Naval Service Bill

The Naval Service Bill of 1910 was a piece of Canadian government legislation, which was put forward by Prime Minister Sir Wilfrid Laurier. Prior to the bill's introduction Canada did not have a navy of its own, a state of affairs that left the Dominion dependent on the British Royal Navy for maritime defence. The Naval Service Bill was intended to provide Canada with a separate naval force, but one that, if needed, could be placed under British control during time of war. By the end of 1910, the Royal Canadian Navy was created with a fleet of two former British Royal Navy vessels. Both French-Canadian nationalists and British-Canadian imperialists opposed the bill, which eventually contributed to the fall of Laurier’s government and the Naval Service Bill being replaced by a new bill put forward by Prime Minister Robert Borden in 1912.

During the first few decades after Canadian Confederation, maritime defense was not a priority. Defence of the Dominion was ultimately the responsibility of the United Kingdom and their navy had no equal at the time. The main defence priority at the time of Confederation was deterring a possible attack by the United States, with which tensions were elevated on account of perceived British and Canadian sympathy for the Confederate cause during the American Civil War. However, the vast Canada–United States border limited the level of attention that could be directed to the maritime implications of any hypothetical war with the U.S. In any event, the United States Navy was neglected in the decades following the American Civil War and relations between London and Washington improved after the Treaty of Washington was signed in 1871. The only significant naval arms race in the Western Hemisphere of the late 19th century took place in South America, but this was of little concern for the British (who built most of the ships) or for Canadians since the three powers mainly involved (Argentina, Brazil and Chile) were all on relatively friendly terms with Britain.

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