WW100

Memorial University

The Story of Calypso

The connection between Newfoundland and Labrador and the sea has always been a strong one. The settlers of our province came here from all over the world whether it be Ireland, England, or France, and one thing that they had in common about their new home was that their way of life in Newfoundland was based around the sea. The settlers of Newfoundland made their way in life by working from the sea. It only makes sense then why Newfoundland and Labrador is known for its people that have a close connection to the sea. It is this close connection that made the sailors from Newfoundland a good fit for the Royal Navy during World War One as displayed by their skills guarding the coastlines in North America, watching the North Sea, and advancing in battle with Germany's U-boats and battleships. Continued

Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve

The British started the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve as a trial in 1900 to see how effective it would be to have a branch of the Royal Naval Reserve in one of their colonies. This meant that in the event of a war, the Admiralty had a naval reserve to fill the working gap of sailors. Likewise, Newfoundlanders wanted to contribute to imperial defense while obtaining steady employment during the winter months when the fishing season was over. The enthusiasm of the Newfoundland sailors did not go unnoticed as Sir Roger Keyes, the Admiral of Britain's Grand Fleet in World War One, described Newfoundland sailors as "...the finest small ship seamen in the world."

The Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve was beneficial for both Newfoundlanders and their government by Britain benefiting from the extra sailors readily available and Newfoundland providing employment to men who needed employment after the fishing season was over.

The original terms of the agreement with Newfoundland to establish a colonial reserve stated that the navy would board Newfoundlanders on ships of the North American and West Indies Station, Newfoundland Division. This meant that in late fall when the summer fishery was finished, the men would train for six months, collect naval pay, clothing and food, and be returned to port in St. John's in time to participate in the spring fishery or seal hunt.

Albert Gregory, Royal Naval Reserve

Albert Gregory, Royal Naval Reserve

Thirty-four year old Albert Gregory from Harbour Buffet was born on June 24th 1882 to Samuel Gregory and Rebecca (Dicks) Gregory. He trained for naval service in World War One on the HMS Calypso at St. John's and was a member of the Royal Naval Reserve. His regimental number was 719X and he passed away on December 1st, 1961 at the age of 79. Albert was just one on many brave Newfoundlanders that risked their lives during World War I in the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve.

Albert Gregory of Harbour Buffet, Placentia Bay, ca. 1916.
Courtesy of the Maritime History Archive, Memorial University of Newfoundland (PF-319.227), St. John's, NL.
Six Chief Petty Officers of HMS Calypso, ca. 1908-1916.
Courtesy of the Rooms Provincial Archives Division (F-46-25), St. John's, NL.

With terms like these, the Royal Naval Reserve recruited fifty men from 1900-01. The terms of the reserve were further established at the 1902 colonial conference, when Newfoundland arranged to pay 3000 pounds annually to the reserve if the Admiralty kept the reserve at 600 men.

Furthermore, St. John's decided to spend 1800 pounds to fix up an old Royal Navy Ship, the HMS Calypso. The HMS Calypso would be kept in St. John's and used as the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve's drill ship, local branch headquarters, and home for the men while they were on duty.

The reserve was established and it was agreed that the men would enroll for five-year terms, drill 28 days per year for four years, and in the fifth year they would be at sea for six months.

These naval reforms were later changed and replaced with an intensive two-month training scheme aboard the HMS Calypso. From 1900-1914, approximately 1300 Newfoundlanders joined the reserve under these terms.

The majority of the men were from rural communities or "outports", between 17 and 29 years old, and married. The Royal Naval Reserve was a good opportunity for the men to have steady part time employment over the winter which prompted interest in the reserve right away.

Newfoundland Prime Minister Morris and Governor Davidson with members of the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve, 1913-15.
Courtesy of the Maritime History Archive (PF-345.024), St. John's, NL.

Newfoundland As a Training Ground

The HMS Calypso is linked with the British custom of using Newfoundland as a training ground for its Navy which started around the time of Sir Humphrey Gilbert's visit to Newfoundland in 1583. Therefore, when British troops withdrew from Newfoundland in 1870, a lot of people in the military thought that the training of British seamen in Newfoundland should continue. The military also thought that the program would provide some military defense for the colony which had been left unprotected since the British military withdrawal. Captain Sullivan of the HMS Sirius therefore put together a plan in 1878 for the Royal Navy Reserve Unit and a training ship to be stationed in Newfoundland. This took some time though as the Lord Commissioners of the British Admiralty were worried by some of the problems experienced by several similar programs in England. This led to a refusal to approve the proposal and the Lords stated that they had no suitable ships for training boys for the Reserves in Newfoundland.

This notion was changing though as Industrial Training Ships (small fleet training ships) were being used in England to reeducate and train disobedient boys to assist them in choosing a career on the sea. These training ships had excellent results with the Royal Navy and helped create some of the best sailors in the British Navy.The steps were falling into place for the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve as the Royal Navy launched a new warship at the Navy Dockyard in Kent, England in 1883 that was christened the Calypso. The vessel which would eventually be home to the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve and be docked in St. John's harbor was designed by Sir Nathaniel Barnaby and was the last of the class of ships recognized as "Steam-Sail Corvettes." It measured 235 feet long, had a width of 44.5 feet, weighed 2770 tons and could move at a speed of fifteen knots.

