Saturday, March 10, 2012
Conscription and the Crisis
By definition, conscription is the compulsory enlistment of citizens for service in the military. In the later years of World War I, conscription was introduced in Canada and became a fiercely debated topic. This debate divided the nation, thus creating the Conscription Crisis of 1917.
Dropping Enlistment Numbers
In 1914 when the war had just started, Canadian volunteers were plentiful and 30,000 Canadians enlisted in that year alone. At the start of the war, Canadian Prime Minister Robert Borden said that Canada would not need to enforce conscription. Soon, this all changed and enlistment numbers began to decrease. From July 1916 to October 1917, only 2810 Canadians volunteered for the infantry.
There are many possible causes for this drop in numbers. At the time, Canada only had a population of 7.5 million people and a sixth of Canadian men between the ages of 15 and 44 had already joined the infantry. Thousands more were in other military branches like artillery, forestry and railway units, engineers, medical corps, and Royal Flying Corps. A large portion of the people who were capable of fighting had already joined.
War had also turned out to be less glamorous than many had originally thought. People back home in Canada could feel this as food and supplies were limited and the war had dragged on for longer than originally thought. Most had expected a short war with troops returning by Christmas of 1914. New technology also brought new and more brutal ways of fighting that, for the most part, had not been foreseen.
There are many possible causes for this drop in numbers. At the time, Canada only had a population of 7.5 million people and a sixth of Canadian men between the ages of 15 and 44 had already joined the infantry. Thousands more were in other military branches like artillery, forestry and railway units, engineers, medical corps, and Royal Flying Corps. A large portion of the people who were capable of fighting had already joined.
War had also turned out to be less glamorous than many had originally thought. People back home in Canada could feel this as food and supplies were limited and the war had dragged on for longer than originally thought. Most had expected a short war with troops returning by Christmas of 1914. New technology also brought new and more brutal ways of fighting that, for the most part, had not been foreseen.
Borden's Decision
In 1916, Prime Minister Robert Borden visited London for the Imperial War Conference where he spent time in military hospitals and spoke with wounded soldiers. He was moved by what he saw and became determined that Canada would send over more soldiers to allow the wounded ones to return home, as they might have had to return to the trenches if no replacements could be found.
Borden pointed out that Australia had more soldiers fighting in the war than Canada in spite of Australia’s smaller population. In his 1916 New Year’s message, he pledged 500,000 Canadian soldiers. It is possible that he was acting on emotional instinct without properly thinking it through because 500,000 was not an entirely realistic number for a country with a population of 7.5 million people and a sixth of men capable of fighting already in the infantry.
Another possible motivation could have been because Borden himself had a personal connection to the war and the Canadian military. His cousin was a commanding officer of a battalion in France and he is pictured inspecting the battalion when he visited Europe to see the situation for himself. Because of his personal connection through his cousin, the war would have hit closer to home for him and probably would have given him an extra motivation to help and give support to the soldiers fighting in the frontlines.
Borden pointed out that Australia had more soldiers fighting in the war than Canada in spite of Australia’s smaller population. In his 1916 New Year’s message, he pledged 500,000 Canadian soldiers. It is possible that he was acting on emotional instinct without properly thinking it through because 500,000 was not an entirely realistic number for a country with a population of 7.5 million people and a sixth of men capable of fighting already in the infantry.
Another possible motivation could have been because Borden himself had a personal connection to the war and the Canadian military. His cousin was a commanding officer of a battalion in France and he is pictured inspecting the battalion when he visited Europe to see the situation for himself. Because of his personal connection through his cousin, the war would have hit closer to home for him and probably would have given him an extra motivation to help and give support to the soldiers fighting in the frontlines.
Military Service Act
The Military Service Bill was introduced to the House of Commons in June 1917 and passed August 28th, 1917. It was enforced after Borden was reelected in the federal election that took place on December 17th, 1917. It made military service compulsory to all men between the ages of 20 to 45 until the end of the war.
This one act would greatly influence Canada in the years to come.
This one act would greatly influence Canada in the years to come.
Dividing a Nation
Conscription had both support and opposition among Canadians. The pro-conscription side of the debate flung accusations of cowardice and disloyalty, while the anti-conscription side flung accusations of being oppressive and controlling. Many people believed that it was the duty of Canadians to fight the war and support the soldiers at the frontlines.
However, there were many opposing views. Non-British immigrants would not have felt the same loyalty to the war cause, and this is shown by the fact that 70% of English Canadian volunteers were recent immigrants from Britain. The idea of conscription was unpopular among farmers since they needed to run their farms and could not afford to have themselves or their workers taken away for the war. Just two weeks before the election, the government responded to this by granting exemptions from conscription to the sons of farmers.
