Canada Becomes Involved!!!
At the outbreak of World War I Canada was a member of the British Empire and was legally at war as soon as Britain was. The Canadian government was not consulted about the war. The Canadian Parliament did not vote no going to war.
However, the Canadian Parliament did have the power to decide what to do in the war. It could send soldiers, or decide to send only food and clothing. It could also decide to do nothing about the war. This was not very likely, because the majority of Canadians at the time felt loyal to Britain and wanted to help out. A large group of Canadians did speak out against the war, saying that "the war seemed to have nothing to do with Canada's interests."
The following are excerpts from speeches made by important Canadians during the outbreak of hostilities in 1914.
ROBERT BORDEN, Prime Minister
We are part of the British Empire, so of course we are at war. That is the law. We will now decide on the form of aid that we should sent to Britain. I believe that we should send soldiers to fight in France beside the British army. Canadians will be proud to fight for their king and country.
WILFRID LAURIER, Leader of the Opposition
We are at war. That is the law. It is now our job to decide what to do about this sad fact. My hope is that the war will soon be over and our aid will not be needed. We should offer money and food to France and Britain.
HENRI BOURASSA, Nationalist and Publisher of The Devoir, an important Montreal newspaper
Some people have claimed that it is Canada's duty to fight in this war. That is false. Britain got into this war by itself, without even asking Canada for an opinion. Therefore, Canadians do not have any responsibility to fight in it.
If in fact, Canadians are in danger, it is because we are connected to Britain. If the British government got us into this position of danger, then it should defend us! We should not have to fight in the European War
May I Question Your Ability?
1. Place the points of view of Canadian involvement in World War I of Henri Bourassa, Wilfrid Laurier, and Prime Minster Borden on the following scale:
2. Where would you place your own viewpoint on the scale? Why?
3. Which groups of people in Canada do you think would most likely be in favour of a war? Which one do you think would be opposed?
4. Which countries involved in the war were important to Canada? Explain your choices.
5. Canada is presently finding itself sending troops to other parts of the world (Afghanastan) to help quell unrest and "keep the peace." Do you think that Canada should be doing this? Does this viewpoint differ from that on Canadian involvement in World War I ? Why/Why Not?