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A comprehensive, fully illustrated survey of Canada’s warship and maritime aircraft acquisitions from 1910 to the present day.
Combining the talents of two of Canada’s foremost naval historians, this book fills an important void in the story of the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) and associated Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Maritime Aviation. An unprecedented chronological examination of when and why Canada procured its some fifty classes of warships and a dozen aircraft types over the past 120 years, and how it has employed and disposed of them, Guardians of the North does more than collect statistics on the specifications and characteristics of those vessels and aircraft — it also offers fresh insights into many previously overlooked themes, revealing trends and connections over the decades to the present day.
Karl Gagnon’s exceptional profile drawings and many rarely seen images complement Richard Gimblett’s engaging narrative history of the RCN and Maritime Aviation, making this the defining work on the ships and aircraft defending Canada today.
Combining the talents of two of Canada’s foremost naval historians, this book fills an important void in the story of the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) and associated Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Maritime Aviation. An unprecedented chronological examination of when and why Canada procured its some fifty classes of warships and a dozen aircraft types over the past 120 years, and how it has employed and disposed of them, Guardians of the North does more than collect statistics on the specifications and characteristics of those vessels and aircraft — it also offers fresh insights into many previously overlooked themes, revealing trends and connections over the decades to the present day.
Karl Gagnon’s exceptional profile drawings and many rarely seen images complement Richard Gimblett’s engaging narrative history of the RCN and Maritime Aviation, making this the defining work on the ships and aircraft defending Canada today.
Price: $45.00
Pages: 400
Publisher: Dundurn Press
Imprint: Dundurn Press
Publication Date:
18 November 2025
Trim Size: 9.75 X 12.00 in
ISBN: 9781459755550
Format: Hardcover
BISACs:
HISTORY / Military / Naval, Naval forces and warfare, TRANSPORTATION / Ships & Shipbuilding / General, HISTORY / Canada / General, HISTORY / Military / General
A volume of surpassing beauty, both in the crisp book design and layout of the text, and especially in the painstaking detail of Karl’s drawings ... But this book is much more than just pretty; it is a salient reminder on Canada’s lengthy and laborious attempts to manage its maritime security, through the material development of its naval and maritime air fleets.
The book is a major accomplishment: informative, readable and well presented in a large format.
This comprehensive reference volume should be on the shelves of every Canadian who has an interest in its naval vessels and aircraft from the origins of the Royal Canadian Navy (and even slightly before) until today's proposed new destroyers and maritime patrol aircraft.
[Guardians of the North] provides the background and context for both the evolution and necessity of Canada's seagoing hardware. It is ostensibly a visual history of Canadian naval platforms, from early cruisers to modern frigates and maritime patrol aircraft. But its deeper lesson is strategic: ships and aircraft tell the story of how Canada has tried, sometimes successfully, sometimes haltingly, to defend its maritime interests.
Richard H. Gimblett was a naval warfare officer from 1975 to 2001, and then the civilian Command Historian of the Royal Canadian Navy from 2006 to 2018. His many books include the official history of the Persian Gulf War and the multi-volume official history of the Royal Canadian Navy. He is a past president of the Canadian Nautical Research Society and lives in Port Hope, Ontario.
Karl Gagnon joined the Royal Canadian Navy in 1983, serving mostly in the Reserves on a full-time basis before transferring to the regular force in 2014. Self-taught in graphic art and heraldry, his drawings have graced many publications such as the Navy’s commemorative centennial volumes. A native of Ville de Saguenay, Quebec, he resides in Ottawa.
Karl Gagnon joined the Royal Canadian Navy in 1983, serving mostly in the Reserves on a full-time basis before transferring to the regular force in 2014. Self-taught in graphic art and heraldry, his drawings have graced many publications such as the Navy’s commemorative centennial volumes. A native of Ville de Saguenay, Quebec, he resides in Ottawa.
