View source for History of the Royal Canadian Navy

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{{Use Canadian English|date=May 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2025}}
{{CanWars20thC}}
The '''history of the Royal Canadian Navy''' goes back to 1910, when the naval force was created as the Naval Service of Canada and renamed a year later by King [[George V]]. The [[Royal Canadian Navy]] (RCN) is one of the three environmental commands of the [[Canadian Forces]]. Over the course of its history, the RCN has played a role in the [[First World War]], contributed significantly to the [[Battle of the Atlantic]] during the [[Second World War]], and was a part of [[NATO]]'s force buildup during the [[Cold War]]. In 1968, the RCN was amalgamated with the [[Canadian Army]] and the [[Royal Canadian Air Force]] to form what is today the unified Canadian Armed Forces. The naval force was known as Maritime Command until 2011, when the environmental command was renamed as the Royal Canadian Navy.

==History==
===Formative years===
{{Quote box
 |quote  = His Majesty having been graciously pleased to authorize that the Canadian Naval Forces shall be designated the "Royal Canadian Navy," this title is to be officially adopted, the abbreviation thereof being 'RCN'.
 |source = [[George V|King George V]], 29 August 1911
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{{main|Origins of the Royal Canadian Navy|List of ships of the Royal Canadian Navy}}
During the early years of the 20th century, there was growing debate within the [[British Empire]] as to the role the [[Dominion]]s would play in [[defense (military)|defence]] and [[foreign relations]]. Because of the developing [[Anglo-German naval arms race|naval arms race]] with Germany, a key part of this discussion focused on naval issues. In Canada, the naval debate came down to a choice between two options: either the young country could provide funds, support and manpower to the [[Royal Navy]], or it could form its own navy, which could help support the Royal Navy if necessary. After extensive political debates, Canadian politicians chose the latter option.<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Marc |last=Milner |url=http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2004/01/it-began-with-fish-and-ships/ |title=It Began With Fish And Ships: Navy, Part 1 |magazine=Legion Magazine |date=1 January 2004 |access-date=2 May 2010 |archive-date=25 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120325090435/http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2004/01/it-began-with-fish-and-ships/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

On 29 March 1909, [[George Eulas Foster|George Foster]] introduced a resolution in the [[House of Commons of Canada|House of Commons]] calling for the establishment of a Canadian Naval Service. The resolution was not successful; however, on 12 January 1910, the government of [[Prime Minister of Canada|Prime Minister]] Sir [[Wilfrid Laurier]] took Foster's resolution and introduced it as the Naval Service Bill. After third reading, the bill received royal assent on 4 May 1910, becoming the ''[[Naval Service Act]]'' which created a [[Origins of the Canadian Navy|Department of the Naval Service]] under the [[Minister of Marine and Fisheries (Canada)|Minister of Marine and Fisheries]], who also became the Minister of the Naval Service.<ref>{{cite book |first=Gibert Norman |last=Tucker |url=http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=46 |title=The Naval Service of Canada: Volume I: Origins and Early Years |location=Ottawa |publisher=King's Printer |date=1952 |pages=137 |access-date=3 May 2010 |archive-date=14 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191214164259/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=46 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The act called for:

* a permanent force
* a reserve (to be called up in emergency)
* a volunteer reserve (to be called up in emergency)
* the establishment of a naval college
[[File:C E Kingsmill.jpg|thumb|left|Rear-Admiral [[Charles Kingsmill]] was named the first director of the Naval Service of Canada in 1910. The service was later renamed the [[Royal Canadian Navy]] in 1911.]]
The official title of the navy was the [[The Creation of the Canadian Navy#The Canadian Navy|Naval Service of Canada]] (also Canadian Naval Forces), and the first Director of the Naval Service of Canada was Rear-Admiral [[Charles Kingsmill]] (Royal Navy, retired), who had previously been in charge of the Marine Service of the [[Department of Marine and Fisheries (Canada)|Department of Marine and Fisheries]]. A request to change name of the Naval Service of Canada to Royal Canadian Navy on 30 January 1911, brought a favourable reply from King George V on 29 August of that year.<ref>{{cite book |first=Gilbert Norman |last=Tucker |title=The Naval Service of Canada: Its Official History |url=https://archive.org/details/navalserviceofca01tuckuoft |publisher=King's Printer |location=Ottawa |date=1952}}</ref>

The naval college was established in the dockyard at [[Halifax Regional Municipality|Halifax, Nova Scotia]] in 1911 as "[[Royal Naval College of Canada]]". The Royal Naval College was established to impart a complete education in Naval Science. Graduates were qualified to enter the Imperial or Canadian Service as midshipmen although a Naval career was not compulsory. The course provided a grounding in Applied Science, [[Engineering]], [[Mathematics]], [[Navigation]], [[History]] and Modern Languages and was accepted as qualifying for entry as second-year students in Canadian Universities. The program aimed to develop both the physical and mental including discipline, the ability to obey and take charge, and honour. Candidates had to be between their fourteenth and sixteenth birthdays on 1 July following the examination. The original Royal Naval College of Canada facilities were destroyed in December 1917 in the [[Halifax Explosion]]. What could be salvaged was moved to {{HMCS|Stone Frigate}} at the [[Royal Military College of Canada]] (RMC) in [[Kingston, Ontario]]. The "Royal Canadian Naval College" moved in 1919 to a building in the naval dockyard at [[Esquimalt, British Columbia]]. The college was closed in 1922.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{cite book |first=J. A. |last=Foster |title=Heart of Oak, Pictorial History Royal Canadian Navy |url=https://archive.org/details/heartofoakpictor0000fost |url-access=registration |publisher=Methuen |date=1985}}</ref>

To form the nucleus of its [[The Creation of the Canadian Navy|new navy]], and to train Canadians for the country's planned fleet of five cruisers and six destroyers,<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Marc |last=Milner |url=http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2010/01/launching-the-service/ |title=Launching The Service |magazine=Legion Magazine |date=1 January 2010 |access-date=2 May 2010}}</ref> Canada acquired two ships from Great Britain. The cruiser {{HMCS|Rainbow|1891|6}} was the first ship commissioned into Canada's navy on 4 August 1910, at [[Portsmouth, England]]. She arrived at Esquimalt on 7 November 1910, and carried out fishery patrols and training duties on Canada's west coast.<ref>{{cite book |first=Gibert Norman |last=Tucker |url=http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=46 |title=The Naval Service of Canada: Volume I: Origins and Early Years |location=Ottawa |publisher=King's Printer |date=1952 |pages=142–144 |access-date=3 May 2010 |archive-date=14 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191214164259/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=46 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Another Royal Navy cruiser, {{HMS|Niobe|1897|2}}, became the second ship commissioned into the Canadian navy on 6 September 1910, at [[HMNB Devonport|Devonport]] in [[England]] and arrived at Halifax, Nova Scotia, on 21 October 1910—[[Trafalgar Day]].<ref>{{cite book |first=Gibert Norman |last=Tucker |url=http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=46 |title=The Naval Service of Canada: Volume I: Origins and Early Years |location=Ottawa |publisher=King's Printer |date=1952 |pages=138–142 |access-date=3 May 2010 |archive-date=14 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191214164259/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=46 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
[[File:HMCS Rainbow dressed North Vancouver 1910.jpg|thumb|The cruiser {{HMCS|Rainbow|1891|6}} was the first ship commissioned into the service.]] 
These initial plans encountered significant setbacks following Laurier's defeat in the [[1911 Canadian federal election|1911 federal election]], in which the debate about naval policy played a significant part. The new Conservative government, led by [[Robert Borden]], had opposed the Naval Service Act while they were in opposition. At the urging of the [[First Sea Lord|Admiralty's First Sea Lord]] [[Winston Churchill]], Borden agreed to finance the construction of three [[dreadnought]]s for $35 million.<ref>[[#German|German (1990)]], p. 29.</ref> This plan was far more costly than Laurier's original plan of the Canadian-built fleet, and would reap no benefits to Canadian industries whatsoever. On 5 December 1912, Borden introduced the [[Naval Aid Bill]] as a one-time contribution to the British Royal Navy. After a bitter debate and a long filibuster by the opposition [[Liberal Party of Canada|Liberals]], the [[9th Canadian Ministry|Borden government]] invoked [[closure]] on the debate, for the first time ever in Canadian Parliament, and the bill passed third reading on 15 May 1913. The act was soundly defeated by the Liberal-majority [[Senate of Canada|Senate]] two weeks later. The Royal Canadian Navy now found itself in limbo, with very limited funds for operations, two obsolescent cruisers, and no prospect of new ships being built or acquired.<ref>{{cite book |first=Gibert Norman |last=Tucker |url=http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=46 |title=The Naval Service of Canada: Volume I: Origins and Early Years |location=Ottawa |publisher=King's Printer |date=1952 |pages=191–200 |access-date=3 May 2010 |archive-date=14 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191214164259/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=46 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |first=Marc |last=Milner |url=http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2004/03/military-milestones/ |title=A Sea of Politics: Navy, Part 2 |magazine=Legion Magazine |date=1 March 2004 |access-date=2 May 2010 |archive-date=25 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120325090449/http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2004/03/military-milestones/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Despite the problems of these early years, some Canadians were still active supporters of a national navy. Building on earlier, unofficial efforts, a volunteer reserve came into being in May 1914 as the [[Royal Naval Canadian Volunteer Reserve]] (RNCVR). Its initial establishment was 1,200 men, and it was divided into three distinct geographic areas: (1) Atlantic, (2) Pacific, and (3) Lake (representing inland areas). During the First World War, it would expand considerably, and also establish an "Overseas Division" specifically for service with the Royal Navy.<ref>{{cite book |first=Gibert Norman |last=Tucker |url=http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=46 |title=The Naval Service of Canada: Volume I: Origins and Early Years |location=Ottawa |publisher=King's Printer |date=1952 |pages=156–158, 221 |access-date=3 May 2010 |archive-date=14 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191214164259/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=46 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Immediately before the First World War, the premier of [[British Columbia]], in a fit of public spirit, purchased two submarines ({{HMCS|CC-1||2}} and {{HMCS|CC-2||2}}) from a shipyard in [[Washington (state)|Washington]]. The submarines had been built for the [[Chilean Navy]] but the purchase had fallen through. On 7 August 1914, the Government of Canada purchased the boats from the Government of British Columbia, and they were consequently commissioned into the RCN.

