Remember the Rainbow Redux: An Alternate Royal Canadian Navy

I’m pretty interested in this actually and looking forward to where it goes. As an aside... there was a few things going on at this time which could have an impact on a possible Canadian Navy. One of which happened in 1905. An rather interesting thing was that the RN was not pulling back from just Canada and Australia, but other colonies such as the West Indies. And in 1905, a British MP by the name of Ian Malcolm (I know, I know) had the interesting view that, perhaps, they should sound out Canada in regards to taking over the West Indies from Britain with them becoming part of Canada. Of course, such a thing would not make sense unless there was a Canadian Navy due to the distance. And in 1911, the Bahamas also got into talks with Canada about joining them. There was interest there right up until about a thousand African-Americans fled racial violence in Oklahoma and settled there.

Not to mention that in 1917 and after WWI, Borden raised the idea with Britain of taking them over as payment for Canadian efforts in the war. So there was some interest on both sides as well as in the area itself. You would need, at least, a Canadian Naval Militia stationed there...
 
I’m pretty interested in this actually and looking forward to where it goes. As an aside... there was a few things going on at this time which could have an impact on a possible Canadian Navy. One of which happened in 1905. An rather interesting thing was that the RN was not pulling back from just Canada and Australia, but other colonies such as the West Indies. And in 1905, a British MP by the name of Ian Malcolm (I know, I know) had the interesting view that, perhaps, they should sound out Canada in regards to taking over the West Indies from Britain with them becoming part of Canada. Of course, such a thing would not make sense unless there was a Canadian Navy due to the distance. And in 1911, the Bahamas also got into talks with Canada about joining them. There was interest there right up until about a thousand African-Americans fled racial violence in Oklahoma and settled there.

Not to mention that in 1917 and after WWI, Borden raised the idea with Britain of taking them over as payment for Canadian efforts in the war. So there was some interest on both sides as well as in the area itself. You would need, at least, a Canadian Naval Militia stationed there...

Thank you for the interest in the timeline! As for the idea regarding Canada either directly taking in the Bahamas, West Indies, etc, it was specifically brought up in my last attempt at writing this timeline as well. I won't lie to anybody who is potentially sticking around specifically for Canada to take over any tropical territories, it is not currently planned to happen within my timeline. One of the main traits I'm trying to stick with for my timeline is plausibility and even with my planned deviations from our timeline, I'm not particularly sure a Canadian Navy could have the reach to cover these overseas territories. Mainly though, I think the issue is more based on racial attitudes and the politics of the time, which I personally think would be quite difficult to get around. I'm definitely looking into their potential however, I sadly do not think this idea is within the purview of this timeline.

That being said, I very much appreciate any ideas and feedback that readers have to give! Taking the time to look into these branching choices and potentially integrating them into the timeline is very rewarding and even if they don't end up making it in, every bit of information helps :)
 
Smoke on the Water and Fire on the Shore
August 16, 1906. Chaleur Bay, Canada.

As the gently undulating surf lapped against the hull beneath his feet, Captain Charles Kingsmill stifled a deep yawn. Over 36 years of service had hardened him against early mornings but even so, a day starting at 4 am tends to drag on and on. At her helm, he had sailed Dominion up through the Restigouche River and anchored off Dalhousie around 10am, attending to various duties throughout the day. With the sun now hanging low in the sky, Kingsmill squinted his eyes slightly to make out the orange silhouetted view of steamers and pleasure craft, scuttling about in preparation for the oncoming dusk. Maneuvering from the upper superstructure to the chart room, Kingsmill found his navigating officer standing over the chart table.

Lieutenant Basil Noake's familiar face looked up at him, “Good evening Captain, preparing the charts now.”

“I would prefer we get underway with due haste Lieutenant." Kingsmill stated as he strolled around the opposite side of the table, "I take it you are aware of how rare this clear weather is along the St. Lawrence?”

“Quite.” He answered, “With the inflow and the tide coming into the bay tonight, it would be advisable to proceed at a fairly high speed to both make fair time and successfully cut the tide.”

“Agreed.” Kingsmill said, running a finger around his mustache, “Say we plot a course at 15 knots, using the Belledune Light, Souris Point light and Paspebiac Light for markers. What is our estimated time of clearing the bay?”

Lieutenant Noake hunched over somewhat as he worked his slides across the charts, muttering to himself for a few choice moments, “Plotted roughly 3 miles southwest of Souris Point, we should arrive in the area off the point at approximately 9 pm. At such a point, we should be clear of most potential obstacles and ready to proceed to Quebec City.”

“Excellent, finalize the course and I will return shortly.” Kingsmill straightened his cap and walked back out on deck. As he stepped foot on the bridge, the officer of the watch turned to face him.

“Weigh anchor Lieutenant, bring us around and inform the engine room I want 72 revolutions. Course is to follow. Once the course is relayed, I want 90 revolutions.”

With a curt “Aye sir”, Lieutenant Clarkson went about his duty. While the ship sprung to life, Kingsmill remained on the bridge, intermittently watching the bridge chronometer slowly tick along. After some time had passed and with the steady vibration of her massive engines beneath him, Kingsmill returned to the chart room.

“Sir, the current course consists of S.59 E. deviation 0, for a position 3 miles S.31 W. of Souris Point Light. I have checked the course using the cross bearings of Heron Island and Carlton Light to clear Heron Shoal, no deviation from the course being observed. Weather is keeping clear at this moment, is this satisfactory Captain?”

Kingsmill took a moment to examine the course in his head, he was no navigational genius however, experience allowed one to reliably pick out mistakes quite easily. Everything seemed correct and the Lieutenant had shown excellent navigational skills in the past.

“Very good Lieutenant, please relay the course to Lieutenant Clarkson and take your place on the bridge.” With a bustling bridge and the ship seemingly making good time, Kingsmill made his way towards the somewhat empty section of the upper bridge, stopping on the way to inspect the impeccably spotless uniform of a passing midshipmen. With the steady humming beneath his feet and a spectacular display of stars from above, the Captain took in relative silence. To think, his long career had finally brought him back to his homeland, captaining the vessel named after his Dominion since her commissioning, it was truly a fitting time. As time ebbed away, the Captain checked his pocket watch. Reading 7:40 pm, he descended the bridge to make final checks before attending his increasingly appealing dinner.

