Horton High School's Canadian
History 12 Web Page and Student
Resource
1919-1938 - The Inter-war Years
from 1923-1929, Canada enjoyed a booming
economy, mostly as a result of the post war economic upturn and a world
economy which was prospering. Immigration continued to grow, with 165,000
immigrants alone arriving to Canada in 1929. Canada became the "Bread basket
of the globe", especially after the Soviet Union closed its doors, and
the Ukraine in particular. Canada was critical in feeding war ravaged Europe
and getting it back on its collective feet.
railways, road construction and the age
of automobiles heralded in a new, quicker era in Canadian transportation,
not to mention Canada's booming shipping industry. Laurier's initial exploits
in natural resources started to see its full potential into the 1920s,
with countless mining towns sprouting up throughout the Canadian Shield.
Still, this economic prosperity, known
throughout the globe as the "Roaring Twenties", was not evenly distributed
throughout the nation. The vast natural resources in Ontario, Quebec and
B.C. developed these provinces into "have provinces", while the Prairies
and the Maritimes, with mostly single resource economies (farming and fishing
respectively), suffered somewhat in relation to the rest of the country.
the growth of organized labour and unionization
also came during this early post-war era. The socialist forces in Canada
fought hard to see all Canadians enjoy some degree of prosperity or, at
the very least, comfort.
in 1919, the Canadian government joined
the rest of the "democratic world" in a wave of fear and distrust known
as the "Red Scare". This came in response to the growth of communism in
the Soviet Union and the numerous pockets which were growing in strength
throughout Europe. In Canada, the communist movement was led by Tim Buck.
The Canadian government connected the rise of communism to the rise of
organized labour, thus had enormous distrust for any movement which smacked
of communism.
on May 15, 1919, with the rise of frustration
in poor labour and pay for the working class, many of whom had just returned
from the war, an organized protest erupted in Winnipeg, which subsequently
led to sympathy strikes throughout the country. This "General Strike" saw
essentially the entire labour force in Winnipeg walk off the job, as a
show to the government just how important the working class was to the
proper functioning of the city. Only the vital services were maintained.
the RCMP were called in to keep the peace.
For six weeks the strikers marched, while the management held firm by hiring
replacement workers. The government stepped in and arrested ten leaders
of the "Winnipeg Soviet", one of whom was J.S. Woodsworth, future leader
of the C.C.F.
the workers eventually saw that the management
was not going to budge, while the government did its best to support the
business interests. The Minister of Labour in the Borden government at
this time was the soon to be Prime Minister, Arthur Meighen.
Politics of the Early 20s:
Sir Robert Borden remained Prime Minister
until his retirement in 1920. He was succeeded by the lackluster Meighen.
In 1921 Laurier died, leaving a gaping hole in the Liberal leadership.
This hole was filled by the gifted young academic Mackenzie King, who had
served as Laurier's Labour Minister during his last years as Prime Minister.
King had a Ph.D in economics, and hoped to put it to work. King and Meighen
disliked each other greatly, to put it mildly.
after a short stint as leader, Meighen
was defeated by King in 1921, and King would lead Canada from 1921-1926,
1926-1930 and 1935-1948.
through this early time there emerged a
new political force, primarily aimed at supporting farmers and labour.
This party was called the Progressives, and they had the high hopes of
forming government. Although they failed to achieve this goal, they did
serve to bring certain pressing points to bear, namely the need for more
support for rural economies. Eventually this group, a mish-mash of Left
and Right wing interests, amalgamated with the Conservatives to form the
present-day Progressive Conservatives.
The Impact of the Great Depression:
the Canadian economy in the 1920s was primarily
export based, with grain, pulp and paper and mineral resources serving
as the main industries. Canada had already developed close trade ties with
the United States, thus any fluctuation within the American economy was
certainly going to impact upon the Canadian economy. The Canadians had
also overextended by borrowing millions from banks all over the globe.
then, in 1929, the Stock Market crashed,
hurling Canada, and the rest of the global economies for that matter, into
a massive depression. Soon after this occurred, the Americans raised tariffs
on any Canadian goods, thus protecting their own business interests and
economy. The Canadians responded in kind, however their relatively small
population made it difficult for many to keep in business, and many were
unable to survive.
furthermore, the Soviets opened its doors
and began exporting grain at a price which severely undercut all Canadian
wheat producers, due mainly to less distance into European markets and
a communist system which used totalitarian tactics to get the workers "motivated",
the Kulaks being an excellent example.
from 1928 to 1933, the average income of
Canadians decreased by 48%, from $471 to $247. The hardest hit was Saskatchewan,
which fell by 72% from $478 to $135.
no parts of the Canadian economy escaped
the Depression. Those most affected were the "have" provinces, due to the
massive decreases in mineral based prices. The Maritimes was never a prosperous
region, thus the fall was not so far down for this region!
Many suffered, with high unemployment rates
and decreased salaries. There was food for everyone, but hardly a soul
saw it, as the farmers, and the government, could not distribute the grain
to those who were starving.
As Prime Minister during this time, King
made attempts to combat the growing sense of desperation in Canada. Yet
he severely hurt his political career when he stated that he would only
help those provinces which supported the Liberal cause. The rest, he said,
would not even receive a "five cent piece" from the federal government.
These intimidation tactics back-fired in the 1930 election, when the Tories,
under the businessman R.B. Bennett, stormed to power with grandiose promises.