===First World War===
{{see also|List of Royal Canadian Navy ships of the First World War}}
[[File:HMCS Margaret CN-3226.jpg|thumb|{{ship|CGS|Margaret}} (renamed HMCS ''Margaret'') was one of several ships pressed into naval service at the outbreak of the [[First World War]]]]
At the outbreak of the First World War on 5 August 1914, two government vessels, CGS ''Canada'' (renamed {{HMCS|Canada}}) and {{ship|CGS|Margaret}}, were immediately pressed into naval service, joining ''Niobe'', ''Rainbow'' and the two submarines ''CC-1'' and ''CC-2'', to form a six-vessel naval force. At this point, [[London]] and [[Ottawa]] were planning to significantly expand the RCN, but it was decided that Canadian men would be permitted to enlist in either the Royal Navy or its Canadian counterpart, with many choosing the former.

During the fall of 1914, HMCS ''Rainbow'' patrolled the west coast of [[North America]], as far south as Panama, although these patrols became less important following the elimination of the German naval threat in the Pacific with the December 1914 defeat of German Admiral [[Maximilian von Spee]]'s [[East Asia Squadron]] in the [[Battle of the Falkland Islands]].<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Marc |last=Milner |url=http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2004/05/the-original-rainbow-warrior/ |title=The Original Rainbow Warrior: Navy, Part 3 |magazine=Legion Magazine |date=1 May 2004 |access-date=6 May 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081011143957/http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2004/05/the-original-rainbow-warrior/ |archive-date=11 October 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Many of ''Rainbow''{{'s}} crew were posted to the east coast for the remainder of the war and by 1917 ''Rainbow'' was withdrawn from service.<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Marc |last=Milner |url=http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2005/01/menace-below-the-surface/ |title=Menace Below The Surface: Navy, Part 7 |magazine=Legion Magazine |date=1 January 2005 |access-date=6 May 2010 |archive-date=25 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120325090531/http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2005/01/menace-below-the-surface/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The early part of the war also saw HMCS ''Niobe'' actively patrolling off the coast of [[New York City]] as part of British blockading forces, but she returned to Halifax permanently in July 1915 when she was declared no longer fit for service and was converted to a depot ship. She was heavily damaged in the December 1917 Halifax Explosion.<ref>{{cite magazine| first=Marc |last=Milner |url=http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2004/09/niobes-brief-operational-career/ |title=Niobe's Brief Operational Career: Navy, Part 5 |magazine=Legion Magazine |date=1 September 2004 |access-date=6 May 2010}}</ref>

''CC-1'' and ''CC-2'' spent the first three years of the war patrolling the Pacific; however, the lack of German threat saw them reposted to Halifax in 1917. With their tender, [[HMS Shearwater (1900)|HMCS ''Shearwater'']], they became the first warships to transit the [[Panama Canal]] flying the [[White Ensign]] (the RCN's service flag). Arriving in Halifax on 17 October 1917, they were declared unfit for service and never patrolled again, being scrapped in 1920.

In June 1918, {{ship|HMHS|Llandovery Castle}} was sunk by a [[U-boat]]. In terms of the number of dead- 234 - the sinking was [[List of maritime disasters|the most significant Canadian naval disaster]] of the First World War.

On 5 September 1918, the [[Royal Canadian Naval Air Service]] (RCNAS) was formed with a main function to carry out anti-submarine operations using [[flying boat]] patrol aircraft. The [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy's]] [[Naval Air Station Halifax]], located on the eastern shores of the harbour at [[Eastern Passage, Nova Scotia]], was acquired, but following the [[Armistice with Germany|11 November 1918 Armistice]], the RCNAS was discontinued.<ref>{{cite book |first1=J.D.F. |last1=Kealey |first2=E.C. |last2=Russell |url=https://archive.org/details/a-history-of-canadian-naval-aviation-1918-1962 |title=A History of Canadian Naval Aviation, 1918–1962 |location=Ottawa |publisher=The Naval Historical Section Canadian Forces Headquarters Department of National Defence |date=1967 |pages=1–10 |access-date=6 May 2010 |archive-date=23 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111023114508/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=37 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Inter-war period===
[[File:HMCS Aurora Patriot Patrician Esquimalt 1921 E-6546-2.jpg|thumb|The [[light cruiser]] {{HMCS|Aurora}} was decommissioned in 1922, along with a number of other ships as the RCN scaled-back after the [[First World War]].]]
Following a draw-down in the RCN after the war, the RCN undertook to find a mission and found it in taking over many of the civilian responsibilities of the Marine Service of the [[Department of Transport (Canada)|Department of Transport]]. Even though by 1922 the RCN had been cut back to 366 men<ref>{{cite book |last=Schull |first=Joseph |title=Far Distant Ships: An Official Account of Canadian Naval Operations in World War II |orig-year=1952 |publisher=Stoddart Publishing |location=Toronto |date=1987 |isbn=0-7737-2160-6 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/fardistantshipso00schu/page/7 7] |url=https://archive.org/details/fardistantshipso00schu/page/7 }}</ref> and had paid off its last remaining cruiser [[HMS Aurora (1913)|HMCS ''Aurora'']], the Navy kept two destroyers donated by the Royal Navy, {{HMCS|Patriot}} and {{HMCS|Patrician}}, until they were replaced in the late 1920s by two other ex-Royal Navy vessels {{HMCS|Champlain|1919|6}} and {{HMCS|Vancouver|F6A|6}}, and thereby maintained ships in service throughout the lean years.

On 31 January 1923, the RNCVR was replaced by the [[Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve]] (RCNVR). The initial authorized strength of the RCNVR was 1,000 all ranks. Twelve Canadian cities (Calgary, Charlottetown, Edmonton, Halifax, Hamilton, Ottawa, Prince Rupert, Quebec City, Regina, Saint John, Saskatoon and Vancouver) were earmarked for divisions of "Half-Company" strength, i.e. 50 men, all ranks. Three larger cities (Toronto, Montreal and Winnipeg) were ordered to man to a "Company" strength, which was 100, all ranks.<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Marc |last=Milner |url=http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2005/11/establishing-the-naval-reserve/ |title=Establishing The Naval Reserve: Navy, Part 12 |magazine=Legion Magazine |date=1 November 2005 |access-date=7 May 2010}}</ref> The first commission was given, on 14 March 1923, to Lieutenant Frank Meade, who established a Company sized detachment in Montreal. By the end of 1923, twelve units had been formed.

In 1931, the RCN underwent a major facelift when the first ships specifically built for the RCN, the destroyers {{HMCS|Saguenay|D79|6}} and {{HMCS|Skeena|D59|6}}, were commissioned at Portsmouth, England.<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Marc |last=Milner |url=http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2006/01/walter-hose-to-the-rescue/ |title=Walter Hose To The Rescue: Navy, Part 13 |magazine=Legion Magazine |date=1 January 2006 |access-date=2 May 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=Gilbert Norman |last=Tucker |url=http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=46 |title=The Naval Service of Canada: Volume I: Origins and Early Years |location=Ottawa |publisher=King's Printer |date=1952 |pages=349 |access-date=3 May 2010 |archive-date=14 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191214164259/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=46 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In late January 1932, ''Skeena'' along with ''Vancouver'' provided protection to British assets and civilians in [[El Salvador]] at the request of the British Consul in San Salvador following the outbreak of a [[1932 Salvadoran peasant uprising|peasant uprising]]. A landing party was briefly sent ashore at [[Acajutla]], but the situation there improved and the sailors saw no combat, although the two ships remained in the area until the end of the month.<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Marc |last=Milner |url=http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2006/03/the-invasion-of-el-salvador/ |title=The Invasion of El Salvador: Navy, Part 14 |magazine=Legion Magazine |date=1 March 2006 |access-date=2 May 2010 |archive-date=7 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130507035302/http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2006/03/the-invasion-of-el-salvador/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Throughout the 1930s, the RCN, along with its sister services, was starved of funding and equipment. Nevertheless, this decade saw the RCN slowly begin its rebuilding, as Ottawa joined London, [[Paris]], and [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]] in a growing apprehension of the ramifications of [[Nazi Germany]]'s rearmament and the adventurism of [[Kingdom of Italy|Italy]] and [[Empire of Japan|Japan]], and procured two more destroyers from the Royal Navy: {{HMCS|Ottawa|H60|6}} and {{HMCS|Restigouche|H00|6}}. A custom-built training vessel, the tern [[schooner]] {{HMCS|Venture}} based on the famous ''[[Bluenose]]'' was commissioned in 1938 for advanced seamanship training. By the outbreak of war in September 1939, however, the RCN still had only six [[River-class destroyer (1931)|River-class destroyers]], five [[minesweepers]] and two small training vessels,<ref>{{cite book |last=German |first=Tony |title=The sea is at our gates: The History of the Canadian Navy |publisher=McClelland and Stewart |date=1990 |isbn=0-7710-3269-2 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/seaisatourgatesh00germ/page/71 71] |url=https://archive.org/details/seaisatourgatesh00germ/page/71 }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |first=Marc |last=Milner |url=http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2006/11/the-roots-of-expansion/ |title=The Roots of Expansion: Navy, Part 18 |magazine=Legion Magazine |date=1 November 2006 |access-date=7 May 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |first=Marc |last=Milner |url=http://www.legionmagazine.com/en/index.php/2007/03/the-first-convoys/ |title=The First Convoys: Navy, Part 20 |magazine=Legion Magazine |date=1 March 2007 |access-date=7 May 2010}}</ref> bases at [[CFB Halifax|Halifax]] and [[CFB Esquimalt|Victoria]], and altogether 145 officers and 1,674 men.<ref>{{cite book |last=Schull |first=Joseph |title=Far Distant Ships: An Official Account of Canadian Naval Operations in World War II |orig-year=1952 |publisher=Stoddart Publishing |location=Toronto |date=1987 |isbn=0-7737-2160-6 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/fardistantshipso00schu/page/1 1] |url=https://archive.org/details/fardistantshipso00schu/page/1 }}</ref>

