The 17th Field Regiment of the Royal Canadian Artillery was a three-battery, 24-gun regiment equipped exclusively with towed (as opposed to self-propelled) field guns.  Once the regiment reached Europe, it was equipped with the very successful 25-pounder gun, manufactured in Sorel, Quebec. At full strength the regiment contained about 700 men and was originally recruited entirely from militia units located in and west of what is now Thunder Bay, Ontario (Fort William and Port Arthur at that time) but east of Alberta.  Later replacements came from all across Canada.  The regiment was part of the 5th Canadian Armoured Division along with three other artillery regiments, one and briefly two infantry brigades, one armoured brigade, and other assorted support units. 

Each of the three batteries of the 17th Field Regiment contained two troops as shown in the following table.  The battery numbers reflect the units that were incorporated into the regiment when it was formed.

Troop	Phonetic Name	Battery	Number of Guns
A	Able	60	4
B	Baker	60	4
C	Charlie	37	4
D	Dog	37	4
E	Easy	76	4
F	Fox	76	4

The regiment also had a headquarters section not shown in the above table and was commanded by a lieutenant-colonel.  The batteries were commanded by officers with the rank of major and were roughly equivalent to infantry companies.  The highest ranking officer in a troop was a captain.  The highest ranking member of each gun crew was a sergeant, often referred to as a gun sergeant.