View source for Battle-class trawler

{{Short description|1917 Canadian naval trawler class}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin |sclass=2}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=HMCS Armentieres 1933.jpg
|Ship image size=300px
|Ship caption=''Armentières'' at Vancouver on 27 May 1933
}}
{{Infobox ship class overview
|Name= Battle class
|Builders=*[[Canadian Vickers]], [[Montreal]]
*[[Polson Iron Works Limited|Polson Iron Works]], [[Toronto]]
*[[Kingston Shipbuilding Company|Kingston Shipbuilding]], [[Kingston, Ontario|Kingston]]
|Operators={{navy|Canada|1911}}
|Class before=
|Class after=
|Subclasses=
|Cost=
|Built range=1917
|In service range=
|In commission range=1917–1946
|Total ships building=
|Total ships planned=
|Total ships completed=12
|Total ships cancelled=
|Total ships active=
|Total ships laid up=
|Total ships lost=4
|Total ships scrapped=8
|Total ships preserved=
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=
|Ship type=[[Naval trawler]]
|Ship displacement=*{{convert|320|LT|t}} (''Festubert'', ''Messines'', ''St. Eloi'', ''St. Julien'', ''Vimy'', ''Ypres'')
*{{convert|357|LT|t}} (''Arleux'', ''Armentières'', ''Arras'', ''Givenchy'', ''Loos'', ''Thiepval'')
|Ship length={{convert|130|ft|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam=*{{convert|23|ft|5|in|m|abbr=on}} (''Festubert'', ''Messines'', ''St. Eloi'', ''St. Julien'', ''Vimy'', ''Ypres'')
*{{convert|25|ft|m|abbr=on}} (''Arleux'', ''Armentières'', ''Arras'', ''Givenchy'', ''Loos'', ''Thiepval'')
|Ship height=
|Ship draught=*{{convert|13|ft|5|in|m|abbr=on}} (''Festubert'', ''Messines'', ''St. Eloi'', ''St. Julien'', ''Vimy'', ''Ypres'')
*{{convert|13|ft|m|abbr=on}} (''Arleux'', ''Armentières'', ''Arras'', ''Givenchy'', ''Loos'', ''Thiepval'')
|Ship depth=
|Ship propulsion=1 x [[triple expansion]], {{convert|480|ihp|abbr=on}}
|Ship speed={{convert|10|kn|mph km/h|lk=in}}
|Ship range=
|Ship endurance=
|Ship complement=
|Ship sensors=
|Ship EW=
|Ship armament=1 × [[QF 12 pounder 12 cwt naval gun]]
|Ship notes=
}}
|}

The '''Battle-class trawlers''' were a [[Ship class|class]] of [[naval trawler]]s built for and used by the [[Royal Canadian Navy]] (RCN) during the [[First World War]]. Between the wars, some remained in RCN service, but most were transferred to the [[Department of Marine and Fisheries (Canada)|Department of Marine and Fisheries]], where they performed a number of functions, including working as [[Lightvessel|lightship]]s and fisheries patrol vessels. During the [[Second World War]], a number of these trawlers were re-acquired by the RCN, but all the navy's Battle-class trawlers were decommissioned soon after the war. A number of the class remained in civilian government and commercial service for years after the war, although most had been disposed of by the early 1960s.

==Design and description==

The RCN's Battle-class trawlers formed part of the Canadian naval response to [[British Admiralty|Admiralty]] warnings to Canada about the growing German [[U-boat]] [[Atlantic U-boat Campaign (World War I)|threat to merchant shipping]] in the western Atlantic.<ref name=tucker253>Tucker, p. 253</ref> Intended to augment anti-submarine patrols off Canada's east coast, these ships were modelled on contemporary British [[North Sea]] trawlers, since the standard types of Canadian fishing vessels were considered unsuitable for patrol work.<ref>Tucker, pp. 254, 257</ref>

