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Canada at War: The Conscription Crisis. The Conscription Crisis. “All able-bodied men” - By 1917 the war had been dragging on for much longer than had been anticipated. The number of Canadians willing to voluntarily enlist was shrinking rapidly
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The Conscription Crisis “All able-bodied men”- By 1917 the war had been dragging on for much longer than had been anticipated. The number of Canadians willing to voluntarily enlist was shrinking rapidly - PM Borden visited the front lines that spring and was horrified by what he saw. When he returned he asked parliament to pass a conscription bill. - This caused outrage across the country, particularly in Quebec
The Conscription Crisis - Up to this point, Quebec had provided the fewest volunteers by far to the war cause - Resentment existed all over the country, as many other Canadians felt that Quebecers were not pulling their weight - Quebec was a mostly rural province, with the majority of men being farmers. This was considered an essential service in Canada, as they supported the cause through food production - Although both Britain and France were fighting in the war, Quebecers did not feel a sense of ‘familial’ obligation, as Anglophone Canada did
The Conscription Crisis -Opposition in Quebec was led by Henri Bourassa. Laurier was outspoken in opposition in Ottawa (he was leader of the official opposition at that time) - The law passed, but in the ensuing general election Borden’s Conservatives were almost completely shut out of Quebec - Riots in Quebec City and Montreal ensued
The Conscription Crisis - The first conscripts were sent overseas in 1918 - By the time that the war was over in November of that year, only 45 000 conscripts were sent - The end result of this action was a deeply divided Canada, which still exists in many ways to this day
