The Royal Canadian Navy today musters nearly twenty times the number of officers and ratings who were on active service at the beginning of the present war. So tremendous an expansion expresses the Dominion of Canada’s “all-out” warfare effort in a practical fashion which has been too little publicized in the United States. Even in Canada itself, the average citizen has small conception of the extent of his country’s naval war accomplishments.
As for the United States Navy’s familiarity with the Royal Canadian Navy, few of our officers have had occasion to come in contact with brother officers of our allied naval service; but those who have met the salty lads of the ocean patrol or the hard-working, efficient staff members in convoy ports and shore stations have conceived a hearty admiration and liking for these seamen, most of whom have left the lawyer’s brief, the slide rule, or the office desk to learn seagoing the hard way.
The need for the enormous expansion of the Royal Canadian Navy at the outbreak of war in 1939 is the responsibility of the Dominion Parliament, which, for reasons of economy, had starved the naval service by refusing to appropriate adequate funds for its expansion and upkeep. In spite of this political policy, a devoted small group of regular officers, 131 in 1939, with the help of Royal Canadian Naval Reserve officers, 66 in 1939, and Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve officers, 115 in 1939, kept the spirit of the Navy alive. They formed the nucleus, a force of officers and men on active duty of 1,774, from which has grown a hard-hitting organization of more than 31,000, as of March 31,1942.
Similarly, the number of vessels manned is stated to have grown from 15 to better than 300.
Obviously, most of these ships are small. While there are destroyers, mine sweepers, and auxiliary cruisers, the bulk of the Royal Canadian Navy is made up of corvettes—a type of vessel designed for convoy and escort duty by the British Admiralty. Corvettes are suitable for building in existing Canadian shipyards in large numbers and rapidly. For example, three corvettes can be built and placed in commission in the same time it takes from the laying of a destroyer’s keel until she flies her commission pennant.
Details of construction of Canadian destroyers are a matter of record—in Jane's Fighting Ships, for instance; but no specific data with regard to corvettes have been published. They are, however, large enough to keep the sea in any weather and eminently seaworthy. Being very handy, they can turn almost in their own length. Speed is sufficient for all convoy and escort purposes, with enough reserve to allow for attacking and pursuing submarines. Armed with depth charges and guns—4-inch and A.A.—they can engage submarines and aircraft. Their cruising radius is long enough to allow them to undertake voyages of ample length. Being steam driven, repairs are comparatively simple, and can be performed in a minimum of time by dockyard mechanics without special training.
While corvettes are not designed with a primary eye to comfort of their crews, since their lines make them very lively, the men’s quarters have been built as roomy and comfortable as possible—more so in some ways than those on destroyers.
The boys from the prairies whose fate leads them to man a corvette soon have the hayseed washed out of their hair with salt water, and the roll with which they parade down the street of their first liberty town is authentic, not assumed.
Few of these men’s exploits have been released to the press. They are guarded as closely as details of a corvette’s construction, lest they “give aid and comfort to the enemy.”
Enemy contacts are regrettably rare in escort and convoy operations. The usual routine is that of dull, uneventful “hoofing pitch,” with brief, frequent periods of strained attention for lookouts; gun crews and depth-charge operators alert for instant call; and a 24-hour bridge watch for the captain. Before and during the convoy, constant planning and watchfulness in shore stations are necessary as well.
Previous to the outbreak of war, detailed plans for convoy and escort duty had been laid by Canadian Naval Service Headquarters, with the result that, when war was declared and a radio from the Admiralty asked: “When can convoy system be instituted?” the reply was: “Immediately.” Six days after the declaration, merchant ships had been gathered at an assembly port, formed into the first convoy, and sailed, protected by escort vessels. Every ship in the convoy reached its port of destination. The original plan had proved its merit, and, during the months of subsequent convoy duty, has never been changed in principle, merely in minor details.