===Second World War===
{{see also|List of Royal Canadian Navy ships of the Second World War}}
[[File:Incharran.jpg|thumb|The frigate {{HMCS|Inch Arran|K667|6}} was one of many ships commissioned during the [[Second World War]]. The RCN expanded substantially during WW2, becoming the fourth-largest navy in the world at the end of the war.]]
The RCN expanded substantially during the Second World War, with the larger vessels transferred or purchased from the US and British navies (many through the [[Destroyers for Bases Agreement]]), and the smaller vessels such as [[Flower-class corvette|corvette]]s and [[River-class frigate|frigate]]s constructed in Canada. By the end of the conflict Canada had the fourth-largest navy in the world, behind the United States, the United Kingdom and the USSR, but only two ships larger than destroyers, the light cruisers {{HMCS|Uganda|C66|6}} and {{HMCS|Ontario|C53|6}}.<ref>{{cite book |title=A Bridge of Ships: Canadian Shipbuilding during the Second World War|last=Pritchard |first=James |publisher=McGill-Queens University Press |location=Montreal |date=2011 |pages=464|isbn=978-0773538245}}</ref> Although it showed its inexperience at times during the early part of the war, a navy made up of men from all across the country, including many who had never before seen a large body of water, proved capable of exceeding the expectations of its allies. By the end of the [[Battle of the Atlantic]], the RCN was the primary navy in the [[Canadian Northwest Atlantic|northwest sector]] of the [[Atlantic Ocean]] and under the command of [[Leonard W. Murray|Rear-Admiral Murray]] was responsible for the safe escort of innumerable convoys and the destruction of many U-boats—an anti-submarine capability that the RCN would build upon in post-war years. The [[Northwest Atlantic Theatre]] was the only theatre not under command of either a Briton or American during the entire war.
[[File:The Royal Navy during the Second World War A3297.jpg|thumb|left|Royal Canadian Navy crew during Second World War]]
At the end of the Battle of the Atlantic, Canadian ships (either alone or in conjunction with other ships and planes) sank a total of 27 U-boats, and either sank or captured 42 [[Axis powers|Axis]] surface ships.<ref name="Schull, Joseph 1987, p.430">{{cite book |last=Schull |first=Joseph |title=Far Distant Ships: An Official Account of Canadian Naval Operations in World War II |orig-year=1952 |publisher=Stoddart Publishing |location=Toronto |date=1987 |isbn=0-7737-2160-6 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/fardistantshipso00schu/page/430 430] |url=https://archive.org/details/fardistantshipso00schu/page/430 }}</ref> But the real victory was not so much in the statistics of battle, as in the successful completion of 25,343 merchant ship crossings, carrying 181,643,180 tons of cargo and a significant proportion of the Canadian and US forces for the eventual victory in Europe.<ref name="Schull, Joseph 1987, p.430"/> Canada lost 24 ships in five different theatres: first was [[HMS Crescent (1931)|''Fraser'']], sunk in a collision while evacuating refugees from France in 1940; {{HMCS|Athabaskan|G07|2}}, {{HMCS|Regina|K234|2}}, {{HMCS|Alberni|K103|2}} and {{HMCS|Trentonian|K368|2}} were lost in 1944 during [[Operation Neptune]] and cross-[[English Channel|Channel]] escort duty; {{HMCS|Louisburg|K143|2}} and {{HMCS|Weyburn|K173|2}} sank in the [[Mediterranean Sea]] during the North African invasions of [[Operation Torch]]; eight ships were sunk protecting Canadian coastal waters {{HMCS|Bras d'Or|auxiliary minesweeper|2}}, {{HMCS|Chedabucto||2}}, {{HMCS|Clayoquot||2}} and {{HMCS|Esquimalt||2}} (minesweepers), {{HMCS|Otter||2}} and {{HMCS|Raccoon||2}} ([[armed yacht]]s), and {{HMCS|Charlottetown|1941|2}} and {{HMCS|Shawinigan|K136|2}} (corvettes); and nine ships were lost on Atlantic escort duty [[HMS Diana (H49)|''Margaree'']], {{HMCS|Levis|K115|2}}, {{HMCS|Windflower|K155|2}}, {{HMCS|Spikenard|K198|2}}, [[HMS Crusader (H60)|''Ottawa'']], [[USS McCook (DD-252)|''St. Croix'']], {{HMCS|Valleyfield|K329|2}}, ''Skeena'' and {{HMS|Guysborough||2}} (on loan to the RCN from the Royal Navy). Altogether the RCN lost 1,797 seamen, and 95 became prisoners of war.<ref>{{cite book |last=Schull |first=Joseph |title=Far Distant Ships: An Official Account of Canadian Naval Operations in World War II |orig-year=1952 |publisher=Stoddart Publishing |location=Toronto |date=1987 |isbn=0-7737-2160-6 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/fardistantshipso00schu/page/430 430–1] |url=https://archive.org/details/fardistantshipso00schu/page/430 }}</ref>
[[File:Bombardment by HMCS UGANDA.jpg|thumb|Naval bombardment by {{HMCS|Uganda|C66|6}} on [[Miyako-jima]] in May 1945. ''Uganda'' was one of several RCN ships attached to the [[British Pacific Fleet]].]]
As the end of the war against Germany approached, attention focused on Japan. At the end of 1944, some RCN ships were deployed with the [[British Pacific Fleet]], joining the many Canadian personnel already serving with the Royal Navy in the [[Pacific War]]. Ottawa was also laying plans to expand the RCN's capabilities beyond its [[Anti-submarine warfare|anti-submarine]] orientation. The war in the Pacific was expected to culminate with a massive invasion of Japan itself, and this would need a different navy than that required in the Atlantic.

Britain was nearly bankrupt after five and a half years of war and was looking to shrink its military somewhat, especially since the United States was now the dominant power in the Pacific. With this in mind, the RCN and the [[Royal Australian Navy]] were to receive many ships considered surplus to the RN's needs, with the end goal being a powerful [[Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]] [[Naval fleet|fleet]] of Australian, British, Canadian, and New Zealand ships alongside the United States Navy. As in the First World War, the war ended before these plans came to fruition. With the dropping of two [[nuclear bomb]]s on [[Hiroshima and Nagasaki]], Japan's surrender was effected.

With the end of the war, the RCN stopped expanding. A planned transfer of two light [[aircraft carrier]]s from the Royal Navy, {{HMCS|Warrior}} and {{HMCS|Magnificent}} was slowed, and when ''Warrior'' was found to be unsuitable for a North Atlantic winter, she was sent to the west coast and the next year was replaced by ''Magnificent'', with ''Warrior'' being returned to the Royal Navy. Canada still had two light cruisers, {{HMCS|Ontario}} and [[HMS Uganda (66)|HMCS ''Uganda'']] (later HMCS ''Quebec''), a number of {{sclass2|Tribal|destroyer (1936)|4}} and other destroyers, and a mass of frigates, corvettes, and other ships, the majority of which were mothballed by 1947.

===1949 'mutinies'===
In the late winter of 1949, the RCN was shaken by three almost simultaneous cases of mass insubordination variously described as "Incidents" or "Mutinies":

* On 26 February, when the destroyer {{HMCS|Athabaskan|R79|6}} was on a fuelling stop at [[Manzanillo, Colima]], Mexico, ninety [[Leading seaman|Leading Seamen]] and below—constituting more than half the ship's company—locked themselves in their [[messdeck]]s, and refused to come out until getting the captain to hear their grievances.
* On 15 March, in another destroyer—{{HMCS|Crescent|R16|6}}, at [[Nanjing]], China—eighty-three junior ratings held a similar protest.
* On 20 March, thirty-two aircraft handlers on the carrier ''Magnificent'', which was on fleet manoeuvres in the [[Caribbean Sea]], briefly refused an order to turn to morning cleaning stations.

As noted by Dr. Richard Gimblett, researcher and himself a retired naval officer<ref>{{cite web|first=Richard |last=Gimblett |title=Dissension in the Ranks, 'Mutinies' in the Royal Canadian Navy |url=http://www.navalandmilitarymuseum.org/resource_pages/controversies/rcn_mutinies.html |publisher=CFB Esquimalt Naval & Military Museum |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070302002055/http://www.navalandmilitarymuseum.org/resource_pages/controversies/rcn_mutinies.html |archive-date=2 March 2007 }}</ref> the respective captains in all three cases acted with great sensitivity, entering the messes for an informal discussion of the sailors' grievances and carefully avoided using the term "mutiny," which could have had severe legal consequences for the sailors involved. Specifically, the captain of ''Athabaskan'', while talking with the disgruntled crew members, is known to have placed his cap over a written list of demands, which could have been used as legal evidence of a mutiny, and pretended not to notice it.

