Canada's Naval History

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Birth Of the Navy

First World War

Between the Wars

Second World War

Early Cold War

Later Cold War
- - From RCN to Maritime Command
  - A Changing Fleet

Navy Today
- - The Gulf War
  - Continuing Commitments

The Early Cold War
Rebuilding and Transformation

The Canadian navy's main Cold War mission was anti-submarine warfare, as it had been in the two world wars. It sought to build a force of ships, personnel, and facilities to fulfill this mission, as well as to pursue other national objectives like sovereignty protection.

Artifact Record

Uniform, Reverend Ernest Gordon Blair Foote

Ernest Gordon Blair Foote, a senior Protestant chaplain in the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN), wore this uniform in the post-war period.

The clerical collar denotes Foote's calling, while the medal ribbons on his jacket testify to service during the Second World War, the Korean War, and afterwards. Born in Pictou County, Nova Scotia, Foote enlisted in the RCN during the Second World War and became Chaplain of the Fleet in 1945. Remaining in the military after the war, Foote ultimately became the Chaplain General (Protestant) of the Canadian Forces.

Service Dress, Reverend Ernest Gordon Blair Foote
Jacket, CWM 19790724-013
Dickey, CWM 19790724-039

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