HMCS Vimy

Last updated

HMCS St Julien under construction Toronto 1917 CN-3947(St.Julien).jpg
Vimy (right) and St Julien (left) under construction in Toronto, 1917
History
Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svgCanadian Blue Ensign (1921-1957).svgCanada
NameVimy
Namesake Battle of Vimy Ridge
Ordered2 February 1917
Builder Polson Iron Works Limited, Toronto
Launched17 July 1917
Commissioned13 November 1917
Decommissioned30 November 1918
RenamedRe-designated Lightship No. 5
FatePossibly broken up around 1958
General characteristics
Class and type Battle-class naval trawler
Displacement320 long tons (330 t)
Length130 ft (40 m)
Beam23 ft 5 in (7.14 m)
Draught13 ft 5 in (4.09 m)
Propulsion1 x triple expansion, 480 ihp (360 kW)
Speed10 knots (12 mph; 19 km/h)
Armament1 × QF 12-pounder 12 cwt naval gun

HMCS Vimy was one of twelve Battle-class naval trawlers constructed for and used by the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) during the First World War. Following the war the ship was transferred to the Canadian Department of Marine and Fisheries and converted into a lightvessel. Re-designated Lightship No. 5, the vessel remained in Canadian government service until being possibly broken up for scrap in 1958.

Contents

Design and description

The RCN's Battle-class trawlers formed part of the Canadian naval response to Admiralty warnings to Canada about the growing German U-boat threat to merchant shipping in the western Atlantic. [1] Intended to augment anti-submarine patrols off Canada's east coast, these ships were modelled on contemporary British North Sea trawlers, since the standard types of Canadian fishing vessels were considered unsuitable for patrol work. [2]

Twelve vessels were ordered on 2 February 1917 from two shipyards, Polson Iron Works of Toronto and Canadian Vickers of Montreal. [3] Those vessels built at Polson Iron Works displaced 320 long tons (330 t) and were 130 feet (40 m) long overall with a beam of 23 feet 5 inches (7.14 m) and a draught of 13 feet 5 inches (4.09 m). [4] They were propelled by a steam-powered triple expansion engine driving one shaft creating 480 indicated horsepower (360 kW) giving the vessels a maximum speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). [3] [5]

All twelve trawlers were equipped with a QF 12-pounder 12 cwt naval gun mounted forward. [4] [lower-alpha 1] This was considered to be the smallest gun that stood a chance of putting a surfaced U-boat out of action, and they also carried a small number of depth charges. [1] [6] The trawlers were named after battles of the Western Front during the First World War that Canadians had been involved in. They cost between $155,000 and $160,000 per vessel. [3] [lower-alpha 2] [lower-alpha 3]

Service history

Named after the Battle of Vimy Ridge, the trawler was built by Polson Iron Works at Toronto, Ontario, and was launched on 16 June 1917. [7] Intended for use during the 1917 shipping season, the construction of the vessels was delayed by the entry of the United States into the war. With higher wages found south of the border, a shortage of skilled labour developed in the shipyards, coupled with a shortage of construction material. [8] Vimy was commissioned on 13 November 1917. [7] Vimy sailed to the east coast where for the 1918 shipping season, all the Battle-class trawlers were assigned to patrol and escort duties based out of Sydney, Nova Scotia. The Battle class was used for patrol and escort duties off the Atlantic coast of Canada until the end of the war. [9]

The trawler was paid off on 30 November 1918. The ship was transferred to the Department of Marine and Fisheries in 1922 and converted into a lightship, like sister ships Messines, St. Eloi, and St. Julien. [7] [10] This involved placing an electric light at the foremast head and installing a foghorn atop a latticework tower. [10] The ship was re-designated Lightship No. 5 and the vessel was possibly broken up for scrap in 1958. [7] [11]

Related Research Articles

HMCS <i>Arleux</i> Canadian warship used during the World Wars

HMCS Arleux was one of twelve Battle-class naval trawlers used by the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN). Entering service in 1918 near the end of the First World War, the vessel had a short career with the RCN, being transferred to the Department of Marine and Fisheries in 1922. Arleux was used for fisheries patrol off the east coast of Canada until 1939, when the ship was reacquired by the RCN at the onset of the Second World War. Used as a gate vessel during the war and designated Gate Vessel 16, the ship was sold for mercantile purposes following the war. The ship foundered in 1948 off the coast of Nova Scotia.