Still, the Canadian government of the time—the early years of the Cold War—felt apprehensive of "The [[Red Scare|Red Menace]]," especially since the naval sailors' discontent coincided with a strike among members of the [[Communist]]-led [[Canadian Seaman's Union]] in the [[Canadian Merchant Navy]]. (Also, one of the incidents occurred in China, where Communists were in the process of winning a civil war and gaining power).

Defence Minister [[Brooke Claxton]] appointed Rear-Admiral [[Rollo Mainguy]], Flag Officer Atlantic Coast, to head a commission of inquiry. The Mainguy Report— described by Dr. Gimblett as "a watershed in the Navy's history, whose findings, recommendations and conclusions remain a potent legacy"—concluded that no evidence was found of Communist influence or of collusion between the three crews.

The "General Causes Contributing to [the] Breakdown of Discipline" noted by the commission included:

* Collapse of the Divisional System of personnel management;
* Failure to provide Welfare Committees for the airing of petty grievances, which led to sailors informally adopting a kind of equivalent to a [[sit down strike]];
* Frequent changes in ships' manning and routines with inadequate explanation;
* A deterioration in the traditional relationship between officers and petty officers;
* The absence of a distinguishing [[Canadian identity]] in the Navy.

The last issue—an assertion of "an uncaring officer corps harbouring aristocratic British attitudes inappropriate to Canadian democratic sensitivities"—went beyond the question of sailors' morale and touched on the basic identity of the Canadian Navy and indeed, on the national identity of Canada as a whole.

It was to have ramifications in the process undertaken in later decades, painful to many of the officers concerned, of deliberately cutting off many of the British traditions in the matter of ensigns, uniforms and other matters.<ref name="lib.unb.ca">{{cite journal |first=Alan |last=Filewood |title=Theatre, Navy and The Narrative of 'True Canadianism' |journal=Theatre Research in Canada |volume=13 |number=1&2 |date=Spring–Fall 1992 |pages=94–106 |doi=10.3138/tric.13.1_2.94 |url=http://www.lib.unb.ca/Texts/TRIC/bin/get.cgi?directory=vol13_1_2/&filename=Filewod.htm|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

===Cold War===
[[File:HMCS Nipagon - Ocean Safari 85 - DN-ST-86-02520.JPEG|thumb|As the [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] submarine threat grew, the RCN moved to build seven {{sclass|St. Laurent|destroyer|0}} anti-submarine [[destroyer escort]]s.]]
{{see also|List of Royal Canadian Navy ships of the Cold War}}

Immediately after the end of the Second World War, Canada, like many other countries, dramatically reduced its military expenditures. For the RCN, this meant large cuts to its personnel strength and number of commissioned ships. The emergence of the Cold War and the formation of the [[NATO|North Atlantic Treaty Organization]] (NATO), followed by the outbreak of the Korean War, prompted the Canadian government to dramatically increase its military spending. For the RCN, this resulted in increased numbers of personnel, the recommissioning and modification of some Second World War ships held in reserve, the design and construction of new classes of ships, and the upgrading of its recently created aviation capabilities.<ref>{{cite book |first=Marc |last=Milner |title=Canada's Navy: The First Century |location=Toronto |publisher=University of Toronto Press |date=1999 |pages=199–206 |isbn=0-8020-4281-3}}</ref> RCN destroyers formed part of Canada's initial response to the [[United Nations]]' call for assistance during the Korean War, and were sent to Korean waters to join other UN naval forces. The Canadian ships' duties included "exciting but dangerous" shore bombardments and the destruction of North Korean trains and railway lines. Initially dispatched in 1950, Canadian destroyers maintained a presence off the Korean peninsula until 1955.<ref>{{cite web |first1=Thor |last1=Thorgrimsson |first2=E.C. |last2=Russell |url=http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=39 |title=Canadian Naval Operations in Korean Waters, 1950–1955 |location=Ottawa |publisher=Queen's Printer |date=1965 |access-date=9 May 2010 |archive-date=12 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180712175651/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=39 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

At much the same time, the growing [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] submarine threat led the RCN to update and convert existing ships to improve their anti-submarine capabilities.<ref>{{cite book |first=Marc |last=Milner |title=Canada's Navy: The First Century |location=Toronto |publisher=University of Toronto Press |date=1999 |pages=207–209 |isbn=0-8020-4281-3}}</ref> Most notably, 21 wartime River-class frigates were extensively converted to {{sclass|Prestonian|frigate|1}}s during the mid-to-late 1950s. The RCN also acquired several new classes of anti-submarine [[destroyer escort]]s (DDEs) to augment its fleet. Built in Canada, these ships pioneered innovative design features, including a distinctive rounded upper part of the hull which helped seawater drain from the deck during the extremely rough weather and also helped minimize winter-time ice buildup. The first of these new ships were the seven {{sclass|St. Laurent|destroyer|0}} DDEs, which were soon followed by the {{sclass|Restigouche|destroyer|5}}, {{sclass|Mackenzie|destroyer|5}}, and {{sclass|Annapolis|destroyer|5}} classes with seven, four, and two vessels respectively.<ref>{{cite book |first1=Ken |last1=Macpherson |first2=John |last2=Burgess |title=The ships of Canada's naval forces 1910–1993 : a complete pictorial history of Canadian warships |location=St. Catharines, Ontario |publisher=Vanwell Publishing |date=1994 |pages=163–168 |isbn=0-920277-91-8}}</ref> Following the construction of these new ships throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, the RCN was able to retire most of its remaining vessels dating from the Second World War. The RCN intended to replace some of the capabilities lost with the retirement of those vessels with the [[General Purpose Frigate (Canada)|General Purpose Frigate]], but after disagreement over the direction of the service, the project was scrapped.<ref>Gimblett, p. 150</ref><ref>Milner, p. 238</ref>

[[File:HMCS Bonaventure (CVL 22) underway 1961.jpeg|thumb|left|{{HMCS|Bonaventure}} in 1961. ''Bonaventure'' was the last [[aircraft carrier]] operated by the Royal Canadian Navy]]

Seeking to improve its ships' anti-submarine capabilities, the RCN pioneered the use of large ship-borne helicopters on small surface ships like destroyers in the rough waters of the North Atlantic and Pacific. The recovery of helicopters to a wildly pitching flight deck was made possible by the invention of the "Bear Trap", a cable and winch system which hauled a helicopter, hovering at full power, to the flight deck in all manner of conditions. Using this technology, the ''St. Laurent''-class DDEs were upgraded to destroyer-helicopter (DDH) vessels during the early to mid-1960s to accommodate recently acquired [[CH-124 Sea King]] anti-submarine helicopters. Other ships also received upgrades to increase their anti-submarine capabilities. The RCN was also actively involved in the development of various forms of ship-borne [[sonar]], most notably the variable depth sonar (VDS), which greatly increased the ranges at which submarines could be detected.<ref>{{cite book |first=Marc |last=Milner |title=Canada's Navy: The First Century |location=Toronto |publisher=University of Toronto Press |date=1999 |pages=221–226, 259 |isbn=0-8020-4281-3}}</ref> The improved capabilities conferred by these innovations contributed to Canada's NATO allies giving the RCN an expanded anti-submarine role in the North Atlantic. Much of the RCN's experimental work in these fields was conducted in conjunction with the [[Defence Research Board]], and it would later include experiments leading to the development of the fastest warship ever built, the {{convert|60|kn|km/h|adj=on|lk=in}} {{HMCS|Bras d'Or|FHE 400|6}}.

The RCN also expanded and improved its aviation capabilities during much of this period. While it had provided crews for the British aircraft carriers {{HMS|Nabob|D77|6}} and {{HMS|Puncher|D79|6}} during the Second World War, and Canadians had served in the Royal Navy's [[Fleet Air Arm]], Canada had no carriers of its own until HMCS ''Warrior'' entered Canadian service in 1946. ''Warrior'' proved unsuitable for North Atlantic winters, however, and was replaced by HMCS ''Magnificent'' in 1948. By the mid-1950s, ''Magnificent'' was no longer used as an active aircraft carrier, but was used as a vehicle transport during Canada's peacekeeping response to the 1956 [[Suez Crisis]], before being paid off. Her replacement, {{HMCS|Bonaventure}}, was a more modern aircraft carrier which had been substantially rebuilt to accommodate an angled flight deck and other improvements. During this time, the RCN also used stations at [[CFB Shearwater|HMCS ''Shearwater'']] and {{HMCS|Patricia Bay}} to operate carrier-based fighter and anti-submarine aircraft, including the British [[Supermarine Seafire]] and [[Hawker Sea Fury]], and the American [[F2H Banshee]], the RCN's only jet fighter. Anti-submarine aircraft included variants of the [[Fairey Firefly]], the [[Grumman Avenger]], and a version of the [[Grumman Tracker]] built by [[de Havilland Canada]].<ref>{{cite book |first1=J.D.F. |last1=Kealey |first2=E.C. |last2=Russell |url=http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=37 |title=A History of Canadian Naval Aviation, 1918–1962 |location=Ottawa |publisher=Queen's Printer |date=1967 |access-date=9 May 2010 |archive-date=23 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111023114508/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dhh-dhp/his/oh-ho/detail-eng.asp?BfBookLang=1&BfId=37 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Unification===
{{see also|Unification of the Canadian Forces}}
On 1 February 1968, the personnel of the Royal Canadian Navy, along with those of the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Canadian Army, were transferred to the new, unified [[Canadian Forces]], established under separate legislation, the National Defence Act.<ref>{{cite web |publisher=Department of Justice - Canada |url=http://laws.justice.gc.ca/eng/N-5/index.html/ |title=Laws of Canada: The National Defence Act |access-date=9 July 2010 |archive-date=26 January 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200126105316/https://laws.justice.gc.ca/eng/N-5/index.html/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> The naval forces were restructured as [[Canadian Forces Maritime Command]] (MARCOM), with Fleet Air Arm units being transferred to the [[Canadian Forces Air Command]] (AIRCOM).

