HMS H4 at
Brindisi in August 1916 HMCS
Armentières In 1907, British shipbuilding and weapons manufacturing conglomerate
Vickers Sons & Maxim began investigating possible locations for a shipyard in
Montreal. Vickers Sons & Maxim intended to use the shipyard as a repair facility for transatlantic shipping traffic entering Montreal. Vickers Sons & Maxim was invited by the
Government of Canada in 1911 to establish a Canadian division to manufacture vessels for the nascent
Royal Canadian Navy. According to naval historian Marc Milner, "the Harbour Commission and the city of
Maisonneuve offered Vickers a first-class location" to establish the yard, and "an extended lease on the land and deferred taxes." Vickers Sons & Maxim established Canadian Vickers in June 1911 and constructed the shipyard between Rue Notre-Dame and rue Viau along the
Saint Lawrence River (now Viterra Montreal Terminal). The
hulls were Canadian-built, but the machinery and equipment were American. They were known as the
British H-class submarine in the Royal Navy and were the first submarines to cross the
Atlantic Ocean under their own power. Canadian Vickers (along with
Polson Iron Works of
Toronto) also constructed the first vessels specifically designed for the Royal Canadian Navy, the
naval trawlers. • – Launched May 1915 • – Launched June 1915 • – Launched June 1915. Mined and sunk July 1916 • – Launched June 1915 • – Launched June 1915. Rammed and sunk March 1918 • – Launched June 1915. Interned and purchased by the Dutch January 1916 • – Launched June 1915 • – Launched June 1915 • – Launched June 1915 • – Launched June 1915. Disappeared 1918 This shipyard would go on to produce many civilian and military ships in Canada, including: •
River-class frigates for the Canadian, British, and US navies. •
Flower-class corvettes for the Canadian, British, and US navies. • • • • • • • •
Canadian Coast Guard icebreakers • • • floating drydock
General Georges P Vanier in 1964 and renamed as
Scotia Dock II by
Halifax Shipyard; damaged and scrapped 2010. Canadian Vickers also manufactured luxury yachts and vessels that were later converted as yachts: • – built in 1963 as icebreaker and converted as a yacht in 2001 •
Club Atlantic – motor yacht built in 1967 •
Christina O – built in 1943 as and converted as yacht in 1954; renamed as Christina in 1954, Argo in 1978 and current named in 1998 Following World War I, labour militancy grew within
Quebec. In June 1919, Canadian Vickers workers led
labour action in Montreal as part of larger strike actions within the shipbuilding industry. The labour strike was a result of demands for maximum 8-hour shifts. Employees of Canadian Vickers coordinated with other work forces in Montreal, though shortly after it began, disagreements over a general strike led the labour action to falter. The end of the First World War also saw a reduction of shipping orders and increased competition among shipbuilders. This led to consolidation among shipyards and Canadian Vickers' parent company, Vickers merged with
Armstrong Whitworth to form
Vickers-Armstrongs. In 1926,
Frank Ross of
Montreal Dry Dock and two business partners sought to acquire Canadian Vickers from its parent company. Negotiations began in March and were agreed to in November. In 1928, Ross merged Montreal Dry Dock with Canadian Vickers. During the 1930s, the yard survived the
Great Depression with repair contracts and constructing manufacturing turbines and structural steel. The shipyard was reacquired by Vickers in 1956. It was renamed Vickers Canada Limited in 1978 after being sold to Canadian interests and renamed several times again by the last owners
Marine Industries, eventually (as
Versatile Vickers Inc in 1981 and MIL Vickers in 1987). Shipbuilding operations ceased by 1988. == Aerospace ==