What Impact Did Second World War Have On Canadian Society - Essay Example

What Impact Did Second World War Have On Canadian Society Canada's contribution in World War II can be judged by the number of men and women that sacrificed their lives while defending the coasts of their country. Whether it was a civilian or a military or industrial or textile job or just looking after their home fronts each Canadian showed keen interest as their main aim was to retain the economic position of their country at the end of the war as well. The department of the Canadian Military most under developed during world war and required maximum attention was the Canadian Navy. Canadian navy was never given much attention since its creation in 1910. It was due to the war that the country realized the importance of a strong naval background accompanied by a good number of officers and sailors. There were only 35,000 officers and sailors serving the navy at the time of the war. Even with this handful of officers the navy did not hesitated in serving the country and the Canadian warships continued providing support to all the soldiers landing on the beaches and seas. They also used to escort groups and provide protection to them from enemy submarines flowing in the Mediterranean and Caribbean Seas. (http://www.virtualmuseum.ca/Exhibitions/Militaris/index.html) At the beginning of the war the Canadian army on land comprised of very few permanent soldiers and a large number of part time workers. The soldiers were also not equipped with latest war weapons and had very poor and outdated rifles and guns. When the war broke out in 1939 the Canadian soldiers were sent to Europe for training purposes. These handful of soldiers were also very eager to fight for the defence of their country and as the number slightly reached half million, Canada decided to send some of its troops to France. But they were soon called back due to the fall of France to German forces. Other Canadian troops were sent to Iceland and south East Asia with the intention of helping the British forces and protecting Hong Kong. It also took part with British and American troops in a deadly operation that took place in 1942, which took away lives of majority of the soldiers and wounded quite a big number of them. Canadian Air Force was a small department at the beginning of the war that participated with only limited number of bombs, aerial combats, hunting submarines and air fighters. The Canadian fighters and bombers used to guide European flyers throw missiles and bombs on enemy troops on the ground and fight with German aircrafts. Keeping in view such heroic acts of the air force, the bombers formed a vital part of the 2nd Tactical Air Force. (http://www.virtualmuseum.ca/Exhibitions/Militaris/index.html) Relations with United States improved after the war as Britain started to turn away. A declaration was signed with the US in the 1940 known as the Ogdensburg Declaration, which made the two countries allies as trade partners and work towards common goals. Both the countries collaborated in military matters after the Hyde Park agreement. Their common enemy was the German dictator, Hitler. France had just collapsed and its security was dear to both Canada and US. (Anthony 47) Canada gained equally for the sacrifices it made in the war. Around 50,000 men laid their lives and close to 1 million families served voluntarily. Those at home did not suffer too much. Their routine life might have been disturbed by restricted travel laws and rationing of food for a brief period of time during the war. The buying power was influenced and heavy taxes were applied but there was very less unemployment and the average salary was adequate. The industrialization provided jobs and sparked economic growth. (Anthony 55) After the war, Canadian citizens achieved their separate identity by the establishment of Canadian Citizenship Act initiated by Mackenzie King in 1945. The act came into effect in 1946. Although, technically they were still part of the British Empire but as a citizen of Canada they could ask for their basic rights from their government. Role of Women The Canadian women played a significant role During World War II. They were on foot all the time with their fellowmen and performed jobs belonging to various fields without any hesitation. Whether it was a military job, a textile job, or a women needed for driving buses or lifting heavy machinery, the Canadian women welcomed all such activities excitedly and that is why are equally responsible for the success and victory of Canada in World War II (Keshen 145). It was in 1941 when Canada faced immense shortage of labour force in various departments. More workers were needed to perform commercial as well as military jobs. The Canadian government had no option left other than to hire women for all these manly jobs. The government used different campaigns to attract women towards these jobs and was amazed on the response they received. As many as one million women got themselves engaged in industrial jobs, another hundreds of them started performing agricultural jobs and a large number of them showed interest towards army which was a record in the history of Canada (Keshen 145). "At the peak of wartime employment in 1943-44, 439,000 women worked in the service sector, 373,000 in manufacturing and 4,000 in construction." (http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/general/sub.cfmsource=history/secondwar/fact_sheets/women) The sectors, which showed hesitation in hiring women workers, suffered a lot during this period. The two main sectors greatly ruled by women were textile and hospital nursing. Big industries and hospitals who had a good record of treating their workers with respect and admiration and were willing to pay good salaries in order to keep their work running were the main point of attraction for these women. No doubt there are many incidents of mistreatment and harassments faced by women at the hands of their male colleagues who were not able to tolerate women in the sector earlier ruled by them. They created problems and hurdles and fired women with snobbish behaviour and sometimes insulting charges. They tried to create atmosphere that can put pressure on women so