HMCS Shediac
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HMCS ''Shediac'' was a of the
Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; , ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The navy is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of February 2024, the RCN operates 12 s, 12 s, 4 s, 4 s, 8 s, and several auxiliary ...
during the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. She served primarily in the
Battle of the Atlantic The Battle of the Atlantic, the longest continuous military campaign in World War II, ran from 1939 to the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, covering a major part of the naval history of World War II. At its core was the Allies of World War II, ...
as a convoy escort. She was named after the town of
Shediac Shediac (official in both languages; ''Shédiac'' is colloquial French) is a town in Westmorland County, New Brunswick known as the "Lobster Capital of the World". It hosts an annual festival every July which promotes its ties to lobster fish ...
,
New Brunswick New Brunswick is a Provinces and Territories of Canada, province of Canada, bordering Quebec to the north, Nova Scotia to the east, the Gulf of Saint Lawrence to the northeast, the Bay of Fundy to the southeast, and the U.S. state of Maine to ...
.


Background

Flower-class corvettes like ''Shediac'' serving with the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War were different from earlier and more traditional sail-driven corvettes. The "corvette" designation was created by the French for classes of small warships; the Royal Navy borrowed the term for a period but discontinued its use in 1877. During the hurried preparations for war in the late 1930s,
Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...
reactivated the corvette class, needing a name for smaller ships used in an escort capacity, in this case based on a
whaling ship A whaler or whaling ship is a specialized vessel, designed or adapted for whaling: the catching or processing of whales. Terminology The term ''whaler'' is mostly historic. A handful of nations continue with industrial whaling, and one, Jap ...
design. The generic name "flower" was used to designate the class of these ships, which – in the Royal Navy – were named after flowering plants. Corvettes commissioned by the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War were named after communities for the most part, to better represent the people who took part in building them. This idea was put forth by Admiral Percy W. Nelles. Sponsors were commonly associated with the community for which the ship was named. Royal Navy corvettes were designed as open sea escorts, while Canadian corvettes were developed for coastal auxiliary roles which was exemplified by their minesweeping gear. Eventually the Canadian corvettes would be modified to allow them to perform better on the open seas.


Construction

''Shediac'' was ordered 22 January 1940 as part of the 1939-1940 Flower-class building program. She was laid down by Davie Shipbuilding & Repairing Co. Ltd. at Lauzon, Quebec on 5 October 1940 and launched on 29 April 1941. She was commissioned on 8 July 1941 at
Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...
. During her career, ''Shediac'' two significant refits. The first took place from April to July 1943 at
Liverpool, Nova Scotia Liverpool is a Canadian community and former town located along the Atlantic Ocean of the Province of Nova Scotia's South Shore (Nova Scotia), South Shore. It is situated within the Region of Queens Municipality, which is the local governmen ...
. Her second major overhaul began in mid-June 1944 and lasted until mid-August, taking place at
Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...
. During this second refit, ''Shediac'' had her
fo'c'sle The forecastle ( ; contracted as fo'c'sle or fo'c's'le) is the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or, historically, the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters. Related to the latter meaning is the phrase " ...
extended.


War duty

After arriving at Halifax for deployment, ''Shediac'' was briefly assigned to Halifax Force. In October 1941, she joined Newfoundland Command, escorting convoys between St. John's and
Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...
. ''Shediac'' participated in the battles for convoy SC 48, convoy SC 67 and convoy ON 92 before assignment to Mid-Ocean Escort Force (MOEF) group C1. Beginning in July 1942 ''Shediac'' was assigned to the
Western Local Escort Force Western Local Escort Force (WLEF) referred to the organization of anti-submarine escorts for World War II trade convoys from North American port cities to the Western Ocean Meeting Point (WOMP or WESTOMP) near Newfoundland where ships of the Mid ...
(WLEF). She returned to MOEF in October 1942. With group C1, she participated in the battles for
convoy ON 154 Convoy ON 154 (alternatively Convoy ON(S) 154 or Convoy ONS 154) was a North Atlantic convoy of the ON convoys which ran during the battle of the Atlantic in the Second World War. It was the 154th of the numbered series of merchant ship convoy ...
and convoy HX 222, and shared credit with for destruction of during the battle for convoy KMS 10G. After returning from her first major refit, ''Shediac'' rejoined WLEF as a member of escort group W-8. She remained with this group until she transferred to the Pacific coast. ''Shediac'' arrived at
Esquimalt The Township of Esquimalt () is a municipality at the southern tip of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. It is bordered to the east by the provincial capital, Victoria, British Columbia, Victoria, to the south by the Strait of Jua ...
, British Columbia 10 May 1944. She departed for refit in June. She remained with the Pacific Fleet until the end of the war.


Trans-Atlantic convoys escorted


Post-war service

''Shediac'' was
paid off Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to placing a warship i ...
at Esquimalt 28 August 1945 after the end of hostilities. She was sold for mercantile use as Dutch civilian ''Jooske W. Vinke'' in 1954, . She was
scrapped Scrap consists of recyclable Recycling is the process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects. This concept often includes the recovery of energy from waste materials. The recyclability of a material depends on i ...
in September 1966 at
Santander, Spain Santander ( , ; ) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Cantabria, Spain. It has a population of 172,000 (2017). It is a port city located in the northern coast of the Iberian Peninsula, facing the Cantab ...
by Recuperaciones Submarines S.A.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shediac, HMCS 1941 ships Flower-class corvettes of the Royal Canadian Navy Shediac Ships built in Lévis