Lieutenant Clarkson was present on the main bridge, alternating his view sporadically from the ships compass to her current heading. Satisfied with the officers attentiveness, Kingsmill headed below. The prospect of relaxing even slightly was every bit as appealing as it sounded, especially as his bones creaked, lowering him into his chair. The steward served a meal of freshly cooked trout, roast beef, potatoes and brussel sprouts. As always, the perks of being a Captain shined through, especially in range of fresh port-side food stocks. Although he was interrupted periodically by the attentive midshipman of the watch reporting on heading updates, the meal was excellent and their course seemed steady. Much was made to enjoy it to the fullest possible extent, however by the end it was clear that the time to return to the bridge was rapidly approaching.

Beginning to reach for his overcoat, the Captain felt an unmistakable change in the ship itself, one that brought his heart into his throat. The sudden jar followed by a lurch to port signified not only a course change but an aggressive one, hard over, likely full rudder with engines in reverse. Scrambling to his feet and bolting up out of the cabin, the silver wear bouncing along the cabin floor punctuated his exit. Halfway up the aft bridge with cap still in hand, a trio of shudders echoed through the entire ship, threatening to throw the Captain to his feet. Time slowed to a crawl as he forced his way upwards, every step punctuating the long career rapidly flashing before his eyes.

Kingsmill called out “Status report!” almost as soon as he crested the opening to the bridge, coming face to face with Lieutenant Clarkson.

“Captain.” Clarkson stammered, “It appears we have put been put aground. Lieutenant Noake and his assistant have set out in boats to attain soundings. Watertight doors were closed almost immediately however, we are waiting on a damage report.”

Kingsmill swallowed hard, “Thank you Lieutenant, keep me posted.”

The mind of the Captain was racing back and forth, he knew the dreaded Board on Enquiry would get involved and would want their pound of flesh for a brand-new ship being grounded. Would this be the end of his career? All of the years of hard work, left to rot on a goddamn rock? No, he could not give into these thoughts, he had to act.

“Damage report is in sir, the grounding caused extensive damage to the double bottom, some of the stokehold plates are buckled and pushed upwards. Engineering reports slight gradual flooding within the double bottom however, it is completely manageable. Engineering spaces are otherwise fully workable.”

Letting out an inaudible sigh of relief, the Captain launched into action, “Let out the boats present on the booms to remove some weight, I want as much as the ships company mustered to the bow as possible, inform them to bring any easily transported belongings. Organize this personally, I will stay on the bridge.”

“Sir, if I may?” The Lieutenant queried before the Captain nodded him along, “May I muster the Marine Band sir? I can spin the mustering as a surprise dance competition on the fore end of the deck. It should help alleviate some of the worry.”

Kingsmill cracked a slight smile, “Excellent idea Lieutenant, see to it at once!”

Soon the band was set up forward of the ship, the crew began to funnel out on deck. Arranged in a loose congregation around the bow as directed, rumor did spread about the true point of the exercise, however that did little to tamper the spirit of the enlisted men as the band started their instruments. One of the traits that likely played into their grounding turned around to be a god send as between repeated reversing, shifting weight forward and the coming tide, Dominion was slowly eased off the shallow seabed at roughly 11 pm that night.

Luckily, the area were the ship grounded came back as being almost completely a soft bottom of gravel, sand and seashells, largely doing minor damage over a large area. It had been a stressful night for Kingsmill and the crew. As Dominion was safely anchored within a local inlet, Captain Kingsmill watched from the upper bridge as the crew below trounced back and forth across the deck, the raring composition of the band punctuating their joyful celebration. A wave of guilt took hold over the old salt, for those precious few seconds, he had thought of nothing besides his own career being at stake. As he watched these young men from above though, he remembered why he was a Captain. His responsibility was to this ship and its crew, all nearly 800 of these men. If the Admiralty wanted his head, so be it…..but these…….men…..his men would be spared a silver platter.

As the festivities began to die out, Kingsmill left the bridge. He would deal with this in the morning, there was many things that he could be described as but a young man was not one of them.

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Charlies Kingsmill as a Commander, sometime between 1891 and 1898 (Left) and the Launch of HMS Dominion, August 25 1903 (Right).
 
“Sir, if I may?” The Lieutenant queried before the Captain nodded him along, “May I muster the Marine Band sir? I can spin the mustering as a surprise dance competition on the fore end of the deck. It should help alleviate some of the worry.”

Kingsmill cracked a slight smile, “Excellent idea Lieutenant, see to it at once!”

This one got me a bit haha, is that accurate or just a little added touch?
 
Head Meet Chopping Block
Although Dominion had been grounded and damaged, it was decided to keep this issue hidden and continue to her destination in Quebec. After the gift of silver plates and associated dinner ware was handed over to Captain Kingsmill, Dominion would remain in Quebec for a period of two weeks to allow various visitations by Canadian citizens alongside many different presentations and events, hoping to spread some good will regarding naval elements. Kingsmill would again meet with Laurier and the Governor General Grey, no doubt speaking privately about a variety of issues. Surely, Laurier’s public speech at the event spoke for itself, “It was Canada's mission to develop her own resources and strength as an integral position of the Empire, instead of wasting them in the unnecessary preparations for war; though should occasion call for it, I am sure that Canada would do her duty to the Empire.”

During this time, extended work was undertaken to improve the below decks damage and document the cause, Captain Kingsmill often would stay aboard his ship for days, attempting to finalize the narrative of the incident. Sailing to Bermuda, Dominion was trapped at sea in a hurricane. Even with her damage, Kingsmill expertly maneuvered her through the storm with minimal problem and arrived in Bermuda on September 10. After returning to Britain, Dominion was placed in Chatham Dockyard for repairs to her bottom. Originally, only Kingsmill and Lieutenant Noake were to be tried however upon the interjection of First Sea Lord Jackie Fisher, the Officer of the Watch was to be tried alongside them as well for the charge of “grave neglect of duty”.

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Map showing the intended and actual routes undertaken by Dominion and the exact location of the grounding.