Twelve vessels were ordered on 2 February 1917 from two shipyards, [[Polson Iron Works Limited|Polson Iron Works]] of [[Toronto]] and [[Canadian Vickers]] of [[Montreal]].<ref name=johnston417>Johnston et al., p. 417</ref> Those vessels built at Polson Iron Works [[Displacement (ship)|displaced]] {{convert|320|LT|t|lk=in}} and were {{convert|130|ft|m}} [[Length overall|long overall]] with a [[Beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|23|ft|5|in|m}} and a [[Draft (hull)|draught]] of {{convert|13|ft|5|in|m}}.<ref name=mac27>Macpherson and Barrie, p. 27</ref> Those trawlers ordered from Canadian Vickers displaced {{convert|357|LT|t}}, with the same length, a beam of {{convert|25|ft|m}} and a draught of {{convert|13|ft|m}}.<ref name=mac27/> The vessels were propelled by a steam-powered [[triple expansion]] engine driving one shaft creating {{convert|480|ihp|lk=in}} giving the vessels a maximum speed of {{convert|10|kn|lk=in}}.<ref name=johnston417/><ref name=maginley67>Maginley and Collin, p. 67</ref>

All twelve trawlers were equipped with a [[Quick-firing gun|QF]] [[QF 12-pounder 12 cwt naval gun|12-pounder 12 cwt naval gun]] mounted forward.<ref name=mac27/>{{efn|name=gun nomenclature}} This was considered to be the smallest gun that stood a chance of putting a surfaced U-boat out of action. They also carried a small number of [[depth charge]]s.<ref name=tucker253/><ref name=tucker257>Tucker, p. 257</ref> The trawlers were named after battles of the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] during the First World War that Canadians had been involved in. They cost between $155,000 and $160,000 per vessel.<ref name=johnston417/>{{efn|name=inflation}}{{efn|name=cost}}

==Construction and service==
Of the twelve trawlers, six contracts were awarded to Polson and six to Canadian Vickers.<ref name=johnston417/> Of the six awarded to Canadian Vickers, two were allotted to [[Kingston Shipbuilding]] in [[Kingston, Ontario]].<ref name=johnston484>Johnston et al., p. 484</ref> Intended for use during the 1917 shipping season, the construction of the vessels was delayed by the entry of the United States into the war. With higher wages found south of the border, a shortage of skilled labour developed in the shipyards, coupled with a shortage of construction material.<ref>Johnston et al., pp. 481–484</ref>

The six trawlers constructed by Polson were all [[Ship naming and launching|launched]] in June 1917, but were handed over to the Royal Canadian Navy until the fall.<ref name=johnston417/><ref name=macall>Macpherson and Barrie, pp. 27–31</ref> The six vessels built by Polson, ''Vimy'', ''Ypres'', ''St. Julien'', ''Messines'', ''Festubert'', and ''St. Eloi'', were [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] on 13 November 1917.<ref name=johnston484/> The six vessels ordered from Canadian Vickers were delayed further by difficulty in providing engines for the trawlers. The hulls had been finished during Summer 1917. However, the engines did not arrive until the fall. The first two, ''Arleux'' and ''Armentières'', commissioned on 5 June 1918 and the remaining four, ''Loos'', ''Thiepval'', ''Givenchy'' and ''Arras'', were commissioned on 1 August 1918.<ref name=johnston484/>

For the defence of shipping in Canadian waters in 1918, the entire Battle class was assigned to work out of [[Sydney, Nova Scotia]].<ref>Johnston et al., p. 543</ref> Following the sinking of the merchant vessel ''Luz Blanca'' off [[Halifax, Nova Scotia]], ''Armentières'', ''St. Eloi'' and ''Festubert'' were tasked with hunting for the German submarine {{ship|SM|U-156||2}}, which had been operating off the coast of [[Nova Scotia]].<ref>Johnston et al., pp. 635, 643–644, 665</ref> The rest of the Battle class was used for patrol and escort duties.<ref>Johnston et al., p. 645</ref> One of the class was assigned to the Gulf Escort Force, escorting vessels through the [[Gulf of St. Lawrence]].<ref>Johnston et al., p. 657</ref>

===Interwar period===
[[File:Cgs thiepval hecate strait.jpg|thumb|left|''Thiepval'' as fisheries patrol ship in the Hecate Strait]]
The twelve trawlers remained in commission with the RCN until 1920, and in early 1919, three of them (''Armentières'', ''Givenchy'', and ''Thiepval'') accompanied {{HMCS|Stadacona||2}} on a trip to the west coast via the [[Panama Canal]]. In 1920, nine of the class were transferred to the [[Department of Marine and Fisheries (Canada)|Department of Marine and Fisheries]], where they served as buoy tenders, fisheries patrol vessels, and [[Lightvessel|lightship]]s, although one of the ships (''Armentières'') was soon returned to the RCN. ''Loos'' became a buoy tender, while ''Arleux'', ''Arras'', and ''Givenchy'' became fisheries patrol vessels. ''Messines'', ''St. Eloi'', ''St. Julien'', and ''Vimy'' were converted to lightships. They remained in service with the Department of Marine and Fisheries throughout the interwar period, but a number were re-acquired by the RCN on the eve of the Second World War and returned to naval service.<ref>Maginley and Collin, p. 113</ref>

