Years 1939 to 1945 marked the beginning and end of World War II. Not only was Europe left broken and destroyed, this was also a time of change for North America. Specifically for Canada, World War II was not just battles and deaths, it was also a time period for growth. During World War II, Canada emerged as a stronger nation by events that illustrate growth. This can be seen through the following three examples: the changing role of women, the Hyde Park Declaration and the Battle of Ortona.
To begin with, Canada grew out of ignorance during World War II as the traditional roles of women changed when they slowly merged into the labour force. When the men left to serve in the military, the country did not stop functioning, but women stepped
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This declaration was signed in 1941 between Canada and the United States. Prior to WWII, “Canada had sixty percent of their imports come from the United States. However, only forty percent of Canadian exports went back to the United States.” (Coppa) When war broke out, Canada became financially unstable due to the unbalanced trade deficit with the United States. As Canada’s dependence on US supplies increased, Canada’s trade deficit could be resolved if the United States traded products equal in value as Canadian imports. President Roosevelt agreed with Prime Minister King’s proposal and the agreement known as the Hyde Park Declaration was signed off in 1941. This declaration had also allowed for American-produced components of war materiel to be manufactured in Canada. (Canadian Encyclopedia) This had greatly benefited the Allies, especially Britain and the USSR, and indirectly benefited Canada. As a result, Canada grew stronger economically as they balanced their trade deficit. Eventually, one billion dollars worth of goods were traded to the United States. In addition, this strengthened economic ties between Canada and the United States, which demonstrated Canadian autonomy as Canada became less dependent of Britain economically. Thus, Canada grows as a nation through the Hyde Park Declaration as they gained autonomy by becoming economically
Every woman has the right to moral, legal and political choice. As we look to the past, women fought for the right to be treated the same as men and fundamentally to have the same rights as men. Prior to the turn of the century, women had little to no rights. World War I and II gave way to change, allowing women to work and eventually allowing them to vote. The feminist movement has made drastic progress since the war. Today women are seen as equal and have the right not only to vote, but to be educated. In 1977 the Canadian Human Rights Act ensured that women could no longer be discriminated based on their sex, race, religion or sexuality. The act specified that there must be “equal pay for
When people look back and remember the First World War, they often remember the assassination of Franz-Ferdinand, the sinking of the Lusitania, or the Zimmerman telegram. Not often do they recall the role that Canada played in the war. However, Canadians were a significant factor of the Allies’ success. Although Canada only possessed two Navy warships at the time and was known for being a peaceful country, she supplied over 60,000,000 shells to the Allies’ troops and endured over 67,000 casualties and 173,000 men wounded across multiple battles. With that said, it could also be argued that internal political conflicts in Canada afflicted their overall contribution to the war. In fact,
Correspondingly, it caused Canada to become more active in the war, which in turn would affect the Canadian Identity through the country’s
It was in 1941 when the United States and Canada came to form the Hyde-Park agreement. It was declared that American produced war materials made for Britain but in Canada would become part of the Lend Lease act, this is how the two agreements tied together and the Lend Lease act was brought under the Hyde-Park agreement. Now due to this the United States would buy more of their product from Canada to sell back to Britain, but Britain could also buy their materials from Canada directly. Canada had shown great initiation and cooperation with the United States and as a result to these two agreements coming together Canada had shown proof of the war economy clearly forming into a more continental, widespread war economy. Not only did the improvement of the war economy and the agreement leading up to it have a positive impact on Canada but so did one of the most important training programs, Camp X. Camp X was a spy training camp for the allies in North America. This was the most top secret project and the school for it was located in somewhat of a dessert in Canada Ontario, near Oshawa. This
Although injustices were suffered at an individual level, Canada as a whole gained a great deal of respect from the majority of nations around the globe in recognition of the tremendous Canadian war effort, despite the fact that Canada was a mere dominion of the British. The war also aided in unifying the vast expanse of Canadian territory under the aegis of a single, united, and cooperative unit against a common enemy, for a common cause and through common experiences. In addition to national cohesion, economic progress and social developments can also be marked as a result of the war, but they came with a
During the period of the Second World War from 1939 to 1945, Canadian women were allowed a rapid introduction into spheres of labor previously dominated solely by
Canada has been tested time after time, whether through war or with its own people, but it is because of this struggle that Canada has become the country it is today. Through World War 1, Canadians learned that unity is strength. Bringing people together to work towards a shared goal and to set aside differences, has proved to be effective during the war. While there was still ongoing discrimination towards those of different colour and gender, some of it were put aside to aid the Allies. Men of different ethnicities were able to join the Canadian forces, only if they met certain requirement however, and helped the army grow in numbers. Especially in battle did they move as one. The victory of Vimy Ridge united Canadians together and gave them pride for their country as well as the people serving her.
