page_title: Royal Canadian Navy
section_title: 1910–1968
hierarchical_section_title: Royal Canadian Navy / History / 1910–1968
caption_attribution_description: Four McDonnell F2H-3 Banshees of the Royal Canadian Navy in flight over the aircraft carrier HMCS Bonaventure (CVL 22), in the late 1950s.
context_page_description: The Royal Canadian Navy is the naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2017, the Royal Canadian Navy operates 12 frigates, 4 attack submarines, 12 coastal defence vessels and 8 patrol/training vessels, as well as several auxiliary vessels. The Royal Canadian Navy consists of 8,500 Regular Force and 5,100 Primary Reserve sailors, supported by 5,300 civilians. Vice-Admiral Art McDonald is the current Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy and Chief of the Naval Staff.
  Founded in 1910 as the Naval Service of Canada and given royal sanction on 29 August 1911, the Royal Canadian Navy was amalgamated with the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Canadian Army to form the unified Canadian Armed Forces in 1968, after which it was known as Maritime Command until 2011.
  In 2011, its historical title of "Royal Canadian Navy" was restored. Over the course of its history, the RCN has served in the First and Second World Wars, the Korean War, the Persian Gulf War, the War in Afghanistan and numerous United Nations peacekeeping missions and NATO operations.
context_section_description: Established following the introduction of the Naval Service Act by then Prime Minister Sir Wilfrid Laurier, the Naval Service of Canada (NSC) was intended as a distinct naval force for Canada, that, should the need arise, could be placed under British control. The bill received royal assent on 4 May 1910. Initially equipped with two former Royal Navy vessels, HMCS Niobe and HMCS Rainbow, King George V granted permission for the service to be known as the Royal Canadian Navy on 29 August 1911.
  During the first years of the First World War, the RCN's six-vessel naval force patrolled both the North American west and east coasts to deter the German naval threat, with a seventh ship, HMCS Shearwater joining the force in 1915. Just before the end of the war in 1918, the Royal Canadian Naval Air Service was established with the purpose of carrying out anti-submarine operations; however, it was disbanded after the armistice of 11 November.
  After the war, the Royal Canadian Navy took over certain responsibilities of the Department of Transport's Marine Service, and slowly started to build its fleet, with the first warships specifically designed for the RCN being commissioned in 1932. At the outbreak of the Second World War, the Navy had 11 combat vessels, 145 officers and 1,674 men. During the Second World War, the Royal Canadian Navy expanded significantly, ultimately gaining responsibility for the entire Northwest Atlantic theatre of war. During the Battle of the Atlantic, the RCN sank 31 U-boats and sank or captured 42 enemy surface vessels, while successfully completing 25,343 merchant crossings. The Navy lost 24 ships and 1,797 sailors in the war.
  From 1950 to 1955, during the Korean War, Canadian destroyers maintained a presence off the Korean peninsula, engaging in shore bombardments and maritime interdiction. During the Cold War, the Navy developed an anti-submarine capability to counter the growing Soviet naval threat. In the 1960s, the Royal Canadian Navy retired most of its Second World War vessels, and further developed its anti-submarine warfare capabilities by acquiring the Sikorsky CH-124 Sea King, and successfully pioneered the use of large maritime helicopters on small surface vessels. At that time, Canada was also operating an aircraft carrier, HMCS Bonaventure, flying  the McDonnell F2H Banshee fighter jet until 1962, as well as various other anti-submarine aircraft.
caption: Four F2H-3 Banshee fly overhead HMCS Bonaventure. Bonaventure was the last aircraft carrier in service with the Royal Canadian Navy.
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