Two of the class (''Festubert'' and ''Ypres'') were not transferred to civilian government service, and were rejoined by ''Armentières'' and ''Thiepval'' in 1923.<ref>Macpherson and Barrie, pp. 27–28, 31</ref> In 1922, the Battle class were redesignated [[minesweeper]]s.<ref>Johnston et al., p. 801</ref> Remaining with the RCN throughout this time, they served as patrol and training vessels, and some were placed in reserve at various points.<ref name=macall/> ''Festubert'' and ''Ypres'' operated on the east coast while ''Armentières'' and ''Thiepval'' operated on the west coast.<ref>Johnston et al., p. 891</ref> In 1924, ''Thiepval'' undertook a lengthy trip across the North Pacific to the [[Soviet Union]] and Japan to support an ultimately unsuccessful British round-the-world flight attempt.<ref>Johnston et al., pp. 832–837</ref> On 2 September 1925 ''Armentières'' was sunk in Pipestem Inlet, [[British Columbia]]. The trawler was refloated and recommissioned in 1926.<ref name=mac27/> ''Thiepval'' struck an uncharted rock in the Broken Islands of [[Barkley Sound]] on British Columbia's west coast, and sank.<ref>Johnston et al., p. 892</ref>

===Second World War and fate===
[[File:HMS Revenge WWII IWM CH 823.jpg|thumb|right|HMS ''Revenge'' underway]]
By 1939, only one Battle-class trawler, ''Armentières'', remained in active naval service, although ''Festubert'' was in reserve and ''Ypres'' had just emerged from a refit to become a gate vessel for Halifax's anti-submarine defences. During 1939, the RCN re-acquired five other members of the class: ''Arleux'', ''Arras'', ''Loos'', and ''St. Eloi'' on the east coast, and ''Givenchy'' on the west coast. The east coast trawlers served primarily as gate vessels at Nova Scotia ports including Halifax and Sydney. In 1940, the British [[battleship]] {{HMS|Revenge|06|6}} accidentally rammed and sank ''Ypres'', but without loss of life. On the west coast, ''Armentières'' served as an [[examination vessel]], while ''Givenchy'' served primarily as an [[accommodation ship]].<ref name=macall/>

Following the Second World War, the trawlers that had served with the RCN were soon decommissioned and either sold or returned to civilian government service. Many were broken up in the 1950s or otherwise disposed of in the early 1960s, although two (''Armentières'' and ''St. Julien'') were still in existence in the 1970s, and their final fates remain unclear.<ref name=macall/>