that they had no option left other than to quit the job. (Keshen 147) Besides performing jobs related to military, agriculture, hospitals and textile, the area completely depended on women was their home and children. Women who earlier were pampered and coddled by their husbands were now wholly and solely responsible for taking care of their family in absence of their husbands. Women were now more commonly seen hanging in buses, driving bicycles and running on foot to provide basic necessities of life to their children. They were now forced to perform plumbing, electrical, repair, maintenance and other household jobs, which were previously performed by only male members of the family. (http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/general/sub.cfmsource=history/secondwar/fact_sheets/women) Besides taking care of their children in the absence of their husbands the women also performed many volunteer activities. They set up camps where people can report about their missing family members. These women then took active participation in bringing the missing loved ones back to their family. In order to send warm clothes and other basic accessories to overseas soldiers and workers, the women who were not able to perform other tough jobs used to spend more and more time in knitting and weaving. Many of them showed keen interested in raising the morale of overseas labour force and for that purpose they joined relief clubs. According to them these overseas labour force are the Key towards the victory. (http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/general/sub.cfmsource=history/secondwar/fact_sheets/women) "Out of a total Canadian population of 11 million people, only about 600,000 Canadian women held permanent jobs when the war started. During the war, their numbers doubled to 1,200,000." (http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/general/sub.cfmsource=history/secondwar/fact_sheets/women) As a result of these unending and countless services performed by Canadian Women during World War II various newspapers and magazines praised them. In reply of their innumerable favours they glittered amongst all the leading newspapers of that time. Economy The World War II was fought for almost 6years in which approximately 40,000 Canadians sacrificed their lives for the sake of their country. These 6years turned out to be very critical for the people and government of Canada. The period of war although affected all sectors of life but it completely transformed the economic situation of the country. It is commonly observed in many nations that the war completely ruins the economic situations of the country and the nations have to re-build its economic structure once the war is over. But in case of Canada the situation was entirely opposite. "From 1929 to 1933, the gross national product fell 43%, and exports plummeted by 50%. By 1933, the unemployment rate had risen above 25%." (http://www.canadianeconomy.gc.ca/english/economy/1939ww2) Almost every division witnessed substantial growth during the war period. Whether it was agriculture, manufacturing, export or textile, extraordinary growth was observed in each sector. The war also played an important role in eliminating unemployment from the country and provided a way of living for the women of the country as well. Due to this economic growth the country also managed to retain its position once the war was over. (http://www.canadianeconomy.gc.ca/english/economy/1939ww2.html) The main source of income for Canada was military and civilian goods. Although Canada participated in World War II late but it was still considered as the main supplier of arms and weapons to Britain. In order to meet this growing demand of war materials Canada created Department of Munitions and Supply. Naturally to run and manage a new department large numbers of workers were also needed. Canada faced deficiency in male workers because majority of them were either at the war front or was working as an overseas labour. That is where the Canadian government started hiring women and the unemployment rate started decreasing. Creation of a new department resulted in further creation of 28 small corporations and in substantial growth of the export of the company. (http://www.canadianeconomy.gc.ca/english/economy/1939ww2.html) "In 1944 exports reached $1.2 billion. From 1939 to 1941, the number of employees in Canada's manufacturing sector increased by 50%." (http://www.canadianeconomy.gc.ca/english/economy/1939ww2.) Where the World War II devastated the economies of the European countries, it fuelled the growth and prosperity for two countries: The United States of America and former New England, also known as Canada. The end of the war brought up the United States as the most powerful economy in the world, which in turn helped Canada as the two countries helped build huge building projects like the St. Lawrence Seaway. In Canada, although, all the regions prospered after the war, the provinces of Quebec, Ontario and British Columbia reaped huge benefits because of the presence of high number of manufacturing industries in these three provinces. "The government budget deficit also increased rapidly: in 1939, the budget deficit was less than 12% of GNP; in 1945, that rate rose above 42%. The unemployment rate was less than 1%." (http://www.canadianeconomy.gc.ca/english/economy/1939ww2.html) The boom of economy at the end of the war had given rise to skilled labour as well as institutions, which were favourable to the steady economic growth. After the war as the soldiers came back from the battlefield, women who had joined the work force to fill the vacuum left the jobs and started performing their old responsibilities as housewives. This created opportunities for men to work. Birth rate increased as the end of the war gave birth to a new season of marriages. As the population grew, more homes, schools, factories and roads were needed. As a result, Canada's economy shined between 1946 and 1957. Its exports also rose as she joined and helped the United States in the rebuilding and renovation of recovering Europe. (http://www.canadianeconomy.gc.ca/english/economy/1939ww2.html) The willingness of Canadian soldiers to sacrifice their lives, the