The War at Home

Canadian Economy
1. When Canada entered the war, the country was in economic recession, but the economy had recovered by 1916
2. During the war, the prodiction and export of Canadian goods reached an all-time high
  1. Most of what Canada was producing was going to Europe, so goods became hard to get ahold of in Canada
    1. The lack of goods made prices rise in Canada
      1. The rise in prices made citizens very angry, because wages stayed the same
  2. Imperial Munitions board was created, they were in charge of contracts for production of war materials.
The Changing role of Women
1. Before the war started, women only worked low skill, low paying jobs like cashier
2. When canada's increased production created a great demand for labour, women were hired for all types of work
  1. Women worked on fishing boats,ran farms, and were in every imaginable line of work
    1. Women also contributed to the war, Thousands were employed to make ammunition, and drive the delivery trucks
3. The change in roles of women helped push the campaign for women's sufferage
  1. On September 20, 1917 the wartime elections act passed, giving women the right to vote.
Conscription Crisis
1. Prime Minister Borden promised there would not be conscription
  1. Borden saw the slaughter at Vimy Ridge
    1. He decided the war needed to be won at all costs, so he introduced the Military Service Act, this bill made enlistment mandatory
2. Conscription turned out to be one of Canada's most controversial events
  1. Quebec was so against conscription, that they rioted between March 28, and April 1st
3. Canada's volunteer rates were uneven, the lowest rate was Quebec
Halifax Disaster
1. In December of 1917, the French "Mont Blanc" ship crashed into another ship by accident
  1. The ship was carrying over 2500t of dynamite
    1. The crash caused the dynamite to explode, the explosion was so large that it destroyed Halifax's harbour, and a lot of the city.
      1. Shelters were built after the disaster to house the people left homeless due to the accident
2. Over 2000 people died and another 9000 were injured
Paying for War
1. The Canadian government could not pay for it's contribution to the war
2. The government encouraged the public to buy "Victory bonds"
3. The government introduced a 3% income tax
  1. these initiatives were not enough to keep Canada out of debt, they were forced to borrow money from the U.S.
4. New Technologies made war very expensive
  1. Large amount of troops meant more had to be spent on rations

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The War at Home

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	Created by julianchatoor over 8 years ago