Term | Definition |
Suffragist | A person advocating the extension of suffrage, especially to women. |
Suffrage | The right to vote in political elections. |
Assimilation | The process by which a person or persons acquire the social and psychological characteristics of a group. "Waves of immigrants have been assimilated into the American Culture" |
Imperialist | A person who supports or practices imperialism, the practice of dominating other countries. |
Imperialism | A policy of extending a country's power and influence though diplomacy or military force, or to promote the dominance of one's own actions over others, especially culturally. |
Reserves | A reserve is a tract of land set aside under the Indian Act and treaty agreements for the exclusive use of an Indian band. |
Residential Schools | The schools were a network of "residential" schools for Natives Canadians funded by the Canadian government's Indian Affairs and Northern Department, and administered by Christian churches, most notably the Catholic Church and the Anglican Church. |
Ethnocentric | Evaluating other peoples and cultures according to the standards of one's own culture, usually in a negative context. |
Triple Alliance | The Triple Alliance was a military alliance among Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy. It lasted from 20 May 1882 until the First World War in 1914. |
Triple Entente | The Triple Entente was an alliance formed between Britain, France and Russia. |
Central Powers | The central powers consisted of the German Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire at the beginning of the war. The Ottoman Empier joined the Central powers later in 1914. In 1915, the Kingdom of Bulgaria also joined the alliance. |
Allied Powers | The Allied Powers were the countries who fought together against the Central Powers in the World War One. The Allies consisted of The Triple Entente, and were joined by America in 1917. Russia was also considered an Allied Power until they withdrew. |
Militarism | The belief or desire of a government or people that a country should maintain a strong military capability and be prepared to use it aggressively to defend or promote national interests. |
Nationalism | The belief, creed or political ideology that involves an individual identirying with, or beciming attached to, one's nation. This sometimes results in revolutionary or rebellious actions. |
War Measures Act | A statute of the Parliament of Canada that provided the government with the means to bypass the rules of habeas corpus, allowing them to convict or imprison suspects freely. They were also able to restrict other freedoms in the interests of security. |
Sam Hughes | The Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence during the First World War. He was involved with the incorporation of the Ross Rifle into the First World War. he was later dishonourably discharged due to the Ross rifle's unreliability, |
Shell Commitee | The Shell Committee was a company formed and administrated by Sam Hughes, and supplied shells to the Canadian and British armed forces. However, it was largely corrupt and ineffective. |
Trench Warfare | A type of combat in which opposing troops fight from trenches facing each other, usually resulting in a war of attrition. |
Archduke Franz Ferdinand | Was Heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne. His assassination in Sarajevo precipitated Austria-Hungary's declaration of war against Serbia. |
Schlieffen Plan | Germany believed it could take France out in one strike. The Schlieffen Plan was based on that Russia would take a while to mobilize and that Britain would remain neutral. It almost worked, but the Allies rallied enough men to stop the German attack. |
Battle of the Somme | The bloodiest battle of the First World War. as there were more than 1.25 million casualties, almost 24,000 among them Canadian. The strategies were outdated, and had troops marching in open fields getting mowed down by machine guns fire. |
Second Battle of Ypres | April 22, 1915, the use of German chlorine gas marked the beginning of the Second Battle of Ypres as it burned, blinded or killed the French and Canadian troops. Fought from 21 April-25 May 1915, more than 100,000 casualties were suffered. |
Battle of Vimy Ridge | Began April 9, 1917, every attempt to take Vimy Ridge before it had failed. When the Canadians were tasked with capturing Vimy ridge, intense planning was put into place. After weeks of strategizing, the Canadians successfully captured Vimy ridge. |
Passchendaele | 31 July-10 November 1917. The first Canadian appointed to lead Canadian troops was Sir General Arthur Currie, The battle ended in a victory for the Allies, but more than 200,000 casualties were felt on each side, including more than 15,000 Canadians. |
BIlly BIshop | Was a Canadian "First World War" flying ace. The top ace of the war, he was credited with 72 victories. |
Flying ace | A military aviator credited with, usually, five or more air-to-air victories. |
Lusitania | A British passenger liner that was sunk by a German U-Boat in 1915, killing close to 1200 passengers. Among the dead were Canadian and American civilians. |
Merchant Marine | A shipping vessel that is involved in commerce and trade, as opposed to military activity. |
Income tax | In 1917, The government introduced income tax, a measure that was supposed to be temporary. Affluent indivuduals and families had to pay a tax beteen 1% and 15% of their income |
Victory Bonds | Bonds issued by the Canadian government to support the war effort. |
Propaganda | Information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or pulicize a particular political cause or point of view. In this case, to support the troops fighting in the First World War |
Conscription | Forced enlistment in the armed forces of all fit men of certain ages. |
Sir Robert Borden | Eighth Prim Minister of Canada from October 10, 1911, to July 10, 1920. As Canada had committed half a million soldiers to the war effort, Borden enacted the Military Service act, which conscripted men from all over the country. |
Henri Bourassa | One of the most outspoken critics of conscription. He believed that Canada had lost enough men and spent enough money on the war that had little to do with Canada. |
Wartime Elections Act | An act that gave the vote to Canadian women related to servicemen, but cancelled the vote for conscientious objectors and immigrants from enemy countries. |
Profiteering | Making a profit by raising prices on needed goods or producing poor quality materials. |
Military Voters Act | An Act that allowed men and women serving overseas to vote |
Conscientious Objector | A person who opposes war for religious or moral reasons. |
Treaty of Versailles | One of the treaties that ended the First World War; it imposed strict sanctions on Germany. The bill was negotiated primarily by Clemenceau, Lloyd-George and Wilson. Among the sanctions were demilitarization, reparations and land denunciations. |
War Guilt Clause | An article in the Treaty of Versailles that stated that Germany was responsible for starting the First World War. |
League of Nations | Part of the Treaty of Versailles, it stated that if one member of the alliance was attacked, then all of the other members united against the aggressor. Woodrow Wilson proposed the idea, but the US didn't join. The League was ineffective. |
Armistice | An agreement by warring parties to end hostilities. Also known as a truce or a ceasefire. The armistice of the First World War was signed on November 11th, 1918. |
Paris Peace Conference | A meeting of the Allied victors following the end of the First World War to set peace terms for the defeated Central Powers, and to decide Europe's condition. This lasted for almost a year, and involved nearly 30 different nations. |
| |