History Browser

A list of Canadian vessels that participated in the Battle of the Gulf of St. Lawrence in World War II: Royal Class frigates, corvettes, Bangor minesweepers, wooden minesweepers, armed yachts, auxiliaries, and Fairmile motor launches.

A list of ships lost in the Battle of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Listed beside each ship is the number of lives lost (where known), the date the vessel sunk, and the U-boat that was responsible.

The Battle of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, which saw German U-boats penetrate the Cabot Strait and the Strait of Belle Isle to sink 23 ships between 1942 and 1944, marked the only time since the War of 1812 that enemy warships inflicted death within Canada's inland waters. The battle advanced to within 300 kilometres of Québec City. A war that pervaded people's lives but was still somehow remote, had become immediate, threatening, and very real. This site outlines the story of this battle.

Table of contents with links to various topics concerning the Battle of the Gulf of St. Lawrence in the Second World War.

Listing of films from the National Film Board. The Canadian Navy, a powerful force during times of maritime conflict, has a variety of specialized vessels and equipment. Training films are available on this site as are informational clips regarding this equipment. The role our fleet has played on the international stage is also examined.

The Battle of the Atlantic was the struggle for control of the sea routes between the Americas and Europe and Africa. German forces attempted to break Britain’s vital supply link from the United States and Canada. During this six year conflict both sides suffered losses of personnel and materials.

After working with wind tunnels in university, Gerald Bull is developing ways to use a gun to launch a missile.

Stories of the contributions of the industrial centre of Hamilton to the war effort, both through military might and industry, make up a large part of the Spectator clippings in this collection.

In 1944 German U-boats returned to the Gulf of St. Lawrence, which had been re-opened to trans-Atlantic vessels, intent on repeating their successes of 1942. By this time the Royal Canadian Navy was more adept at anti-submarine warfare, and its convoy procedures were much improved. Maritime air patrols were more proficient too. The U-boats returned with a potentially deadly advantage, however: the newly invented schnorkel mast.

On 6 June 1944, Allied forces invaded Western Europe along an 80-kilometre front in Normandy, France. Of the nearly 150,000 Allied troops who landed or parachuted into the invasion area on D-Day, 14,000 were Canadians.