Background edit
Flower-class corvettes like Edmundston serving with the Royal Canadian Navy during World War II were different from earlier and more traditional sail-driven corvettes.[1][2][3] The "corvette" designation was created by the French in the 19th century for classes of small warships; the Royal Navy borrowed the term for a period but discontinued its use in 1877.[4] During the hurried preparations for war in the late 1930s, Winston Churchill reactivated the corvette class, needing a name for smaller ships used in an escort capacity, in this case based on a whaling ship design.[5] The generic name "flower" was used to designate the class of these ships, which – in the Royal Navy – were named after flowering plants.[6]
Corvettes commissioned by the Royal Canadian Navy during World War II were named after communities for the most part, to better represent the people who took part in building them. This idea was put forth by Admiral Percy W. Nelles. Sponsors were commonly associated with the community for which the ship was named. Royal Navy corvettes were designed as open sea escorts, while Canadian corvettes were developed for coastal auxiliary roles which was exemplified by their minesweeping gear. Eventually the Canadian corvettes would be modified to allow them to perform better on the open seas.[7]
Background edit
The River-class frigate was designed by William Reed of Smith's Dock Company of South Bank-on-Tees. Originally called a "twin-screw corvette", its purpose was to improve on the convoy escort classes in service with the Royal Navy at the time, including the Flower-class corvette. The first orders were placed by the Royal Navy in 1940 and the vessels were named for rivers in the United Kingdom, giving name to the class. In Canada they were named for towns and cities though they kept the same designation.[8] The name "frigate" was suggested by Vice-Admiral Percy Nelles of the Royal Canadian Navy and was adopted later that year.[7]
Improvements over the corvette design included improved accommodation which was markedly better. The twin engines gave only three more knots of speed but extended the range of the ship to nearly double that of a corvette at 7,200 metres (7.2 km) at 12 knots.[7] Among other lessons applied to the design was an armament package better designed to combat U-boats including a twin 4-inch mount forward and 12-pounder aft.[8] 15 Canadian frigates were initially fitted with a single 4-inch gun forward but with the exception of HMCS Valleyfield, they were all eventually upgraded to the double mount.[7] For underwater targets, the River-class frigate was equipped with a Hedgehog anti-submarine mortar and depth charge rails aft and four side-mounted throwers.[8]
River-class frigates were the first Royal Canadian Navy warships to carry the 147B Sword horizontal fan echo sonar transmitter in addition to the irregular ASDIC. This allowed the ship to maintain contact with targets even while firing unless a target was struck. Improved radar and direction-finding equipment improved the RCN's ability to find and track enemy submarines over the previous classes.[8]
Canada originally ordered the construction of 33 frigates in October 1941.[7][8] The design was too big for the shipyards on the Great Lakes so all the frigates built in Canada were built in dockyards along the west coast or along the St. Lawrence River.[7] In all Canada ordered the construction of 60 frigates including ten for the Royal Navy that transferred two to the United States Navy.[8]
Odds and Ends edit
References edit
Gulf of St. Lawrence 1944,[13]
References edit
- Notes
- ^ Ossian, Robert. "Complete List of Sailing Vessels". The Pirate King. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
- ^ Fitzsimons, Bernard, ed. (1978). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of 20th Century Weapons & Warfare. Vol. 11. London: Phoebus. pp. 1137–1142.
- ^ Jane's Fighting Ships of World War II. New Jersey: Random House. 1996. p. 68. ISBN 0-517-67963-9.
- ^ Blake, Nicholas; Lawrence, Richard (2005). The Illustrated Companion to Nelson's Navy. Stackpole Books. pp. 39–63. ISBN 0-8117-3275-4.
- ^ Chesneau, Roger; Gardiner, Robert (June 1980). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships (1922–1946). Naval Institute Press. p. 62. ISBN 0-87021-913-8.
- ^ Milner, Marc (1985). North Atlantic Run. Naval Institute Press. pp. 117–119, 142–145, 158, 175–176, 226, 235, 285–291. ISBN 0-87021-450-0.
- ^ a b c d e f Macpherson, Ken (1993). Corvettes of the Royal Canadian Navy 1939–1945. St. Catherines: Vanwell Publishing. p. 117. ISBN 1-55125-052-7. Cite error: The named reference "Macpherson2" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ a b c d e f "Fact Sheet No. 21 - Canadian River Class Frigates". Retrieved 3 April 2014.
