Compare and contrast Experience During War

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1. Compare and contrast the Canadian experience in the First World War and the Second
World War. What was the same, and what was different?
At the start of the 20th century, the world experienced two major world wars that pitted
two major sides against each other. Although some countries like Japan and Italy switched sides
after the first world war, the others generally stuck to the same team through both wars, and
Canada was one of those that maintained what side they supported 2. This essay will critically
examine how Canada carried itself in the first and second world war and also the experiences
they went through in both wars by giving the differences and similarities in both cases.
There were several similarities in what Canada experienced and how they went about
fighting both world wars. First, the Canadians utilized Victory Bonds as a means to raise money
for the war efforts in both periods of war. The money raised went into buying more weapons and
artillery to be used to aid their sides to win the war. In addition to this and the victories of the
Canadian army, it led to Canada being recognized, after both wars as an autonomous nation free
from the control of Great Britain. Secondly, in both wars, Canada, due to the large of money that
went into the war, became indebted to the United States due to the massive loans they had gone
to Washington to get 1.
On the other hand, even though Canada fought on the same side through both world wars,
there still were differences in the things they faced during the wars and also how they carried
themselves all through. The first difference is in the way they joined the war. In the first world
war, Canada joined the war automatically after Great Britain declared war against Germany
following a promise made to protect the sovereignty of Belgium2. They automatically joined
since legally they were still a dominion of the British empire; thus, any decision made in the
1 Belshaw, The Millennia before Contact.
2 Blake and Keshen. Conflict and Compromisem, 188-189.

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British parliament included them. However, with the second world war, they separately declared
war on Germany since by 1931, through the Statute of Westminister, they had declared their
independence from Great Britain1.
Another difference is that during the 1st world war, there was a minimal presence of
women who were allowed to join the war efforts and the few that joined were nurse whose
number was just approximately 3000. In comparison, due to the change of women's roles due to
effects of the first world war which left most women as the heads of families, many women
volunteered to join the second world war willingly1.
In conclusion, both wars affected the Canadian nation greatly, and even though there
were both similarities and differences, it ultimately led to a positive change for the country. For
one, they emerged independent from the control of the British empire. They were also
recognized as an autonomous nation. Women also benefitted from this war as the wars
accelerated the fight for equality. Finally, Canada emerged as a united nation with people of all
backgrounds and races being united to fight for their country.
1 Belshaw, The Millennia before Contact.
2 Blake and Keshen. Conflict and Compromisem, 188-189.