Master Seaman Francis Legare made Canadian Navy history this week when the HMCS Winnipeg docked in Victoria and he greeted his partner Corey Vautour.

The couple embraced and kissed in what was the “first kiss” between a male sailor returning from sea and his male partner.

It’s a time-honoured Navy tradition that there’s a raffle to decide which sailor is allowed off a ship first to kiss a loved one after an extended time at sea, acting sub-lieutenant Kyle Reed said.

This time, Legare won the draw and the right to kiss Vautour after spending almost nine months away from home.

“It’s the first same sex kiss for males, but it’s not the first same sex kiss ever.

“It’s a very positive thing,” said Reed, who added that the encounter showcases a “more inclusive, more tolerant” Navy.

There was a same sex kiss in the spring of 2015 between a female member of the Navy and her female partner at CFB Esquimalt, Reed said.

On Thursday, a crowd cheered as Legare kissed Vautour, who was carrying a “Welcome Home Sailor” sign.

The money from the raffle goes to charity.

The HMCS Winnipeg, which has a crew of 250, toured the Caribbean and eastern Pacific in an operation that included a multinational campaign against drug-trafficking in the Caribbean and Pacific.

It wasn’t the first time the frigate made the news on the voyage, as three of its crew members were detained in Tokyo for alleged use of a controlled substance.