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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.

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.


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.


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.”