“No information was given concerning the origin of this torpedo”: A Soviet Weapon at the Canadian War Museum

Authors

  • Jeff Noakes

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.25071/2561-5467.1255

Keywords:

Korean War, Royal Canadian Navy, submarine warfare, military explosives, mine warfare, material history, Canadian War Museum

Abstract

Since 1960, the Canadian War Museum’s collection has included a Soviet torpedo whose history long remained obscure. Archival research has uncovered its 1951 transportation to Canada as part of a cargo of Soviet-made torpedoes and naval mines captured in North Korea, destined for analysis and training purposes. It has also revealed the intricacies and the implications of the technical analysis of the mines. This article examines the history of these weapons, and suggests some of the wider implications of their acquisition and analysis for the early Cold War Royal Canadian Navy, including potential areas for further research.

Author Biography

Jeff Noakes

Jeff Noakes has been the Second World War historian at the Canadian War Museum since mid-2006, and is also the curator responsible for the William James Roué Collection at the Canadian Museum of History. He has also been the historian on museum teams responsible for creating or adapting a number of temporary and online exhibitions. He is the author or joint author of books, book chapters, exhibition catalogues, and articles on subjects related to the First World War, the Second World War, the Cold War, and the Arctic.

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Soviet torpedo on display in the Canadian War Museum at 330 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, July 1998; Canadian War Museum, CWM2023-0015-0001-N

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Published

2025-01-24

How to Cite

Noakes, J. (2025). “No information was given concerning the origin of this torpedo”: A Soviet Weapon at the Canadian War Museum. The Northern Mariner Le Marin Du Nord, 34(2), 259–278. https://doi.org/10.25071/2561-5467.1255