Embattled Nation explores Canada’s tumultuous wartime election of 1917 and the people and issues that made it a pivotal moment in Canadian history.
Embattled Nation explores the drama of Canada’s tumultuous election of 1917. In the context of the bloody battles of Vimy Ridge, Hill 70, Passchendaele, and of the Halifax explosion, Sir Robert Borden’s Conservative government introduced conscription and called for a wartime election. Most Liberals, led by Sir Wilfrid Laurier, opposed compulsory military service, while in Quebec a new movement emerged to contest the Canadian government’s attitude and policy. To survive and win the election, Prime Minister Borden resorted to unprecedented measures that tested the fabric of Canadian democracy.
Table of Content
Preface
Acknowledgements
1 The Conundrum: Robert Borden, War, and the Call for an Election
2 The Response of French Canada: Henri Bourassa, Schools, and Nationalities
3 The Issue: Conscription
4 The Liberals in Opposition: Wilfrid Laurier’s Leadership Tested
5 Creating Divisions, Choosing Sides: The Great Gerrymander
6 Framing the Campaign
7 The Campaign: French Canada
8 The Campaign: English Canada
9 The Results
10 The Aftermath: Union without Unity
11 Conclusion
Appendix 1: Results of the 1917 Election
Appendix 2: Winners of the 1917 Election
Appendix 3: Electoral Maps
Abbreviations
Notes
Bibliography
Image Credits
Index
About the author
David Mac Kenzie is professor of history at Ryerson University and the author of several books on Canadian history and international relations. He lives in Toronto.
More ebooks from the same author(s) / Editor
192,506 Ebooks in this category