Plans of so effective and far-reaching results required careful and skilled preparations. Naval Control Staffs were formed at Halifax, Sydney, Saint John, Montreal, and Quebec, utilizing Naval Reserve officers almost entirely, except for the officers in the senior billets. Arrangements were made for Examination Service to investigate the condition of each merchant ship going in convoy, checking on her speed, fuel capacity, maneuverability, adequacy, and loyalty of crew and captain. Instruction sheets were prepared for ships’ masters, who were also taught the interpretation of their orders, and schooled in a brief but adequate course of convoy signaling. Ships’ masters were indoctrinated not only in methods but in a morale which gave them confidence in their escorts and convoy commodore. Signalmen, as necessary, and gunners were assigned to individual ships. Vessels were sorted as to their maximum speed, and convoy groups were arranged accordingly. Escort vessels from the Royal Navy and the R.C.N. were assigned with relation to their fuel capacity and speed. Arrangements were made with the Royal Canadian Air Force to supply planes to guard the first leg of the trip. Each departing convoy requires similar preparations and many others.
Before convoys can be gathered in a sailing port, it is necessary that ships be loaded, prepared for sea, sailed on a schedule to meet departure dates and reported for record and for plans to receive them at assembly ports and ports of destination. Naval Control Service officers, operating in localities all over the world, work long hours sorting out ships and matching them into a jigsaw puzzle which fits waiting cargoes, discharging facilities, and sailing dates. Added difficulties are the different languages and customs found on ships of allied nations which comprise the convoys. Many seamen of the United Nations have, as survivors of sinkings, been cared for by the facilities supervised by Naval Control Service officers in Canadian ports. “Survivors’ bundles,” made up of warm clothing collected, sorted, and wrapped by women of Canada, have replaced effects lost with sunken ships. Merchant crews have been provided with shelter until they could join up again for the ocean run which they eagerly sought.
However, duties in connection with protection of merchant shipping, although vastly important, do not cover the seagoing activities of the Royal Canadian Navy.
For example, Canadian ships manned by Canadians are patrolling the coast of England and the Caribbean. They have evacuated Polish troops from the seaports of France and aided at Dunkirk. They have escorted Australian troops in convoy to England. They have served with units of the Royal Navy, and independently.
Off Manzanillo, H.M.C.S. Prince Robert captured the German merchant ship Weser. Escaping from a Canadian port when Italy declared war, a merchant ship, the Capo Noli, fell prize to H.M.C.S. Bras d’Or, and is now sailing in convoy under a new name, , an English one. H.M.C.S. Prince Henry, another auxiliary cruiser, cut off the escape of the Muenchen and Hermonthis, two German merchantmen, from a South American harbor, and caused them to be fired by their crews.
H.M.C.S. Assiniboine, destroyer, in consort with a R. N. cruiser, captured the merchantman Hannover. The German crew were taken on board the cruiser. One of them threw himself overboard attempting suicide. The Assiniboine lowered a lifeboat and rescued him. An extract from the Assiniboine's log reads:
1410: Proceeded at 20 knots to pick up man overboard from H.M.S…
1425: Sighted man swimming strongly.
1426: Lowered whaler.
1430: Whaler picked up man who requested the coxswain to shoot him. Coxswain regretted he had no gun.
Report was made to the cruiser that the German had been saved. The cruiser’s captain replied: “Man has persecution mania and has been trying this for days. You had better watch out. Heil Hitler.” Assiniboine's final signal read: “German is in spud-locker as we are out of spuds.”
Not only in action, but in saving life at sea in wartime, the Royal Canadian Navy has a distinguished record. The Arandora Star, carrying a large number of internees from England to Canada, was torpedoed. H.M.C.S. St. Laurent, destroyer, while gallantly rescuing some 850 survivors, in dirty weather, signaled a Sunderland flying boat circling overhead that most of the people milling about in the sea were Germans and Italians. The airman’s chuckle could be read in his reply: “How ruddy funny!”
Obviously, the gallant tradition of the Royal Navy is perpetuated in the Royal Canadian Navy. Since 1910, when the R.C.N. was formed, the naval service has stood to its ideals in spite of being pared down for reasons of economy in peace time. In that year, the cruisers Niobe and Rainbow were purchased from the British Admiralty. When the World War broke out in 1914, Niobe, although antiquated, captured numerous prize vessels in some 30,000 miles of steaming. Rainbow, equally old, while patrolling over 50,000 miles, took as prizes several German supply vessels.
To add to the embryo Navy, two submarines built for Chile were purchased from a Seattle company and spirited out of the United States, in spite of the fact that our country was still a neutral. The vessels, evading United States warships sent to intercept them in anticipation of a neutrality proclamation, were inspected and paid for at sea. Many smaller craft were bought in 1914 for patrol duty, such as tugs, motorboats, and yachts. Existing government vessels were transferred from other departments and converted into naval auxiliaries.
