HMCS MONTREAL (1st) (K319)

HMCS MONTREAL (1st)

HMCS MONTREAL (1st)

The History of HMCS MONTREAL (1st)

HMCS Montreal (K319) was a River-class frigate of the Royal Canadian Navy and the first seagoing warship to bear the name. Named for the city of Montreal, Quebec, she served primarily as a convoy escort during the Battle of the Atlantic in the Second World War and earned the battle honour Atlantic 1944-45.

Ordered in October 1941 as part of Canada's wartime expansion of anti-submarine escorts, Montreal was built by Canadian Vickers Ltd. in Montreal. She was laid down on 23 December 1942, launched on 12 June 1943, and commissioned on 12 November 1943 at her builder's yard. Like other River-class ships, she displaced about 1,445 long tons standard, measured approximately 301 feet overall, and could reach around 20 knots. Her armament included a twin 4-inch gun mount, Oerlikon 20 mm anti-aircraft guns, a Hedgehog anti-submarine mortar, and depth charges, supported by improved ASDIC and radar.

After commissioning, Montreal sailed to Halifax, worked up, and in late February 1944 left St. John's, Newfoundland, for Londonderry, Northern Ireland. She joined Mid-Ocean Escort Force group C-4 and spent the next several months on the "Newfie-Derry" transatlantic convoy runs. On 3 September 1944 she rescued 33 survivors from the Norwegian freighter Fjordheim, which had been torpedoed by U-482 north of Ireland.

In late September 1944 Montreal transferred to Escort Group 26, a support group based in the United Kingdom. She took part in anti-submarine patrols and hunts in the Western Approaches and English Channel. On 17 December 1944, after U-1209 ran aground and foundered on Wolf Rock southwest of Land's End, Montreal picked up survivors and delivered them to Plymouth.

Montreal remained in UK waters into early 1945, with temporary basing at Portsmouth and Plymouth, before leaving Londonderry for the last time in mid-March as escort to convoy ON.290. She arrived at Shelburne, Nova Scotia, on 31 March 1945 and began a tropicalization refit intended to prepare her for possible Pacific service.

With the refit completed in August 1945, with the war ending, Montreal performed local duties out of Halifax before being paid off into reserve in Bedford Basin on 15 October 1945.

Declared surplus, Montreal was sold in 1947 and broken up at Sydney, Nova Scotia.

HMCS MONTREAL (1st) Statistical Data

  • Pendant: K319
  • Type: Frigate
  • Class: RIVER Class 42-43 Programme
  • Displacement: 1445 tonnes
  • Length: 301.5 ft
  • Width: 36.6 ft
  • Draught: 9 ft
  • Speed: 19 kts
  • Compliment: 8 Officers and 133 Crew
  • Arms: 2-4" (1 x II), 4-20mm, Hedgehog
  • Builder: Canadian Vickers Ltd., Montreal. Que.
  • Keel Laid:
  • Date Launched: 06-Dec-43
  • Date Commissioned: 11-Dec-43
  • Paid off: 15-Oct-45

Photos

HMCS Montreal K319. (RCN Photo)

HMCS Montreal K319. (RCN Photo)

Keywords: HMCS MONTREAL (1st), Royal Canadian Navy Ship, Frigate, RIVER Class 42-43 Programme Class