Bennett, despite his brilliant name, could
not bring Canada out of the Depression. He established work camps, and
paid transient workers up to 20 cents a day for hard labour. Seeds of discontent
grew in these camps, which came to a head in 1935 when the "March on Ottawa"
was organized by Tim Buck of the Communist Party of Canada. The communists
called these camps a form of slave labour to keep the workers exhausted
and thus unwilling to put up a fight.
for the 1935 election, Bennett promoted
the "Bennett New Deal". This promised the following: Unemployment Insurance;
minimum wages; social security and shorter work weeks. This appeared to
be the earliest attempt at some form of national social security, yet this
was blasted by King, who said these promises could not be kept. He also
attacked Bennett's inability to bring Canada relief. The result: a King
victory.
The Growth of Political Parties in the
Depression:
three main political parties emerged out
of the Depression: the C.C.F.; the Social Credit Party and the Union Nationale.
the C.C.F. [the Co-operative Commonwealth
Federation], was formed in 1933 in Regina, after the founding members
signed the Regina Manifesto. The first leader was J.S. Woodsworth, one
of the "Winnipeg Soviet".
this party was founded on Christian principles
and Socialist ideals. They called for more public control of key industries,
universal health care, protectionism when dealing with Free Trade and social
security for seniors.
the C.C.F. was never able to make any headway
federally, however provincially the party gained office in Saskatchewan,
under Tommy Douglas, from the Depression well into the 1960s.
the C.C.F. was the forerunner of the N.D.P.
The Social Credit Party developed
in Alberta, under the leadership of William "Bible Bill" Aberhart. A school
principal and radio preacher, Aberhart argued that the federal Liberals
had abandoned the West and the farmers in particular. Promised a cash dividend
of $25.00 a month to all Albertans, a claim he could never keep yet this
did not stop him from gaining power. Many policies were well Right of centre,
calling for increased business interests in politics and the selling off
of Crown lands, such as the Leduc Oil Fields in 1947.
Aberhart was voted into power in 1935,
and when he died he was replaced by Ernest Manning, father of Alliance
M.P. Preston Manning. The "SoCred" juggernaut continued to run Alberta
into the 1960s.
in Quebec, the Union Nationale rose
to power amidst the Depression. Led by Maurice Duplessis, this French-Cdn.
Nationalist party wanted the province to take over control of all programs,
namely natural resources and businesses.
this provincial government rose to power
in 1936 and ruled until 1959, with only one gap, that being from 1939-1944,
during the War.
the U.N. attacked organized labour and
called any groups which went on strike in Quebec "anti-nationalist", which
led to many acts of violence. Strike breakers were commonly used. Duplessis
also gave special rights and jobs to Catholics, and was outright offensive
towards any English-speaking Quebecers.
in 1937, the U.N. implemented the Padlock
Law, which allowed the government to close up a business and lock it down
if they were suspected of "communist activities". This was used liberally
throughout the province.
King's Main Policies in the International
Theatre:
as of 1927, Canadians had their own embassy
in Washington; no other Dominion of Britain had this distinction.
King generally distrusted the Brits, yet
saw the importance in keeping strong ties with Canada's "Mother Land".
Incidentally, King was the grandson of William Lyon Mackenzie.
1922 ~ Chanak Affair: in a nutshell,
Britain responded to Ataturk's attempt to occupy the Dardanelle's city
of Chanak. Turned to the Dominions for help. Churchill, then the Colonial
Secretary of Britain, appealed to the Canadians for help, yet expected
them to offer first. King said he'd need the support of the Canadian government
first. A war did not start up over Chanak, thus Churchill was not pushed
on this one. Arthur Meighen, as opposition member, had been demanding that
Canada volunteer without hesitation: "Ready, Aye, Ready" was the term used
by the Conservative leader.
Halibut Treaty ~ 1923. Issues circling
over Anglo-American Pacific fishing rights and territories. A treaty was
always signed between the two countries, yet the British always signed
for Canada, as Canada was still a British Dominion. King was bothered by
this. So, King sent his Fisheries Minister to Washington, negotiated the
treaty and signed it. Only the was Britain informed that the Halibut Treaty
had been signed. The U.S. Senate approved the Treaty, which angered the
British government.
King-Byng Affair of 1925-26:
essentially, after the 1925 election, King was engulfed in a scandal. Before
he would be smeared for it, he called for the Governor General, Lord Byng,
to dissolve Parliament, so that he wouldn't have to face the music. Byng
refused. King then resigned, and Meighen became P.M., yet he in turn was
given a vote of "no confidence" by Parliament, orchestrated by King, by
a margin of one vote. Meighen, fearing problems, asked Byng to dissolve
Parliament, which he did this time. He then called for another election
in 1926. This distracted people from King's original scandal, and he in
turn focused on British control of government, through the Governor General,
and how this election was a waste of taxpayers' money. Meighen could not
fight this one, and the result was a powerful victory for King, despite
his scandal. His main focus was a general anti-British sentiment, which
Meighen, a strong supporter of the British, rallied against. Meighen even
lost in his own riding, which led to his resignation of Tory leader.
1926 - Balfour Report - from the Imperial
Conference - the role of the Governor-General was diminished. More of a
figure head, could no longer dictate policy. The Cdn. govt. could now deal
directly with other countries, while the British could no longer "disallow
Canadian laws".
1931 - Statute of Westminster - Commonwealth
replaces Empire. Balfour Report fully recognized and implemented. Canada
was also given a foreign affairs office of its own.
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