Post-War+Problems

More Troubles After the Great War
 The Great War finally ended on November 11, 1918. Canadians believed that four years of sacrifice and loss were finally over. They hoped that the troubles of the Great War might all disappear at once, but serious problems were still to come in the months ahead. Many returning soldiers faced high prices and either low wages or unemployment. Many women who had been employed were expected to give up their jobs to the returning men. Labour unrest, issues of prejudice, and an epidemic - Canadians faced all these problems after the war.

 The Treaty of Versailles
Versailles Video Versailles Video 2

 The world needed lasting peace. The important negotiations were held in Versailles, France, not far from Paris, in 1919. They were led by British Prime Minister David Lloyd George and presidents Georges Clemenceau of France and Woodrow Wilson of the United States. Canada and some other former British colonies successfully argued their right to participate and sign the treaty themselves. There were two Canadian representatives, including Prime Minister Borden, in the negotiations at Versailles. Despite the heroic war efforts of its people, Newfoundland was not permitted to join other former colonies at the talks.

 After the negotiations were completed, Borden again showed the world Canada's growing independence. He insisted that the Canadian Parliament must debate and approve the treaty before King George could sign it for the British Empire.

 Sir Edward Morris, prime minister of Newfoundland, had participated in the Imperial War Cabinet. However, the island was not allowed to join in the Paris Peace talks. Why were Newfoundlanders bitter about this?

Questions
1. a) How did the peace talks and treaty show Canada's growing independence? b) What effects do you think they would have on Newfoundland's future? c) Why do you think Borden insisted on Canada's involvement?

 Reactions to the Treaty of Versailles
 German representatives were shocked by the treaty, and at first refused to sign it. But an Allied threat to resume the war, and the threat of keeping a naval blockade on all materials entering Germany, soon changed their minds.

 Canadian Prime Minister Robert Borden admitted that the Treaty of Versailles was harsh, but he believed that it should be harsh. Britain's general view was the same.

 American President Woodrow Wilson argued for a policy of forgiveness toward the defeated nations. But the Americans had joined the war only in its late stages, which weakened his position.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> French negotiators wanted to be sure that Germany would never again be a threat-most of the fighting and destruction had taken place in France. The French negotiators wanted a tougher treaty than they got.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> Some Terms of the Treaty of Versailles
<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> - The western corner of Germany, called the Rhineland, was to be occupied by Allied troops for 10 years. <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> - Germany's army and navy were strictly reduced, and no air force was permitted. <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> - Germany had to sign a War Guilt Clause, admitting that they caused the war. <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> - Germany had to pay reparations, or damages, of about $30 billion to the Allies. <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> - New boundaries would shrink Germany and break up Austria-Hungary. <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> - A League of Nations was to be formed to help keep world peace. Check out the video below for more on the League. <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">League of Nations Video

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> Ferdinand Foch, the French General-in-Chief of the Allied Armies, was unhappy with the Treaty. He said, "This is not a peace treaty; it is an armistice of 20 years." He was to be proven right. Adolf Hitler started World War II just 20 years and one month later.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Want a quick summary to help you understand? Treaty of Versailles Summary

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Check this video out about the payments Germany had to make... <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Last Payment Video

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> Questions
<span style="background-color: #cfe9e9; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> 2. Select two terms from the Treaty that you think would have made the German delegates refuse to sign. Explain your choices.

<span style="background-color: #cfe9e9; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> 3. Should a defeated enemy be forgiven or punished? In your opinion, who had the most justified view of the Treaty: Wilson, Borden, or Foch?

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">The Spanish Flu
<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> In 1918-19, a deadly influenza called the Spanish Flu hit the world. Carried by returning soldiers, it killed at least 20 million people, 50 000 of them in Canada and Newfoundland. Isolated Aboriginal communities in the Canadian north were especially hard-hit. About 85 percent of the population of northern Alberta's Beaver Indian Reserve was wiped out. In Labrador, a supply ship unknowingly spread the disease, and more than one-third of Labrador's population, including most of the Okak, died. What efforts can Canada's government make to help prevent the spread of such diseases today?

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Key Terms
<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Union-employees who negotiate with their employers as a group, instead of individuals. This is so they have more power in dealing with their employers, instead of just one voice, there are many.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Strike-When a group of workers, usually a union, decide to stop work in order to force an employer to meet their demands. They could demand higher pay, safer working conditions or fewer working hours, among other things.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">General Strike-When different groups of workers or different unions all band together and decide to strike. It can stop work in a city or even a whole country.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 29px;">The General Strike in Winnipeg
<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> A man lay dead in the streets of Winnipeg, killed as the Mounted Police charged through the unruly crowd. Labour leaders called it murder, while citizens' groups saw it as the price of defying authority. Either way, this violence marked the end of the 1919 Winnipeg General Strike.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> Workers and war veterans wanted a better life. Union organizers in western Canada decided that One Big Union would be a powerful way to press for better wages and working conditions. Some thought it was the work of the Bolsheviks, Russian revolutionaries whose ideas, many people felt, must have come to Canada with immigrants. Prejudice against people from Central and Eastern Europe was strong after the Great War. Many English Canadians felt that no returning soldier should be out of work because of these "undesirables."

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> In May 1919, workers at three big metal factories in Winnipeg went on strike for better wages. They called for other workers to join them in a general strike, meaning a strike by almost all workers. In just a few days, 30 000 Winnipeg workers had walked out, and sympathy strikes took place across Canada.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> Alarmed business leaders formed the Committee of One Thousand in opposition. The mayor of Winnipeg banned all parades and urged the federal government to arrest the strike organizers. Almost all of them turned out to be British-born, quite a surprise to those who thought that "enemy aliens" were leading the strike.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> On June 21 angry strikers filled downtown streets to protest the arrest of the leaders. They even turned over a city streetcar operating in defiance of the strike. That's when the mayor ordered the Mounties to break up the crowd on what became known as "Bloody Saturday." <span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 29px;">2 strikers were killed and 27 were injured. It was a huge setback for the labour movement in Canada. 2 strikers were killed and 27 were injured.

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 29px;">Read this from the Toronto Star in 1919 to learn more (you'll need to for a future assignment!)

<span style="font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> Questions
<span style="background-color: #cfe9e9; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> 4. a) Discuss how each of the following was responsible for "Bloody Saturday" in Winnipeg: fears of Bolshevism; business leaders and the city mayor; the federal government and its Mounties; the strikers.

<span style="background-color: #cfe9e9; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> b) Which of the above factors do you consider most responsible for the bloodshed? Explain.

<span style="background-color: #cfe9e9; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> 5. What is your view of strikes? Do you agree that people should be allowed to strike?