- ^ Macpherson, Ken; Burgess, John (1981). The ships of Canada's naval forces 1910-1981 : a complete pictorial history of Canadian warships. Toronto: Collins. ISBN 0-00216-856-1.
- ^ "HMCS Montreal (K 319)". uboat.net. Retrieved 6 April 2014.
- ^ "Battle Honours". Britain's Navy. Retrieved 5 April 2014.
- ^ "RHSC Roll of Arms:Lanark". Royal Heraldry Society of Canada. Retrieved 5 April 2014.
- ^ "The Battle of the Gulf of St. Lawrence" (PDF). Veterans Affairs Canada. p. 29. Retrieved 6 April 2014.
- References
- Macpherson, Ken; Burgess, John. The ships of Canada's naval forces 1910-1981 : a complete pictorial history of Canadian warships. Collins: Toronto, 1981. ISBN 0-00216-856-1
Shipbuilders edit
- Canadian Vickers Ltd. Montreal, Quebec
- Yarrows Ltd., Esquimalt
- Davie Shipbuilding and Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec
- Morton Engineering & Dry Dock Co., Quebec City
- Burrard Dry Dock Co. Ltd., Vancouver
- Collingwood Shipyards Ltd. Collingwood
== edit
 HMCS Wentworth
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | Annan |
| Namesake | River Annan |
| Operator | Royal Navy |
| Ordered | 26 December 1942 |
| Builder | Hall, Russell & Company, Aberdeen |
| Laid down | 10 June 1943 |
| Launched | 29 December 1943 |
| Identification | pennant number: K 404 |
| Fate | list error: <br /> list (help) transferred to Royal Canadian Navy 13 January 1944 returned 20 June 1945 November 1945 sold to Royal Danish Navy |
| History | |
 Canada | |
| Name | Annan |
| Operator | Royal Canadian Navy |
| Commissioned | 13 January 1944 |
| Decommissioned | 20 June 1945 |
| Identification | pennant number: K 404 |
| Honours and awards | Atlantic 1944, North Sea 1944[1] |
| Fate | returned to Royal Navy 1945 |
| History | |
 Denmark | |
| Name | Neils Ebbesen |
| Namesake | Niels Ebbesen |
| Operator | Royal Danish Navy |
| Commissioned | 27 November 1945 |
| Decommissioned | 8 May 1963 |
| Identification | pennant number: F 339 |
| Fate | broken up 1963 at Odense. |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | River-class frigate |
| Displacement | list error: <br /> list (help) 1,445 long tons (1,468 t; 1,618 short tons) 2,110 long tons (2,140 t; 2,360 short tons) (deep load) |
| Length | list error: <br /> list (help) 283 ft (86.26 m) p/p 301.25 ft (91.82 m)o/a |
| Beam | 36.5 ft (11.13 m) |
| Draught | 9 ft (2.74 m); 13 ft (3.96 m) (deep load) |
| Propulsion | 2 x Admiralty 3-drum boilers, 2 shafts, reciprocating vertical triple expansion, 5,500 ihp (4,100 kW) |
| Speed | list error: <br /> list (help) 20 knots (37.0 km/h) 20.5 knots (38.0 km/h) (turbine ships) |
| Range | 646 long tons (656 t; 724 short tons) oil fuel; 7,500 nautical miles (13,890 km) at 15 knots (27.8 km/h) |
| Complement | 157 |
| Armament |
|
References edit
- Notes
- ^ "Battle Honours". Britain's Navy. Retrieved 25 May 2014.