During the Court Martial itself, Commodore Frederick G. Stopford delivered the summarized events of the incident:

“I have the honour to report the circumstances attending the stranding of H.M.S. Dominion off Souris Point, Chaleur Bay, Gulf of St. Lawrence, on the 16th August 1906, with a view to the trial by Court Martial of Captain Charles Edmund Kingsmill, Lieutenant (N) Basil Stratford Noake, and, Lieutenant Frederic William Clarkson, of that ship. H.M.S. Dominion left Dalhousie, Chaleur Bay, at 6.5 p.m. on Thursday 16th August 1906, course as requisite for leaving harbour, engines at 72 revolutions. After clearing the harbour, course was shaped S.59 E., Deviation 0, for a position 3 miles S.31 W, of Souris Point Light; at 6.55 p.m., the position of the ship was fixed by cross bearings. At 8.20 p.m., the Navigating Officer (Lieutenant Basil Stratford Noake) observed a light on the Port Bow which he assumed to be Souris Point Light, whereas in reality it was a brush fire. At 8.30 p.m., the bearing of the light was N.E. by E. At 8.40 a cast of the lead was taken, and 16 fathoms obtained, and instructions were given to sound continuously till further orders. At about the same time a fixed white light was observed on a bearing S.85 E, which was taken for Paspebiac Light and at the same time the supposed Souris Point Light bore N.31 E, which corresponded with the soundings taken. The Navigating Officer, after checking his supposed position, went to the Upper Bridge and observed a fixed white light which was being passed very rapidly. This he mistook for a Steamer’s Masthead Light, whereas it was actually Souris Point Light which had already been mistaken for Paspebiac Light. The Navigating Officer not having a second cast of the lead reported to him, then went down to the Starboard Sounding Machine and noticed the bottom had been obtained with 3.5 fathoms of wire out. He immediately, with the Officer of the Watch, Lieutenant Frederic William Clarkson, gave the order hard-a-port, stopped and reversed both engines. A few seconds later the ship was felt to strike. It would appear the no allowance was made for the in-draught into Cascapediac Bay in laying down the course to pass three miles South of Souris Point Light, whereas as Article 9 Page 14 of “Notes bearing on the Navigation of R.N. Ships” clearly states that:- “In navigating coasts where the tidal range is considerable, caution is always necessary. It should be remembered that there are in-draughts to all bays and bights, although the general run of the stream may be parallel to the shore”. This in-draught took the ship so much off her course as to cause her to strike as detailed above. It also appears that although the ship was in such close proximity to the land both the Captain and the Navigating Officer were off deck during a great portion of the time between 7 p.m. and 8.55 p.m. when the ship took the ground.”

While all of these events were indeed correct and were not argued by Kingsmill or his Lieutenants, the justification and conduct of the officer themselves was presented differently. Captain Kingsmill would present the following points personally:

  • That all the usual precautions for safe navigation in the vicinity of land were observed.
  • That when the position was fixed off Heron Island, the course, (S.59.E), to pass 3 miles south of Souris Point, was shaped after careful consideration of all the circumstances, and the distance off the Point was considered a safe one.
  • That the forest fire, mistaken for Souris Point Light, and the smoke from it which blew over the real Souris Light, dimming the brilliancy of the light, masking the land, and completely obscuring Paspebiac Light were the immediate causes of the grounding.
  • (a). That the Navigating Officer took cross bearings of the lights, supposing them to be Souris and Paspebiac, sounding at the same time to verify, and that the results confirmed his conviction that the ship was approaching S P on her lain as laid on the Chart.
  • (b). That the stream of smoke was purely local, being blown by a light N.W.ly breeze across the light and the land in its vicinity.
  • (c.). That had the wind been in any other direction the smoke would either have been clear of the lights, under which circumstances the accident could not have occurred, or the ship would have run into the smoke, in which case steps would have been taken to meet the altered conditions.
  • (d). 15 knots was the speed ordered because it was desirable to take advantage of the clear weather, as the St. Lawrence is much subject to fog. Under the favourable conditions of weather this speed was not excessive for a ship of the “Dominion” class, moreover the higher the speed of the ship the less the effect of any set of current across the course.
After raising these general points, Kingsmill delivered his defense. Firstly, he raised the point that the course laid out by the navigating officer was a safe one under the prevailing conditions at hand. Secondly, he argued that contrary to the claim of the prosecuting party that no allowance had been made for the tides, the course put into motion gave the ship an effective clearance of over two nautical miles while the provided charts and relevant information available reinforced the safety of their chosen route. Although a minor point, Kingsmill disagreed with the definition of the waters in question as a 'bight' and therefore argued that the “Notes on Navigation” relating to this point had no bearing on the situation, therefore were not relevant as evidence to be raised against him. At this point, Captain Kingsmill took time to list various steps of caution taken by the bridge crew and attempted to argue that the cause of the grounding was due to the smoke of the onshore fire that denied them the key navigation elements. Details were also provided relating to the professional conduct and performance of the crew during and after the grounding. The ship under his command had managed to bring itself off the shoal rather quickly and with minimal damage, impeccable performance in a stressful situation. One of the most important points though, Kingsmill defending his absence from the bridge. As he explained, he possessed the upmost confidence in both of his Lieutenants before he left alongside the fact that he had been awake since 4 am and had not eaten yet that evening. Even then, he was only absent from the bridge for roughly 25 minutes and was in the process of returning to the bridge when the event occurred.

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Commemorative coin for the launch of HMS Dominion.

Following this, Kingsmill submitted his recollection of the events:

“I propose to swear to the truth of the statement I read, and I have got here an epitome of my evidence. On the 16th August 1906, I weighed from Port Daniel at 4.45 a.m. and proceeded up the Restigouche to Dalhousie, where I anchored at about 9.50 a.m. I remained there until 6.5 p.m. and left there after consulting the Navigating Officer as to whether we should proceed out of the Bay that night. We came to the conclusion that we should do so on account of the very fine weather which was prevailing and taking into consideration the liability to fog in the St. Lawrence, we proceeded. I gave orders to proceed to 72 revolutions as soon as the ship was turned and told them in the engine room to work up to 90 revolutions. At about 6.30 p.m. we shaped our course, the ship then going 90 revolutions. They reported 90 revolutions almost immediately after that from the engine room. The course was laid down in my presence by the Navigating Officer, and we discussed what indraught we were likely to get, or what tide we were likely to get against us, and a course was laid to pass three miles S. and something W. of Souris Point light. I remained on the bridge, I think on the upper bridge, until after 7 p.m. when I went down with the Navigator to the charthouse and there looked over the chart again with his last fix, which was taken at 6.55 p.m. I remained in the charthouse looking over the sailing direction then for some time – how long I do not know, but I know that I remained on the bridge or in the charthouse until 7.45 p.m. with the exception of perhaps five minutes when I went below to change a coat. I personally noticed the officer of the watch, and found that he was paying strict attention to his course, and I know the officer of the watch as being an officer who done nothing else particularly on the bridge except pay attention to his course. He has not been brought up in our service, but had a Royal Naval Reserve bringing up, and he paid strict attention to his course, and I thought at the time that that was all right. At 7.45 I had a final look round and went down to my dinner. At 8 o’clock the midshipman of the watch came down and gave me the Navigating Officer’s 8 o’clock position and reported 8 o’clock. I was then at my dinner. I told him I wished to know as soon as Souris Light was sighted, and at 8.30 Mr. Spurgin, midshipman of the watch came down and reported Souris light bearing N.E. by E. At about 8.45 Mr. Spurgin came down again and reported Paspebiac light bearing S.85 E. which appeared to me about right. I just finished my dinner and was getting ready to go on deck, but I had not really left the table when I felt the jar which I always feel when the ship is in shoal water and the helm goes over. I rushed on deck and felt the ship ground as I was on the fore and aft bridge. When I arrived on the bridge the ship had stopped, and I found her enveloped in a dense fog.”

