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The Turn of the 20th Century
Prime Minister Sir Wilfred Laurier declared that the 20th century belongs to Canada. He wanted to bring in immigrants, and came out with the immigration policy. This is because he wanted to fill up the Prairie West so that the United States would not take over it. The results ended up in a boom in the population by at least 2 million. Some religions were excluded. This is important to Canada because this was the beginning of Canada becoming independant and a more diverse society. -
The Battle of the Somme
The Battle of the Somme was during World War 1. It was a deadly event. This is because in less than a half an hour, 57470 British solidiers died. Tanks were first used in this battle. The result of this battle was that in four and a half months, the front line only advanced 6 miles into the German territory. This event is important to Canada because Canada was able to take a factory and two trenches. Eventually Canada took over the city. -
Vimy Ridge
Vimy Ridge is a very significant battle that occured in World War 1. This land was occupied by the Germans for a long period of time. No one could push through. The Germans were well defensed. The Canadians were able to take this land back though. This is a very important event for Canada because for the first time, the four Canadian divisions fought together as one unit. Also, Canada was able to do something the French and British could not. Canada got a lot of recognition for this. -
Black Tuesday
Black Tuesday is the day that the Stock Market crashed. After the World War had ended, people started gaining their confidence back and spent more money. Things like 'buying on the margin' became a popular thing to do. In 1929, the boom was slowing down and the wheat market collapsed. This is important to Canada because the banks were greatly affected. Also, this is one of the causes of the Great Depression. -
The Halibut Treaty
Canada and the United States created a treaty called the Halibut Treaty. It discusses the rights of the fish in the North Pacific Ocean. Canada and the United States were the only ones to sign while Britain wanted to sign, but got neglacted. This is important to Canada because this is the first treaty that Canada signed without Britain. -
Regina Riot
The Regina Riot is an event that happened during the Ottawa Trek. The Ottawa Trek is when 1,500 men left the relief camps to protest the conditions. The municapal government couldn't do anything so the group started a journey towards Ottawa. RB Bennett stopped them in Regina. In this protest, people were very violent. 130 people were arrested. This is important to Canada because it rose awareness of the relief camps and the prime minister was critized for the way he handled the situation. -
Munich Agreement
The Munich Agreement is when the leaders of Britain, France, Italy and Germany met in Munich. Russia and Czech's were not invited. In this meeting, they gave Hitler the Sudentenland. The reason for this is because Hitler promised he would not take anymore land. This is important to Canada because Britain represented Canada. When Britain did this, it made everyone in that meeting look bad in the end. -
Invasion of Poland
Once Nazi Germany took Austria and Czechslovokia, Britain and Freance delivered on ultimatum. This meant that if they invaded Poland, Britain and France will declare war on them. Nazi Germany invaded Poland, and then Russia invaded Eastern Poland. Poland surrendered on September 28th, 1939. This event affects Canada because Canada was still close with the British. Canada declared war shortly after. -
Operation Dynamo
Operation Dynamo was the first mistake that Hitler had made, and one of the biggest. Hitler had stopped his surge in France. This allowed Britain to evacuate their troops to Britain. Many boats had made more than one trip. Over 700 different boads made the trip to France. This is important to Canada because many of their troops were able to make it back safetly. Also, it starts showing weakness of Hitler. -
Battle of Hong Kong
The day after Pearl Harbour, Japan attacked Hong Kong. Hong Kong is a British colony. The Canadians were involved, but it was their first time on the ground so they were very unexperienced. They were told that they only had to defend the Gin Drinker's line but were forced to defend Hong Kong.This battle is important to Canada. This is because the British surrendered and Canadians spent over three years in POW camps. -
Japanese Internment
After Pearl Harbour, Canadians didn't trust the Japanese. Even in their own county. The Canadians were very paranoid of an attack happening on the west coast. So Canada's solution was to move any Japanese descent 100 miles of the protective zone on the West coast. Anyone who refused was brought back to Japan. This is a significant part of Canada's history because it unveals a big mistake for Canada, and the apologies afterwards. -
D-Day
This is the day that the Allies landed on the beaches of France.(Normandy) Five seperate beaches were involved. USA took one, Britain took one and so did Canada. Operation Overload was the largest seaborne invasion ever. The Canadians took Juno Beach. 14000 Canadians entered. They suffered 1000 casualities and 350 deaths. This is important to Canada because out of all the beachs, they were able to complete their mission on the first day. -
The Korean War
After WW2, the Russians and the Americans split up Korea into two along the 38th parallel. After 5 years, Korea can independant but under two governments. North Korea was communist, South Korea was democratic. North Korea invaded the South. The United Nations had to get involved. The Korean War is important to Canada because our troops had to go to Korea. -
The Richard Riot
The Richard Riot had happened because of a hockey player named Maurice "the Rocket" Richard. The Rocket punched out a linesman, and had been suspended for the rest of the season, including the playoffs. This made the Canadiens very angry and upset. The crowd pelted the NHL commissoner with garbage and eventually tear gas was launched. This is important to Canadian history because it shows how eger the crowd can really get, and the starting of the French-English relationship. -
The Cuban Missile Crisis
The United States discovered that there were nuclear missiles off the shore of the US on the island of Cuba. They were placed there by the Soviet Union. If they invaded Cuba, it would led to another global conflict. In the end, the Soviets agreed to remove the missiles if the US were to never invade Cuba. This does affect Canada, because if the US did invade Cuba, Canada could have been attatcked as well and would have to possibly go to a war. -
"Vive Le Quebec Libre"
On this day, the French president Charles De Gauville said "Vive Le Quebec Libre!" in a speech. This is what feeled the separatist movement. Quebecois found that if it's own country would separate, it would be more romantic. This is a very important issue, especially since this idea is still controversial to this day. It is what got Quebecois to really argue their strong opinions on this topic. -
October Crisis
The FLQ is a terrorist group. Their goal was to use violence to promote the idea of separating from Canada. They blew up over 95 targets, then decided to start kidnapping. They kidnapped James Cross and Pierre Laporte. Because of this, the War Measures Act was in place. This is important to Canada because it shows the tragic matters that Canada had to go through, because of the French-English relation. -
1980 Referendum
In 1980, the citizens of Quebec were asked whether they wanted to pursue independance. Many people thought that the yes side would win, and it would be negotiating shortly. Trudeau promised to re-negotiate the constitution if people voted no. Trudeau did not want Quebec to seperate from Canada. This is a very important event in Canada, because if people would have voted yes, Quebec could possibly be out of Canada. -
Marathon of Hope
The Marathon of Hope was a dream for Terry Fox, which became a reality. He decided to run across Canada in order to raise money for cancer research. The run started in St.Johns, NFLD and ended in Thunder Bay, ONT. He was running the equivalent of a Marathon everyday. This is a very significant thing in Canada because a brave person came forward and made a difference. In the end, he himself had raised 1.7 million. The annual Terry Fox Run has rasied over 500 million dollars. -
Meech Lake Accord
The Meech Lake Accord is when all the provinces got together to try and convince Quebec to sign the constitution. For this to come into affect, all of the provinces and federal government had to pass it within three years. Although, in Manitoba, Elijah Harper (an aborignal politican) refused to allow the legislative to vote. This is because it did not address First Nations. Many Canadians would say that Mr.Harper is a Canadian hero because people would be very upset if Quebec got priviledges.
