Naval Policy of Canada during First World War (1914—1918)

Abstract

The activities of the Navy Ministry of Canada during the First World War are analyzed in the article. For the first time in Russian historiography, the main directions of Canada’s maritime policy are formulated within the framework of the government’s military course during the First World War. The sources for the study were the debates of the House of Commons of the Canadian Parliament, publications in the Canadian press, the military series of historical and statistical collections and journalism of those years. The state of Canadian naval bases and ports, as well as the features of the development of the shipbuilding industry of the dominion during the war years is characterized. It is proved that during the war years, Canada’s maritime policy was determined by the British Admiralty and developed in two directions: imperial and national. The development of the imperial direction of maritime policy was carried out in the interests of Great Britain. It provided for the recruitment of Canadian volunteers for service in the Royal Navy and the development of a shipbuilding industry for the needs of the British Navy. The national direction of maritime policy provided for the protection of Canadian coasts and territorial waters, for which the infrastructure of Canadian naval bases and ports was actively used. To perform patrol and escort functions, state and private vessels were involved not only for military, but also for civilian purposes.