The court would eventually come to the finding that Captain Kingsmill and Lieutenant Noake were both guilty of negligence and were sentenced to a “severe reprimand”. Somewhat confusingly, the Officer of the Watch was found innocent of all charges and released. Although Kingsmill was convinced, it seems that everything possible was done to spare his career and finances from ruin. The court did not dismiss either person from Dominion while a large amount of the blame was placed on the shoulders of Lieutenant Noake. Kingsmill and Noake were not cross examined by the Prosecutor, forcing the court to undertake it. Kingsmill was allowed to remain in command of Dominion as she was repaired, being transferred to the older battleship HMS Repulse once she came out of drydock. This meant he was not placed on half pay and dodged a financial bullet. It should be noted though that the Sea Lords of the Admiralty seemed to have some kind of personal crusade to further punish the Captain.

While the Board confirmed their sentences, the Fourth Sea Lord Admiral Winsloe was very critical of the sentence itself and believed both officers should be dismissed from Dominion. Second Sea Lord Admiral Drury and First Sea Lord Jackie Fisher both agreed with this however, this action was not particularly warranted under regulations and would have turned this event into a witch hunt, so additional charges were dropped. Even with this all taken into consideration, it was clear that Kingsmill’s career within the Royal Navy was essentially stonewalled. He would likely be promoted to Rear Admiral upon retirement and that would be that. Taking a short leave absence, Kingsmill would request to have an interview with Prime Minister Laurier while he was in Britain for the 1907 Colonial Conference. With his previously favorable relationship with Laurier, it seems Kingsmill wanted to ensure Laurier that his professional ability and standing with the Admiralty was not tarnished. Laurier would invite Kingsmill and his wife to a dinner and while it is not known what was discussed, it was obvious that Kingsmill retained a high amount of confidence from Laurier.

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Royal Navy Battleships Royal Sovereign, Empress of India, Repulse and Resolution sailing in a line formation, date unknown.

Roughly one year later in the beginning of May 1908, the Canadian Governor General Earl Grey would inform First Lord of the Admiralty Tweedmouth, that Ottawa requested Captain Kingsmill in order to have an experienced naval officer to take over command of the Canadian Marine Service. Only two weeks the newly promoted Rear Admiral would leave HMS Repulse, retire from the Royal Navy and make his way to Canada to hopefully reinvigorate his career. Minister Brodeur would write a letter to Kingsmill during this period, welcoming him into their ‘fold’.

“For a long time I have cherished the hope of seeing a Canadian, possessing the necessary qualifications, acquired in the English Navy, take the command of our little Canadian fleet. I had naturally cast my eye on you in Quebec two years ago. Mrs Kingsmill, whom I had the pleasure of meeting at my house, one day gave me to understand that you would probably return to Canada, but I thought that was only the natural hope of a wife separated from her husband most of the time, and anxious to see him return home. I am authorized by Governor in Council to offer you command of Canadian Marine Service.”

Note, the above labeled map and text excerpts were obtained from "A Most Fortunate Court Martial: The Trial of Captain Charles Kingsmill, 1907" by Robert L. Davison and many thanks are given to him and his extremely helpful resource.
 
Great White Fustercluck
Once Minister Brodeur had finished essentially cleaning up the mess of his predecessor, he could finally move towards a naval solution or more accurately to start with, a general status report. With the Halifax and Esquimalt transfer still simmering and the 1907 Conference quickly approaching, the politicians needed something to discuss once they arrived in Britain. Besides some questionable useful talks with local naval leagues once again, Brodeur spent a large portion of his time trawling through government records in order to find any reference to previously accomplished works. To his surprise though, there was little recorded besides Commander Spain’s very detailed exploits of CGS Canada alongside some comments regarding the previously proposed Naval Militia Bill back in 1904. Limited communication was made with British Navy League members in London however, their steadfast idea of “one sea, one navy” was rather unhelpful. As the 1907 Colonial Conference came around, Brodeur essentially had nothing concrete information wise to bring with him, even though the Conference itself was predicted to heavily contain talks about imperial defense.

Regardless of that, three men were going to arrive in Britain to represent Canada. Prime Minister Laurier alongside Minister Brodeur and Minister Frederick Borden all departed but not without some apprehensiveness from Laurier about making the trip in the first place. While they had definitely made moves towards their vague goal of some kind of a naval force, Laurier essentially had nothing to show his fellow politicians. Laurier and Brodeur distrusted the Admiralty to a point, it was obvious that the good will they imparted with the transfer of the Canadian dockyards would be requested to be paid back, likely in the form of monetary assistance. In the end though, it would be the Australians to attempt to make the most development. Before the conference even started, New Zealand and Australia both requested the issues of increased funds be given to the Empire or the potential for separate local squadrons to be setup. Fisher was actually rather onboard with this idea and Prime Minister Deakin announced the Australian governments plan to build 4 torpedo boats and 8 destroyers over a 6-year period in 1906.

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Important members of state posing for a photo at the 1907 Colonial Conference in London. Prime Ministers Laurier, Ward and Deakin are present in the front row, third, second and fifth from the left respectively. Winston Churchill, Minister Brodeur and Prime Minister Bond of Newfoundland are present in the second row, first, sixth and seventh respectively. Frederick Borden is present back row, furthest right.
Under this understanding, Deakin arrived with his delegation to London alongside his comrades. Ironically enough though, the issue of imperial defense had lost large amounts of its momentum. While it was indeed still a prevalent concern, the Admiralty had already accepted the fact that this issue rarely produced any results and was not willing to heavily push it at yet another conference. There was talks in general about homogenizing equipment, training, ranks, organization, etc however as the Dominions were already heavily based off their British counterparts, this was less of an issue and more of a reminder. Once the naval question was finally addressed, it seems the Admiralty had a much gentler hand. Lord Tweedmouth opened the address as such:

“I feel it a high privilege to sit at this table with the prime ministers of the self-governing dominions of the king beyond the seas. We welcome you, and we ask you to take some leading part in making us more complete than it is at present the naval defense of the empire. We want you to give us all the assistance you can, but we do not come to you as beggars; we gladly take all that you can give us, but at the same time, if you are not inclined to give us that help that we hope to have from you, we acknowledge our absolute obligation to defend the kings dominions across the seas to the best of our abilities.”