For many of the serving naval personnel, the transition – giving up the old ensigns, and even more the adoption of army-type ranks and green uniforms instead of the distinctive naval ones – was a very painful process. Researcher Alan Filewood recalls:<ref name="lib.unb.ca"/>

<blockquote>''I grew up in a navy family; my father was a regular force officer who had risen from the lower deck, and he was himself the son of a petty officer who had come to Canada as one of the British Royal Navy crews that brought Canada's first warships to this country in 1911 and elected to stay to build the RCN. Growing up in a naval family, I was imbued with the traditions of a service that prided itself on its British roots.''</blockquote>

<blockquote>''I recall vividly the day the armed forces paraded in Ottawa to witness the lowering of the old service ensigns and the raising of the new. My mother was a naval vet, a former WREN, and at this transformative moment of national symbolism, she wept; with the lowering of the White Ensign something disappeared from her history. Sometime later my father came home demoralized in his new army-style uniform with an army rank. Like many other naval officers, he retired soon thereafter.''</blockquote>

The controversy included the dismissal of Rear-Admiral [[William Landymore]], senior officer in the Atlantic, who tried to secure commitments that naval traditions would be maintained, but was later fired by Defence Minister [[Paul Hellyer]] for his opposition to the changes.<ref>German, pp. 286–88</ref>

MARCOM was formed on 7 June 1965 as part of the integration reorganization of the services into six functional commands.<ref>Milner, p. 249</ref> The Canadian Forces Reorganization Act was given Royal Assent on 1 February 1968 and the Royal Canadian Navy ceased to exist as a separate service.<ref>Milner, p. 256</ref> The headquarters for MARCOM was based at CFB Halifax.<ref>German, p. 285</ref>

Canadian sailors exchanged their RCN uniforms for a rifle-green uniform common to all services (known as "CF green") and adopted an army-based rank structure. Only cap and collar badges identified "naval" personnel. These policies were somewhat reversed in the 1970s when MARCOM returned to a naval-based rank structure.<ref>German, pp. 302–3</ref> In 1985 the Canadian Armed Forces introduced its distinctive environmental uniforms (DEUs) for its three environmental commands. The new naval uniform was broadly similar to the former RCN uniform except that officers' uniforms contained six rather than eight buttons on the front of the tunic and the "square rig" for other ranks was not re-introduced. In addition, the executive curl on officers' rank insignia was omitted and the rank insignia of other ranks continued to follow the pattern used by the army.<ref>Milner, p. 291</ref>

The 1968 unification of the Canadian Armed Forces was the first time a nation with a modernized military had combined sea, land, and air branches into a unified-command structure. The move also saw the fleet air arm of the RCN become the Maritime Air Group. These air units were eventually placed under the Canadian Forces Air Command (AIRCOM) after that command was created in 1975.<ref>German, p. 303</ref>

In the mid-1990s, MARCOM headquarters were consolidated from Halifax at [[Department of National Defence Headquarters (Canada)|NDHQ]] in Ottawa at the same time that AIRCOM headquarters moved from Winnipeg and LFC headquarters moved from [[Saint-Hubert, Quebec]].

===Re-structure===
Following the 1968 unification, MARCOM undertook several changes to its force structure. The sole remaining aircraft carrier, HMCS ''Bonaventure'', was nearing the end of her service life, being a Second World War–era vessel. In the early 1970s, it was decided to pay ''Bonaventure'' off and not find a replacement, instead focusing on the traditional [[blue-water navy]].
[[File:HMCS Toronto (FFH 333) 3.jpg|thumb|{{HMCS|Toronto|FFH 333|6}} was one of 12 {{sclass|Halifax|frigate|1}} constructed for the service from the late–1980s to 1990s.]]
The fleet was enhanced in 1972 with the addition of the four new {{sclass|Iroquois|destroyer|1}}s, also known as the Tribal class. By the mid-1970s, the navy was looking at a new class of frigate-helicopter (FH) vessels to replace the aging ''St. Laurent'', ''Restigouche'', ''Mackenzie'', and ''Annapolis'' classes. This design evolved into the Canadian Patrol Frigate (CPF), which was promised by the government in the early 1980s during a period of increased military spending. By the late 1980s, with construction of the first six vessels underway (by now called the {{sclass|Halifax|frigate|1}}s), construction of six further vessels was announced. Nine of the twelve CPF vessels were built at [[Saint John, New Brunswick]], and the remaining three were built at [[Lauzon, Quebec]].

The mid-1980s saw the announcement of the Tribal Update and Modernization Program (TRUMP), which saw the four early-1970s ''Iroquois''-class destroyers updated into area air-defence destroyers. The update saw these vessels become the first non-US ships to carry the [[RIM-66 Standard|Standard SM-2]] anti-aircraft missile.

The 1990s saw the addition of the {{sclass|Kingston|coastal defence vessel|1}}s which enhanced MARCOM's minesweeping and route survey capabilities. Manned by naval reservists, the ''Kingston'' class is also used for training.

===Fleet rationalization===
In 1977, the Maritime Command recommended structure based on a fleet consisting of 24 destroyers and frigates, three submarines, three support ships, 36 long range patrol aircraft and 45 maritime helicopters. Despite a realistic fleet structure at the time, the Progressive Conservative minority government led by [[Joe Clark]] offered an expensive vision. The Conservative party wanted an expensive fleet structure consisting of 16 destroyers and frigates, 20 submarines, 13 minesweeping vessels, 12 fast attack craft, three escort merchant vessels, 36 long range patrol aircraft, 45 maritime helicopters and 84 shore-based attack aircraft. In 1984, DND requested a revision during the "Capabilities Planning Guide", which included a largely status quo fleet consisting of a 24 destroyers and frigates, four submarines, 12 mine clearance vessels, three support ships, 18 long range patrol aircraft, 18 medium range patrol aircraft and an unspecified number of maritime helicopters.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.journal.forces.gc.ca/vo9/no1/10-haydon-eng.asp#n40 |title=Choosing the Right Fleet Mix: Lessons From the Canadian Patrol Frigate Selection Process |access-date= 27 August 2008}}</ref> In 1985 the [[Centre for Military and Strategic Studies]] recommended a fleet consisting of four nuclear submarines, three [[helicopter carrier]]s, eight patrol vessels, four polar icebreakers and many helicopters and patrol aircraft.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Fulton |first= J.A. |title=What Model Fleet for Canada? |journal= Canadian Defence Quarterly |date=1986|page=6}}</ref>

In 1987, a defence White Paper suggested Canada purchase nuclear-powered [[submarine]]s (SSN) and specifically the {{sclass|Trafalgar|submarine|1}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.journal.forces.gc.ca/vo8/no4/lajeunes-eng.asp |title=Sovereignty, Security and the Canadian Nuclear Submarine Program |last=Lajeunesse |first=Adam |publisher=Journal.forces.gc.ca |access-date=4 March 2011}}</ref> However the plans for the [[Canada-class submarine|submarine]]s fell through due to cost.<ref>German, p. 324</ref><ref>Milner, p. 294</ref> After the collapse of the Soviet Union and the reorganization of the [[Russian Navy]] in 1991, the Maritime Command plan to maintain the capacity to defend the Canadian interest in the region was based on a fleet consisting of four destroyers, 18 frigates, six submarines, three supply ships and 12 minesweeping vessels. The plan was scrapped and re-evaluated in 1993, since the original plan could not be met with the money the government had provided at the time.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://thechronicleherald.ca/Opinion/1182739.html |title=Navy debate takes strange twist |last=Taylor |first=Scott |newspaper=Chronicle Herald |access-date=7 February 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100520013458/http://thechronicleherald.ca/Opinion/1182739.html |archive-date=20 May 2010 }}</ref>

===Action post-1968===
{{See also|Structure of the Canadian Armed Forces in 1989#Maritime Command}}
On 23 October 1969 at 8:21 AM {{HMCS|Kootenay|DDE 258|6}} suffered the worst peacetime accident in the history of the RCN during routine full-power trials when her starboard gearbox reached an estimated temperature of 650 degrees Celsius and exploded. The explosion and the ensuing fire killed 9 crew members and injured at least 53 others.<ref group=note>The captain reported 7 killed, 9 medically evacuated, and 1 missing.  However the final death toll was 9 killed. The 8th man killed was missing in the engine room until mid-afternoon. The 9th man killed died of smoke inhalation onboard HMCS ''Bonaventure'' two days after the fire. See [http://www.forposterityssake.ca/Kootenay1.htm 10 page account of explosion aboard HMCS ''Kootenay''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927034332/http://www.forposterityssake.ca/Kootenay1.htm |date=27 September 2007 }}  See also the book ''We Are As One'' by LCdr (retd) Gordon Forbes.</ref>

MARCOM provides vessels for [[Standing Naval Force Atlantic]] and for exercises off [[Norway]] in support of Canada's defence obligations for northern [[Scandinavia]] under the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), patrols the north Atlantic and Pacific oceans in support of Canadian sovereignty, and is tasked by NATO with [[anti-submarine weapon|anti-submarine]] patrols for the northwest Atlantic.
[[File:HMCS ATHABASKAN F-282, Halifax NS, August 1990. (5499564589).jpg|thumb|left|{{HMCS|Athabaskan|DDG 282|6}} departs [[Halifax, Nova Scotia|Halifax]] for the [[Persian Gulf]] as a part of [[Coalition of the Gulf War|Coalition]] forces, August 1990]]
In August–September 1990, MARCOM hurriedly modernized and deployed the ''Restigouche''-class destroyer escort {{HMCS|Terra Nova|DDE 259|6}}, the ''Iroquois''-class destroyer {{HMCS|Athabaskan|DDG 282|6}}, and the [[replenishment ship]] {{HMCS|Protecteur|AOR 509|6}} to the [[Persian Gulf]] in support of [[Operation Desert Shield (Gulf War)|Operation Desert Shield]] and later [[Operation Desert Storm]], where the Canadian Navy led the coalition maritime support operation. {{HMCS|Huron|DDG 281|6}} relieved the task force and was the first coalition ship to visit Kuwait City at the end of the war.