cooperation and support she received from the United States, the participation of women in the war and the creation and establishment of many new corporations were some of the main factors that played an important role in building the economic strength of the Canada during World War II. Wartime Innovations The six dreadful years of World War II are always remembered for massive destructions it made at several parts of the Canada but at the same time they are also credited for new technological advancements that took place in the country in that period of time. Although the country witnessed many critical and life taking moments in that era of war but in the end the government through its innovative techniques was successful in creating a much stronger Canadian Nation. Before World War II, World War I was known for bringing into use airplanes, tanks, radios and many other military and industrial items. As we all know that necessity is the mother of invention therefore with the beginning and end of World War II more and more technological innovations took place by incorporating science into defence. Missiles, radars, Computers, jet engines, televisions are some of the inventions made either during the war or at the end of it. (Stevenson, 37) Military weapon was the main area that flourished and improved during World War II. Although the soldiers started the war with limited weapons in which majority were out dated and of no use but the war brought rapid change and by the end of the war they were using cavalry, trenches, battleships, jet aircraft, ballistic missiles and atomic weapons. Some of the best aircrafts invented during the war flew faster than aircrafts used at the beginning of the war. Similarly tanks built during the war had the ability of leaving behind even the best tanks of 1939. Troop landing crafts and six-wheel trucks and tanks were created to enable beach-landing attacks. Inventions of new weapons paved the way for management systems that were needed to handle the functionalities of these newly created military weapons. Therefore Modern management methodologies were used to fill this gap. (Stevenson, 40) Small and large weapons were developed for the war. Some of these specifically were for soldiers on foot and they included assault rifles and rocket propelled grenades. Some weapons were specially designed for the naval forces, which included anti submarine guns and torpedoes with improved aiming systems. Missiles were designed which could be launched from the air and surface-to-surface rocket artillery played a major role. The aiming systems now used acoustic; heat and electronic targeting techniques and some missiles were also enhanced with compass guidance. Another destructive option to inflict maximum damage to the enemy were shells, grenades, shoulder launched rocket propelled grenades, mines and clever proximity fuses which detonated an explosive when the enemy was close. This was very useful as these could be planted to block an advancing army. (Stevenson, 41) The industrialization helped improve small arms manufacturing with welding, stamping and riveting. Light and sub machine guns and semi-automatic assault rifles and handguns made excellent weaponry because it was light, deadly and portable. During the World War 2, small arms development made good progress and some of these machine guns with their unique operating systems were so successful that many armies today equip themselves with such legendary weapons. Besides weapons a lot of advancements were made in the automobile industry as well. Vehicles manufactured during the war or even after it were equipped with special Power steering, power brakes, windshields, tubeless tires, automatic window and seat controls features. Automobiles with much powerful Engines and horsepower ratings were created in order to meet the growing demand of the customers. (Stevenson, 48) Numerous projects were started and researches were made in the field of Digital electronics to invent computers that were useful for breaking codes and performing complex numerical calculations. In order to meet the growing requirement of natural rubber, synthetic rubber was being produced in large quantity, which was also used to develop war machines. To keep the death rate down different medicines were also invented for the quick and immediate treatment of injured and wounded solders. Rationing In order to protect the nation and the Canadians from facing worse conditions such as starving rationing system was introduced in the country. The feeling of brotherhood and care was spread throughout the country so that the people enjoying luxurious lives start helping those running after a single piece of bread. The main intention hidden behind the rationing system was that all citizens should equally share the hardships and difficulties of war. Daily use items such as Food, clothing, petrol, leather, sugar, tea, bread etc all were rationed. Some families having good knowledge and background in agriculture started growing vegetables and fruits at home. All the wastes were recycled and conserved with the intention of using them for making war weapons. (Granatstein, 47) Works Cited Women at war.21-7-2005 http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/general/sub.cfmsource=history/secondwar/fact_sheets/women 9 December, 2006 World War II Transformed the Canadian Economy (1939-1945).5-12-2006 http://www.canadianeconomy.gc.ca/english/economy/1939ww2.html 9 December, 2006 Remembrance: Canada and the Second World War.9-12-2006. http://www.virtualmuseum.ca/Exhibitions/Militaris/index.html 9 December, 2006 Keshen, Jeffrey. A. Saints, Sinners, and Soldiers: Canada's Second World War. Vancouver, BC, Canada: UBC Press, 2004A Nation Forged in Fire: Canadians and the Second World War, 1939-1945 1989. Stevenson, Michael D.Canada's Greatest Wartime Muddle: National Selective Service and the Mobilization of Human Resources During World War II: McGill-Queen's University Press, 2001 Granatstein, J. L., and Desmond Morton. A Nation Forged in Fire: Canadians and the Second World War, 1939-1945 1989. Anthony, Effie C.Canada and the Second World War: the home front and war aims: Graduate School of Library and Information Studies, McGill Univ., 1991. Read More