While the government increased its control over “enemy aliens”, it also helped grow the economy through its increased control. The government needed to send munition and resources overseas to the allied soldiers and the Canadian soldiers as well. Therefore munition factories were established and other factories switched and became munition factories. With all the munition factories in business, it generated a lot of money within the economy (in 1914 Canada produced $28 165 worth of war supplies, then 3 years into war, Canada produced $388 213 550 worth of war supplies in 1 year). The significance is that before war was declared, there were little factories or plants that could produce the quantity of munition needed for war. So in accordance to the demand of war supplies during World War 1, Canada generated a lot of wealth in its economy by selling war supplies to Great Britain. The government also insisted many farmers to produce much more crops in order to feed the soldiers overseas. With the government’s insistence to increase production rate, Canada’s record of the largest wheat crop was made in 1915. The significance is that the war revealed some of Canada’s capability to produce crops. Canada’s economy grew due to the increased control of the government.
In October 1929, the stock market crashed in the United States. It may have just crashed in the States, but it affected most of the world, including Canada. The crash caused the 1930's to be a period of great depression for citizens and brought the economy into a state of panic. To boost the economy, Canada decided to cut back on military, Canada even reduced it to as low ws 5,000 full - time military personnel. They cut back on military, which then let them to focus more on family and jobs. Well clearly, this was not enough, because The bank of Canada was also established. It established a minimum floor price of wheat. Agriculuture now, had become the most regolated and subsidized in many developing countries to control the problem of the low prices, and income. The International wheat Agreement outlined quotas to control the prices. The Bank of Canada did this because they feared of another depression, so, this was then used to help prevent another one from happening. The Great Depression was such a defining moment for Canada, because Canada dealt with the issues, without looking for financial aid from abroad. Canadians also learned that, in order to keep the economy stable, the country has to take care of its own political, and economic standings. The events that have had the greatest impact on defining Canada are The
In the past, WWII and WWI, women were very dominant; they had to take care of their children, do all the chores and also had to cook the food. During WWII, women had to take place for the men (First world war.com). The war changed the life for all Canadian women. When men went to fight, women were called upon to fill their jobs, and this included many jobs that were previously thought of unsuitable for women. Women were called up for war work from March 1941(Women during World War II). The roles of the women were positively impacted by World War II, because they had the potential to re-enter the workforce, control the farms and join the military for the first time. Taking control of the military was tough, but women had shown that they could work together and handle the situation.
Canadian women started their path in the military during the first Great War where they played a small but impactful role. They continued to push boundaries and were able to achieve successes such as the creation of the Canadian’s Women’s Corps by World War II. Even with the constant criticism they faced, the female soldiers continued to fight for military equality. Canadian women achieved small successes over time which lead to needed evolution.
Back in the earlier days of Canada it was very easy to see which sex the country valued as dominant. It would not be until the 19th century that women in Canada begin to see even small changes in the way that they were valued in their country. Women gained the vote in certain provinces such as Manitoba, Alberta and Saskatchewan in the year 1916. However it would not be until the year 1922 that women would gain the right to vote in Prince Edward Island and not until 1940 that women in Québec gained the right to vote. Women gaining the right to vote in Canada were a very controversial topic for many years. Many feared that by giving women the right to vote, it would change politics, that one women were into parliament everything would change,
World War 2 had a great impact on every aspect of Canada Today. Money became stronger, our power was at its peak and we were an independent country
World War 2 was both tragic but also a growing period for Canadians. Germany and The Soviet Union were in a non-aggression pact and were trying to take over Europe. Along with their greed for power, Hitler the leader of Germany did not like the Jewish, and sent almost all of them to concentration camps where they were put to work. Those who were too weak to work were put in gas chambers and put to death. Hitler soon broke his pact with Stalin, the leader of the Soviet Union. Hitler was then faced with a two front war against the Soviet Union and the Canadian, British and later the United States. At home in Canada many things were happening within society. Women became more involved and became more independent and respected. The government
The first major event that impacted Canada’s legacy, as a whole, was the sacrificial battle of Vimy Ridge. Vimy Ridge was proven to be essential to the foundation of Canada as it signified the birth of a new nation and it was considered to be the greatest battle fought, in World War One. Firstly, the Battle of Vimy Ridge established Canada’s emergence as a newly born nation from under the shadow of Britain and gave a verification of Canada’s prominence on the international level. For instance, after successfully regaining the ridge, it displayed to the British superpower, that Canada are worthy of independence, that must be granted upon as a reward for a significant victory (Fonseca). As a result, the Battle of Vimy Ridge, marked the end of British soldiers commanding Canadian troops, as Canada showed tremendous resilience internationally, and also proved that we are independently, capable of leading a well-organized attack against other countries (Fonseca). This milestone was a huge accomplishment for Canadians, as eventually this was the catalyst for total autonomy of Britain (“History Now”). Secondly, the Battle of Vimy Ridge gave Canada justified independence on the international stage. As a result of winning the complicated battle, Canada was deservedly permitted to their own independent seat and signature at the peace talks after the war. This then allowed Canada, to participate in voicing their thoughts, and plans as a newly independent country. This was seen to be,