How World War I

Shaped Canada

Hasan Tahir #100217025

 World War I was a terrifying ordeal that robbed approximately 25 million humans of

their lives. It began on August 3, 1914. On this date Germany invaded Belgium, and when

Britain moved to defend Belgium World War I had officially begun. Canada, a member of the

British Empire, was now legally at war with Germany under the banner of the British Empire.

The Canadian government was not consulted or given a choice about going to war, they were

simply told that they had to. Many English Canadians were strong supporters of the British at

this time and proudly went to war by choice so to them it wasn’t that big of an issue that they

were thrust into a war unwillingly; because that wasn’t the case for them. The Francophone

Canadians however were not interested in fighting for a British affair that had nothing to do with

Canadian interests. Historically Canada had only been a primary contender in one war: The War

of 1812. Therefore, Canada’s involvement in World War I is seen as the war that helped Canada

establish itself as a middle power among nations.

Canada at the time roughly had a population of 8 million people. Of those 8 million

people approximately 600,000 Canadians participated in World War I. Of those 600,000 that

participated it is estimated that approximately 67,000 were killed while hundreds of thousands

others suffered injuries [ CITATION Mor89 \l 4105 ]. However not all of those 600,000 or so

individuals went to war of their own free will. English Canadians steadfastly believed that

French Canada was not providing their fair share to the war effort. Colonel Sam Hughes, who

was also the Canadian Minister of Militia, informed the House of Commons in June of 1917 that

of the 432,000 Canadian volunteers at that time fewer than 5% of them came from French

Canada despite the fact that Francophones made up about 28% of the Canadian population at that

time[ CITATION Bum07 \l 4105 ].

 This underlying tension between French and English Canada exploded during World War

I and was brought to the forefront on the home front. Prior to the war, French Canadians did not

see themselves obliged to serve the British Empire and vehemently opposed any involvement in

a war they did not believe in. After the Battle of the Somme, Canada was in desperate need to

replenish its supply of soldiers. However, there were very few volunteers to replace them and

multiple recruiting efforts in Quebec ended in dismal failure. Therefore, Prime Minister Robert

Borden turned to the only option he had left: conscription. A very large majority, if not all,

French Canadians opposed conscription. They felt that they had no particular loyalty to either

Britain or France. Led by Henri Bourassa, they felt their only loyalty was to not Canada but

rather Quebec [ CITATION Bum07 \l 4105 ]. Despite the fact that both Henri Bourassa and Sir

Wilfrid Laurier objected to conscription and proclaimed that it would pit Canadians against each

other, Robert Borden announced that he would be introducing the Military Service Act in May of

1917. Three months later on August 29, 1917, the Military Service Act was passed, allowing

Borden to conscript men across the country if he felt that it was necessary.

On March 28, 1918 a violent opposition occurred in Quebec, eventually dubbed the

Easter riots, where anti-war attitudes drawn from French-Canadian nationalism sparked a

weekend of rioting that quickly escalated to the point that Borden invoked the War Measures Act

of 1914. This gave the federal government the power to directly oversee the maintenance of law

and order in Quebec City. By the following morning, 780 federal soldiers had been deployed into

the city, with an additional 1000 en route from Ontario and a collective 3000 from western

provinces. Despite the imminent arrival of police forces, extended violence continued into the

night of March 30, leading in to a very precarious Sunday [ CITATION Aug04 \l 4105 ]. It only got

worse on Easter Monday, when crowds once again organized against the military presence in the
city. Armed rioters began to fire on troops from concealed positions, and the soldiers were

ordered to fire upon the crowds, immediately causing them to disperse. Though the casualty

numbers vary in a number of reports, official reports from that day name five men killed by

gunfire and dozens more who were injured. Among the soldiers were 32 recorded injuries that

day, with no deaths. Monday, April 1, 1918 marked the end of the Easter Riots, which totaled

about $300,000 in damages and many casualties [ CITATION Aug04 \l 4105 ]. The Easter Riots

represent one of the darkest moments and most violent disturbances in Canadian history. They

stemmed from pre-existing currents in French-Canadian nationalism, which became intensified

during war time and ultimately erupted over conscription. Oddly enough, the event itself is rarely

studied as anything other than a mere footnote to the larger political debate around conscription

at the time, despite the fact that the country pretty much broke out into a civil war over that

period. Ultimately, Of the 120,000 or so conscription volunteers that were raised during the war,

only about 47,000 actually went overseas. Despite this, the rift between French and English-

speaking Canadians was unforgettable and would last for many years to come [ CITATION Mor89 \l

4105 ].

However, there is an upside to Canada's involuntary service in World War I, which is that

this was when Canada became a legitimate independent nation, in a sense. It seems nations

always have to be born in blood, and in Canada's case, this was proved in WWI. Especially in the

Battle of the Somme where, although the Canadians lost approximately 24,000 men, it gave the

Canadian units the reputation of a formidable assault force. As Prime Minister Lloyd George

wrote, "The Canadians played a part of such distinction that thenceforward they were marked out

as shock troops; for the remainder of the war they were brought along to head the assault in one

great battle after another. Whenever the Germans found the Canadian Corps coming into the line
they prepared for the worst." [ CITATION Vet04 \l 4105 ] This was also the case in the Battle of

Passchendaele where the Canadians lost approximately 16,000 soldiers but managed to be

victorious regardless of the heavy losses after 16 days of fighting [ CITATION Tho101 \l 4105 ].

Specifically though, it was at the Battle of Vimy Ridge where Canada really proved itself. It was

Canada's job to capture the ridge, which was extremely important from a strategic point of view,

and the British forces and their allies had been unable to capture it previously; and seemingly

against all odds, the Canadians managed to capture it. The war would end at the eleventh hour of

the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918. Then, in 1919 at the Treaty of Versailles, Robert

Borden insisted that Canada get its own seat at the table, independent from Britain solidifying

that Canada was its own nation [ CITATION Mor89 \l 4105 ].

Ultimately, Canada's many sacrifices and contributions to the war changed its entire

history and enabled it to become a more independent nation that was recognized as a world

leader. However, one cannot forget that it opened a deep chasm between the French and English

speaking populations that continues to exist to this day. There were benefits from the war in

terms of the fact that it solidified Canada’s place in the world as an independent nation but this

came at very high human and cultural costs overall that some argue are still felt today. It is like

the old adage that, one must give up something in order to gain something, and to some Canada

gave up too much in order to develop an identity but the majority of people believe that identity

was much needed and that although the costs were very high they were necessary for Canada to

become a progressive nation moving forward.

Works Cited
Auger, Martin F. "On the Brink of Civil War: The Canadian Government and the Suppression of the 1918
Quebec Easter Riots." Canadian Historical Review, 2004: 84-89.

Bumsted, J.M. The Peoples of Canada: “A Post-Confederation History” 3rd ed. Oxford University Press,
2007.

Morton, Desmond, and J.L. Granatstein. Marching to Armageddon: Canadians and the Great War 1914-
1919. 1989.

Thorner, Thomas, and Thor Fron-Nielson. A Country Nourished on Self-Doubt: Documents in Post-
Confederation History 3rd Edition. North York: University of Toronto Press, 2010.

Veterans Affair Canada. The Somme. July 29, 2004. http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers/sub.cfm?

source=history/firstwar/canada/Canada8 (accessed October 22, 2010).