Royal Canadian Naval Reserve

Today, the Royal Canadian Naval Reserve provides trained personnel who are primarily in civilian occupations and serve as part of the Canadian Navy. The Naval Reserve traces its origins to the 1914 creation of the Royal Naval Canadian Naval Reserve (RNCVR) which became the Royal Canadian Naval Volunteer Reserve (RCNVR) in 1923. Members of the RCNVR were civilians who were not in seafaring careers. The Royal Canadian Reserve (RCNR) was created in 1923 as a “seamen’s’ reserve”, i.e. its members had seagoing experience in deep-sea or coastal shipping or in fishing or other vessels. During WWII, the Royal Canadian Navy expanded by enrolling members in the RCNVR (the vast majority) or RCNR for those with seagoing backgrounds. In 1946, the current Naval Reserve was created by merging the former RCNVR and RCNR.