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.
Several Canadian naval ships have been named HMCS Athabaskan. All named for the Athabaskan people and destroyers. First ship was British built, the other two in Canada.
The Tribal class, or Afridi class, was a class of destroyers built for the Royal Navy, Royal Canadian Navy and Royal Australian Navy that saw service in World War II. Originally conceived during design studies for a light fleet cruiser, the Tribals evolved into fast, powerful destroyers, with greater emphasis on guns over torpedoes than previous destroyers, in response to new designs by Japan, Italy, and Germany. The Tribals were well admired by their crews and the public when they were in service due to their power, often becoming symbols of prestige while in service.
Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt is Canada's Pacific Coast naval base and home port to Maritime Forces Pacific and Joint Task Force Pacific Headquarters. As of 2018, 4,411 military personnel and 2,762 civilians work at CFB Esquimalt.
HMCS Huron was an Iroquois-class destroyer that served with the Canadian Forces from 16 December 1972 to 23 October 2000. It served mainly on the western coast of Canada. After decommissioning, its hull was stripped to be used in a live-fire exercise. The ship's hulk was eventually sunk by gunfire from its twin ship, HMCS Algonquin. Huron was the second ship of its class and the second vessel to use the designation HMCS Huron.
HMCS Iroquois was the lead ship of the Iroquois-class destroyers of the Royal Canadian Navy, also known as the Tribal class or the 280 class. The second vessel to carry the name, she carried the hull number DDG 280. Entering service in 1972 she was assigned to Maritime Forces Atlantic (MARLANT) and was homeported at CFB Halifax. Iroquois was deployed overseas for blockade and anti-terrorism duties, including participating in Operation Apollo in 2002–03. Taken out of service in 2014 and paid off in 2015.
YAG 300 vessels were a series of ten wooden boats built between 1954 and 1955 that throughout their service acted as yard ferries, training platforms and test beds for route survey equipment with the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN).
Davie Shipbuilding is a historic shipbuilding company located in Lauzon, Quebec, Canada. The facility is now operating as Chantier Davie Canada Inc. and is the oldest continually operating shipbuilder in North America.
The Royal Canadian Navy uses hull classification symbols to identify the types of its ships, which are similar to the United States Navy's hull classification symbol system. The Royal Navy and some European and Commonwealth navies use a somewhat analogous system of pennant numbers.
Several Canadian naval units have been named HMCS Chaleur.
The Halifax Shipyard Limited is a Canadian shipbuilding company located in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
HMS Providence was a reciprocating engine-powered Algerine-class minesweeper during the Second World War. Laid down as HMCS Forrest Hill for the Royal Canadian Navy she was transferred on completion to the Royal Navy as HMS Providence. She survived the war and was scrapped in 1958.
The following is a hierarchical outline for the Canadian Armed Forces at the end of the Cold War. It is intended to convey the connections and relationships between units and formations.
The Dun class of tankers comprised two ships, HMCS Dundalk and HMCS Dundurn, constructed for the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War. The two vessels were ordered by the Royal Canadian Navy to fill a need to transport fuel oil for convoy escorts in the Battle of the Atlantic. The two vessels began their careers in 1943 and remained in naval service until 1946. Following the end of the war, they were crewed by civilians as naval auxiliaries until the 1980s. Dundalk was wrecked in 1984 and Dundurn's ultimate fate is unknown.
Canadian Forces Auxiliary Vessel (CFAV) Grizzly was one of ten wooden YAG 300 vessels built for the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) between 1953 and 1955. Built for use as auxiliary craft, Grizzly primarily served as an at-sea training platform for junior naval officers, boatswains, reserve personnel and Sea Cadets at Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Esquimalt. Her name perpetuated the WWII armed yacht HMCS Grizzly was reused for PTC 60 GrizzlyOrca-class Patrol Craft Training (PCT) tender that replaced the YAG 300 vessels as the RCN training tenders in 2008.