During the mid-to-late 1990s, MARCOM provided vessels for a NATO task force patrolling the [[Adriatic Sea]] off the former [[Yugoslavia]]. As part of [[Operation Apollo]], Canada's military contribution to the international campaign against terrorism, 20 MARCOM vessels have been patrolling in the [[Arabian Sea]] in recent years.

In 1995, Canada was involved in a minor non-shooting skirmish with a few European countries in a conflict over fishing rights that was nicknamed the [[Turbot War]].

On 4 May 2010, Senators William Rompkey and Hugh Segal announced their intention to introduce a motion into the Senate asking the Canadian Government to rename Maritime Command as the Canadian Navy, in order to recognize the Canadian Naval Centennial.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/political-push-afoot-to-rename-the-canadian-navy/article1561376/ |title=Political push afoot to rename the Canadian navy |last=Galloway |first=Gloria |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |date=7 May 2010 |access-date=7 February 2016}}</ref> As of May 2010, the executive curl on officers uniforms have been restored.

{{USS|Ronald Reagan}} and other [[U.S. Third Fleet]] ships participated in the International Fleet Review commemorating the 100th birthday of the [[Royal Canadian Navy]] in [[Victoria, British Columbia]].<ref>{{cite press release | first= Torrey W. |last=Lee | title= ''Ronald Reagan'' Begins Flight Deck Certification | url= http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=53819 | archive-url= https://archive.today/20120805140714/http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=53819 | url-status= dead | archive-date= 5 August 2012 |number= NNS100603-15 | publisher= USS Ronald Reagan Public Affairs | date= 3 June 2010 | access-date=7 February 2016}}</ref> The naval review took place 9–12 June 2010, and it involved 21 naval ships and more than 8,000 naval personnel from Canada, [[French Navy|France]], [[Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force|Japan]], Australia, [[Royal New Zealand Navy|New Zealand]], and the United States.<ref>{{cite press release | first=  Aaron |last=Stevens | title= USS ''Ronald Reagan'' Draws Excitement in Canadian Naval Centennial's Fleet Review | url= http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=54037 | archive-url= https://archive.today/20120805053435/http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=54037 | url-status= dead | archive-date= 5 August 2012 |number= NNS100629-07 | publisher= USS Ronald Reagan Public Affairs | date= 29 June 2010 | access-date=7 February 2016}}</ref> Joining ''Ronald Reagan'' for the naval review were the cruiser {{USS|Chosin|CG-65|2}}, the destroyer {{USS|Sampson|DDG-102|2}}, and the frigate {{USS|Ford|FFG-54|2}}.{{Citation needed|date=September 2022}}

On 29 June 2010, the Canadian Navy celebrated its 100th anniversary in Halifax, Nova Scotia. 18 vessels from several countries took part in the celebrations, including {{USS|Wasp|LHD-1|6}} and {{HMS|Ark Royal|R07|6}}. The warships were reviewed by [[Queen Elizabeth II]], the [[Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh|Duke of Edinburgh]], and Prime Minister [[Stephen Harper]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://thechronicleherald.ca/Front/9017020.html |title=The Queen reviews flotilla of international ships |last1=Auld |first1=Allison |last2=Doucette |first2=Keith |agency=Canadian Press |newspaper=Chronicle Herald |date=29 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100703010101/http://thechronicleherald.ca/Front/9017020.html|url-status=dead |archive-date=3 July 2010}}</ref>

As part of the Canadian navy's centennial celebrations, SONAR, the naval mascot, which is based on a [[Newfoundland dog]], was "recruited" into the navy in 2010.<ref>[http://www.navy.forces.gc.ca/navres/11/11-n_eng.asp SONAR, the naval mascot]  {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100613033629/http://www.navy.forces.gc.ca/navres/11/11-n_eng.asp |date=13 June 2010 }}</ref>

On 12 May 2011, HMCS ''Charlottetown'' came under fire by small craft off the coast of Libya. This was the first time that a Canadian naval vessel had been under hostile attack since the Korean War.<ref name=globeandmail>{{cite news|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/joyful-tears-greet-hmcs-charlottetowns-return-from-libya/article593037/ |title=Joyful tears greet HMCS Charlottetown's return from Libya |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |agency=Canadian Press |date=2 September 2011 |access-date=10 May 2014}}</ref>

===Legacy===
What many think of as the modern Canadian Navy became known as the Canadian Forces Maritime Command (MARCOM) from February 1968 until August 2011. It was one of six functional commands which were formed under the integration reorganization of the Canadian services. The Royal Canadian Navy effectively ceased to exist 1 February 1968, when the Canadian Forces Reorganization Act was given Royal Assent. However, MARCOM, being the operational commander of the naval forces of Canada, was unofficially called the "Canadian Navy" and maintained many of the traditions of its predecessor.<ref>[http://www.navy.forces.gc.ca/cms/0/0_eng.asp Canadian Navy home page]  {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100209012753/http://www.navy.forces.gc.ca/cms/0/0_eng.asp |date=9 February 2010 }}</ref> As the [[Monarchy in Canada|Canadian Monarch]] is the Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian military,<ref>[http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/const/c1867_e.html#executive Constitution Act, 1867]  {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060614091739/http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/const/c1867_e.html#executive |date=14 June 2006 }}</ref> commissioned Canadian naval ships, as units of the Canadian Armed Forces, use the prefix HMCS "[[Her Majesty's Canadian Ship|Her/His Majesty's Canadian Ship/Submarine]]," a unit designation that began with the establishment of the Royal Canadian Navy and continued under the Canadian Forces. On 14 December 2010, the Canadian Senate passed a motion urging the federal government to change the name of Canada's naval force from Maritime Command to a title that included the word "navy." Both "Canadian Navy" and "Royal Canadian Navy" were considered acceptable.<ref>{{cite news |first=Althia |last=Raj |title=Call Canada's navy, a navy: Senate |work=Ottawa Sun |date=14 December 2010}}</ref>

The government announced on 16 August 2011, that Maritime Command was to regain its former name, the Royal Canadian Navy (along with the change of name of Air Command to Royal Canadian Air Force).

== Decommissioned fleet ==
{{main| List of ships of the Royal Canadian Navy}}
{| class="wikitable"|}
|- style="background:#aabccc; color:black"
!Class or name
!Type
!Builder
!Quantity
!Year Entered Service!!Details
|-
| {{sclass|St. Laurent|destroyer|4}}
| escort [[destroyers]]
| {{CAN}}<br />[[Canadian Vickers]], [[Montreal]]<br />[[Royal Naval Dockyard, Halifax|Halifax Shipyards]], [[City of Halifax|Halifax NS]]<br />[[Allied Shipbuilders Ltd.|Burrard]], [[Vancouver]], BC<br />Yarrows, [[Esquimalt, British Columbia|Esquimalt, BC]]<br />[[Marine Industries Limited]], [[Sorel, Quebec]]
| style="text-align:center;"|7
| 1955–1994
| all but 2 scrapped; ''Saguenay'' (Nova Scotia) and ''Assiniboine'' (Caribbean) were sunk as [[artificial reef]]s
|- style="background:#efefef; color:black"
| {{sclass|Mackenzie|destroyer|4}}
| escort [[destroyers]]
| {{CAN}}<br />[[Canadian Vickers]], [[Montreal]]
| style="text-align:center;"|4
| 1962–1994
| 3 were sunk with 2 as artificial reefs; ''Qu'Appelle''{{'}}s status is unknown, but ship has been scrapped.
|-
| {{sclass|Restigouche|destroyer|4}}
| escort [[destroyers]]
| {{CAN}}<br />{{nowrap|[[Davie Shipbuilding]], [[Lauzon, Quebec]]}}<br />[[Royal Naval Dockyard, Halifax|Halifax Shipyards]], [[City of Halifax|Halifax NS]]<br />[[Burrard Dry Dock]], North Vancouver, [[British Columbia|BC]]<br />[[Victoria Machinery Depot]], [[Victoria, BC]]
| style="text-align:center;"|7
| 1958–1997
| ''St Croix'', ''Gatineau'' and ''Terra Nova'' were scrapped and rest sunk as reefs
|- style="background:#efefef; color:black"
| {{sclass|Iroquois|destroyer|4}}
| escort [[destroyers]]
| {{CAN}}<br />[[Davie Shipbuilding|MIL Davie Shipbuilding]], [[Lauzon, Quebec]]
| style="text-align:center;"|3 
| 1970–2005
| ''Huron'' sunk as a target ship off the coast of BC in 2007. ''Algonquin'' sold for scrapping. ''Iroquois'' awaiting disposal
|
|-
| {{sclass|Oberon|submarine|4}}
| diesel electric [[submarine]]
| {{UK}}<br />[[Vickers-Armstrongs]], [[Barrow-in-Furness]]
| style="text-align:center;"| 3 (+2 spares)
| 1964–2000
| two sold to museums in Rimouski, Quebec and Port Burwell, Ontario, the spare purchased for parts was scrapped, other spare to be scrapped, one others remain laid-up at Dartmouth jetty, across from main naval base
|- style="background:#efefef; color:black"
| {{sclass|Tench|submarine|4}}
| diesel electric [[submarine]]
| {{USA}}<br />[[Portsmouth Naval Shipyard]], [[Kittery, Maine]]
| style="text-align:center;"| 1 ( {{USS|Argonaut|SS-475}} renamed as {{HMCS|Rainbow|SS-75}} )
| 1968–1974
| returned to US to be scrapped
|-
| {{sclass|Provider|replenishment oiler|4}}
| AOR (oiler replinishing ship)
| {{CAN}}<br />[[Davie Shipbuilding]], [[Lauzon, Quebec]]
| style="text-align:center;"| 1 – {{HMCS|Provider|AOR 508}}
| 1963–2003
| sold as barge and latter scrapped
|- style="background:#efefef; color:black"
| {{sclass|Protecteur|replenishment oiler|4}}
| AOR (oiler replinishing ship)
| {{CAN}}<br />[[Saint John Shipbuilding]], [[Saint John, New Brunswick]]
| 1
| 1969–2015
| ''Protecteur'' sold for scrapping
|- style="background:#efefef; color:black"
| N/A
| ASL
| {{ITA}}<br />Aspa Quarto
| 1 – {{HMCS|Cormorant|ASL 20|6}}
| 1978–1997
| Awaiting disposal
|-
| {{sclass|Annapolis|destroyer|4}}
| escort [[destroyers]]
| {{CAN}}<br />[[Marine Industries Limited]], [[Sorel, Quebec]]
| 2
| 1964–1997
| both sunk; ''Annapolis'' is a reef and ''Nipigon'' sunk in Quebec
|- style="background:#efefef; color:black"
| {{Sclass|Majestic|aircraft carrier|4}}
| light aircraft carrier
| {{UK}}<br />[[Harland and Wolff]], [[Belfast]]
| 1 – {{HMCS|Bonaventure|CVL 22}}
| 1957–1970
| scrapped in Taiwan
|-
| {{sclass2|Cape|maintenance ship|4}}
| escort maintenance
| {{CAN}}<br />[[Allied Shipbuilders Ltd.]], [[Vancouver]], BC
| 2
| 1959–1970
| status unknown
|- style="background:#efefef; color:black"
| N/A
| escort [[hydrofoil]] [[frigate]]
| {{CAN}}<br />[[Marine Industries Limited]], [[Sorel, Quebec]]<br />[[de Havilland Canada]], [[Toronto, Ontario]]
| 1 – {{HMCS|Bras d'Or|FHE 400}}
| 1970s
| now at Musée Maritime du Québec
|-
| [[Glen-class tug (1943)|Glen-class I tugs]]
| tug
|
| 4 – ''Glendevon'', ''Glenevis''
|
| WWII ships
|- style="background:#efefef; color:black"
| YBZ-61
| vacuum ship
|
| 1
|
|
|-
| Saint-class deep sea tugs
| ocean tug
| Saint John Dry Dock, [[Saint John, NB]] 1957 {{CAN}}
| 3 – St. Anthony ATA 531, St. John ATA 532, St.Charles ATA 533
|
| stricken beginning in 1972
|- style="background:#efefef; color:black"
| Naval Research Vessel
|
|
| 1 – [[Endeavour-class oceanographic research ship|CFAV ''Endeavour'']]
|
| 1968–1998
|-
|
| Submersible
| 1 - SDL-1 SDL-1; built by International Hydrodynamics Corporation of Vancouver, BC
|
| 1971–1998
| sold in 1998
|}