This was a rather nice opening, but it was rather quickly soured by the addendum. This defense provided by the Admiralty would require them to retain clear control of all fleets and units across the world, the old “one sea, one navy” mantra once again. Tweedmouth would continue to flop somewhat however, his next proposal was much more interesting to those in attendance.

“We are quite ready to enter into any arrangements with the colonies that may seem most suitable to them, and which may seem to bring advantage to the navy, and advantage to the colonies themselves. His majesties government recognizes the natural desire of the self-governing colonies to have a more particular share in providing the naval defense force of the empire, and so long as the condition of unity of command and direction of the fleet is maintained, they are ready to consider a modification of the existing arrangements to meet the views of the various colonies. In the opinion of the government, it would be of great assistance if the colonial governments would undertake to provide for local services in the imperial squadrons the smaller vessels that are useful for defense against possible raids or for co-operation with larger squadrons. Assistance could also be provided by equipping and maintaining docks and fitting establishments which can be used by his majesties ships.”

After shortly continuing about increased co-operation and how the Admiralty was completely willing to tailor each dominions arrangements to better fit each of their unique scenarios, Tweedmouth would continue.

“I understand that, in Australia particularly and in South Africa, it is desired to start some naval service of your own. Perhaps I might suggest that if the provision of the smaller craft which are necessarily incident to the work of a great fleet of modern battleships could be made locally, it would be a very great help to the general work of the navy. You cannot take the small craft such as torpedo boats and submarines across the ocean, and for warships to arrive in any of the dominions and find ready to their hand well trained men in good vessels of this kind, would be an enormous advantage to them. There is, I think, the further advantage in these small flotillas, they will be an admirable means of coastal defense; that you will be able by the use of them to avoid practically all danger from any sudden raid which might be made by a cruising squadron. Above all things in this work of flotilla defense, the submarine is probably the most important and effective weapon. I am assured by my advisers at the Admiralty that it is a most important weapon that has already reached considerable development upon which we may rely with great confidence.”

Laurier and his team were rather taken aback by the Admiralty’s new stance and with Tweedmouth pivoting to give the speakers position over to Laurier as the senior dominion speaker, Laurier deflected this duty to Australia and New Zealand as they had proposed previous resolutions before the conference. Both parties were positive about the Admiralty address however, Laurier would eventually turn down speaking and allow Minister Brodeur to take the stand. He stated,

“It will not be necessary for me to state the position which Canada intends to take in regard to this question of naval defense because our situation is a different one to that of the other colonies, and should be treated as such.”

Brodeur would go onto make a very relevant point, largely aimed at silencing critics of Canadian contributions or therefore lack of. After underlining the fact that the British Fisheries Protection service fell under Britain’s naval expenditure, Brodeur argued that Canada should be viewed as similar. Therefore, Canada’s major investment by the Fisheries Service into the establishment and upkeep of the Halifax/Esquimalt naval bases, all wireless stations along the coasts and doing hydrographic work was a major contribution. Attention was also brought to CGS Canada and her successful nature as an enforcement and naval training ship alongside the plan to procure another similar ship for service on the Pacific coast. This was generally agreed upon and the naval issue was sidelined for future negotiating, largely in private with each party. The Australian idea to have a local squadron quickly foundered when the Admiralty stated that such a squadron would be a part of the Royal Navy and a colony having political sway over a portion of the Royal Navy was unacceptable, likewise the Australians simply handing their ships and crews over to the Admiralty whole sale was political suicide. The private exchange with the Canadian delegation was never recorded however, it was much more positive with Tweedmouth acknowledging the work of the Fisheries Service alongside Canadian “willingness to assist in future ventures”.

The conference would therefore end on a strange note. The Australian grab for independence was for the moment squashed while the Canadians were finally thought of as something besides misers, at least by some. Laurier had attempted to propose the “All Red Route” with fast steamships able to move between the Dominions, armed as merchant cruisers able to fight down raiders and the like. While this would never come to be with the Invincible class 'Dreadnought Armored Cruisers" taking their role of trade route defense, the publicity would help in the further development of additional telegraph cables connecting all sides of the Empire. Although the conference was over, naval matters would once again spark at home at the end of 1907. US President Roosevelt had ordered the entire Atlantic fleet of the US Navy on a voyage to circumnavigate the world, dressed in ornate peacetime colors to show the goodwill of the United States. It also was a perfect opportunity to provide good training and show the rising power of Japan that the United States was perfectly able to strike, hopefully helping to drive tensions down. The traditionally largely Atlantic focused fleet was a shock to all parties and drummed up immense interest in naval matters of all nations around the world.

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Journey of the Great White Fleet around the world shown on a modern map.

This distraction for Japan and show of 'white dominance' to a 'racially inferior' Asian power was agreeable for Canada and especially British Columbia who had been recently dealing with a major spike in Asian immigration. The Deputy Minister of Labor William Lyon Mackenzie King was appointed a royal commissioner to oversee the ordeal and would later be invited to Washington by President Roosevelt to serve as a bridge between nations regarding their similar Asian 'issue'. While on one side, this show of force was greatly appreciated, it also stirred up quite a fuss within Canada. The Governor General, Albert Grey, 4th Earl Grey was incredibly interested in the progress of this fleet and provided daily reports of their progress to Laurier. Grey was a stout liberal and also strangely enough Laurier’s most powerful partner in the fight to gain some kind of a naval force for Canada, Grey was heavily interested in naval matters and actually wanted Canada to have a naval force. Although an ally, Grey was not afraid to point out Canada’s crippling lack of defenses especially in the aftermath of a potential Japanese-American confrontation. In one of his many letters to Laurier, he had the following to say:

“It would be mockery to ask whether you are prepared for this. I am not aware that your Cabinet has even considered the expediency, as have the government of Australia, of taking steps to defend their coasts against possible Japanese aggression. Your only security against the possibility of British Columbia being occupied by the Japanese when it suits them to take possession lies in the Anglo-Japanese Alliance and in the present strength of the Royal Navy. While I regard the American Navy as one of the reserves of the Empire, the US fleet and the Monroe Doctrine offer no protection on which you can count. Neither do I discount the possibility that the Japanese may simply destroy the Americans in yet another humiliating defeat, leaving North America helpless. Even without such a disaster, the American fleet does not represent Canadian interests and should not be relied upon.”

