Canadian History: WWI, WWII, Women's Rights, and Remembrance Day

The First World War

• Canadians' pride in British Empire

  • Over 7,000 volunteered for South African War (1899–1902)
  • National pride strengthened by victories at Paardeberg and Lillefontein

• Formation of Canadian Expeditionary Force in 1914

  • More than 600,000 volunteers served out of a population of 8 million
  • Canadians showcased as tough, innovative soldiers in key battles

• Key achievements on the Western Front

  • Capture of Vimy Ridge (April 1917)
  • 10,000 Canadians killed or wounded
  • Seen as major national achievement, referred to as "shock troops of the British Empire"
  • Vimy Day celebrated on April 9 in remembrance of the victory

• Internment of Austro-Hungarian subjects (1914-1920)

  • Over 8,000 people, mainly Ukrainians, interned as "enemy aliens"
  • Despite Britain advising against this action

• Final phases of the war (1918)

  • Under General Sir Arthur Currie, Canadian Corps advanced with Allies in last hundred days
  • Notable battles included Battle of Amiens (August 8, 1918)
  • Marked as the "black day of the German Army"
  • Followed by victories at Arras, Canal du Nord, Cambrai, and Mons

• War concluded with Armistice on November 11, 1918

  • 60,000 Canadians killed, 170,000 wounded
  • Enhanced national and imperial pride, especially in English Canada

Women Get the Vote

• Voting rights initially limited to property-owning white males at Confederation

• Women’s suffrage movement

  • Founded in Canada by Dr. Emily Stowe, the first female doctor
  • Manitoba became first province to grant voting rights to women in 1916
  • Federal voting rights granted in 1917, initially to nurses and women related to servicemen
  • By 1918, most women aged 21 and over could vote federally
  • Agnes Macphail became first woman MP in 1921
  • Quebec granted women the vote in 1940 through efforts of figures like Thérèse Casgrain

• Contribution of women during the war

  • Over 3,000 nurses (nicknamed "Bluebirds") served in Royal Canadian Army Medical Corps, many overseas

Remembrance Day

• Observed on November 11 each year to honor sacrifices of veterans
  • Can be linked to the poem "In Flanders Fields" by Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae (written in 1915)
  • Recited on Remembrance Day ceremonies
  • Canadians wear red poppies, observe moments of silence at 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month
  • Honoring over 1 million who served, and 110,000 lost their lives

The Interwar Years

• Transformation of the British Empire into the British Commonwealth of Nations

  • Canada remains a key member

• Economic conditions

  • "Roaring Twenties" characterized by prosperity; plummeting post-1929 stock market leading to the Great Depression
  • Unemployment peaked at 27% in 1933
  • Calls for social safety nets and minimum wage laws; creation of Bank of Canada in 1934
  • Declining immigration rates, particularly affecting Jewish refugees from Nazi Germany in 1939

The Second World War

• Commencement of war in 1939 due to Nazi invasion of Poland

  • Canada supported democratic allies; over 1 million Canadians served, resulting in 44,000 casualties

• Significant military contributions

  • Defense of Hong Kong (1941) and Dieppe Raid (1942)
  • Royal Canadian Air Force played a vital role in the Battle of Britain, contributing a substantial number of air crews under Commonwealth Air Training Plan.
  • Royal Canadian Navy excelled in Battle of the Atlantic protecting merchant convoys

• The Pacific war

  • Involvement included attack on the Aleutian Islands, Vancouver Island
  • Japanese forces also maltreated Canadian POWs
  • Japan's surrender marked the end of the war in the Pacific on August 14, 1945

• Wartime injustices against Japanese Canadians

  • Forcible relocation and property confiscation despite no significant threat
  • Government apology and compensation in 1988 for these wartime wrongs