Guelphites celebrate end of the Great War
In Guelph, the Great War (First World War) was seen initially as an opportunity for citizens to display their British pride and valour on the battlefields of Europe. By 1918, the conflict had come to be viewed as a clash of civilization against barbarism: an ugly, desperate, grinding battle whose outcome was by no means assured.
The German military gambled everything on a massive spring offensive in northern France. The campaign placed a terrible strain on both sides. News from the front was greeted with mounting anxiety in the Royal City. However, the campaign came up short and the threat of German victory dissipated.
Allied forces responded in August with the Hundred Days offensive, which pushed German forces back to the Hindenburg Line, where the Germans hoped to hold out and sue for peace on favourable terms. Though casualties were high, Allied forces, including many Canadian units, broke through. By October, the German government was negotiating for an armistice, even a punitive one. By November, insurrections had broken out in Germany. Rumours of a ceasefire began to fly.
Finally, Guelphites could bear the tension no longer. On Nov. 6, plans to celebrate the end of hostilities were announced. The Publicity Committee of the Victory Loan Association arranged for a bash that would express the joy of Guelphites at the end of the fighting, reaffirm their support for the men and women who had “done their bit,” and celebrate the victory of British and Allied arms over the “Hun” hordes.
At 6 a.m. on Nov. 7, 1918, O’Reilly’s Clown Band made a tour of the city to rouse the weary citizenry. They were followed at 9 a.m. by Campbell’s Highland Pipers’ Band from Mount Forest.
Around noon, tents and stages went up in St. George’s Square, flanked by troops and cannons of the local 64th Battery. Speeches and performances were given, soliciting donations to the Victory Loan campaign and other causes for the welfare of soldiers and their families.
By mid-afternoon, business ground to a halt — apart from drug stores and tobacco shops — as nearly every man, woman and child jammed onto Wyndham Street. The Mercury described the scene:
“[S]oon little parades were formed and outfitted with Union Jacks and the Stars and Stripes, and other Allied flags. It seemed that every motor car and truck in the city was out and decorated, and filled with a human load who were waving flags and singing at the top of their voice. The crowd on the street soon became so big that any attempt to walk through it was impossible. Girls lost their hats in the melee …”
Evening celebrations were more formal. A long parade led out north up Wyndham from the old City Hall (now the Provincial Court House), headed by Col. William Clark, veteran of the Crimean War. Following were the Guelph Musical Society Band, automobiles carrying wounded soldiers from nearby Speedwell Hospital, dignitaries including Mayor Newstead, men of the 64th Battery, the Highland Pipers and Red Cross nurses.
Following them came military cadets from local schools along with more children carrying flags, the Salvation Army Band, then the Guelph Fire Brigade. After this came nearly every car and truck in Guelph, decorated patriotically and teeming with giddy celebrants. Bringing up the rear was the reliable O’Reilly’s Clown Band.
The whole caboodle made its way up Wyndham, Woolwich, down Norfolk and along Quebec Street to St. George’s Square. There, the assembled sang “God save the King” and “Praise God from whom all blessings flow.” More speeches, musical performances and pleas for money followed until the wee hours, one assumes. Finally, Guelph had exhaled.
The next day, it was noted that the celebration was premature: “Rumour concerning the signing of armistice is contradicted in London. No further information is available.”
Of course, the shooting stopped only three days later. Soon, the job of putting Europe, and Canada, back together would commence.