===Retired aircraft===
{| class="wikitable"|}
! style="text-align: left; background: #aabccc;"|Aircraft
! style="text-align: left; background: #aabccc;"|Country of Manufacture
! style="text-align: left; background: #aabccc;"|Type
! style="text-align: left; background: #aabccc;"|Canadian Designation
! style="text-align: left; background: #aabccc;"|In Service
! style="text-align: left; background: #aabccc;"|Notes
|-
| [[F2H Banshee]]
| [[McDonnell Douglas]] {{USA}}
| carrier based jet fighter
| N/A – F2H-3
| 39; 34 on carrier {{HMCS|Bonaventure}}
| ex-[[United States Navy]] delivered 1955–1958; retired 1962; 3 survive as museum pieces all others scrapped
|- style="background:#efefef; color:black"
| [[S-2 Tracker]]
| [[Sikorsky Aircraft]] {{USA}}
| [[Anti-submarine warfare]] aircraft
| [[S-2 Tracker|CS-2F Tracker]]
| 99
| delivery 1956–1957; all carrier based aircraft were transferred to land operations after 1970; 1 restored all others scrapped
|-
| [[Sikorsky H-19]] "Horse"
| [[Sikorsky Aircraft]] {{USA}}
| plane guard helicopter
| H04S-3
| 2?
| acquired 1956; retired 1967 and replaced by [[CH-124 Sea King]] (until 1970); 1 on display at [[CFB Shearwater]]
|}

==Ensigns and jacks==
{{main|Flags of the Royal Canadian Navy}}
{{multiple image|perrow = 2|width=110
|image1=Blue Ensign of Canada (1868–1921).svg
|caption1=1910–1911
|image2=Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg
|caption2=1911–1965
|image3=Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg
|caption3=1965–2013; used as a naval jack since 2013
|image4=Naval ensign of Canada.svg
|caption4=2013–present; used as a naval jack prior to 2013
|footer=Naval ensigns used by the Royal Canadian Navy}}

On 3 March 1911, the RCN was authorized the use of the White Ensign, which remained the main identifying flag of the navy for the next 54 years. At the same time, the [[Canadian Blue Ensign]] was designated the jack of the RCN. However, because naval tradition dictates that the jack is worn at the ship's bow only when moored or on "dress ship" occasions, HMC ships normally had no distinctly Canadian flags when under way, the White Ensign being identical to the Royal Navy's ensign. Because of this, a tradition developed of painting a green maple leaf on ships' funnels to mark the ship as Canadian.

When British and Canadian foreign policies began to diverge in the 1950s (highlighted by the two countries' different roles in the Suez Crisis), having an ensign identical to the Royal Navy's became less satisfactory. In 1961, a policy of wearing the [[Canadian Red Ensign]] from the masthead (in addition to the Canadian Blue Ensign at the jack staff when appropriate, and the White Ensign at the ensign staff) was established. On 15 February 1965, the White, Blue, and Red ensigns were all replaced by the new National Flag of Canada, the [[Maple Leaf flag]].

==RCN Roundel==
{{multiple image|direction=horizontal|width=72
|image1=RCN pre-1952 roundel.JPG
|caption1=Pre–1952
|image2=RCN roundel.jpg
|caption2=1952–1965
|image3=Roundel of Canada.svg
|caption3=1965–1968
|footer=Roundels used by the Royal Canadian Navy}}
Shortly after the Second World War, Canadian military aircraft began using roundels featuring a red maple leaf. While the RCAF used a "silver maple" style, aircraft of the RCN used a roundel based on the sugar maple. In 1965, both the RCAF and RCN adopted the same roundel with the stylized leaf found in Canada's new flag.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.canmilair.com/prints.htm |title=CanMilAir Roundel Prints |website=CanMilAir |access-date=7 February 2016}}</ref>

Since 1975 there has been no roundel for the RCN as all aircraft used on board ships are operated by the [[Royal Canadian Air Force]].

==Leadership==
{{main|Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy}}
The [[Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy]] is the institutional head of the Royal Canadian Navy. The appointment was entitled Director of the Naval Service from 1910 to 1928 and then Chief of the Naval Staff from 1928 to 1964. In August 1964 the position of Chief of the Naval Staff was formally abolished when amendments to the National Defence Act came into force. Responsibility for naval matters was split between the newly established Defence Staff in Ottawa and operational headquarters in Halifax (for the Atlantic fleet) and Esquimalt (for the Pacific fleet).<ref>Whitby, et al., eds. "The Admirals", p. 357. Dundurn Press, 2006.</ref> The appointment was entitled Commander of Maritime Command from 1966 to 1997 and Chief of the Maritime Staff from 1997 to 2011. In 2011 Maritime Command was renamed the Royal Canadian Navy at which time the appointment was renamed to its present incarnation.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2011/08/15/canadian-navy-air-force-royal-name-change_n_927257.html |title=Canadian Navy, Air Force 'Royal' Again With Official Name Change |newspaper=Huffington Post |date=15 August 2011 |last=Raj |first=Althia |access-date=7 February 2016}}</ref><ref>[http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dsa-dns/sa-ns/ab/sobv-vbos-eng.asp?mAction=View&mBiographyID=314 DSA Vice-Admiral Maddison]  {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130628013610/http://www.cmp-cpm.forces.gc.ca/dsa-dns/sa-ns/ab/sobv-vbos-eng.asp?mAction=View&mBiographyID=314 |date=28 June 2013 }}</ref>

== Heritage ==
This history of the Royal Canadian Navy is preserved and presented at the [[Maritime Command Museum]] in Halifax, the [[Canadian War Museum]], the [[The Military Museums|Naval Museum of Alberta]], [[The Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt Naval and Military Museum]] and naval museums on several bases. Several RCN vessels have been preserved including the corvette {{HMCS|Sackville}}, which serves as Canada's Naval Memorial, as well as the destroyer {{HMCS|Haida}} and the auxiliary patrol ship [[CSS Acadia|HMCS/CSS ''Acadia'']] which served the RCN in both the First and Second World Wars.

