1. Canada & World War I: Indigenous Involvement

2. When did WWI take place? What were the causes of WWI?
Canada + WWI
When did WWI take place? What were the causes of WWI?

3. Canada + WWI
What roles did Indigenous Peoples, people of colour and women play in WWI? What technology and strategies were used in WWI? What battles did Canadians fight in during WWI?

5. Canada 1914
World War 1 started on July 28, 1914 and would last until November 11, When Britain declared war on Germany, Canada was automatically at war, along with the rest of the British Empire.

6. Canada 1914
Became a country in 1867 but was still a dominion of Great Britain. Britain still controlled Canada’s foreign policy.

8. Canada 1914
The two major alliance systems were created before the Great War: The Triple Entente/The Allies The Triple Alliance/The Central Powers

9. Canada 1914
The Triple Entente/The Allies = France, Britain and Russian (would leave in 1917 because of a revolution and the USA take her place).

10. Canada 1914
The Triple Alliance/The Central Powers = Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy (would leave immediately when the war began in 1914 and the Ottoman Empire (“The Dying Man of Europe”, Turkey) would step in).

12. MAIN Causes
The MAIN causes of WWI were: MILITARISM ALLIANCES IMPERIALISM NATIONALISM

13. MAIN Causes
The MAIN causes of WWI were: MILITARISM = Two Power Standard, Naval Arms Race + Schlieffen Plan

14. MAIN Causes
The MAIN causes of WWI were: ALLIANCES = support, security, protection, balance of power, divided Europe, conflict, tension, take chances, chain reaction.

15. MAIN Causes
The MAIN causes of WWI were: IMPERIALISM = colonialism, colonies, resources, land equalled power, build empire, Great Britain, Germany, exploitation, genocide, rivalry, scramble for colonies.

16. MAIN Causes
The MAIN causes of WWI were: NATIONALISM = Franco + Prussian War of , Alsace- Lorraine, Austria-Hungary, The Balkans as the “Powder Keg of Europe” Serbia, Bosnia, independence, Russia, Dardanelles.

17. What was the “spark” or “trigger” event that started the war?
MAIN Causes
What was the “spark” or “trigger” event that started the war?

18. MAIN Causes
The assassination of the Archduke of Austria- Hungary by Gavrilo Princip of the Black Hand in Sarajevo, Bosnia on June 28, 1914

19. The initial responses to Canada’s involvement in the war varied:
To War!
The initial responses to Canada’s involvement in the war varied:
Those Canadian’s of British origins/English- speaking decent were enthusiastic, ready to help.
Francophone (French- speaking, Canadiens) population and the Maritime provinces were far less interested.

20. White man’s war
The Euro-Canadian officers had the mentality that this was a “white man’s war”. They were in charge of choosing who was allowed in, therefore many non-whites were not allowed into the Canadian militia (rampant, deep- rooted racism).

21. White man’s war
They stated, “We don’t want a checker board Army” = they did not think that white soldiers wanted to fight along non-white soldiers. This did not prevent minority groups from serving Canada in WWI.

22. We will serve!
Women and the Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Black and Aboriginal Canadians volunteered their services to the Canadian Expeditionary Force, with the hopes of proving their loyalty to Canada and gaining full citizenship. They served as snipers, scouts, nurses, frontline military officers, couriers, and privates.

23. Aboriginal Participation
The war proved that the fighting spirit of my tribe was not squelched through reservation life. When duty called, we were there, and when we were called forth to fight for the cause of civilization, our people owed all the bravery of our warriors of old.
~ Mike Mountain Horse,
First World War Veteran

25. Call to Service
Indigenous People in Canada left their homes and families to help fight an international war that raged in European battlefields. Despite the fact that they had no rights as Canadian citizens.

26. Call to Service
The Canadian government only counted Status Indian who volunteered so there exist no accurate records. Veteran Affairs Canada estimates that 1 in 3 able- bodies First Nations men who were of age enlisted.

27. Call to Service
Approximately 4,000 Status Indians and as many Non-Status and Métis people served in WW1. First Nations women, like other Canadian women, contributed to the war effort through nursing, charitable societies, and working in the munitions factories.

28. Call to Service
Although First Nations and Métis were eventually let in for service in the CEF (The Canadian Expeditionary Force), they were often not promoted within the ranks. Nonetheless, many stood out.

29. Call to Service
Over the course of the war, First Nations men participated and earned medals in almost every major land battle (Vimy, Passchendaele, The Somme, Ypres). At least 300 of them died and more became ill with tuberculosis, PTSD, and the Spanish Flu that devastated all returning soldiers and hit First Nation communities particularly hard.