In the First World War the Royal Canadian Navy had an expansion similar to that in the present war, though on a smaller scale. At the outbreak of that war, in the Canadian Naval Service on active duty were:
|
Officers |
Naval Cadets |
Ratings |
Total |
Royal Canadian Navy |
71 |
21 |
203 |
295 |
On loan from Royal Navy |
21 |
|
20 |
41 |
|
92 |
21 |
223 |
336 |
In November, 1918, the Royal Canadian Navy on active duty consisted of: an increase of over 1700 per cent.
After the World War, the R.C.N., lacking support by the Dominion Government, dwindled until in 1922 it reached a low of 366 officers and men. (As the population of the United States is about 10 times that of Canada, a comparable figure if we had reduced similarly would be 3,660.) The Royal Canadian Naval College, which had been opened in Halifax in 1910, was closed. The Royal Canadian Navy then consisted of two destroyers and four mine sweepers.
Canadian interest in naval matters lay dormant until 1931, when the destroyers Saguenay and Skeena, replacing the two older destroyers, were completed in England and commissioned in Canada. In 1934, naval forces consisted of:
|
Officers |
Ratings |
Total |
R.C.N. |
92 |
782 |
874 |
R.C.N.R. |
40 |
149 |
189 |
R.C.N.V.R. |
73 |
899 |
972 |
Grand Total |
205 |
1830 |
2035 |
Until 1934, the Royal Canadian Navy had been under the direction of R.C.N. officers whose initial service had been in the Royal Navy. In that year, Captain (now Vice Admiral) Percy Walker Nelles was appointed the first Canadian Chief of Naval Staff, with the rank of commodore. Then began the slow but steady growth in Canada’s naval strength, until, at the outbreak of the present war in 1939, the Royal Canadian Navy included:
Vessels available were:
Flotilla Leader H.M.C.S. Assiniboine (then H.M.S. Kempenfelt, in process of purchase) |
|
Destroyers: |
H.M.C.S. Saguenay |
|
H.M.C.S. Skeena |
|
H.M.C.S. St. Laurent |
|
H.M.C.S. Fraser |
|
H.M.C.S. Ottawa |
|
H.M.C.S. Restigouche |
Mine Sweepers: |
H.M.C.S. Armentiéres |
|
H.M.C.S. Comox |
|
H.M.C.S. Nootka |
|
H.M.C.S. Gaspé |
|
H.M.C.S. Fundy |
Auxiliaries: |
5 (2 in reserve) |
Total: 15 |
|
All vessels were commanded, officered, and manned by Canadians.
In February and March, 1940, three “Prince” class liners were purchased, converted, and commissioned as auxiliary cruisers for escort duty. They are H.M.C.S. Prince David, Prince Robert, and Prince Henry.
By the spring of 1940, 64 corvettes and 18 mine sweepers were under construction and contracts had been let for 6 more corvettes, 10 more Diesel-engined mine sweepers, twelve 70-foot and 112-foot motor torpedo boats, 24 anti-submarine vessels, and two-hundred and fifty 12-foot collapsible assault boats. Fifteen seagoing yachts of good size were acquired to be converted into anti-submarine patrol vessels. All but one are named after Canadian animals:
Beaver |
Husky |
Reindeer |
Caribou |
Lynx |
Renard |
Cougar |
Moose |
Sans Peur |
Elk |
Otter |
Wolf |
Grizzly |
Raccon |
Vison (French Mink) |
Of the 50 United States “four-piper” destroyers transferred to the British naval service, 7 were allotted to the Royal Canadian Navy. Canadian river names, following traditional policy in christening destroyers, were chosen for these vessels; but, as a token of appreciation and friendship, these names are also those of rivers common to both countries. (Annapolis and Hamilton, are exceptions, being named for towns, not rivers, in the United States and Canada.) The names are:
Annapolis |
St. Francis |
Columbia |
St. Clair |
Hamilton |
St. Croix |
Niagara |
|
The growth in strength of the Royal Canadian Navy is indicated by the report to the Dominion Parliament in May, 1942, by the Honorable Angus Macdonald, Minister of National Defense for Naval Services. He stated that estimates of naval strength made the preceding November for March 31, 1942, had been “far exceeded,” and gave the following comparison:
March 31, 1942 |
Ships |
Officers and Men |
(Ratio to R.C.N. Initial Strength1) |
Estimated |
250 |
23,000 |
(1,300%1) |
Actual |
Over 300 |
Over 31,000 |
(1,750%1) |
March 31, 1943 |
|
|
|
Estimated |
500 |
44,000 |
(2,500%1) |
1Not included in the Minister’s statement.
