but I’ve seen uniformed mounties riding horses (near Stanley Park). No iconic red, though, just boring dark blue.
Just about the most Canadian thing ever…The RCMP musical ride to the Hockey Night in Canada theme.
In the 1930s and 1940s, Hollywood made a lot of RCMP-themed movies. The “northern” was a genre with as many cliches as the “western”.
My favorite title is “Canadian Mounties vs. Atomic Invaders”
Who won?
The Mounties, of course. (It was actually an espionage film, not a sci-fi film.)
Different theme. The Mounties were actually GD Opposition of the cowboys, because we didn’t havrais an early chaotic period in our west. The Mounties were here before settlement, to assert Canadian sovereignty and repel the chaotic American whiskey traders.
Law came to the Canadian prairies before settlement.
If you were in Vancouver, they were probably from the Vancouver Police Department and not Mounties.
While most provinces contract with the RCMP instead of creating provincial police forces, they generally provide municipalities with the option to create their own forces (subject to the applicable legislation).
You’re right: I just checked. So they were Canadian mounted police, but not Royal Canadian Mounted Police. We do have them in some of the towns in the area, but I’ve only seen police + horses in Vancouver.
I’ve seen Toronto police on horseback too.
Nelson Eddy, Hollywood, and these guys …
