EMERGENCE OF THE AMERICAS: CANADA AND WWI
Historical Context
- Though Canada experienced a period of economic prosperity from 1900-12, 1913 was faced by economic depression.
Reason for involvement
1. The Naval Service Bill of 1910 (passed under PM Wilfred Laurier) created the Canadian Navy. Under the act, if Britain went to war the Canadian Navy would fall under the control of the British Navy.
a. While the act was popular in Britain, most Canadians opposed spending Canadian money to increase the size of the British Navy. French Canadians in particular denounced the plan.
2. When war broke out, Canada entered WWI as a part of the British Empire.
a. Britain still determined Canada’s relations with foreign nations since Canada was not yet fully independent.
3. Following outbreak of war, Wilfred Laurier (leader of the Opposition) showed support to Britain by proclaiming: “Ready, aye ready… There is in Canada but one mind and one heart… When Britain is at war, Canada is at war also.”
a. Support for Canada’s involvement in the war was widespread.
b. Germany's invasion of neutral Belgium in 1914 forged a unity of Canadian sentiment and a demand for participation in the conflict.
4. Even Henry Bourassa, the French-Canadian nationalist, agreed that it was Canada’s duty “to contribute within the bounds of her strength…to the combined efforts of France and England.”
a. Canada seemed united against a common enemy.
5. Two days after the declaration of war (on Aug. 6), Borden offered Britain a Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) of 25 000, even before one was requested.
a. This was a major commitment, since the total population of Canada was approximately 7 million.
b. Though Canada could not declare war on its own, it could decide on the nature and extent of its involvement—and PM Borden and his cabinet supported Britain wholeheartedly.
6. The Canadian Government called for 20,000 volunteers as Canada's contribution to the British army. In less than a month 40,000 men had volunteered and the Minister of Militia stopped further enrolment of recruits.
a. The war united and inspired Canadians at first.
b. There was no shortage of recruits—many felt a sense of strong patriotism, others were swept by feelings of excitement and adventure.
Nature of participation
7. For 1916, Borden pledged 500,000 soldiers from a Canadian population of barely 8 million.
a. Canada’s willingness and effort went beyond obligation.
b. Borden was compelled to such a commitment because during a visit to England earlier that summer, he was shocked with the magnitude of the struggle.
8. Only one French unit was formed, the Royal 22nd Battalion (nicknamed the ‘Vandoos’).
a. French-Canadians had little inclination to enlist. They did not feel strong ties to France, did not want to fight for the British Empire, and felt disheartened by the treatment of the French in the military.
9. Ultimately, 60 000 out of 600 000 Canadians died, and many more were wounded.
a. Canada had made a sizable contribution to the Allied cause in Europe.
b. Though Canada could not declare war on its own, it could decide on the nature and extent of its involvement.
10. Canadians proved themselves in the air—four of the seven top aces in the Royal Air Force (RAF) were Canadian. Also, the Canadian Roy Brown shot down the infamous Red Baron (Germany ace who shot down over 80 planes).
a. When news of Canada’s successes reached home, Canadians felt pride and exaltation that their men had proved a match for the Germans, the most scientifically trained troops in Europe.
11. Vimy Ridge, April 9-12 1917
a. Previous attempts to capture the Ridge by French and British resulted in approximately 150 000 casualties.
i. Canadians proved victorious where the other Allies had fallen short.
b. Canadian troops fought under Canadian leadership for the first time.
i. Currie understood that Canadian troops would be more motivated while fighting under a Canadian flag, rather than a British or French one.
c. The Vimy Glide was repeatedly rehearsed by the Canadian troops for 5 months in advanced.
i. Practise was key in ensuring the later success of the Creeping Barrage. The Canadians were very well-prepared.
12. "The Canadians played a part of such distinction... that henceforth they marked out as storm troopers." –British PM David Lloyd George commenting on Vimy Ridge in his memoirs, War Memoirs of David Lloyd George (1933).
a. The Canadians had captured more ground, more prisoners and more guns than any previous "British "offensive in the war thus far. It was the greatest Allied victory yet.