For comparison, the following figures are given:
|
Ships |
Officers and Men |
1918, End of War Strength |
134 |
5,468 |
1939, On Active Duty |
15 |
1,774 |
If this achievement is not “all-out effort,” what is?
So great an accomplishment is a credit, not only to the officers of the Royal Canadian Navy who endured through times of national neglect, keeping bright their vision of an adequate Canadian Navy, but also to those officers and ratings of the Royal Canadian Naval Reserve and the Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve, who gave unstintingly of their leisure to prepare themselves for the day when their services should be needed by their country. The Canadian Navy is built on the solid framework of these men’s devotion.
The R.C.N.R. are known as the “Curly Navy”; the R.C.N.V.R., as the “Wavy Navy” because of their sleeve stripes (which they call “rings”) instead of being straight, like the R.C.N. insignia, are curved in waves. The terms, originated in jest, have become emblems of distinction, which indicate that the wearer belongs to a corps, proved under fire, sacrificing civilian pursuits, and doing a hard job well.
The Royal Canadian Naval Reserve is much the smaller of the two reserve organizations, for it is composed of men who, in peace time, “go down to the sea in ships.” They correspond to our Merchant Marine Reserve, following the sea as a profession. Regulations for training officers and ratings were stringent in their requirements. Courses were held annually in gunnery, torpedoes, mines, signaling. Training periods of actual service were required: 6 weeks during the first year of enrollment, 14 days annually during the remaining years of the first period of enrollment of 5 years, and 21 days every even-numbered year of service thereafter. Officers and ratings were paid during their periods of service and took great pride in attaining proficiency.
The Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve was made up of shoregoing civilians who wished to prepare themselves for service afloat in the event of war. As with our own service, many of the best of them have been bitterly disappointed to find themselves doing desk-work, but they have buckled down to their tasks and are doing them well.
R.C.N.V.R. officers and men were required to carry out a less extended training period of 14 days annually, but attendance requirements were equally strict. They embarked on the few vessels of the Royal Canadian Navy for courses which included discipline, seamanship, engine- room duty, gunnery, torpedoes, electricity, mines, radio, communications, searchlight, naval routine, and tactical exercises under seagoing conditions. During the year, training was carried on by divisions scattered about Canada at Halifax, St. John, Charlottetown, Quebec, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Hamilton, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Regina, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, and Prince Rupert.
When the need for expansion came, these divisions were utilized as recruiting and initial training centers for “new entries.” Standards were kept high, and the recruits were sent after 8 weeks disciplinary training to the naval barracks at Halifax or Esquimalt. At these coastal training centers, they were made ready in all respects for sea by a course lasting 10 weeks. Proof that the nucleus of pre-war Reserves did their work of shore training well is given by the seagoing results.
In addition to the two classes of Reserves described, the Canadian Navy List carries the names of Skippers, Skipper Coxwains, and Coxwains of the Fishermen’s Reserve. Because of their training, these men were available at the outbreak of war as a third reserve. Bringing with them their sturdy, large deep-sea fishing vessels, they formed a ready-made patrol fleet which required merely armament to convert them into men-of-war. Also, their powerful little ships were readily convertible into mine sweepers, and in addition to patrol duties they assumed this function.
The Canadian Navy List also bears a “List of Sea Cadet Corps Affiliated with the R.C.N.” These groups of lads form a reservoir from which are drawn many navy recruits who have been trained under the supervision of the R.C.N.V.R. divisions scattered about Canada.
Training of young men to be future officers of the Royal Canadian Navy, starting since 1923, was carried out at the Royal Military College of Canada at Kingston, Ontario. Cadets who elected to serve in the Navy were given further seagoing training in the Royal Navy after completion of their technical courses at Kingston. This college has recently been closed to cadet training and assigned to the Army for staff courses. The Navy is therefore opening a Royal Canadian Naval College at Esquimalt to accommodate two 2-year classes of 50 cadets each. About 30 graduates each year will be selected to serve in the Royal Canadian Navy; a limited number will fill openings in the Merchant Marine; and the rest of the graduates will be equipped to enter university or civil life.
