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Canada enters the war (-2)
After hearing that the British declared war on Austria-Hungary, as a british colony, Canada too, declared war and sent soldiers to help the war effort. Many people were excited about the war and found that it was a way to prove their loyalty to Britain. Canadians were patriotic and all soldiers being sent overseas were volunteers; being drafted into the army at the time meant great pride. -
Women in the war (+2)
Women weren’t allowed to enlist into the war as soldiers, sailors or pilots so, most of them turned to nursing. Although they weren’t in the trenches and on the frontlines of the war, they were always close and subject to dangerous conditions. These ‘hospitals’ were often under supplied but nurses were still able to save many lives. -
First Nations soldiers at war (+1)
First Nations soldiers proved themselves to be very useful during the war. They were widely known to be excellent snipers. Although there was a language barrier between the First Nations and english speaking soldiers, they were still accepted and embraced by the Canadian military. They also had high enlistment rates within the army. -
Women on the home front (0)
Even with all the efforts made by women at war they were making progress with equal rights but, there was still room to improve. Women in quebec and of colour would not be able to vote until 1940. Meanwhile, women also began to move from domestic jobs to those in the factories which had a higher pay. More of those jobs were open because the men were away at war. -
The Canadian economy during the war (-1)
Throughout the world war, Canada started to run low on money to finance the war. So they started to implement more taxes on the economy. This included taxes on alcohol, tobacco, transit and business taxes. Businesses earning more than $50,00 a year would have to pay an income tax. This was created due to public outcry that the wealthy weren’t doing enough to contribute to the funding. -
Canadian Conscription (-2)
After hearing about how many deaths there were at war, Canadians no longer wanted to serve in the military. But, with so many people dying, there wasn’t enough people in the army. So, Prime Minister Borden created the military service act, which stated that men 20-45 had a mandatory enlistment in the military. -
Returning soldiers from the war (-2)
Of everyone that suffered during this time period, the war veterans suffered the most, Many of them bore physical and psychological scars from the war. To go along with this, there was a spanish flu outbreak that killed 55,000 people. The veterans were promised a decent place to live once they got back to Canada but, once there, they found that there was little to no pension plans for veterans. They struggled to find jobs due to their disabilities. And, many of them struggled economically. -
The Canadian economy after the war (-2)
After the war, Canada had a very slow economy. With high rates of unemployment from the sudden influx of returning soldiers, and the high cost of living paired with low wages, it was a mess. Women were strongly encouraged to give up their factory jobs and return to the more domestic jobs so that the unemployed soldiers could have the factory job. -
New technology (+2)
As the ‘roaring’ twenties came, so did many technological advancements. Radio began to be used as entertainment, the film industry in Hollywood as bustling and there were so many new innovations that it was hard for consumers to keep up. Time on the farm was now more much more efficient due to the invention of the tractor and other tools. Canada also found success in the paper and pulp industry and was a key played in that industry -
Stock market crash (-2)
All good things must come to an end, and with the great prosperity that the roaring twenties brought, it came crashing down in 1929. The New York stock market crash brought the economic success that Canada was having and took it to a full stop. The market crash also started the worldwide great depression which greatly affected Canada’s economy. Because the US was so heavily affected and they were also Canada’s closest trading partner, the depression took a toll on Canada too.
