Canadians on the Home Front The high demand for food, uniforms, munitions, equipment, and other products was good for Canadian businesses Significant economic growth led to wage and job increases By 1917, the Imperial Munitions Board in Canada was the biggest business in Canada (150,000 workers) Canada manufactured airplanes/engines, guns, cargo ships, chemicals, other weapons War manufacturing in Canada included 1500 factories and employed over 300,000 people

Canadian Women in WWI With 620,000 Canadian men fighting, women were encouraged to take on skilled work at munitions factories Also ran businesses, worked on farms, Women’s volunteer groups like the Red Cross and Good Government Group rallied to support troops Women’s contributions were key to Canada’s successes in the war and growth as a nation When the war ended, women were expected to go back home, but many refused Women used their wartime contributions to argue for greater equality in post-war Canadian society, like the right to vote

War Expenses Though the war effort benefited the Canadian economy, the costs quickly rose Government introduced a business tax in 1916, and in 1917 introduced an income tax Originally temporary, but never removed Also borrowed from American banks, going into debt for over $1 billion

Conscription Crisis 1917, enlistment fell short of its targets This meant Canadian soldiers killed in battle were not being replaced Despite his 1914 pledge not to conscript troops, in May 1917, PM Robert Borden announced his plans to pass the Military Service Act Included conscription

Conscription Crisis: French Canadian Opposition The announcement divided Parliament along French- English lines Though French Canadians weren’t against Canada’s involvement in the war, they opposed conscription Most French Canadians felt no allegiance to England or France, and didn’t believe the war had anything to do with their safety or Canada’s security French Canadian troops were also treated poorly overseas Both sides scorned the other for lack of understanding

Conscription Crisis: Other Opposition Organized Labour also opposed conscription Farmers worried they would lose their farms if their sons and young hired hands were forced to serve overseas Some Canadians objected to the war on religious or moral grounds Conscientious Objectors who refused military involvement were persecuted and jailed… …even though the Canadian government had previously promised some groups - like the Mennonites and Hutterites - exemption from military service

Propaganda In WWI, most countries (including Canada) used propaganda to further their war aims. The best way to do this at the time was through newspapers, since radio and TV did not exist yet. Posters were mass-produced and appeared everywhere in Canada. GOALS OF PROPAGANDA? 1. Encourage enlistment (get men to sign up for war) 2. Encourage people at home to buy Victory Bonds 3. Encourage people at home to increase production or conserve foods 4. Make the enemy look really bad (vilify them)

Borden’s Strategy The Military Service Act became law on Aug 29, 1917 PM Borden asked Wilfred Laurier (leader of the Official Opposition) to join him in a “union government” Would make way for the act and eliminate “two-party” politics Very few Liberals were interested In December, Borden called an election Conscription was the main issue

The 1917 Election Borden’s government passed the Wartime Elections Act to help win the election Gave the vote likely to support conscription, such as women with relatives fighting overseas The same act took votes away from immigrants from “enemy” countries Mennonites didn’t get the vote back for decades Borden won with a sizeable majority

Armistice By the end of October Germany admitted defeat and began looking for advantageous peace terms. By November, they had no choice but to accept the Allies’ harsh surrender conditions. On 11 November the Armistice document was signed in a railway carriage at Compiègne, and the guns fell silent at 11am.

The Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles was drafted and signed at the Paris Peace Conference in June 1919. The Terms of the treaty were harsh, and applied mainly to Germany, required to accept blame for the war. Germany was forced to: Limit the size of its army Give up all colonies in Africa and the Pacific Pay reparations to the Allied countries These harsh treaty conditions raised concern that a humiliated and resentful Germany would seek reprisal

The map of Europe and the Middle East is arbitrarily redrawn The map of Europe and the Middle East is arbitrarily redrawn. Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empires are broken up creating many ‘new’ countries - Yugoslavia - Finland - Austria - Latvia - Hungary - Estonia - Palestine - Lithuania - Syria - Lebanon - Saudi Arabia - Iraq

Canada after the War Canada had made a major contribution to the war, and the Expeditionary Force had earned a distinguished record Fuelled by pride and nationalism, PM Borden demanded (and was given) a seat for Canada at the Paris Peace Conference Even though Canada hardly played a role in negotiations, and Britain signed the treaty on behalf of the entire British Empire, Borden signed the treaty separately for Canada

Statute of Westminster December 11, 1931, Britain passed the Statute of Westminster Canada and the other Commonwealth dominions were no longer subordinate to Britain’s constitution Canada could make its own foreign policy decisions without seeking British approval. The Statute of Westminster was a significant landmark in the history of Canada. It signalled Canada's growing maturity as a nation.

What could have happened if Canadians had not contributed to the war effort in the ways they did? How might the outcome have been different? In what ways might Canada be different today?