It also put strains on Anglo-French relations in Canada since voluntary enlistment was low in Quebec. Out of the 400,000 Canadians who volunteered for service, fewer than 1 in 20 were French and many English-speaking Canadians expected more participation, causing a rift between French Canadians and the rest of Canada.
Quebec's Point of View
French-speakers in Canada were especially opposed to the Military Service Act. Quebec's enlistment numbers had always lagged behind the others many English-speakers in Canada pointed towards Quebec for more soldiers.
There are many possible reasons for Quebec’s lack of participation in the war. The province had a huge agricultural industry so farmers were needed to work at home. Couples tended to marry younger on average in Quebec than in other parts of Canada and married men. Married men would have most likely been less inclined to leave home for the war and they would have had a family to take care of. Another reason was that French speaking Canadians did not feel the same sentiments of loyalty to France or Britain that English-speaking Canadians felt for Britain.
It must also be pointed out that Sam Hughes, the minister of militia at the time, did not give Quebec their own fighting unit while most other provinces had their own. French speakers were separated among the different English-speaking units and no consideration was given for their language differences. Instructions and commands were all given in English.
There were clear social and cultural differences in Quebec form the rest of Canada, like marrying younger and stronger feelings of independence from Europe. This would have made Quebec less inclined to fight the war, but it would have also made it more difficult for English-speaking Canadians to see the reasons that French-speaking Canadians had. Because of this unresolved difference in points of view, a rift was formed between Quebec and the rest of Canada.
There are many possible reasons for Quebec’s lack of participation in the war. The province had a huge agricultural industry so farmers were needed to work at home. Couples tended to marry younger on average in Quebec than in other parts of Canada and married men. Married men would have most likely been less inclined to leave home for the war and they would have had a family to take care of. Another reason was that French speaking Canadians did not feel the same sentiments of loyalty to France or Britain that English-speaking Canadians felt for Britain.
It must also be pointed out that Sam Hughes, the minister of militia at the time, did not give Quebec their own fighting unit while most other provinces had their own. French speakers were separated among the different English-speaking units and no consideration was given for their language differences. Instructions and commands were all given in English.
There were clear social and cultural differences in Quebec form the rest of Canada, like marrying younger and stronger feelings of independence from Europe. This would have made Quebec less inclined to fight the war, but it would have also made it more difficult for English-speaking Canadians to see the reasons that French-speaking Canadians had. Because of this unresolved difference in points of view, a rift was formed between Quebec and the rest of Canada.
Political Opposition
Conscription also faced opposition on a political level. Borden originally approached Sir Wilfrid Laurier, leader of the Liberal party which was the opposition, with plans for a Union government. This would be a coalition of Conservatives and Liberals in order to present a united Canada in the face of war. Laurier did not support Borden’s ideas of conscription and turned down the offer. The Union government still went on as many English-speaking Liberals abandoned Laurier for Borden.
Many spoke out against the Military Service Act, including Henri Bourassa who was a leading French-Canadian nationalist. He had originally supported the war but referred to conscription as a “blood tax” because it forced citizens to repay their nation with their lives.
Laurier said, “If this military service bill is passed, we will face a cleavage which may red and tear this Canada of ours down to the roots.” His statement proved to be quite accurate as the debate over conscription had Canada divided. It worsened Anglo-French relations in particular. Being himself a French Canadian, Laurier probably understood the position of many people in Quebec better than many other politicians and was looking out for French Canadian interests.
During the 1917 election, Borden and his Union government won with a clear majority but lost 62 out of 65 seats in Quebec. These election numbers show the clear divide between French and English Canadians on the subject of conscription and how it tore apart the two demographic groups.
Many spoke out against the Military Service Act, including Henri Bourassa who was a leading French-Canadian nationalist. He had originally supported the war but referred to conscription as a “blood tax” because it forced citizens to repay their nation with their lives.
Laurier said, “If this military service bill is passed, we will face a cleavage which may red and tear this Canada of ours down to the roots.” His statement proved to be quite accurate as the debate over conscription had Canada divided. It worsened Anglo-French relations in particular. Being himself a French Canadian, Laurier probably understood the position of many people in Quebec better than many other politicians and was looking out for French Canadian interests.
During the 1917 election, Borden and his Union government won with a clear majority but lost 62 out of 65 seats in Quebec. These election numbers show the clear divide between French and English Canadians on the subject of conscription and how it tore apart the two demographic groups.
Borden's Strategy
Borden knew that he needed as much support as he could get so he passed the Military Voters Act and Wartime Elections Act, giving voting rights to all soldiers, Canadians nurses serving with the armed forces, and immediate family (including wives, sisters, and mothers) of Canadian soldiers. Voting rights were also taken away from those who opposed the war due to religious beliefs (pacifist religious groups include Doukhobors, Mennonites, and Hutterites), as well as immigrants who came from enemy countries after the year 1902 and those who spoke German or any other language from the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This included people who spoke Ukrainian as Ukraine was a part of the Austro-Hungarian empire at the time.