Impact on Canada
Economic
13. Context: initially at the outbreak of war, Canada was in poor economic condition—the economy was facing recession and British investments were lost to the war effort at home.
14. By 1918, 300 000 Canadians were employed in arms factories; one-third of all shells fired by the British were made in Canada.
a. WWI had produced a great boom in Canadian industries due to wartime manufacturing and production. Sectors such as steel and minerals especially prospered.
b. As a result, unemployment nearly disappeared by 1916.
15. 1915 had a perfect growing season for prairie wheat, and western farmers harvested the biggest cash crop in their history.
a. But intensive wheat farming began to ruin the fertile prairie soils during this time period. The government responded by increasing organization of the agricultural sector under the Canadian Wheat Board in 1918—as a result, the agricultural sector expanded as a result of WWI.
b. Intensive farming created the disastrous conditions of the 1930s "dust bowl".
16. Nationalization of railroads – take from Hamna’s note ***
17. The government introduced business profits tax and income tax in an effort to raise finances for the war. Also, many Canadians bought Victory Bonds to help with the effort.
a. Much of Canada's war effort was also supported by volunteers on the home front, as most of the money was raised in Canada itself.
18. Once the war ended in November 1918, so did the heightened demand for goods and services.
a. Industry had to revert to peacetime. Although auto plants prospered, most other factories such as chemical and steel were shutting down, triggering unemployment.
b. A post-war recession followed, which Canada was not able to recover from until the mid-1920s.
19. The gross national debt soared from $463 million dollars in 1914 to almost $2.5 billion dollars in 1918.
a. Analysis?
Social
20. The War Measures Act disenfranchised Canadians of non-Allied/enemy origin, and labelled them ‘enemy aliens’.
a. The strong sense of nationalism during wartime seemed to justify heightened intolerance towards ‘non-British’ immigrants. Some of the basic democratic rights and freedoms of many Canadians were suspended.
i. Over 8 500 ‘enemy aliens’ were placed in labour camps during WWI.
b. In patriotic fervor, Canadians demanded that Germans and Austrians be dismissed from their jobs and interned: for example, citizens pressured Berlin, Ontario, to rename itself Kitchener.
21. In the federal election of 1917, the Wartime Elections Act granted the vote to nurses, or mothers, sisters and wives of soldiers in the Armed Forces.
a. Women were making a significant contribution to the war effort on the home front. War brought women together in volunteer organizations and employment, and placed them in a position to push the suffrage movement.
b. Ultimately the Dominion Elections Act was established in 1920, and women even had the right to run in parliament.
22. Canadian Social Gospel?
23. More radicalized working class?
Political
24. By 1917, the number of volunteers decreased.
a. The 1914 recruits had been mostly by recent British immigrants; and enlistments in 1915 had taken most of the Canadian-born who were willing to go. The war continued on much longer than predicted.
25. Henri Bourassa led the movement against conscription in Quebec, and Laurier was also against conscription.
a. Quebecois were strongly against conscription.
b. Less Quebecers enlisted because:
i. The majority of Quebec was farm families, and farmers were less inclined to leave their farms to join the war effort. They were seen as essential to produce food for the war effort.
ii. French Canadians did not share the enthusiasm of the English and felt little tie to their country of origin, France.
26. Quebec had provided only 20 per cent of the volunteers in proportion to its population.
a. Many English-Canadians saw support of the war as a moral duty, and as a result they thought Quebec was not doing its part in the war.
27. Ultimately the Military Service Act was passed in the summer of 1917.
28. Borden passed the Military Voters Act and the Wartime Elections Act prior to the upcoming elections in December, 1917.
a. Both measures were meant to strengthen Borden’s position on conscription:
i. The Military Voters Act allowed soldiers to vote from overseas.
ii. The Wartime Elections Act gave the vote to female relatives of soldiers, and could be expected to vote for conscription.
