1. Impact of War

2.  Stalemate in France and Belgium continued into 1918  Neither side seemed capable of winning the major battle that would bring victory  After 4 years of fighting, both sides were tired and worn down  The entry of the United States into WWI gave the allies the boost they needed for victory Canada’s Hundred Days

3.  Up until 1917, the United States had stayed out of the war  They practiced a policy of “isolationism”  In 1917, Germany announced they would be returning to “unrestricted submarine warfare” against neutral shipping  Within months, Germany had sunk 7 U.S. Ships  The United States responded by declaring war on Germany America Enters the War

4.  Germany knew that a large number of U.S. Troops would be arriving in France  Germany tried one last major offensive before the American troops arrived  Thousands of German soldiers poured into France  They were stopped only 80 km from Paris The German Response

5.  Canadian forces participated in one final sweep against the German attack  This Allied effort that finally broke the back of the German military was called the “Hundred Days”  On August 8, Canadian troops spearheaded the Allied attack  American troops with tanks had also arrived  Tanks were now better armed and more reliable than earlier models  Aircraft blasted German trenches with bombs  The Germans fell back steadily  The Allied advance moved a staggering 130 km  This was a big difference from the earlier gains of only a few kilometres at a time  Eventually the Allies won back France and then Belgium The End of World War I

6.  By November, the Allies had reached the frontiers of Germany.  On November 11 1918, Germany formally surrendered  Hostilities ceased at 11:00 on that morning  Five minutes before 11:00, a sniper killed George Price, the last Canadian to die in World War I The End of the War

7. World War I Military Deaths (Entente Powers) U.S. in blue (2%) Others in white (1%)

8. World War I Military Deaths (Central Powers) Bulgaria in Green (3%)

9.  Canadian Cemetery No. 2 on grounds of Canadian National Vimy Memorial Park in France A total of 60 661 Canadians had lost their lives. Another 173 000 were wounded or gassed.

10.  For the injured, the suffering of war never ended. They were victims who had lost limbs, whose lungs had been destroyed by gas attacks, or who had experienced severe emotoinal trauma (Shell Shock).  One veteran described the scars of war: I was gassed for a few seconds at Valenciennes in 1918 and became very ill. After a week in the hospital I was able to return to the front. When the war was over, I got a job in an office but by the summer of 1925 I fainted at work several times. My doctor said it was because of the poison in my system caused by my “bad” bottom teeth and that I would have to have them pulled. This did not help me at all. In 1930 I was finally sent to a doctor in Toronto who asked me if I had been in the Great War. He questioned me further and discovered that I had been gassed in ‘18. He recommended a partial disability pension, but by 1935 the fainting spells became so frequent that I was put on full pension and have not worked since. I never could marry and have been living alone for over 40 years.

11.  Deepening resentment between French and English Canadians over conscription.  The gulf between Quebec and the rest of the country steadily widened.  The hurt, pain, and distrust lingered after the war.  People labelled as “enemy aliens” also suffered serious effects after the war  These people had had their civil rights taken away  Many had lost their jobs or had their homes and businesses vandalized. They had to build new lives for themselves  The Canadian government has never apologized or offered compensation to people interned during WWI A Country Divided...

12.  Women had gained the right to vote during the war  World War I produced a great boom in Canadian industries  Steel munitions production and manufacturing had grown fantastically  During the war, almost everyone who could work had a job On the positive side...

13. Hall of Mirrors, Palace of Versailles in Versailles, France

14.  On February 19, 1919, Sir Wilfrid Laurier died of a stroke  Sir Robert Borden, exhausted from leadership during wartime, resigned as leader of the Conservative Party in 1920.  Three new leaders in Canada were about to emerge – William Lyon Mackenzie King, Arthur Meighen, and J.S. Woodsworth New Leaders on the Political Scene Wildrid Laurier 1896-1911 Robert Borden 1911-1920 William Lyon Mackenzie King Liberals Arthur Meighen Conservative J.S. Wooodsworth Cooperative Commonwealth Federation

15.  Canada emerged from the war a more independent country  Canada’s war effort earned the country international respect  Canada won a separate seat for Canada at the peace conference following the war  Previously, Britain would have signed the peace treaty on behalf of all the British Empire  Canada signed the treaty as a separate nation Toward Independence

16. Europe Before and After WWI