Cadets are graduated with the rank of Sub-Lieutenant (pronounced almost “leftenant”) which corresponds to our Lieutenant (junior grade). From the chart it will be noted that no rank exists comparable to our Ensign or the Army’s Second Lieutenant.
Cadets are not paid, but on the contrary parents must pay an annual fee of $100, plus $450 the first year and $200 the second year, also a recreation fee of $20 annually; a total of $890 for the two years. Evidence that the cost is no deterrent is given by the fact that cadetships are in demand all over Canada. Moreover, scholarships to pay fees and tuition for worthy candidates are being established by several foundations in Canada.
A new type of service recently established is provided by the “Wrens,” the Women’s Royal Canadian Navy. Several thousand Canadian women will be enrolled for administrative work, such as decoding, deciphering, clerical work, car-driving, and the like.
Women are also found in the medical services of the Navy. Some 40 nurses are assisting the 170 doctors of the Navy.
Each of the branches mentioned has, of course, its own distinctive insignia. Uniforms are similar in style to those of the Royal Navy. Stripes are straight, with a curl attached to the upper one for all branches, executive and specialist, just as with the R.N. Officers of the R.C.N. cannot be distinguished from those of the Royal Navy, except that the former have the word “Canada” on their brass buttons. Officers of the R.C.N.R. wear intertwined curly stripes, while those of the R.C.N.V.R. have single wavy stripes. Specialist officers of all branches, regular and reserve, are distinguished by different colored cloth between the stripes; for example, purple for engineers, scarlet for doctors, white for paymasters, and so on. The “Special Branch” wear green, not, as has been said, to indicate their newness to the service but to show that they are possessed of technical qualifications which make them valuable, even though they may not have had sea training. For instance, a man who is a noted electrical engineer or a scientist might be taken into the Naval Reserve at an advanced rank commensurate with his age and position in life, and placed in the “Special Branch” with authority to wear a green stripe between his “rings.”
Most of the Special Branch officers, together with some of other branches, are on duty at shore stations, of which there are many throughout Canada. Not only must Naval Control staffs be kept manned at convoy and other ports, but naval dockyards and supply bases need their quota of officers. Work is carried on at the Canadian dockyards in approximately the same time and with the same skill as is shown in the navy yards of the United States and Great Britain. Many of the universities of Canada are co-operating by training naval technicians, particularly in radio and antisubmarine work.
In addition to the direct training undertaken by the Canadian Navy, the service has taken advantage of various training schemes arranged throughout the country to qualify young men in the mechanical trades. “The Navy has now some 700 young men,” said Mr. Macdonald to Parliament in 1942, “who have entered upon courses which will last for approximately three years, and which will qualify them for positions as artificers skilled in engine-room, electrical, and other types of mechanical work. These young men begin the course at about the age of seventeen years; and in due time they will form a reservoir of well-trained, technical men who will be available for the naval service.”
Also available are research laboratories where investigations are carried on in various branches of research, human as well as mechanical. Among these are the study of diets on board ship and ashore, the study of seasickness, the study of conditions which affect the eyesight of men, the problem of fatigue among technical operators, the effect of noise on men’s nerves and the possibility of eliminating it.
The “Navy Department” of the R.C.N. is at Ottawa, a home city with a normal population of 127,000 but now swollen to more than 150,000. Living conditions are as crowded in the capital of Canada as in the capital of the United States. At Naval Service Headquarters are located the Minister of Defense for Naval Services, the Chief of Naval Staff, and a group of officers, regular and reserve, organized into bureaus called divisions, who work out policies for the Royal Canadian Navy. These officers have no quitting time; they work until all hours of the night; but “tea-time” is sacred to them for ten minutes morning and afternoon. They are never too busy to co-operate, and will go far out of their way to help in every possible manner.
Co-operation between the Royal Canadian Navy and the United States Navy is close and constant; the best of feeling prevails; and officers of each service constantly strive to improve relations and the effectiveness which means a successful termination to the war. We may well draw inspiration from Canada’s small Navy.
Mr. Macdonald has said:
It is only 32 years since the foundations of the Canadian Navy were laid. Indeed, many of the men who were Canada’s first naval cadets and recruits are still on active service. It is a new Navy; in comparison with the sea forces of other great nations it must be called a small Navy; but it is shaping its own traditions of valor and service.