Download Grade 10 History Unit 3 Lesson 2

Grade 10 Applied History - Canada and World War II
Canada Declares War

Canada is an independent nation. Britain cannot declare Canada at war, but many
Members of Parliament (MP) remain loyal to Britain.

On 31 August 1939, Hitler staged a Polish attack on a minor German radio station to
justify a German invasion of Poland

On 1 September 1939, Germany invades Poland

On 1 September 1939, the Governor-General of Canada introduces the War Measures
Act. The Act gives the Government sweeping powers to arrest suspected enemies and
control the economy. The industrial war machine begins.

On 3 September 1939, Britain and France declare war on Germany

On 10 September 1939 after a special session of Parliament, Canada declares war.

Support for war was weakest in Quebec. The French-Canadians had limited ties to
Europe.

The “Phoney War” lasts for 7 months…
 On the border between France and Germany, small forces on both sides
observed each other with no shots fired, while Germany was occupying
Poland

Canada had disarmed after WWI. The army, navy and air force were very small, and
soldiers were given WWI vintage rifles. Canada’s Armed Forces grew overnight. Many
men volunteered to escape the depression. There was a renewed sense of national
pride in being Canadian.

A pilot training program was started in September 1939. Called the British
Commonwealth Air Training Program (BCATP), pilots from all parts of the
Commonwealth received training.

The first Canadian troops sailed the Europe on 10 December 1939.

The real fighting began when the Axis forces began Blitzkrieg warfare…
 Translation: “lightening war” or “flash war”
 Means to attack with speed and surprise
 Developed after WWI as a method to help prevent trench warfare
 Used by the Nazis to conquer Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Belgium,
and France in 1940 leaving only Britain and the Commonwealth

Hitler kept trying to gain more and more ground, but…
 Miracle @ Dunkirk – 350,000 English & French troops were saved by
volunteer fisherman and boaters
 Battle of Britain – The Allies fought hard against the German air force (a.k.a.
Luftwaffe) and pushed them out of the skies and away from Britain

In July 1941, the Canadian Women’s Army Corps (CWAC) was established.


During the Great Depression, the Government of Canada became more involved in the
lives of Canadians (e.g., National Health Care). At the outset of war, the Government of
Canada took more power (e.g., control of food production).
The Government of Canada enacted the Natural Resources Mobilization Act giving it the
authority to mobilize all the country’s resources to defeat the enemy. Canada adopted a
policy of Total War. The federal government controlled as aspects of Canadian life.
Government actions included:
 establishing 28 Crown corporations to supply war needs
 ordering industries to make war goods
 managing taxes (formerly a provincial responsibility)
 regulating prices and wages to avoid inflation
QUESTIONS
1. What makes these events important to Canadian identity Explain
2. Contrast WWI and WWII. What are the similarities and differences in the two periods