RCN in Transition, 1910-1985

This book is about the life of a navy, from its conception in the nineteenth century to its seventy-fifth birthday in 1985.

Born in the midst of political controversy, the Royal Canadian Navy traces its roots to conflicting British and Canadian interests during the prime ministerships of Sir John A. Macdonald and Sir Wilfrid Laurier, as well as to Anglo-German naval competition in the early years of the twentieth century.

The RCN played a more important role in World War I than has generally been realized and, despite neglect between the wars, rose to a position of some prominence in World War II. Except for a demoralizing period of retrenchment from 1945 to 1949, it then flourished until the early 1960’s, before the twin agonies of unification and defence cutbacks began to influence its development.

Total unification of the navy with the army and air force has been a unique Canadian experience. How Canada weathered the transition from RCN to “Marine Command” is illuminated by the discussions in this book. The navy appears as a resilient institution in the face of change, particularly in the last two decades of its first seventy-five years.

This collection of papers by leading authorities in naval history and defence policy provides a record of Canadian naval problems, the navy’s pragmatic search for solutions, and its prospects for the future. The authors open up areas of discussion that will be of fundamental importance in the critical years to come.