30. Prominent Aboriginals
TOM LONGBOAT (COGWAGEE) Was an Onondaga from the Six Nations Reserve in Brantford, Ontario was an athlete/Boston Marathon runner – became a courier in WWI.

31. Prominent Aboriginals
CAMERON BRANT The 28 year old received a lieutenant’s commission at Valcartier, Quebec while assigned to the 4th Infantry Battalion; shipped out for Europe on October 3, 1914, as part of the first Canadian contingent to go overseas. He was killed near Ypres, Belgium while his platoon was in a counterattack.

32. Prominent Aboriginals
FRANCIS PEGAHMAGABOW Ojibway First Nation soldier most highly decorated for bravery in Canadian military history and the most effective sniper of WWI. Three times awarded the Military Medal and seriously wounded, he was an expert marksman and scout, credited with killing 378 Germans and capturing 300 more.

33. THREE-DAY ROAD
The book by Joseph Boyden, Three Day Road, is based on Pegahmagabow’s experiences in the First World War.

34. WE REMEMBER
Francis Pegahmagabow: Canadian War Hero (CBC) 8:48 minutes he+National/Canada/ID/ /

35. Prominent Aboriginals
HENRY LOUIS NORWEST One of the most famous Canadian snipers in the First World War; born in Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, of French-Cree ancestry; in his nearly three years of service with the 50th Canadian Infantry Battalion, the lance-corporal achieved a confirmed kill record of 115. Norwest is one of only about 830 members of the CEF to be awarded the Military Medal and bar.

36. Prominent Aboriginals
EDITH ANDERSON In 1917, 27-year-old Anderson from Six Nations Grand River Reserve, joined the U.S. Medical Corps. Within months, they were in Vittel, France, at Buffalo Base Hospital 23, formerly a resort hotel. Anderson spent most of her time at the hospital, treating soldiers who had been shot or gassed. Occasionally, she was sent to other medical centres to help.

37. Edith Anderson
Francis Pegahmagabow
Cameron Brant
Tom Longboat
Henry Louis Norwest

38. THE EXPERIENCE
Redpatch is a play and graphic novel that speaks to the Indigenous experience during WWI; an experience mixed with racism, tolerance, trauma, and hope.

39. THE EXPERIENCE
See the additional handout for the graphic novel and the website for more info:
Graphic Novel online:
content/uploads/2016/09/Redpatch-Graphic-Novel- Full-Colour02.pdf

40. THE Battles
The major Canadian battles that Indigenous Peoples participated in: Ypres (1915; first use of poison gas) Somme (1916; a bloodbath + first use of tanks) Vimy Ridge (1917; Canadian success + “identity” / “independence”) Passchendaele (1917; senseless)

42. HOMEWARD BOUND
The Spanish Influenza began in the trenches at the end of the war in 1918 and was brought home with returning soldiers including Indigenous soldiers. It was a unusually deadly flu pandemic that killed 50 to 100 million people (three to five percent of the world's population) making it one of the deadliest natural disasters in human history.

43. POST-WWI
Over 75 Indigenous soldiers were decorated for bravery after the war. And historical records indicate that Canada could claim eight of the top dozen snipers from all countries involved in the fighting; of those eight, at least five and probably six are Aboriginal of some sort.

44. POST-WWI
While Indigenous soldiers enjoyed more freedoms abroad than they did in Canada, things returned to the status quo once back at home; they continued to face prejudice and discrimination.

45. POST-WWI
The federal government extended many postwar benefits to First Nations veterans, but not as many as those given to other vets. And all the sacrifices and achievements on the battlefield did not result in greater freedoms or rights, such as the vote, for First Nations.

46. UNMARKED GRAVES
2011 = Unmarked graves of Aboriginal soldiers on Saskatchewan reserves discovered. The Government of Canada provided $25,000 to help identify and mark these graves. Provided the honour and respect these soldier deserved.

47. WE REMEMBER
We, your sons and daughters of today, remember you, spirits of past wars and battles. We stand for peace on this planet called Mother Earth. ... We are armed not with the terrible weapons of technology but with the wisdom of the Elders. We have not forgotten, we will not forget. We will live for our children and the future. ~AMMSA

48. WE REMEMBER
Canada’s Aboriginal communities have been forming veterans’ organizations and recording their wartime experiences in newsletters, books and films. The sacrifices and achievements of those who participated must never be forgotten.

49. WE REMEMBER
First Nations in WW1 3:30 minutes Fq8