80th anniversary of Canada’s declaration of war on Germany in WWII

ESubmitted by Brome County Historical Society

ighty years ago today, on September 10, 1939, Canada declared war on Germany and became a belligerent in the Second World War. Although the Second World War had a certain air of déjà-vu, it was also an important landmark in Canadian constitutional history. The Statute of Westminster passed in 1931 meant that Great Britain no longer legislated for its Dominions and thus the declaration of war passed was Canada’s first such declaration.

In Quebec, the war awoke the spectre of conscription – the ever-contentious issue that had caused riots in 1917. However, in a show of support with the federal government, Quebecers ousted Maurice Duplessis’s anti-conscription Union Nationale party in October 1939 and elected the Liberal Adélard Godbout. Godbout’s victory owes much to the fact that the Quebec-based federal ministers in Mackenzie King’s Liberal government threatened to resign should Duplessis win, leaving Quebecers with no anti-conscription voices in the federal cabinet. Nonetheless, those voices failed to prevent King from imposing conscription for national defense in 1940 and for overseas service in 1942 – a move that 72% of Quebecers opposed in a plebiscite. While many anglophone and francophone Quebecers enlisted, the Second World War would once more see Quebec and Canada stand opposed.

Much like during the First World War, Brome County did its part for the war effort both abroad and at home. Six hundred and forty-nine men and women from the County joined the armed forces, and their names will forever be remembered on honour rolls like the one in the collection of the BCHS. Moreover, to finance ever-increasing government spending, the Canadian government launched multiple “Victory Loan” campaigns. As evidenced by the multiple flags celebrating Brome County’s contributions to these campaigns, residents never hesitated to fund the war effort. Lastly, as many families lost their main breadwinner when young men went overseas, Philip Sydney Fisher established a fund to provide stipends to the dependents of servicemen and women. Fisher, himself a decorated veteran from the First World War, received the title of Commander of the Order of the British Empire in recognition of his charitable work.

Although today marks the eightieth anniversary of Canada’s vote to embark on a road filled with hardship for the second time in a generation, it also marks yet another example of local residents coming together to support each other and their country in a time of great sacrifice.

Right: The Knowlton Honour Roll from WWII