HMCS Sea Cliff was a River-class frigate that served with the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War. She served primarily as a convoy escort in the Battle of the Atlantic. She was named for Leamington, Ontario, but due to possible confusion with HMS Leamington, she was given a name associated with the town.[1]
Originally named Megantic,[2] she was ordered in 1 February 1943 as part of the 1943-1944 River-class building program.[1][3] She was laid down on 20 July 1943 by Davie Shipbuilding and Repairing Co. Ltd. at Lauzon, Quebec and launched 7 August 1944.[3] She was commissioned into the Royal Canadian Navy on 26 September 1944 at Quebec City.[1]
Background edit
The River-class frigate was designed by William Reed of Smith's Dock Company of South Bank-on-Tees. Originally called a "twin-screw corvette", its purpose was to improve on the convoy escort classes in service with the Royal Navy at the time, including the Flower-class corvette. The first orders were placed by the Royal Navy in 1940 and the vessels were named for rivers in the United Kingdom, giving name to the class. In Canada they were named for towns and cities though they kept the same designation.[4] The name "frigate" was suggested by Vice-Admiral Percy Nelles of the Royal Canadian Navy and was adopted later that year.[5]
Improvements over the corvette design included improved accommodation which was markedly better. The twin engines gave only three more knots of speed but extended the range of the ship to nearly double that of a corvette at 7,200 metres (7.2 km) at 12 knots.[5] Among other lessons applied to the design was an armament package better designed to combat U-boats including a twin 4-inch mount forward and 12-pounder aft.[4] 15 Canadian frigates were initially fitted with a single 4-inch gun forward but with the exception of HMCS Valleyfield, they were all eventually upgraded to the double mount.[5] For underwater targets, the River-class frigate was equipped with a Hedgehog anti-submarine mortar and depth charge rails aft and four side-mounted throwers.[4]
River-class frigates were the first Royal Canadian Navy warships to carry the 147B Sword horizontal fan echo sonar transmitter in addition to the irregular ASDIC. This allowed the ship to maintain contact with targets even while firing unless a target was struck. Improved radar and direction-finding equipment improved the RCN's ability to find and track enemy submarines over the previous classes.[4]
Canada originally ordered the construction of 33 frigates in October 1941.[5][4] The design was too big for the shipyards on the Great Lakes so all the frigates built in Canada were built in dockyards along the west coast or along the St. Lawrence River.[5] In all Canada ordered the construction of 60 frigates including ten for the Royal Navy that transferred two to the United States Navy.[4]
War service edit
After working up in Bermuda in November 1944, Sea Cliff was assigned to the Mid-Ocean Escort Force escort group C-3 and began work as a trans-Atlantic convoy escort in December. She remained in this service until May 1945 when she returned to Canada. She was sent to Liverpool, Nova Scotia to begin a tropicalization refit in preparation for service in the southern Pacific Ocean.[1] This meant adding refrigeration and water-cooling capabilities and changing the camouflage..[6] The refit was started on 10 June, however due to the surrender of Japan, it was stopped on 28 August 1945. Sea Cliff was paid off 28 November 1945 at Halifax, Nova Scotia and placed in reserve at Shelburne.[1]
Postwar service edit
Sea Cliff was sold to Chile 30 March 1946 and renamed Covadonga. She arrived in 25 June 1946 and began service with the Chilean Navy. She participated in the first Chilean Antarctic Expedition in which the Base General Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme was established.[7] She served until 1968 when she was sold and turned into a wharfside pontoon.[7]
Victoriaville edit
 HMCS Victoriaville
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Canada | |
| Name | Victoriaville |
| Namesake | Victoriaville, Quebec |
| Operator | Royal Canadian Navy |
| Ordered | 1 February 1943 |
| Builder | Davie Shipbuilding and Repairing Co. Ltd., Lauzon, Quebec |
| Laid down | 2 December 1943 |
| Launched | 23 June 1944 |
| Commissioned | 11 November 1944 |
| Recommissioned | 25 September 1959 |
| Decommissioned | 17 November 1945 |
| Out of service | 31 December 1973 |
| Renamed | Granby 1966 |
| Reclassified | list error: <br /> list (help) Prestonian-class frigate 1959 diving tender 1966 |
| Identification | pennant number: K 684; 320 1959-66 |
| Honours and awards | Atlantic 1945[8] |
| Fate | Scrapped 1974 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | River-class frigate |
| Displacement | list error: <br /> list (help) 1,445 long tons (1,468 t; 1,618 short tons) 2,110 long tons (2,140 t; 2,360 short tons) (deep load) |
| Length | list error: <br /> list (help) 283 ft (86.26 m) p/p 301.25 ft (91.82 m)o/a |
| Beam | 36.5 ft (11.13 m) |
| Draught | 9 ft (2.74 m); 13 ft (3.96 m) (deep load) |
| Propulsion | 2 x Admiralty 3-drum boilers, 2 shafts, reciprocating vertical triple expansion, 5,500 ihp (4,100 kW) |
| Speed | list error: <br /> list (help) 20 knots (37.0 km/h) 20.5 knots (38.0 km/h) (turbine ships) |
| Range | 646 long tons (656 t; 724 short tons) oil fuel; 7,500 nautical miles (13,890 km) at 15 knots (27.8 km/h) |
| Complement | 157 |
| Armament |
|
HMCS Victoriaville was a River-class frigate that served with the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War. She served primarily as a convoy escort in the Battle of the Atlantic. She was named for Victoriaville, Quebec. After the war she was converted to a Prestonian-class frigate in 1959. In 1966 she was converted to a diving tender and renamed Granby, serving as such until 1973 when she was decommissioned for the final time.