- Foreword (by Vice Admiral Angus Topshee CMM MSM CD, Commander, Royal Canadian Navy)
- Foreword (by Lieutenant General Eric Kenny CMM MSC MSM CD, Commander, Royal Canadian Air Force)
- Introduction
- Part 1: Ships
- 1. The Proto-Navy: CGS/HMCS Canada
- 2. The Beginning: Rainbow and Niobe
- 3. Other Government Ships of the First World War
- 4. Submarines of the First World War
- 5. Armed Yachts of the First World War
- 6. Trawlers, Drifters, and the Battle Class
- 7. The Interwar “Occasional” Fleet
- 8. The Rolls-Royces: River-Class Destroyers
- 9. Wartime Inshore Minesweepers
- 10. The Mighty Tribals: Tribal-Class Destroyers
- 11. Corvettes: Flowers and Castles
- 12. Other Government Department Ships of the Second World War
- 13. Armed Yachts of the Second World War and the Fishermen’s Reserve
- 14. The Princes: The Armed Merchant Cruisers
- 15. Town-Class (Border River) Destroyers
- 16. Bangor-Class Minesweepers
- 17. Algerine-Class Minesweepers
- 18. Frigates: Rivers and Lochs
- 19. Coastal Forces (Home Waters): Fairmile Bs, Depot Ships, and Dun-Class Oilers
- 20. Coastal Forces (Overseas): Motor Torpedo Boats and Landing Craft
- 21. Escort Aircraft Carriers
- 22. The Last Cruisers
- 23. Emergency (Intermediate) Destroyers
- 24. The Postwar Aircraft Carriers
- 25. The Cadillacs: St. Laurent-Class Destroyers and Successors
- 26. Prestonian-Class Frigate Conversions
- 27. Modified Wind-Class Icebreaker Labrador
- 28. Bay-Class Minesweepers
- 29. “The Pig Boats”: Porte-Class Gate Vessels
- 30. Cape-Class Escort Maintenance Ships
- 31. Sail Training Vessels Venture and Oriole
- 32. From Seaward Defence to Reserve Training: The Bird Class, YAGs, and Others
- 33. The “O-Boats”: Oberon-Class Submarines
- 34. West Coast Submarines
- 35. “One-Stop Shopping/The Tankers”
- 36. “The Flying 400”: Experimental Hydrofoil Bras d’Or
- 37. Research Auxiliaries: CFAVs Quest and Endeavour
- 38. “Sisters of the Space Age”: Iroquois-Class Destroyers
- 39. Diving Support Vessel Cormorant
- 40. Canadian Patrol Frigates: The Halifax Class
- 41. Minesweeping Auxiliaries: Anticosti and Moresby
- 42. Kingston-Class Patrol Vessels
- 43. Victoria-Class Submarines
- 44. Orca-Class Patrol/Training Craft
- 45. Harry DeWolf-Class Arctic and Offshore Patrol Vessels
- 46. Joint Support Ships: Asterix and the Protecteur Class
- 47. River-Class Guided-Missile Destroyers
- Part 2: Shipborne Aircraft
- 48. Origins: The RCN Air Branch, Shore Establishments, and Miscellaneous Aircraft
- 49. Naval Fighters: Seafire, Sea Fury, and Banshee
- 50. Carrier-Borne Strike and Antisubmarine Aircraft: Firefly and Avenger
- 51. CS2F/CP-121 de Havilland Canada Tracker
- 52. Early Naval Helicopters
- 53. CHSS-2/CH-124 Sikorsky Sea King Helicopter
- 54. CH-148 Sikorsky Cyclone Helicopter
- Part 3: RCAF-Operated Maritime Patrol Aircraft
- 55. The Evolution of Maritime Patrol: From Stranraer to Neptune
- 56. CL-28/CP-107 Canadair Argus
- 57. CP-140 Lockheed Aurora
- 58. Boeing P-8 Poseidon
- Afterword
- Acknowledgements
- Appendices
- A. Principal Ship Classes (By Type/In-Service Dates)
- B. Aircraft Type Specifications
- C. RCN/CAF/RCAF Naval/Maritime Air Squadrons
- D. Weapon Fits and Calibre Conversions
- Acronyms and Abbreviations
- A Note on Sources
- Select Bibliography
- Image Credits
- Index