29. Ultimately Borden and his ‘Union government’, consisting of both Conservatives and Liberals who supported conscription, won the elections.
a. Since conscription was such a vital issue, these elections were known as the ‘Khaki elections’.
i. Riots broke out in Montreal and Quebec against conscription following Borden’s victory.
b. The conscription crisis split had a disastrous effect on French-English relations within Canada, which lasted long after the war.
c. Consequently, the military benefits of conscription were slight, while the political consequences were great. National unity was sacrificed for the conscription of merely 45 000 men.
Diplomatic
30. Canada had made a sizable contribution to the Allied cause in Europe.
a. Though Canada could not declare war on its own, it could decide on the nature and extent of its involvement.
b. Ultimately, 600 000 Canadians fought in Europe (out of a total population of 7 million) and 60 000 died.
i. 600 000 Americans fought in WWI out of a total population of 92 million.
31. At the Paris Peace Conference, Canada was given two seats of its own with the right to sign the Peace Treaty.
a. Borden demanded that Canada be represented as an independent nation at the meetings, arguing that she deserved a voice because of her major contribution to the Allied victory.
b. Canada gained a new degree of national sovereignty—the right to control its own affairs without interference.
32. Canada joined the League of Nations as an independent nation.
a. Canada had entered WWI as a colony of Britain with no voice over her own foreign affairs. By the end, she gained a new sense of nationhood and international recognition.
Historiography
"The Canadians played a part of such distinction... that henceforth they marked out as storm troopers." –British PM David Lloyd George commenting on Vimy Ridge in his memoirs, War Memoirs of David Lloyd George (1933).
Analyse the impact on canada of participation in the First World War.
Economic: expansion of manufacturing and agricultural sectors, nationalization of railroads, restrictions on labour unions; war financed by bonds and first Canadian income tax, Canada debt-free at end of war and post-war unemployment.
Social: more radicalized working class, development of western populism, Canadian Social Gospel, women’s suffrage, 1917.
Political: conscription crisis and 1917 Khaki Election.
Diplomatic: ties with Britain weakened, Canada recognized as separate and equal member of the empire, an independent role at Paris Peace Conference and with the right to sign the peace treaty; full membership in League of Nations. Had made a sizeable contribution to the Allied cause in Europe.
Allow for a chronological or thematic approach, and for varying attention to short and long-term effects. Do not expect candidates to discuss all of the above possible areas of impact.
How did Canadaís participation in the First World War affect its economic and social development?
The answer can be clearly divided into economic and social sections, and should explain someof the following: economic expansion (increase in agricultural exports, demands for minerals,railroads, ships, etc.); nationalism, its demands and expressions, effects of the conscriptioncrisis, labour strikes, role of women, general prosperity etc.
“The political and economic impact of the First World War on Canada was more positive thannegative.” How far do you agree with this judgment?
Political impact. War weakened ties with Britain, brought international recognition(including at Versailles and the League of Nations) and increased self-awareness as a nation.On the other hand, it divided Canada as never before; conscription crisis and “Khaki” election1917 caused acrimony between English and French Canadians that lasted decades.
Economic impact. Increased agricultural exports; industrial growth with demand forminerals, railroads and ships. War proved very costly, but victory bonds and income taxraised billions and Canada emerged from war without debt.
Do not expect all the above, or equal treatment of the two aspects. But if only political oreconomic impact is addressed, the maximum is [12 marks].
Why did either canada or the United States enter the First World War? NOV 2007
Canada was obligated to enter the First World War because she was a British colony. Historians have commented, however, that Canada’s willingness and effort went beyond obligation and Canada lost more men in the First World War than the United States.
Assess the importance of the “conscription crisis” in Canada’s national development. NOV03
Candidates must explain the meaning of the term “conscription crisis” and place it in the context of the at first successful effort at raising a volunteer force as well as the other irritants to French-English relations at the same time and the deepening crisis in Europe. Candidates should indicate the roles of Borden and Laurier and the election of 1917, showing the depth of the ethnic division which still existed. The crisis was significant and national unity may have suffered a setback but stronger forces continued to draw Canadians together.
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