Victoriaville was ordered on 1 February 1943 as part of the 1943–1944 River-class building program.[1][3] She was laid down on 2 December 1943 by Davie Shipbuilding and Repairing Co. Ltd. at Lauzon, Quebec and launched 23 June 1944.[3] She was commissioned into the Royal Canadian Navy on 11 November 1944 at Quebec City.[1]
Background edit
The River-class frigate was designed by William Reed of Smith's Dock Company of South Bank-on-Tees. Originally called a "twin-screw corvette", its purpose was to improve on the convoy escort classes in service with the Royal Navy at the time, including the Flower-class corvette. The first orders were placed by the Royal Navy in 1940 and the vessels were named for rivers in the United Kingdom, giving name to the class. In Canada they were named for towns and cities though they kept the same designation.[4] The name "frigate" was suggested by Vice-Admiral Percy Nelles of the Royal Canadian Navy and was adopted later that year.[5]
Improvements over the corvette design included improved accommodation which was markedly better. The twin engines gave only three more knots of speed but extended the range of the ship to nearly double that of a corvette at 7,200 nautical miles (13,300 km) at 12 knots.[5] Among other lessons applied to the design was an armament package better designed to combat U-boats including a twin 4-inch mount forward and 12-pounder aft.[4] 15 Canadian frigates were initially fitted with a single 4-inch gun forward but with the exception of HMCS Valleyfield, they were all eventually upgraded to the double mount.[5] For underwater targets, the River-class frigate was equipped with a Hedgehog anti-submarine mortar and depth charge rails aft and four side-mounted throwers.[4]
River-class frigates were the first Royal Canadian Navy warships to carry the 147B Sword horizontal fan echo sonar transmitter in addition to the irregular ASDIC. This allowed the ship to maintain contact with targets even while firing unless a target was struck. Improved radar and direction-finding equipment improved the RCN's ability to find and track enemy submarines over the previous classes.[4]
Canada originally ordered the construction of 33 frigates in October 1941.[4][5] The design was too big for the shipyards on the Great Lakes so all the frigates built in Canada were built in dockyards along the west coast or along the St. Lawrence River.[5] In all Canada ordered the construction of 60 frigates including ten for the Royal Navy that transferred two to the United States Navy.[4]
- ^ a b c d e f g Macpherson, Ken; Burgess, John (1981). The ships of Canada's naval forces 1910-1981 : a complete pictorial history of Canadian warships. Toronto: Collins. ISBN 0-00216-856-1. Cite error: The named reference "Macpherson" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ Lenton, H.T.; Colledge, J.J. (1968). British and Dominion Warships of World War II. New York: Doubleday and Company Inc. p. 228.
- ^ a b c d "HMCS Sea Cliff (K 344)". uboat.net. Retrieved 12 April 2014. Cite error: The named reference "uboat" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Fact Sheet No. 21 - Canadian River Class Frigates". Retrieved 14 April 2014. Cite error: The named reference "WarMuseum" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Macpherson, Ken (1989). Frigates of the Royal Canadian Navy 1943-1974. Lewiston, New York: Vanwell Publishing. p. 6-7, 15. ISBN 0920277225. Cite error: The named reference "Macpherson2" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ Paterson, T.W. (15 April 2011). "Gallant HMCS Prince Rupert served on the 'Newfie-Derry' run". Cowichan Valley Citizen. Retrieved 13 April 2014.
- ^ a b "Covadonga, fragata (2de)". Armada de Chile. 3 September 2007. Retrieved 13 April 2014. (in Spanish)
- ^ "Battle Honours". Britain's Navy. Retrieved 26 May 2014.