Mackenzie King had a front row seat in Washington to watch these events transpire and while both Japan and America were being more than agreeable with negotiations, Canada had little to threaten them both back into line if they suddenly refused. Soon into his stay though, King was visited personally by President Roosevelt who queried him about the possibility for the “Great White Fleet” as it was called to visit both Victoria and Vancouver. While King wanted to accept simply for yet another chance to build healthy relations with their neighbor especially considering the public in both cities seemed extremely enthused about the idea, this was not his call to make. In the end after talking with Grey, King and the government decided to decline the offer. The government did not want to encourage a dependence on the US Navy, nor did they want to further stir fears of American annexation across western Canada. In the end, the Canadian government did not want any fleet in their own waters besides either their own or that of the Royal Navy. This entire escapade had made it very clear that even though the Americans had asked, they and any other foreign fleet could effectively enter Canadian sovereign territory with minimal opposition, sweeping aside what little they could find. With the Royal Navy permanently gone from the area, the residents of British Columbia felt as vulnerable as ever.

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It leaves little to the imagination why the voyage of the Great White Fleet sparked such interest in naval matters, a seemingly endless line of immaculate warships appearing off the coast of any nation must have been both a worrying yet impressive sight.

King would later write in his diary regarding the threats Canada faced, her unique political situation and his overall opinion on the matter.


“The situation reveals to me, too, so far as Canada is concerned, the necessity of our doing something in the way of our having a navy of our own. We must admit that in the present situation we are absolutely dependent upon the naval power of Great Britain for the protection of our own country against the Asiatic invasion. We might as well face this squarely and meet the situation by contributions to the British government or by the beginning of a navy of our own which, as a Canadian, would be the preferable course. In speaking of a navy of our own, I do not mean that we would act independently in any way of the British. An arrangement could be affected whereby a complete unity of action could be affected. I think, however, that it would be better for us in voting money to control expenditure and it is well to accompany any imperial sentiment by a healthy Canadian national spirit as well.”
 
Battlecruisers, Corruption and Frenchmen
With the Great White Fleet setting out on its journey across the world, Laurier put Brodeur back in the hot seat to investigate the possibility of a Canadian naval militia. While this had been attempted many a time in the past, Brodeur had noticed Laurier’s intensely inflamed interest in naval matters as of late and quickly procured a report. As this was going on though, the opposition within Parliament was on the attack. The Conservatives pushed the Liberals regarding the money being spent on the upkeep of Halifax and Esquimalt, how it was being used and future purposes for these bases. Questions about Canadian contributions to imperial defense, its relation to the Fisheries Protection Force and the potential for naval instruction of militiamen in Canada. Coming off the recent Colonial Conference and his newly minted report, Brodeur was fresh on the topic and successfully held the Conservatives at bay for the moment however, their recent uptick in interest pointed towards the need to do something substantial sooner rather than later.

Conveniently enough, Brodeur would be approached soon after this parliamentary scuffle by a Frederick Hamilton. Hamilton was a member of the Toronto Navy League executive committee and a member of the press gallery within the House of Commons. Providing a newspaper snippet regarding an address he had given to a local club on “Canadian Coastal Defense”, the potential for a Canadian Navy was heavily covered. This snippet was a compact yet well worded summary of Canada’s maritime lifelines and their vulnerability to disruption or attack without guaranteed coverage by Royal Navy assets. The conclusion of the paper reads as such, “the establishment of a naval militia, whereby our sailors and fishermen could be trained to handle naval artillery, torpedoes, etc. This militia should be under our own control, as is our land militia. This should lead up to the establishment of flotillas of torpedo boats, destroyers, or submarines at suitable points on our coastline. These should be manned by our own people, and under our own control.” This was somewhat radical but even so, Brodeur was impressed enough to grant an interview to Hamilton to discuss his and the governments proposal. Brodeur would say to Hamilton, “our ideas are not dissimilar, and I believe that we are quite in accord upon the principle of the establishment of a naval reserve in Canada” however, he also made sure to remind him that “we are not, perhaps, going as fast as certain persons would like, in the spending of millions of dollars for the establishment of a naval militia of which no immediate pressing need seems to exist.”

While Brodeur was originally planning to take any naval development slow as per usual, the public, House and Prime Ministers increased interest in naval developments caused him to expedite his efforts. During the department's yearly estimates to Parliament, Brodeur brought up the possibility of a naval militia. Due to the fact that he only requested enough funding to pay for the wages of Canada’s crew, Conservative members of Parliament questioned the sincerity of this motion, wanting specific details regarding the force type, size, and equipment they would need. Brodeur resorted to his tired and played out response of “this force will merely be the nucleus of a naval militia.” His main goal was to not rush and slowly create a force fitting Canada’s increasing autonomy in their own defense. Brodeur would state “the naval militia is based upon the fisheries protection service. Some day, instead of only having special boats for the fisheries protection service, I hope to have the naval militia take part in that work. At the time when the Canada was built, there was no organization except some boats like the Curlew and the Vigilant to patrol the coast. But it was thought we should have a boat on which a certain number of young men would be trained under the rules of the British Admiralty. This has been done for the last few years with satisfactory results. I should like our organization to be made in such a way.”

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Digital reproduction of one of the many flags all branches of the Navy League used in their campaigning in the 1900's.

As was customary with anything regarding Canadians and naval matters, a large wrench was promptly thrown directly into this good progress at the worst possible time. The Department of Marine and Fisheries had been under heavily scrutiny over the last few years with the sudden death of Prefontaine. The previous minister while hard working and head strong was also somewhat of a messy figure. There had been excessive spending on frivolous things, stacking of incompetent figures throughout the echelons of the department and a multitude of corrupt actions over his tenure as Minister. Brodeur had been working very hard to fix these issues however, the timing of the recent Colonial Conference and his large swaths of time spent outside of the country had angered the public and parliament alike. Governor General Grey had directly intervened multiple times on this issue within the previous years, warning Laurier and Brodeur of the oncoming situation they were about to endure. Various officials could not be easily fired due to the fact that they were politically connected and 'knew too much' about previous sensitive department endeavors. One of the main issues was that Commander Spain while seen as fairly competent, him leaving the Royal Navy at the rank of Lieutenant made him rather unsuited to the role of nationwide leadership required with policy creation and such, his alcoholic tendencies and sour departure from the Royal Navy also tainted his record. While Grey wanted to keep Spain in a subordinate position however, it was desired to have an actual naval officer with significant experience to fill the position especially if a naval militia or navy itself is desired in the future.