This strategy would have been highly effective since women were previously not allowed to vote and women with personal connections and feelings about the war would probably be more inclined towards supporting the men at the frontlines and sending more men to fight with them. If a man’s family wanted him to return home, this would have also been effective because he would not be able to return home unless replacements were found. Nurses would have seen the same things Borden had seen and been moved by.
It also discounted the opinions of groups most likely to be against conscription. Pacifists did not support fighting in the war, let alone forcing individuals to fight. People with links to enemy countries would not have had as strong feelings against those countries either.
As part of the Military Voters Act, all soldiers in the military could vote, which would have made strategic sense because much of the upcoming 1917 election would have been about whether or not people condoned Borden’s decision on conscription. Soldiers were more likely to support it as they themselves had volunteered in the first place, whereas people like pacifists would have opposed it.
Overseas voters could simply vote for a party rather than the party’s candidate from their riding. The government would then distribute that vote to whichever riding they saw fit. This gave the Unionists a clear advantage as they could just place votes in ridings with close contest so that they can gain just enough votes in those ridings for a victory. Control over vote distribution directly contributed to the victory of the Union party in 14 ridings, provoking accusations of unfair politics and corruption.
Conscription would have been a vital issue during the election as nearly half of Canadians opposed it and it dealt with the issue of whether or not Canadian men could be conscripted. In the end, Borden won the election and the Military Service Act was enforced.
This strategy would have been highly effective since women were previously not allowed to vote and women with personal connections and feelings about the war would probably be more inclined towards supporting the men at the frontlines and sending more men to fight with them. If a man’s family wanted him to return home, this would have also been effective because he would not be able to return home unless replacements were found. Nurses would have seen the same things Borden had seen and been moved by.
It also discounted the opinions of groups most likely to be against conscription. Pacifists did not support fighting in the war, let alone forcing individuals to fight. People with links to enemy countries would not have had as strong feelings against those countries either.
As part of the Military Voters Act, all soldiers in the military could vote, which would have made strategic sense because much of the upcoming 1917 election would have been about whether or not people condoned Borden’s decision on conscription. Soldiers were more likely to support it as they themselves had volunteered in the first place, whereas people like pacifists would have opposed it.
Overseas voters could simply vote for a party rather than the party’s candidate from their riding. The government would then distribute that vote to whichever riding they saw fit. This gave the Unionists a clear advantage as they could just place votes in ridings with close contest so that they can gain just enough votes in those ridings for a victory. Control over vote distribution directly contributed to the victory of the Union party in 14 ridings, provoking accusations of unfair politics and corruption.
Conscription would have been a vital issue during the election as nearly half of Canadians opposed it and it dealt with the issue of whether or not Canadian men could be conscripted. In the end, Borden won the election and the Military Service Act was enforced.
Changing Canada
Because of Borden’s need for support in the light of conscription, many women won the right to vote and Borden pledged to extend this right to all women if he was reelected. He ended up doing as he promised, and by 1919, all Canadian women over the age of 21 were allowed to vote. Women getting the vote in federal elections led to them getting the vote in elections of provincial and municipal levels. By 1925, women could vote in all provinces except for Quebec, which did not let women vote until 1940.
Giving women a voice in elections allowed them to participate for actively in society. It also made it so that politicians would have to consider the interest and wants of women. This paved way for a fairer society as women take up around 50% of the population. With more men being forced by conscription to leave the workforce and fight, this also allowed for many women to step in and take on greater roles in the workforce, contributing to the gradual advancement of women in society.
The divide had also worsened Anglo-French relations in Canada. The Conservative Party lost their support in Quebec and became quite unpopular there. There are still negative feelings towards the Conservative Party in Quebec today and results in the province still tend to lag behind. This shows that the divide between English and French Canadians has had a lasting effect on Canada’s political landscape.
Giving women a voice in elections allowed them to participate for actively in society. It also made it so that politicians would have to consider the interest and wants of women. This paved way for a fairer society as women take up around 50% of the population. With more men being forced by conscription to leave the workforce and fight, this also allowed for many women to step in and take on greater roles in the workforce, contributing to the gradual advancement of women in society.
The divide had also worsened Anglo-French relations in Canada. The Conservative Party lost their support in Quebec and became quite unpopular there. There are still negative feelings towards the Conservative Party in Quebec today and results in the province still tend to lag behind. This shows that the divide between English and French Canadians has had a lasting effect on Canada’s political landscape.
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