HMCS <i>Armentières</i> Battle-class naval trawlers

HMCS Armentières was one of twelve Battle-class naval trawlers used by the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN). Armentières entered service in 1918 near the end of the First World War on the Atlantic coast of Canada. Following the war, the ship was transferred to the Department of Marine and Fisheries for a short period before reverting to RCN service in 1923 on the Pacific coast of Canada. The ship sank in 1925, was raised and re-entered service, remaining with the fleet through the Second World War as an examination vessel at Prince Rupert, British Columbia. After the end of the war, the vessel entered mercantile service becoming A.G. Garrish in 1947, later renamed Arctic Rover in 1958, Laforce in 1962 and Polaris in 1973. The ship's registry was deleted in 1991.

HMCS <i>Arras</i>

HMCS Arras was one of twelve Battle-class naval trawlers that saw service with the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN). The vessel entered service in 1918 near the end of the First World War and was used for patrolling and escort duties along the Atlantic Coast of Canada. Following the war, Arras was transferred to the Department of Marine and Fisheries where the ship was used as a fisheries patrol vessel. Following the outbreak of the Second World War, the ship re-entered RCN service as a gate vessel. In 1943, the ship was heavily damaged by fire and was broken up in 1957.

HMCS <i>Givenchy</i> Canadian naval ship

HMCS Givenchy was one of twelve Battle-class naval trawlers constructed for and used by the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) during the First World War on the east coast. Following the war, the ship was transferred to the Department of Marine and Fisheries for use as a fisheries patrol vessel on the west coast. Givenchy reentered service with the RCN in 1939 as an accommodation ship during the Second World War and was recommissioned from 1940 to 1943. After the war the ship was sold and broken up in the United States in 1952.

HMCS <i>Loos</i>

HMCS Loos was one of twelve Battle-class naval trawlers used by the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN). Built by the Kingston Shipbuilding Company and launched in September 1917, she was commissioned in August 1918. Decommissioned in 1920, Loos was transferred to the Department of Marine and Fisheries, where she was used as a lighthouse supply ship. Sold in 1937, she was re-acquired by the RCN in December 1940 and converted to a gate vessel, spending part of the war at Shelburne, Nova Scotia. Returned to Marine Industries Limited in 1945, Loos was broken up in 1949.

HMCS <i>Messines</i> Battle-class naval trawler of the Royal Canadian Navy

HMCS Messines was one of twelve Battle-class naval trawlers constructed for and used by the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) during the First World War. Following the war the ship was transferred to the Canadian Department of Marine and Fisheries and converted into a lightvessel. Re-designated Lightship No. 3, the vessel was sold for scrap and broken up in 1962.

HMCS <i>Festubert</i>

HMCS Festubert was one of twelve Battle-class naval trawlers constructed for and used by the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) during the First World War. Following the war, Festubert remained in Canadian service as a training ship until 1934. Reactivated for the Second World War, the ship was used as a gate vessel in the defence of Halifax, Nova Scotia and re-designated Gate Vessel 17. Following the war, the trawler was sold for commercial use and renamed Inverleigh. Inverleigh was scuttled off Burgeo, Newfoundland on 30 June 1971.

HMCS <i>Ypres</i>

HMCS Ypres was one of twelve Battle-class naval trawlers constructed for and used by the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) during the First World War. Named after the Second and Third battles of Ypres, the ship entered service in 1918, patrolling the east coast of Canada for submarine activity. Following the war, the ship remained in service with as a patrol and training ship. In 1938, the vessel recommissioned as a gate vessel, re-designated Gate Vessel 1, in service at Halifax, Nova Scotia. On 12 May 1940, the gate vessel was rammed and sunk in a collision with the British battleship HMS Revenge.

HMCS <i>St. Julien</i>

HMCS St Julien was one of twelve Battle-class naval trawlers constructed for and used by the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) during the First World War. Following the war the ship was transferred to the Canadian Department of Marine and Fisheries and converted into a lightvessel. Re-designated Lightship No. 22, the ship remained as such until 1958. The ship was sold for commercial use and renamed Centennial and was in service until 1978.

HMCS <i>St. Eloi</i>

HMCS St. Eloi was one of twelve Battle-class naval trawlers constructed for and used by the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) during the First World War. Following the war the ship was transferred to the Canadian Department of Marine and Fisheries and converted into a lightvessel. Re-designated Lightship No. 20, the vessel returned to RCN service in 1940 to become the gate vessel Gate Vessel 12 during the Second World War. After the war, the trawler returned to government service and was discarded in 1962.

Battle-class trawler 1917 Canadian naval trawler class

The Battle-class trawlers were a class of naval trawlers built for and used by the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) during the First World War. Between the wars, some remained in RCN service, but most were transferred to the Department of Marine and Fisheries, where they performed a number of functions, including working as lightships and fisheries patrol vessels. During the Second World War, a number of these trawlers were re-acquired by the RCN, but all the navy's Battle-class trawlers were decommissioned soon after the war. A number of the class remained in civilian government and commercial service for years after the war, although most had been disposed of by the early 1960s.