Brodeur brushed off the advice of Grey until his department was embroiled in an investigation by the Civil Service Commission, largely for misuse of funds and general inefficiency. This overall investigation covered every single major government department however, most of the departments only received minor critiques, Brodeur’s department was comparatively hammered. A drawn out and scathing report was published labeling the department as undertaking “near constant blundering and confusion with no sign of an intelligent purpose, unless it be that of spending as much money as possible.” A cloud of criticism and calls for Brodeur’s removal hung over the department like a wet blanket and with Governor Grey looking on with contempt that Laurier had not heeded his warnings, he queried Laurier that he should consider completely dissolving the department itself from the ground up. Laurier was confident that administration could comfortably take the damage and keep sailing however, the prospect of losing one of the most senior and arguably most important departments in the government itself was untenable. To control some of the damage, Laurier formed a royal commission to look into the “very grave statements”, this was quickly followed by suspensions and retirements of several officers within the department and the deputy minister himself. George J. Desbarats was put into the Deputy Minister position and almost immediately went to work attempting to put the administration back on track. With the removal of Commander Spain from his position, the newly promoted Rear-Admiral Kingsmill took over his position as leader of the Enforcement section of the department. Even with his previous rocky patch with the Admiralty, Kingsmill was recommended wholeheartedly by the Royal Navy as a leader for the Fisheries department and potentially a future naval militia.

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Rear Admiral Kingsmill poses for his official government photograph, sometime before WWI.

The placing of a Canadian born and relatively high ranked Royal Navy trained officer at the head of the Fisheries Service did quite a bit to smooth down the previous issues, signifying a substantial increase in prestige, capability and likely the future plans for the department. Kingsmill’s new position was somewhat of a downgrade though in the grand scheme of things. With the nearest equivalent to his new position being the Commander of a station with the Royal Navy, her annual salary of $3,000 was nowhere near the $8,000 plus allowances given to him by the Royal Navy. The difference was clearly buffered by the fact that his realistic prospects within the Royal Navy were effectively over and returning to his home nation was rather appealing overall. The Toronto Globe perhaps went a bit too far with it’s announcement of Kingsmill’s promotion with “CANADA TO HAVE NAVAL MILITIA – A CANADIAN ADMIRAL HAS ALREADY BEEN APPOINTED”. The contents of the paper was rather muted in comparison to it’s eye catching title, “it is understood that his appointment presages an advance in the movement towards the development of the naval militia. This was begun some years ago under Commander Spain, and there are now seamen in training along British naval lines on the cruiser Canada and on some other vessels of the fleet of protective cruisers. However, the development of the naval militia will be gradual, and will keep pace with the advance of public opinion in respect to assuming a large share in imperial defense.”

This wait for public opinion would soon be put to the test in July 1908 at the Quebec City tercentenary where the Royal Navy Channel Squadron would be joined by various elements of the American and French navies for a display, allowing tours and spreading goodwill during the event. USS New Hampshire, HMS Russel, HMS Venus, HMS Minotaur, HMS Exmouth alongside the French cruisers Amiral Aube and Léon Gambetta. The main attraction of the event though was HMS Indomitable, the first battlecruiser ever built which had brought the Prince of Wales across the Atlantic to Canada. Alongside the powerful new warship, CGS Canada was proudly displayed in a full ceremonial dress of flags. The Toronto Globe would feature her prominently on their front pages with the title of “CANADA’S ARMY AND NAVY AT QUEBEC.” Canada’s captain and one of her cadets were both showcased as well, labeled as “Canada’s naval commander and her first cadet.” Rear-Admiral Kingsmill was well and truly present for the events and festivities, trying his best to convey Canada’s good will to her allies in this time of celebration. Although the Admiralty had embarked Julian Corbett at the request of the new director of naval intelligence for the Admiralty. Fisher had a keen interest in Kingsmill and the development of a Canadian naval militia or navy, largely due to his recent run in with Kingsmill and his previous posting as the North American station commander. Fisher went on record with his new director, confiding that “I know the Canadian people and that they are an unpatriotic grasping people who only stick us for the good that they can get out of us, and we ought to do nothing whatsoever for them.” Fisher was obviously not particularly confident that Canada would develop much of a force by itself.

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Warships illuminated outside of Quebec City at night, CGS Canada can be seen fully illuminated as the second last ship on the right.
Corbett’s mission was to “discover whether there was any Canadian disposition to take the defense of her frontier in hand and towards starting a naval militia.” In the opinion of the Admiralty, “Anything in relation to pushing Canada towards naval development must be done very carefully and slowly without ostentation and parade, but if it is effectively carried out, Canada will add enormously to the strength of the Empire as a whole and assist the navy quite as much or more than if she went in for battleships or cruisers.” When Corbett finally met with Kingsmill himself for a discussion, he found that Kingsmill had turned relatively melancholy and frustrated in the face of what he saw in Canada, his inability to help correct the misgivings of his predecessors weighed heavily on his conscience. Corbett would report that:

“Kingsmill’s pessimism was derived from two opinions. One was that the reservoir of, and facilities for, turning out competent officers were limited, and unhappily they were only available from the lower deck. There was a total absence of any sense of discipline and he supposed this impossible in inoculate without a fixed service system. The other discouraging feature was the prevalence of political patronage that was bound to frustrate the sound building of an officer corps. Concretely, he proposed introducing some permanence to the service, employing personnel for at least a three year period, and taking the climate into consideration by employing the hands in the dockyard in the winter. He was clearly not hopeful and seemed to feel all of this was only a poor substitute for monetary contributions to the Royal Navy at this point.”

After Corbett interviewed Governor General Grey and received the box standard 'we’re working on it' reply the Admiralty had been privy to for quite sometime, he stumbled upon Major General Percy Lake. Lake was the Chief of the General Staff of the Canadian Militia and was considered the generally the most well-versed figure in the Canadian defense circle. He described to Corbett in a rather candid assessment of the politics surrounding the issue and stated that the idea of a local navy or militia was not nearly as much of a waste as Kingsmill or the Grey had thought however, large sections of the department ministers and party members were corrupt. A naval militia bill had existed in draft form for over three years however, it was being delayed until after the next election. Although Lake was generally positive and very helpful, he made sure to stress to Corbett that this was all on shaky ground and could fall apart rather quickly if rushed. Therefore, Corbett returned to Britain with a somewhat more positive view than they expected. Lake himself would go onto shake the boat somewhat later in 1908, proposing multiple new powers to the department of Marine and Fisheries. These included restriction of trade with enemy nations, examination of vessels in and around defended ports to sniff out disguised raiders and blockade runners, censorship of overseas communications and the gathering of intelligence on American interest on the lakes. The Militia Minister Sir Frederick Borden supported this however, Brodeur was against the rapid militarization of the force.

