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Ypres Battle
The first major battle fought by Canadian troops in the First World War took place from 22 April to 25 May 1915, outside the Belgian city of Ypres. The untested Canadians distinguished themselves as a determined fighting force, resisting the horror of the first large-scale poison gas attack in modern history, and holding a strategically critical section of the frontline until reinforcements could be brought in. More than 6,500 Canadians were killed, wounded or captured in the battle. -
Probihition
A dramatic aspect of the prohibition era was rum running. The United States was under even stricter prohibition than was Canada from 1920 to 1933. Liquor could be legally produced in Canada (but not sold there) and legally exported out of Canadian ports. This created the odd situation of allowing smugglers to depart Canada with shiploads of alcohol destined for the United States, under the protection of Canadian law. -
Ross Rifle (Withdrawn)
The Ross Rifle, a Canadian made infantry weapon, was produced as an alternative to the British made Lee Enfield Riffle. The Ross earned a bad reputation among Canadian soldiers as an unreliable weapon. -
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Vimy Ridge (Battle)
The battle of Vimy Ridge, during the First World War, is Canada’s most celebrated military victory. The four divisions of the Canadian Corps fighting together for the first time, attacked the ridge from April 9th – 12th, 1917 and succeeded in capturing it from the German army. More than 10,500 Canadians were killed and wounded in the assault. -
Halifax Explosion
Halifax was devastated on December 6th 1917 when two ships, the Imo and the Mont-Blanc collided in the city’s harbour, one of them a munitions ship loaded with explosives bound for the battlefields of the First World War. The result was the largest human-made explosion prior to the detonation of the first atomic bombs in 1945. -
Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles is the name given to the document stipulating the peace terms imposed on Germany by the Allied victors of the First World War. Canada had separate representation at the conference where the treaty was negotiated, marking an important stage in the gradual movement toward Canadian independence from Great Britain. -
League of Nations (Founded)
Canada was founding member of the League of Nations an organization of countries established in 1919 at the end of the First World War. It was replaced by the United Nations at the end of the Second World War. -
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Mussolini (Duce of Facism)
Benito Mussolini was a head of the Italian government from 1922 to 1943. He was the founder of fascism, and as a dictator he held absolute power and severely mistreated his citizens and his country. He let Italy into three straight wars, the last of which led to his overthrow by his own people. -
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Famous Five (Persons Case)
The Famous Five were petitioners in the ground breaking Persons Case, a case brought before the Supreme Court of Canada in 1927 and later decided by the Judicial Council of the Britain’s Privy Council (1927), Canada’s highest court at the time -
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Great Depression
The Great Depression of the early 1930’s was a social and economic shock that left millions of Canadians unemployed, hungry and often homeless. -
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Jewish Persecution
During the 1930’s Jews were targets of social discrimination, through informal residential restrictions, quotas in the university professional schools, and the exclusion from the elite social clubs, beaches and resorts in Montreal, Toronto and Winnipeg. Anti-Semitism also influenced immigration policy. Canada closed its doors to Jewish immigrants at the time when they desperately needed refuge from the Nazi persecution in Europe. -
On-to Ottawa Trek
In early April 1935, 1500 residents of the federal unemployment relief camps in BC went on strike and moved by train and truck to Vancouver. On June 3rd, over 1000 strikers began the “On to Ottawa Trek,” determined to inform the nation of their cause and to lay complaints before Parliament and Prime Minister R.B. Bennett -
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Blitz Krieg
A German term for”lightning war.” A military tactic in the second world war used by the Germans designed to create disorganization and among enemy forces. -
Camp X
Known officially as STS (Special Training School) 103, Camp X was one of several dozen around the world that served the needs of the Special Operations Executive (SOE), the British agency in 1940 to set Europe ablaze by promoting sabotage behind enemy lines. Soviet defector Igor Gouzenko was hidden there after his defection in September 1945. -
Zyklon Gas
Zyklon B was the trade name of a cyanide-based pesticide invented in Germany in the early 1920. It was used in gas chambers during the Holocaust. -
Dieppe Raid
During the Dieppe Raid the Canadian forces launched a major raid on the French coast. The raid was a disaster 900 soldiers were killed, and thousands were wounded and taken prisoner -
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Cold War
The official purpose of this Berlin Wall was to keep Western Fascists from entering East Germany as the Cold War was on the rise between the United States, Canada and the Soviet Union. The Berlin wall stood until November 9th 1989 when the Cold War came to a thaw. -
Suburbs (Suburban Growth)
Canada’s population grew rapidly owing to a flood of immigrants and a domestic “baby boom” after the war. Comprehensively planned suburbs were developed by the private sector, modestly appointed high rise apartments were built in the core and along transit lines, suburban industrial parks were established. -
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Korean War
The Korean War began June 25th 1950, when North Korean armed forces invaded South Korea. 26,791 Canadian military personnel served in the Korean War, during the combat phase as peacekeepers afterward. -
Avro Arrow (First Flight)
The Avro Arrow was a delta-winged interceptor aircraft designed and built by Avro Canada. This was a great achievement in technology and aerodynamics. -
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Quiet Revolution
The Quiet Revolution was time of rapid change experienced in Quebec during the 1960’s. Under Jean Lesage the Quebec Liberal Party had developed a coherent and wide-ranging reform platform. The middle class battled for a greater control over Quebec’s economic resources, bitter and divisive attempts were made to redefine the role of francophone society in Canada. -
Universal Health Care
Canada’s national health-insurance program is designed to ensure that every resident of Canada receives medical care and hospital treatment, the cost of which is paid through general taxes or through compulsory health-insurance premiums. It developed in 2 stages Hospital Insurance and Diagnostic Act of 1957 and the Medical Care Act 1966. Tommy Douglas (Above) helped establish the Universal Healthcare system and he is recognized as the father of socialized medicine -
Expo '67
Expo 67 was a international and universal exposition that took place in Montreal from April 27th to October 29th, 1967. Expo 67 was a “first category” World Fair, the first to be held in North America that covered the full range of activities of contemporary man. -
Indian Act (Bill C-31)
In 1985, responding to the growing concern over the lack of equality in the Indian Act, the government passed Bill C-31. Those who had lost status through marriage were reinstated as Status Indians and as band members. Their children gained status, but would not gain band membership for two years. -
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Winter Olympics Calgary
The 1988 Calgary Olympics were popular among the athletes and spectators, though there were poor conditions at some of the venues. Canada failed to win gold on its home turf, although the Canadian finished with a record 19 top eight finished. This also brought forth a sense of Canadian pride. -
Nunavut
The territory was established by the Nunavut act of June 1933 and became a constitutional entity on April 1st 1999. The agreement subdivides Nunavut into three designations one of which Crown lands over which Inuit have the right to hunt, trap, fish and participate in management.