The finest small ship seamen in the world

The British started the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve as a trial in 1900 to see how effective it would be to have a branch of the Royal Naval Reserve in one of their colonies. This meant that in the event of a war, the Admiralty had a naval reserve to fill the working gap of sailors. Likewise, Newfoundlanders wanted to contribute to imperial defense while obtaining steady employment during the winter months when the fishing season was over. The enthusiasm of the Newfoundland sailors did not go unnoticed as Sir Roger Keyes, the Admiral of Britain's Grand Fleet in World War One, described Newfoundland sailors as "...the finest small ship seamen in the world."

Reservists on HMS Calypso, ca. 1902-1916.
Courtesy of the Rooms Provincial Archives Division (A-8-48), St. John's, NL.

The Calypso was built to defend and was armed with four mounted six-inch breech-loaders, and twelve five-inch breech loaders. Likewise, there were six Nordenfeldt machine guns on the upper deck and two fourteen inch torpedo tubes on the main deck. This was combined with a protective steel deck below the main deck that could stop all but the heaviest of shells ensuring that the Calypso was well protected when it was deployed with 300 men.

The Calypso went into service with the Royal Navy's Training Squadron in 1885 but had a short lived career and was over by 1898. Newfoundland authorities had not forgotten Captain Sullivan's idea of revitalizing the colony as a training ground for British seamen and with the Calypso being destined for the scrap heap, the British finally agreed to Sullivan's idea of a Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve. Britain replied to plans to save the Calypso by assigning the ship to the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve.

Three Sailors from HMS Calypso, ca. 1902-1916.
Courtesy of the Rooms Provincial Archives Division (E-39-24), St. John's, NL.

"The best small boat men in the world"

Newfoundlanders were used to being at sea and as a result they took to the routines and rules of the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve like ducks to water. Despite not being used to being part of a Royal Naval Reserve, the men really excelled in the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve. Commander Anthony MacDermott of the reserve described the men as "their conduct was uniformly exemplary, punishments were practically unknown, and every order was carried out with cheerful alacrity and seamanlike intelligence."

The effectiveness of the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve was really proven though when an inspection by the Commander-in-Chief took place in 1914, and he said "But these fellows don't look like Naval Reserve men!" The Commander-in-Chief was surprised at how proficient the men were, and this describes the reaction that people from outside Newfoundland may have had of the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve. The fact that the men looked like regular seamen and nothing like the Royal Naval Reserve men that would have been seen in England made quite the astonishment for some people when the men turned out to be deemed the "the best small boat men in the world".

Crew on the deck of HMS Calypso in drydock St. John's [between 1902 and 1916]
Courtesy of The Rooms (E 27-16), St. John's, NL.

The HMS Calypso was re-commissioned as a drill ship on September 3rd, 1902 with a crew of 167 men that were assembled from the HMS Prince and the HMS Vivid under Commander Frederick Walker. The Calypso was going to sail to Newfoundland where the Royal Newfoundland Volunteer Naval Reserve had been prearranged and were anxiously waiting to begin training.

The Royal Newfoundland Volunteer Naval Reserve was formed as an Imperial force rather than a Colonial force in gratitude of Newfoundland's imperial role in the Commonwealth's protection and after a rough trip across the Atlantic, the Royal Newfoundland Volunteer Naval Reserve was ready to serve when the Calypso arrived in St. John's on October 15th 1902.

The vessel was transformed almost immediately to suit the needs of the trainees by having the fore, main and mizzen masts, and funnel removed. Similarly, the flush deck was covered over with a peaked roof to form a giant floating drill hall. Lastly, the hull where most of the Calypso's armament had been removed was now turned into the quarters for the Newfoundland Reservists.

The Newfoundland Naval Reserve was popular with fishermen from all over Newfoundland, and fishermen from all over the island subsequently went to St. John's to train on the Calypso when the fishing season ended each year. The popularity of the naval unit is evident by the fact that there were already about 500 Reservists between 1902 and the start of World War I on July 28th 1914. The tenacity of the Newfoundland men was seen by Newfoundland reservists being the first to respond when the British Admiralty sent out a call for trained seamen.

Members of the Newfoundland Royal Naval Reserve at St. John's, ca. 1902-1922. Courtesy of the Rooms Provincial Archives Division (A-49-34), St. John's, NL. [bottom left], Crew on the deck of the HMS Calypso in drydock, ca. 1902-1916. Courtesy of the Rooms Provincial Archives Division (E-27-16), St. John's, NL. [bottom right], Roll Call Images, ca. 1902-1916. Courtesy of the Rooms Provincial Archives Division, St. John's, NL and the Maritime History Archive, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, NL [right]
Six Chief Petty Officers of HMS Calypso, ca. 1908-1916.
Courtesy of the Rooms Provincial Archives Division (F-46-25), St. John's, NL.