Organizing the War Effort: Recruiting, Training, and Raising Money

1. Organizing The War Effort Write down everything that is underlined in the space provided

2. Recruiting and Training an Army • When Canada went to war in 1914 the Government needed to do three things: • Raise money to pay for the war • Recruit and train an army • Needed to make sure Canadians supported the war

3. Recruiting and Training an Army • Once people signed up for the army, they needed training • The Government quickly made training camps and in three months trained 30 000 soldiers ready to be sent to Europe and FIGHT!

4. Military Schedules: Then and Now

5. Training at Valcartier, Quebec

6. Training at Valcartier, Quebec

7. Training at Valcartier, Quebec

8. Training at Valcartier, Quebec

9. Training at Valcartier, Quebec

10. Training at Valcartier, Quebec

11. Training at Valcartier, Quebec

12. Training at Valcartier, Quebec

13. Raising Money for the War • Fighting a war is expensive and money is needed to train, transport, feed and pay troops and to buy weapons and equipment • Finding the money was hard as Canadians did not pay income tax when the war began • The Government had to find ways to raise money

14. Raising Money for the War • Finally, in 1917 the Government created a tax for people’s personal and business income • Income tax was supposed to be a temporary move that would only help pay for the war – but it was too good to let go • Income tax became permanent

15. Building Support for the War Effort • The Government needed to find ways to keep people enthusiastic about the war effort • TV didn’t exist yet and few people had radios • The main forms of communication were newspapers, posters and billboards • The Government used posters and billboards for propaganda – a way of spreading ideas and convincing people to believe a certain thing

16. Propaganda = Advertisements 2 1 5 4 3

17. What’s the message of this ad?

18. What’s the message of this ad?

19. What message is this image supposed to send?

20. Wartime Propaganda • Just like ads today, propaganda posters during the war tried to get people to make choices • The two major goals of war posters were: • Convince young men to enlist (volunteer to fight) • Convince the public to support the war effort

21. Wartime Propaganda • Military propaganda is still around us – commercials try to present a particular angle of life in the military • Commercials have come a LONG way over the last 20 years!

22. Wartime Propaganda • The Government paid artists and writers to create the propaganda • Posters and billboards were everywhere and people couldn’t walk down the street without seeing one of them

23. Propaganda Posters: What’s the obvious message? What’s the subtle message?

24. Who do they want to ‘sign-up’? Why Them?

25. What ideas do you think of when you see this image? • What ideas do they want you to think of? • Would it be effective on you? Why or Why Not?

26. What ideas do you think of when you see this image? What ideas do they want you to think of? Would it be effective on you? Why or Why Not?

27. Going to War • When Britain declared war on Germany in 1914, Canada had no choice but to go to war too • Government did have a choice about how much it would help the Allies, including how many troops it would send • At first, Canadians were so enthusiastic about the war that volunteers were turned away from recruiting offices

28. Canadian Recruiting Office

29. Going to War • With so many volunteers, Prime Minister Robert Borden promised NO CONSCRIPTION • His government would not force people to enlist in the army

30. Borden’s Paradise Plan? • In 1917, PM Borden suggested that Canada annex the tropical islands of the Turks and Caicos in the Caribbean • The plan didn’t happen when Britain said NO

31. Volunteers DECREASE! • As the war dragged on, more and more Canadians were injured or killed in battle • As a result, fewer and fewer people enlisted • Other factors helped reduce enlistment: • War factories created high-paying jobs, so workers didn’t want to enlist • Farmers worried about what would happen to their farms while they were away • Many French-speaking Canadians felt little connection to Britain or France

32. Introducing Conscription • When voluntary enlistments slowed down, Borden went back on his promise • He decided that conscription was the only way to raise enough troops for continued fighting • In 1917, the Government passed the Military Service Act – forcing men to enlist in the army

33. Conscription • People with family members already overseas supported conscription • Many were outraged by the idea of being forced to fight • Violent protests and even riots broke out, especially in Quebec • When an election was called later in 1917, Conscription was the main issue

34. Conscription • January 1918, more than 40 000 men got a letter ordering them to report for military duty • 94% asked to be excused for service and nearly all the requests were granted • Others disobeyed the order and some went into hiding to avoid arrest • While conscription was a big deal in Canada it ended up making little difference in the war effort • Only 24 000 of those who fought were conscripts