HMCS ''Cartier'' was a commissioned surveying ship of the

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the Navy, naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack s ...

and saw service during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Pre-naval service

She was built as CGS ''Cartier'' for service as a

hydrographic survey Hydrographic survey is the science of measurement and description of features which affect maritime navigation, marine construction, dredging, offshore oil exploration/offshore oil drilling and related activities. Strong emphasis is placed ...

ship by Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson, at

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

, between 1908 and 1910. She saw many duties as a ship belonging to the Dominion government. She was utilized by Canada,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

while under the Dominion Flag on the East Coast of Canada, and throughout the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

, charting and taking soundings. ''Cartier'' was used to chart some of the most dangerous coastal waters into

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

and the

Dominion of Newfoundland Newfoundland was a British dominion in eastern North America, today the modern Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It was established on 26 September 1907, and confirmed by the Balfour Declaration of 1926 and the Statute of Westmi ...

. She was also contracted to assist in

Marine insurance Marine insurance covers the physical loss or damage of ships, cargo, terminals, and any transport by which the property is transferred, acquired, or held between the points of origin and the final destination. Cargo insurance is the sub-branch o ...

Investigations.

World War I

During

, CGS ''Cartier'' supported the

(RCN) and was converted to an armed patrol and training vessel for junior officers. However, she was not commissioned into the RCN, and maintained her civilian name as she remained a Dominion asset. The Dominion Government was responsible for her upkeep, as well as arming and manning her. The RCN provided the personnel, however the Dominion government paid them separately from the naval service's budget.

Inter-war service

CGS ''Cartier'' returned to her former service as a hydrographic survey vessel which included work on the Atlantic coast. Her ability to chart exact locations was used extensively to curb

smuggling Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. There are various ...

operations and Dominion law enforcement used her as a platform for anti-smuggling operations, resulting in timely searches of suspected smugglers. Notwithstanding this role, she was forever a survey vessel first and foremost.

World War II

During

, CGS ''Cartier'' was formally commissioned into the RCN on 18 September 1939, becoming HMCS ''Cartier''. HMCS ''Cartier'' became a training ship and then an armed coastal patrol ship before returning to training duties. As a training ship, her hydrographic survey instrumentation saw use in educating officers and crew for Advanced Navigation and Naval Mine Avoidance Navigation. On 9 December 1941, HMCS ''Cartier'' was renamed HMCS ''Charny'', likely to avoid confusion with the French-language naval reserve unit in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

, NCSM Cartier. By special dispensation of the Dominion Government, she was given the rare honour of being allowed to continue to fly her

commissioning pennant The commissioning pennant (or masthead pennant) is a pennant (also spelled "pendant") flown from the masthead of a warship. The history of flying a commissioning pennant dates back to the days of chivalry with their trail pendants being flown fr ...

that she received as HMCS ''Cartier''. From this time on, ''Charny'' was used as a training vessel and research vessel. She received two

Mentioned in Despatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

(MID), and was entitled to paint two Oak Leaves on her funnels. The MIDs were received for her assistance in

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, w ...

research as a target and tracking vessel. At various times, she was fitted with temporary Radar Sets and advanced communication gear, but only for testing purposes. Upon being

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 in ...

, ''Charny'' was no longer considered viable, and she was deemed surplus. In 1957, she was

scuttled Scuttling is the deliberate sinking of a ship. Scuttling may be performed to dispose of an abandoned, old, or captured vessel; to prevent the vessel from becoming a navigation hazard; as an act of self-destruction to prevent the ship from being ...

as a derelict, offshore of

Sydney, Nova Scotia Sydney is a former city and urban community on the east coast of Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, Canada within the Cape Breton Regional Municipality. Sydney was founded in 1785 by the British, was incorporated as a city in 1904, and dissolv ...

References

Converted civilian vessels

Canadian Navy Heritage Project: Ship Technical Information

Canadian Navy Heritage Project: Photo Archive
* Macpherson, Keneth R. and Burgess, John. (1982) (Second Printing) The Ships of Canada's Naval Forces 1910–1981. Collins Publishers. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cartier, Hmcs Auxiliary ships of the Royal Canadian Navy Shipwrecks of the Nova Scotia coast 1910 ships Ships built by Swan Hunter Ships built on the River Tyne

Pre-naval service

World War I

Inter-war service

World War II

See also

References