6. canada on the homefront in wwi
TRANSCRIPT
canada during world war one
life on the homefront
the war measures act
passed by the gov’t in 1914
allowed federal gov’t. to suspend civil rights, and pass laws without going through parliament.
enemy aliens
Because of the War Measures Act the gov’t. was able to :
stop new immigrants from “enemy” countries from coming to Canada.
Immigrants from these countries that were all ready in Canada were fired from their jobs and taken to internment camps.
24 camps across Canada with very poor, harsh conditions.
- other measures included banning the playing of Beethoven and changing the name of Berlin, Ontario to Kitchener.
Internees queue for food in the Fort Henry camp near Kingston Ontario.
Internees hauling in stove wood at the Spirit Lake, Quebec
internment camp.
Ukrainian immigrants in internment camps
PROPAGANDA
the use of posters to send a message or encourage an opinion.
Used during war to encourage support of the War at all levels including...
played heavily on the emotions of the people.
the
Enlistment
Propaganda to encourage raising money to support the war effort
Propaganda to encourage Food Rationing
Propaganda to encourage working and volunteering
Women on the home front
Took up positions in factories to replace men who had gone off to war.
Over the course of the war Canada sent millions of dollars worth of shells and explosives to Europe.30,000 Canadian women worked in the munitions industry.
Women and children also
took over work on the farm
- young boys became known as “soldiers of
the soil”
Imperial Munitions board (IMB)
Set up by Prime Minister Borden to ensure munitions production.
Required the take over and re-tooling of private factories for wartime production.
The wartime elections act of 1917
gave Canadian nurses overseas, and the wives, sisters, and mothers of Canadian soldiers the right to vote.
Borden promised that, if elected, after the war he extend the vote to all women.
The conscription crisis of 1917
Anti-conscription parade in Montreal in 1917
By 1917 Prime Minister Robert Borden saw a real need to conscript Canadian men into the military.
Conscription = compulsory military service.
At the same time Wilfrid Laurier, leader of the opposition, was against it.
Generally - English Canadians were in favour of supporting Britain in the war effort.
French Canadians, however, did not feel strong ties to Britain or France.
Therefore the conscription issue resulted in a rift between French and English Canadians that lasted beyond the war.
In fact of the 400,000 men who were eventually conscripted more than half were approved for exemptions.Only 24,000 conscripts actually saw action in the War.
(See “The Case of Pierre Talon”.)
The canadian patriotic fund
Created to raise money to help families of soldiers survive on a privates pay of $1.10/day.
Paying for the war (temporary measures?)
Victory Bonds - created by the gov.’t to generate revenue to support the war effort.
today -- “Canada Savings Bonds”
Income taxes
- introduced in 1917 - only necessary until the debt created by
war was paid off.
The halifax explosion
December 6, 1917
in 1917 Halifax was a booming as a port of exit for soldiers and supplies.
as the gateway to Canada, Halifax is one of the world’s largest natural harbours.
the constant threat of submarine attacks meant netting needed to be used each night to protect ships in the harbour.
On December 5, the French Ship, The Mont Blanc arrived too late to pass through the nets.
as a result it was not guided into the harbour until the next morning.
meanwhile, the Norwegian ship, The Imo, was in a rush the next morning to get out of the harbour.both ships are rushing through Halifax Harbour at “rush hour” and ultimately collided.the collision resulted in fire, and, 20 minutes later, fire resulted in explosion.
roar of the explosion was heard 320km away.
part of the Mont Blanc’s anchor was found more than 3km away.
a huge tidal wave formed and fell onto the city of Halifax and was followed immediately by fire.
about 200o people killed instantly and 9000 seriously injured.
blindness was by far the most common injury.
Barbara Orr lost her entire family.
This was the greatest man-made explosion to have ever occurred - until the Atomic Bomb was dropped in 1945.
Before and after
Acadia Sugar Refinery
The Richmond School
other images
Rescue, recovery, and clean-up
the following day rescue efforts were hampered by the worst storm Halifax had faced in the past 25 years.
military tents were set up for those left homeless.
while clean-up and the search for family members continued.
help and relief came from areas outside - most notably Boston.
Boston sent train loads of doctors, nurses, and supplies to Halifax and the Boston Symphony raised $5million (in today’s dollars) for the city.
Still today the city of Halifax sends a giant Christmas tree to Boston each December as a thank you for their assistance in 1917.