==Ships in class==
{| border="1" class="wikitable"
! colspan=7|Battle-class trawlers construction info<ref name=macall/>
|-
!scope="col"|Name
!scope="col"|Builder
!scope="col"|Launched
!scope="col"|Commissioned
!scope="col"|Decommissioned
!scope="col"|Recommissioned
!scope="col"|Fate
|-
|scope="row"| {{HMCS|Arleux||2}}
| [[Canadian Vickers]], [[Montreal]]
| 9 August 1917
| 5 June 1918
| 30 June 1922
| 13 September 1939
| Sold for commercial use in 1946, foundered 1948
|-
|scope="row"| {{HMCS|Armentières||2}}
| Canadian Vickers, Montreal
| 11 August 1917
| 5 June 1918
| 28 October 1919
| 1923
| Sold for commercial use in 1946
|-
| scope="row"|{{HMCS|Arras||2}}
| Canadian Vickers, Montreal
| 15 September 1917
| 8 July 1918{{efn| name=commission dates}}
| 1919
| 11 September 1939
| Sold for scrap and [[Ship breaking|broken up]] 1957
|-
|scope="row"| {{HMCS|Festubert||2}}
| [[Polson Iron Works Limited|Polson Iron Works]], [[Toronto]]
| 2 August 1917
| 13 November 1917
|
| 1 May 1923 
| Scuttled 1971
|-
| scope="row"|{{HMCS|Givenchy||2}}
| Canadian Vickers, Montreal
| 15 September 1917
| 22 June 1918{{efn|name=commission dates}}
| 12 August 1919
| 25 June 1940
| Broken up 1953
|-
|scope="row"| {{HMCS|Loos||2}}
| [[Kingston Shipbuilding]], [[Kingston, Ontario|Kingston]]
| 27 September 1917
| 1 August 1918
| 1920
| 12 December 1940
| Sold 1945, broken up 1949
|-
| scope="row"|{{HMCS|Messines||2}}
| Polson Iron Works, Toronto
| 16 June 1917
| 13 November 1917
| 1920
| {{n/a}}
| Converted to lightship ''Lightship No. 3'', broken up 1962
|-
|scope="row"| {{HMCS|St. Eloi||2}}
| Polson Iron Works, Toronto
| 2 August 1917
| 13 November 1917
| 1920
| 1940
| Discarded 1962
|-
|scope="row"| {{HMCS|St. Julien||2}}
| Polson Iron Works, Toronto
| 16 June 1917
| 13 November 1917
| 1920
| {{n/a}}
| Transferred to Department of Marine and Fisheries and converted to lightship ''Lightship No. 22''
|-
| scope="row"|{{HMCS|Thiepval||2}}
| Kingston Shipbuilding, Kingston
| 1917
| 24 July 1918{{efn|name=commission dates}}
| 19 March 1920
| 1 April 1923
| Sunk 27 February 1930
|-
| scope="row"|{{HMCS|Vimy||2}}
| Polson Iron Works, Toronto 
| 16 June 1917
| 13 November 1917
| 30 November 1918
| {{n/a}}
| Transferred to Department of Marine and Fisheries, converted to lightvessel ''Lightship No. 5'', 1922
|-
| scope="row"|{{HMCS|Ypres||2}}
| Polson Iron Works, Toronto
| 16 June 1917
| 13 November 1917
| 1920
| 1 May 1923
| Sunk 12 May 1940
|-
|}

==References==
===Notes===
{{notes
| notes =

{{efn
| name = cost
| Tucker places the cost at $191,000 (adjusted for inflation to 20{{CURRENTYEARYY}} dollars, ${{formatnum:{{Inflation|CA|191000|1918}}}})<ref name=tucker257/>
}}
{{efn
| name = inflation
| Adjusted for inflation to 20{{CURRENTYEARYY}} dollars, ${{formatnum:{{Inflation|CA|155,000|1918}}}} to ${{formatnum:{{Inflation|CA|160,000|1918}}}}
}}
{{efn
| name = gun nomenclature
| "Cwt" is the abbreviation for [[hundredweight]], 20 cwt referring to the weight of the gun.
}}
{{efn
| name = commission dates
| Johnston et al. claim the ship was commissioned on 1 August 1918.
}}
}}

===Citations===
{{reflist|30em}}

===Sources===
* {{cite book |last=Johnston |first=William |last2=Rawling |first2=William G.P. |last3=Gimblett |first3=Richard H. |last4=MacFarlane |first4=John |name-list-style=amp |date=2010 |title=The Seabound Coast: The Official History of the Royal Canadian Navy, 1867–1939 |volume=1 |publisher=Dundurn Press |location=Toronto |isbn=978-1-55488-908-2}}
* {{cite book |last=Macpherson |first=Ken |last2=Barrie |first2=Ron |name-list-style=amp |date=2002 |title=The Ships of Canada's Naval Forces 1910–2002  |edition=Third |publisher=Vanwell Publishing |location=St. Catharines, Ontario |isbn=1-55125-072-1}}
* {{cite book |last=Maginley |first=Charles D. |last2=Collin |first2=Bernard |name-list-style=amp |date=2001 |title=The Ships of Canada's Marine Service |publisher=Vanwell Publishing Limited |location=St. Catharines, Ontario |isbn=1-55125-070-5}}
* {{cite book |last=Tucker |first=Gilbert Norman |date=1962 |title=The Naval Service of Canada, Its Official History – Volume 1: Origins and Early Years |publisher=King's Printer |location=Ottawa |oclc=840569671}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Battle class trawler}}
* [http://www.hazegray.org/navhist/canada/ww1/battle/ Battle Class]

{{Battle-class trawler}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Battle Class Trawler}}
[[Category:Battle-class trawlers| ]]
[[Category:Auxiliary gateship classes]]