HMCS <i>Gulnare</i>

HMCS Gulnare was a Canadian government ship that served as a patrol boat and guard vessel for the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) during the First World War. Acquired by the Canadian government in 1902, Gulnare was used for fisheries patrol and hydrographic survey duties until 1914. Following the war, Gulnare was used to intercept smugglers. Returned to government service in 1920, the vessel was converted to a lightship in 1925 and sold in 1937 to private interests. The vessel was broken up for scrap in the late 1940s.

HMCS <i>Laurentian</i>

HMCS Laurentian was a commissioned patrol vessel of the Royal Canadian Navy that served in the First World War and postwar until 1919. Prior to Canadian naval service, the ship was used by the Canada Customs Preventative Service. Following the war, Laurentian was transferred to the Department of Marine and Fisheries and used as a buoy tender and lighthouse supply vessel until taken out of service in 1946 and broken up for scrap in 1947.

HMCS <i>Malaspina</i>

HMCS Malaspina was a Canadian government fisheries patrol vessel pressed into service with the Royal Canadian Navy in 1917 and again in 1939 and which therefore saw service during the First World War and Second World War. The vessel was constructed in 1913 in Dublin, Ireland and patrolled the fisheries along the West Coast of Canada.

HMCS <i>Newington</i>

HMCS Newington was a commissioned patrol vessel of the Royal Canadian Navy that served in the First World War. Prior to the war, the ship served as a fishing trawler and lighthouse tender for the Canadian government. Following the war the vessel was returned to government service. Newington was converted to a tugboat in 1920. Sold to private interests in 1920 the ship sank on 26 August 1959 while laid up in Burrard Inlet, British Columbia.

HMCS <i>Stadacona</i> Patrol boat of the Royal Canadian Navy

HMCS Stadacona was a commissioned patrol boat of the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) that served in the First World War and postwar until 1920. Prior to entering service with the RCN, the vessel was the private yacht Columbia. Following the war, Stadacona performed hydrographic surveys. The vessel was sold for commercial use in 1920 and was burned for salvage in 1948. Stadacona is a historic name associated with Canada, the voyages Jacques Cartier, the colony of Samuel de Champlain, and Quebec City.

HMCS <i>Constance</i>

HMCS Constance was a commissioned minesweeper of the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) during the First World War. Originally built as a fisheries cruiser for the Department of Marine and Fisheries, upon completion she was transferred to the Department of Customs, and was used by the Customs Preventive Service. Constance spent the entire war as a patrol and examination vessel on the East Coast of Canada. Following the war, the vessel was sold in 1924.

HMCS <i>Curlew</i>

HMCS Curlew was a commissioned minesweeper and patrol vessel of the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) that served in the First World War. Constructed in Ontario in 1892, Curlew was initially a Canadian government fisheries patrol vessel on the East Coast of Canada. In 1912, the ship was fitted as a minesweeper and in 1914, joined the RCN. Curlew spent the entire war on the East Coast of Canada. Following the war, the ship was taken out of service and sold in 1921.

<i>Fundy</i>-class minesweeper

The Fundy-class minesweepers were a class of four minesweepers operated by the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War. All four ships entered service in 1938 and the class were discarded in 1945, sold for mercantile service. Three ended up sold to Chinese interests, while one remained active in Canada until 1987.

HMCS Whitethroat was a controlled minelayer based on the Isles-class naval trawler constructed for Canada in the United Kingdom during World War II. The ship was completed near the end of the war and most of its naval service was spent dismantling the defences erected during the war. In 1946 the ship was paid off and became a naval auxiliary and given the new prefix CNAV Whitethroat. As an auxiliary, Whitethroat was used a naval research platform and to repair undersea cables. Reactivated for the Korean War as a minelayer again, the vessel returned to auxiliary service on the Pacific Coast from 1954 to 1967. Whitethroat was sold for scrap in 1967.

References

Notes

  1. "Cwt" is the abbreviation for hundredweight, 20 cwt referring to the weight of the gun.
  2. Adjusted for inflation to 2023 dollars, $2,466,067 to $2,545,618
  3. Tucker places the cost at $191,000 (adjusted for inflation to 2023 dollars, $3,038,831) [lower-alpha 4]

Citations

  1. 1 2 Tucker, p. 253
  2. Tucker, pp. 254, 257
  3. 1 2 3 Johnston et al., p. 417
  4. 1 2 Macpherson and Barrie, p. 27
  5. Maginley and Collin, p. 67
  6. Tucker, p. 257
  7. 1 2 3 4 Macpherson and Barrie, p. 30
  8. Johnston et al., pp. 481–484
  9. Johnston et al., pp. 543, 645
  10. 1 2 Maginley and Collin, p. 113
  11. Colledge, p. 667

Sources