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War Weariness' in the Canadian Corps During the Hundred Days Campaign of the First World War

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War Weariness' in the Canadian Corps During the Hundred Days Campaign of the First World War University of Calgary PRISM: University of Calgary's Digital Repository Graduate Studies The Vault: Electronic Theses and Dissertations 2013-09-13 Unwilling to Continue, Ordered to Advance: An Examination of the Contributing Factors Toward, and Manifestations of, 'War Weariness' in the Canadian Corps during the Hundred Days Campaign of the First World War Chase, Jordan A.S. Chase, J. A. (2013). Unwilling to Continue, Ordered to Advance: An Examination of the Contributing Factors Toward, and Manifestations of, 'War Weariness' in the Canadian Corps during the Hundred Days Campaign of the First World War (Unpublished master's thesis). University of Calgary, Calgary, AB. doi:10.11575/PRISM/28595 http://hdl.handle.net/11023/951 master thesis University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission. Downloaded from PRISM: https://prism.ucalgary.ca UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY Unwilling to Continue, Ordered to Advance: An Examination of the Contributing Factors Toward, and Manifestations of, ‘War Weariness’ in the Canadian Corps during the Hundred Days Campaign of the First World War by Jordan A.S. Chase A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT FOR DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY CALGARY, ALBERTA SEPTEMBER, 2013 © Jordan A.S. Chase 2013 Abstract This thesis examines the contributing factors and manifestations of ‘war weariness’ in the Canadian Corps during the final months of the Great War. The starting point is the acknowledgment that all armies on the Western Front were suffering from ‘war weariness’ by 1918. The historiography for the Canadian Corps, however, ignores or denigrates this issue in its analysis of the operational achievements of the Corps, primarily because of the Victory Campaign narrative and the Colony-to-Nation paradigm. The thesis identifies the preconditions for ‘war weariness,’ namely, the nature, pace and intensity of the Hundred Days, the resultant heavy casualties, and the fact that the majority of the Corps’ troops were long-serving veterans. The final section examines the manifestations of ‘war weariness’ in the Corps during the final months of the war and after the signing of the Armistice, focussing mostly upon instances of insubordination, indiscipline and the killing of German prisoners. ii Acknowledgments A project such as this, spanning nearly two years of my life, would have been impossible to complete without the vital assistance offered by many encountered during my travels to complete this thesis. First of all, I would like to thank my parents, Drs. Vern and Pat Chase, who provided moral and financial support throughout my seven years of post-secondary education in both Nova Scotia and Alberta; without their support, I would in all likelihood have had to give up on my dream of pursuing a career in academic history. I would also like to thank my sister Vanessa for her advice and inspiration. Her completion of a Master’s degree and her work ethic have been an inspiration to me throughout my academic life. My sister Andria also deserves recognition; she provided me with a place to stay during my extensive research trips to Ottawa, and her unfailing support, delicious meals and humour helped get me through some tough times. My friends also deserve appreciation for their role in completing this project; they were always there for me, and helped me maintain my sanity and keep things in perspective. My colleagues in the Department of History have also been invaluable to me. Their advice, suggestions and assistance have allowed me to become a more complete historian-in-training and their help shall not be forgotten down the road. I also need to thank the wonderful and hard-working ladies of the History Department. Marion, Diane, Brenda and Lori have all helped me in innumerable ways, and always took my queries with good cheer and competence. I really would not have been able to complete this project without their invaluable assistance. I also need to thank and recognise the excellent assistance provided to me by the staffs at Library and Archives Canada and the Canadian War Museum. A timely email by Dr. Tim Cook of the War Museum galvanised me and helped keep things in perspective. Drs. Holger Herwig and Elizabeth Jameson also provided me with assistance and reference letters; without their support, I would have been unable to continue my academic career at the University of Western Ontario. Finally, I need to wholeheartedly thank my thesis supervisor Dr. Patrick Brennan. Dr. Brennan assisted me in multifarious ways and his confidence in my research and writing helped me maintain my focus during this sometimes tedious project. Dr. Brennan’s patience, assistance, guidance, advice and suggestions allowed this project to come to fruition and I owe a huge debt of gratitude for all he has done over the past two years. His passion for Canadian military history has only reinforced such passion in my own life. Of course, any remaining mistakes within this thesis are entirely my own responsibility. iii Dedication This thesis is dedicated to my Grandmother Mary Viola Stapley, who was born just prior to the opening of the Battle of Amiens in 1918 and who passed away while I was revising this thesis in May of 2013. iv Table of Contents Abstract --------------------------------------------------------------------- ii Acknowledgments --------------------------------------------------------------------- iii Dedication --------------------------------------------------------------------- iv Table of Contents --------------------------------------------------------------------- v Introduction --------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 Chapter 1 --------------------------------------------------------------------- 18 Chapter 2 --------------------------------------------------------------------- 40 Chapter 3 --------------------------------------------------------------------- 64 Chapter 4 --------------------------------------------------------------------- 86 Chapter 5 --------------------------------------------------------------------- 109 Conclusion -------------------------------------------------------------------- 131 Appendix I -------------------------------------------------------------------- 139 Appendix II -------------------------------------------------------------------- 140 Bibliography -------------------------------------------------------------------- 141 v Introduction The Great War from 1914-1918 was the largest and most destructive conflict in the history of the western world to that point. Canada, as a Dominion of the British Empire, provided the mother country with manpower and substantial munitions, to say nothing of its moral and political support for Great Britain. Aside from contributing sailors, cavalry and airmen, forestry and railway troops, medical personnel and labourers, Canada’s largest contribution was without a doubt its Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF), of which the Canadian Corps was the actual fighting entity. To get an understanding of Canada’s commitment, archival records state that over 600,000 Canadians served in the armed forces, representing approximately one-third of the adult male population of the time. Of these, 426,500 went to the continent with the CEF, and of that one in three were wounded and one in seven became a fatal casualty.1 Tim Cook, Canadian military historian at the Canadian War Museum, has slightly different numbers for enlistment and casualties. Cook states that during the war years 619,636 Canadians served, and of those 424,589 went overseas with the CEF. He asserts that there were 235,012 total casualties in the CEF, of which 60,932 were fatal. Mathematically, this means that over half, or around 55%, of servicemen were either killed or wounded while overseas.2 War is an inherently traumatic experience. Placing human beings in mortal danger for extended periods of time had the ability to overwhelm even the strongest and most stoic of men. Moreover, combat and warfare are not just about rifles and artillery, the mental and emotional states of mind of the combatants wielding these weapons must also be taken into account in any evaluation of the achievements of military units on the battlefield. Not only did the war put extraordinary demands upon the social cohesion, political stability and economic capabilities of the combatant nations, it also served to put unprecedented demands upon the physical strength and the mental, emotional and psychological well-being of the men at the front engaged in combat. Thus morale, discipline and combat motivation are factors that must be incorporated into our understanding of the accomplishments of the Canadian Corps during Great War. As this is a study of ‘war weariness’ in the Canadian Corps during the Hundred Days Campaign of the First World War, it would be prudent at this point to expound on this idea and 1 Library and Archives Canada (hereafter LAC), RG 24, Volume: 1824, Folder: G.A.Q. 5-48, File: ‘Vimy: Introduction to Memorial Register – Summary of Cdn. Corps Operations 1914-1918.’ 2 Tim Cook, Shock Troops: Canadians Fighting the Great War 1917-1918 – Volume II (Toronto: Penguin Canada, 2008). The statistics and discussion on
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