Even so however, the Canadian government was not standing completely idle on these issues. Aboard CGS Canada, a new intake of naval cadets had been issued. These cadets were specifically taken in for seamanship and navigational training in preparation for some kind of future service, militia or naval. Although as Kingsmill had predicted though, the political patronage was completely at play here. All of the cadets had major political connections, the most jarring being Victor Brodeur, the son of Minister Brodeur himself. None of these cadets wrote entrance exams and their method of selection was more on a whim than anything else. Even so however, this handful of cadets would prove invaluable to the future of the Royal Canadian Navy. The tenders for the much-anticipated West Coast sister-ship to CGS Canada were issued in June of 1908 and the aging fisheries cruiser Constance was transferred to the Canadian Customs service, freeing up crew and resources for the expected new ship. Kingsmill and Desbarats went to work trying to raise discipline levels within the service and squash corruption wherever it was found, yet the decades it had been festering made it rather difficult to remove. Brodeur was also cleared of any misconduct in the earlier departmental investigation, leaving the entire organization in a fairly good position.

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The original group of cadets present on CGS Canada, some of these men would prove instrumental in the formation of the future Canadian Navy.

Back row from left to right contains Charles T. Beard, P. Barry German, Victor G. Brodeur, Wright. Center row from left to right is Fisheries officers Fortier, Stewart, Woods and finally in the front row from left to right is Henry T. Bate, Percy W. Nelles, John A. Barron.

Kingsmill would leave Ottawa in August of 1908 to inspect the west coast of Canada and in more broad terms, help develop a comprehensive naval requirement plan for Canada. His journey itself was interrupted though in September when the Admiralty announced they had finally been able to come to an agreement to Australia for a naval defense plan. The Australians had beat the Canadians to the punch.
 
Some great images here and amazing research. I’m more familiar with the CanadianArmy due to local enlistments but enjoying this so far.
 
This is really a fascinating TL, covering a fascinating segment of history I didn't even know about. I'm honestly surprised Canada would be so resistant to the idea of a navy, although having read through the thread I guess I can sort of understand their position. Plus it's interesting to see the difference in opinions between Canada and Australia when it comes to naval development.
 
This is really a fascinating TL, covering a fascinating segment of history I didn't even know about. I'm honestly surprised Canada would be so resistant to the idea of a navy, although having read through the thread I guess I can sort of understand their position. Plus it's interesting to see the difference in opinions between Canada and Australia when it comes to naval development.
The issue with Canada is that most of our population is inland. Yes ocean going ships sail by Montreal and Toronto daily but there is no RCN presence there save the Naval Reserve Divisions York (Toronto) and Donnacona (Montreal). Our Navy is located on the coasts in two small cities (Victoria and Halifax) which have little political influence. Canada is also a very insular place that despite its claims of being a big player in the UN it usually is focused on the goings on in the Excited States to the south. Finally Canada has the massive US military industrial complex to do all the heavy lifting when is comes to all things Naval (and Army/Air Force as well).
Oz on the other hand has a majority of its population on the coasts and is very far from its Anglosphere bases of support (US/UK and Canada). Therefore it sees the RAN all the time and its government officials have no time nor inclination to screw around with PC culture when it comes to the defence of the region.
 
Some great images here and amazing research. I’m more familiar with the CanadianArmy due to local enlistments but enjoying this so far.

Excellent historical photos!

Thanks for the feedback! Like I’ve stated in the past, one of my favourite part of writing this timeline is finding all of these images to share, there’s plenty more especially once we get up to WWI and our deviation from our timeline.
 
This is really a fascinating TL, covering a fascinating segment of history I didn't even know about. I'm honestly surprised Canada would be so resistant to the idea of a navy, although having read through the thread I guess I can sort of understand their position. Plus it's interesting to see the difference in opinions between Canada and Australia when it comes to naval development.

Thank you very much, I'm aware we're lacking any large bits of "action" but we're slowly working our way towards it! Canada and Australia are an interesting dichotomy when it comes to naval development especially before and during WWI, comparing the relatively failure of Canada to the success of Australia is very interesting. Although obviously in this timeline I hope to improve such a situation, we'll see how it works out.

The issue with Canada is that most of our population is inland. Yes ocean going ships sail by Montreal and Toronto daily but there is no RCN presence there save the Naval Reserve Divisions York (Toronto) and Donnacona (Montreal). Our Navy is located on the coasts in two small cities (Victoria and Halifax) which have little political influence. Canada is also a very insular place that despite its claims of being a big player in the UN it usually is focused on the goings on in the Excited States to the south. Finally Canada has the massive US military industrial complex to do all the heavy lifting when is comes to all things Naval (and Army/Air Force as well).
Oz on the other hand has a majority of its population on the coasts and is very far from its Anglosphere bases of support (US/UK and Canada). Therefore it sees the RAN all the time and its government officials have no time nor inclination to screw around with PC culture when it comes to the defence of the region.

Very goods point overall. I'd like to add though that Canada has generally been adverse to any kind of large military expenditure and naval developments are at the top of the list regarding large budgetary spending by the federal government. One of the main issues was the perceived presence of the Royal Navy and it's ability to sweep any enemies away from the seas around Canada to keep it's dominion safe, obviously in our timeline this didn't exactly happen and this timeline, that falsehood will be laid especially bare. Canada has a major export and import maritime trade network on both coasts factoring into it's overland trade with the United States, such lifelines are quite important in both peacetime and wartime, especially in regards to enemy raiders. We shall see how helpful the US is in times of peril, although I venture to say they won't be extremely helpful in the time I'm considering. Australia is much different yes largely do to their isolation and close nature to many potential hostile powers throughout history, China, Japan, etc. You never know, Canada might adopt many of the ideals and rationales similar to Australia, time will only tell. Thank you for the feedback as well, I enjoy interacting with you all and reading your comments!
 
One of the main issues was the perceived presence of the Royal Navy and it's ability to sweep any enemies away from the seas around Canada to keep it's dominion safe, obviously in our timeline this didn't exactly happen and this timeline, that falsehood will be laid especially bare.

In that sense that Canada-Alaska boundary dispute of 1903 was an element in awakening a realization that the UK held it's own interests as paramount and was quite willing to throw Canada under the bus if it advanced it's interests elsewhere. It was a main root cause in Laurier's determination to have a more independent Canada. In OTL it took until after WW1 to come to fruition but in TTL it may push the navies cause a bit more.
 
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