MINOTAUR-Class
Cruiser
ordered on 27th May 1941 and laid down on
20th November that year. The ship was
launched as HMS
MINOTAUR on 29th July 1943 and would have
been the 5th RN ship to bear that name,
introduced in 1793
for a 3rd Rate and last used for a cruiser
built in 1906 which was sold in 1920.
However during July
1944 the ship was transferred to the Royal
Canadian Navy and commissioned as HMCS
ONTARIO on 26th April
1945. Build was completed on 15th May
1945
This name had not previously been used for
any
RN or Commonwealth warship.
B
a t t l e H
o n o u r s
None
H
e r a l d i c
D a t a
None
are available in the official Admiralty list
of
Crests and the
Name
is the property of the Royal Canadian Navy.
D
e t a i l s
o f W a r S e r v i
c e
(for more
ship information,
go
to
Naval History Homepage
and
type name in Site Search
1
9 4 5
April
Contractors
trials and commissioning.
Nominated
for service in 4th Cruiser Squadron, British
Pacific Fleet.
May
16th
-
Acceptance trials in Clyde area.
June
Shakedown
and
weapon trials in Home waters.
July
2nd
- Took
passage to Malta for work-up with ships of
Mediterranean Fleet.
August
Mediterranean
deployment
in continuation.
12th
-
Passage from Malta to Alexandria.
15th
-
Suez Canal Transit.
19th
-
At Trincomalee.
(Note:
As
hostilities with Japan had ended the ship
was still required for service
with the
BPF
which had reverted to RN Control
after service with the US Navy as Task Force
37.)
31st
- Took
passage from Trincomalee
to join Squadron.
P
o s t W a r
N o t e s
HMCS
ONTARIO was deployed
with the Squadron in the Far East and took
part in relief operations and in Fleet
exercises during
which she visited Hong Kong, Manila and
ports in Japan. On release from RN service
she took passage to Esquimalt where
she refitted
before RCN service. This cruiser was
primarily used for training purposes
until Paid-off by 1959 and placed on the
Disposal List in 1959. She was sold
for demolition and arrived at
Osaka, Japan on 19th November 1961.