Winning the Second Battle : : Canadian Veterans and the Return to Civilian Life 1915–1930 / / Desmond Morton, Glenn Wright.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter University of Toronto Press eBook-Package Archive 1933-1999
• VerfasserIn: Morton, Desmond,; Wright, Glenn,
• Place / Publishing House: Toronto : : University of Toronto Press, , [2019]; ©1987
• Year of Publication: 2019
• Language: English
• Series: Heritage
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (368 p.)

More than half a million Canadians served in the First World War. Their return to civilian life presented an enormous challenge to government and social institutions. The degree to which that challenge was met and the far-reaching implications of the veterans’ politicization form the core of this study by two eminent Canadian historians. Desmond Morton and Glenn Wright point out that Canada was a leader among its allies in devising plans for the retraining of disabled soldiers. Canada’s pension rates were the most generous in the world. From soldier settlement to returned soldiers’ insurance, Ottawa had prepared for returning Canadian armies with a care and foresight that was virtually unique among belligerents. In those carefully laid plans, and in the veterans’ organization and struggle to create their own version of civil re-establishment, were the roots of the modern welfare state. But in the end, the momentum of the veterans’ political drive was slowed by diminishing government support and dwindling resources, and veterans ultimately lost their ‘Second Battle.’ The story of that defeat, never told until now, reveals a great deal about Canadian government, pressure group, and politics in the interwar period.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Abbreviations -- 1. Veterans -- 2. 'A Motherly Touch' -- 3. Avoiding the 'Pension Evil' -- 4. Voices from the Ranks -- 5. The 'Department of Demobilization' -- 6. The Year of the Bonus -- 7. Re-establishment and Settlement -- 8. The Ralston Commission -- 9. Veterans' Unity -- 10. The Department of Pensions and National Health -- Statistical Appendix -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Picture Credits -- Index