==Film and books==
Films
* ''[[Corvette K-225]]'' (1943), centres on the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War. Produced by [[Howard Hawks]].
* ''[[Lifeline to Victory]]'' (1993), centers on the fictional corvette HMCS Fireweed. ''Fireweed'' undergoes many of the problems that the corvettes of the RCN experienced initially during the Second World War. Produced by [[Andrew Cochrane (producer)|Andrew Cochrane]].<ref>{{Citation | url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107414/ | title=Lifeline to Victory | work=Internet Movie Database | access-date=15 August 2020}}</ref>

Books
* A Canadian Second World War Naval officer is one of the main characters in [[Jan de Hartog]]'s novel ''[[The Captain (1967 novel)|The Captain]]''.
* ''[[Corvette Navy]]''<ref>{{Citation | last1=Lamb | first1=James | title=Corvette Navy | publisher=[[Stoddart Publishing]] | place= Toronto, Ontario | edition=2nd | year=2000 | isbn=077373225X}}</ref> and ''[[On The Triangle Run]]'',<ref>{{Citation | last1=Lamb | first1=James | title=On the Triangle Run | publisher=[[Stoddart Publishing]] | place=Toronto, Ontario | edition=2nd | year=2000 | isbn=0773732551}}</ref> the memoirs of [[Lieutenant-commander (Canada)|LCdr]] [[James Barrett Lamb|James Lamb]], [[Mentioned in dispatches#United Kingdom, British Empire, and Commonwealth of Nations|MID]], [[Royal Canadian Navy|RCN]] (Ret.)
* ''[[Fading Memories (book)|Fading Memories]]'',<ref>{{Citation | editor-last=Lynch | editor-first=Thomas G. | title=Fading Memories | publisher=The Atlantic Chief and Petty Officers Association| place=Halifax, Nova Scotia | year=1993 | isbn=0-9697-838-0-9}}</ref> a collection of anecdotes, [[salty dips]], and stories from members of the [[Royal Canadian Navy]] during the Second World War. Edited by [[Thomas G. Lynch]].
* ''[[Frigates of the Royal Canadian Navy 1943-1974]]'',<ref>{{Citation | last1=Macpherson | first1=Ken | title=Frigates of the Royal Canadian Navy 1943-1974 | publisher=Vanwell Publishing Limited | place=St. Catharines, Ontario | year=1989 | isbn=0-920277-22-5}}</ref> a photographic history of specific classes of frigates in Canadian service. By [[Ken Macpherson]].
* ''[[Haida (book)|Haida]]'',<ref>{{Citation | last1=Sclater | first1=William | title=Haida | publisher=Oxford University Press | place=Don Mills, Ontario | edition=2nd | year=2012 | isbn=978-0-19-544793-4}}</ref> covering the [[Tribal-class destroyer (1936)|Tribal-class]] [[destroyer]]s of the RCN, by [[William Sclater (writer)|William Sclater]].
* ''[[Hands to Flying Stations]]'', a history of Canada's naval aviation from 1945 to 1954 (Volume One)<ref>{{Citation | last1=Soward | first1=Stuart E. | title=Hands to Flying Stations | volume=One 1945 to 1954 | publisher=Neptune Developments | place=Victoria, British Columbia | year=1993 | isbn=0-9697229-0-7}}</ref> and 1955 to 1969 (Volume Two),<ref>{{Citation | last1=Soward | first1=Stuart E. | title=Hands to Flying Stations | volume=Two 1955 to 1969 | publisher=Vanwell Publishing Limited | place=St. Catharines, Ontario | year=1995 | isbn=0969722915}}</ref> by naval aviator [[Lieutenant-commander (Canada)|LCdr]] [[Stuart E. Soward|Stuart Soward]], [[Canadian Forces' Decoration|CD]], [[Royal Canadian Navy|RCN]] (Ret.)
* ''[[The Dark Broad Seas]]''<ref>{{Citation | last1=Brock | first1=Jeffry V. | title=The Dark Broad Seas | volume=I of "With Many Voices" | publisher=McClelland and Stewart Limited | place=Toronto, Ontario | year=1981 | isbn=0-7710-1623-9}}</ref> and ''[[The Thunder and the Sunshine]]'',<ref>{{Citation | last1=Brock | first1=Jeffry V. | title=The Thunder and the Sunshine | volume=II of "With Many Voices" | publisher=McClelland and Stewart Limited | place=Toronto, Ontario | year=1983 | isbn=0-7710-1625-5}}</ref> Volumes I and II respectively of ''"With Many Voices"'', the memoirs of [[Rear-admiral|RAdm]] [[Jeffry V. Brock]], [[Distinguished Service Order|DSO]] [[Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom)|DSC]] [[Canadian Forces' Decoration|CD]] [[Mentioned in dispatches#United Kingdom, British Empire, and Commonwealth of Nations|MID]], [[Royal Canadian Navy|RCN]] (Ret.), who retired shortly before the [[Unification of the Canadian Armed Forces]].
* ''[[The Far Distant Ships]]'',<ref>{{Citation | last1=Schull | first1=Joseph | title=The Far Distant Ships | publisher=[[Stoddart Publishing]] | place=Don Mills, Ontario | edition=2nd | year=1989 | isbn=0-7737-5510-1}}</ref> an official account of the [[Royal Canadian Navy]]'s operations during the Second World War, by [[Joseph Schull]].
* ''[[The Flying 400]]'',<ref>{{Citation | last1=Lynch | first1=Thomas G. | title=The Flying 400 | publisher=Nimbus Publishing Limited | place=Halifax, Nova Scotia | year=1983 | isbn=0-920852-22-X}}</ref> dealing with the [[Royal Canadian Navy]]'s prototype [[hydrofoil]] escort {{HMCS|Bras d'Or|FHE 400|6}}, by [[Thomas G. Lynch]].
* ''[[The Girls of the King's Navy]]'',<ref>{{Citation | last1=Greer | first1=Rosamond | title=The Girls of the King's Navy | publisher=Sono Nis Press | place=Victoria, British Columbia | year=1983 | isbn=0-919203-13-2}}</ref> the memoirs of [[Rosamond Greer|Rosamond 'Fiddy' Greer]], who served in the [[Women's Royal Canadian Naval Service|WRCNS]] during the Second World War.
* ''[[The Persian Excursion]]'',<ref>{{Citation | last1=Miller | first1=Duncan | last2=Hobson | first2=Sharon | name-list-style=amp | title=The Persian Excursion | publisher=The Canadian Peacekeeping Press | place=Clementsport, Nova Scotia | year=1995 | isbn=0-919769-78-0}}</ref> an account of Canada's naval involvement in the [[Gulf War]] by [[Vice-admiral|VAdm]] (Commodore at the time of publication) [[Duncan E. Miller|'Dusty' Miller]], [[Order of Military Merit (Canada)|CMM]] [[Meritorious Service Cross|MSC]] Chief of Defense Staff Commendation [[Canadian Forces' Decoration|CD]], [[Royal Canadian Navy|RCN]] (Ret.) and Sharon Hobson
* ''[[The RCN in Retrospect, 1910-1968]]'',<ref>{{Citation | editor-last=Boutilier | editor-first=James A. | title=The RCN in Retrospect, 1910-1968 | publisher=The University of British Columbia Press | place=Vancouver, British Columbia | year=1982 | isbn=0-7748-0152-2}}</ref> an examination of the [[Royal Canadian Navy]] from its inception to [[Unification of the Canadian Armed Forces|unification]]. Edited by [[James A. Boutilier]]
* ''[[The U-Boat Hunters]]'',<ref>{{Citation | last1=Milner | first1=Marc | title=The U-Boat Hunters | publisher=University of Toronto Press Incorporated | place=Toronto, Ontario | year=1994 | isbn=0-8020-0588-8}}</ref> covering the [[Royal Canadian Navy]]'s anti-submarine warfare against German submarines during the Second World War. By [[Marc Milner]].
* ''[[Thunder in the Morning Calm (book)|Thunder in the Morning Calm]]'',<ref>{{Citation | last1=Meyers| first1=Edward C. | title=Thunder in the Morning Calm | publisher=Vanwell Publishing Limited | place=St. Catharines, Ontario | year=1992 | isbn=0-920277-71-3}}</ref> the memoirs of [[Edward C. Meyers]] of his service during [[Royal Canadian Navy|RCN]] operations in the [[Korean War]].

==See also==
{{Portal|Canada}}
*[[Bibliography of Canadian military history]]
* [[List of aircraft of the Royal Canadian Navy]]
* [[List of current ships of the Royal Canadian Navy]]
* [[List of Royal Canadian Navy bases (1911–1968)]]
* [[List of ships of the Royal Canadian Navy]]
* [[Provincial Marine]]
* [[Uniforms of the Royal Canadian Navy]]

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==Footnotes==
{{reflist|30em}}

==Sources==
* {{cite book |last1=German |first1=Tony |date=1990 |title=The Sea is at Our Gates: The History of the Canadian Navy |url=https://archive.org/details/seaisatourgatesh00germ |url-access=registration |publisher=McClelland & Stewart |location=Toronto |isbn=0-7710-3268-4}}
* {{cite book |editor-last=Gimblett |editor-first=Richard H. |date=2009 |title=The Naval Service of Canada 1910–2010: The Centennial Story |publisher=Dundurn Press |location=Toronto |isbn=978-1-55488-470-4}}
* {{cite book |last=Milner |first=Marc |date=2010 |title=Canada's Navy: The First Century |edition=Second |publisher=University of Toronto Press |location=Toronto |isbn=978-0-8020-9604-3}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|History of the Royal Canadian Navy}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070302002055/http://www.navalandmilitarymuseum.org/resource_pages/controversies/rcn_mutinies.html Dr Richard Gimblett, "Dissension in the Ranks – "Mutinies" in the Royal Canadian Navy"]

{{Royal Canadian Navy}}
{{Canadian Armed Forces}}
{{Canadian military history}}
{{Evolution of the Military of Canada}}
[[Category:History of organizations based in Canada|Royal Canadian Navy]]
[[Category:History of the Royal Canadian Navy| ]]
[[Category:Naval history of Canada]]
[[Category:Royal Canadian Navy]]
[[de:Canadian Forces Maritime Command]]
[[fr:Marine royale canadienne]]
[[it:Royal Canadian Navy]]
[[he:הצי המלכותי הקנדי]]
[[pl:Royal Canadian Navy]]