Stand By the Union Jack: The Imperial Order Daughters of the Empire in the Prairie Provinces During the Great War 1914-1918
Date
1988-11
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Degree Level
Masters
Abstract
This study examines the activities of the Imperial
Order Daughters of the Empire (lODE) in the Canadian prairie
provinces during the Great War (1914-1918). Although the
voluntary work of the lODE is mentioned briefly in most
Canadian histories of the war period, the full extent and
significance of the Order's wartime role has never been
thoroughly examined. This study describes the various Great
War interests of the Daughters of the Empire in the West and
examines what motivated their successful war work.
Furthermore, although Canadian imperialism has been the
subject of intense study, the history of those Canadian
imperialists who happened to be women has been neglected.
Because they were women, the Daughters of the Empire
expressed their patriotism in ways that differed from the
patriotic expressions of men. The principal sources for
this work were the lODE records held at the National
Archives of Canada and the provincial archives of Manitoba,
Saskatchewan, and Alberta, and a number of private
collections of active lODE members and chapters.
When Britain declared war against Germany and its
allies in August, 1914, the Daughters of the Empire in the
three prairie provinces were eager and prepared to play a
major support role in order to ensure victory for the
British Empire. Acting as an integral part of an efficient,
well-organized national Order and energized by patriotic
zeal, the IODE in the west made significant contributions to
the Canadian and imperial war efforts.
The Daughters of the Empire operated an extensive
soldier support program and several large-scale wartime
projects which they financed through successful fundraising
endeavours. The Order also took stances on important political
issues which were deemed fundamental to the
successful prosecution of the war even though it meant
ignoring the official IODE policy of political neutrality.
Finally, fearing that there had been a decline in imperial
interest and cultural standards amongst English-Canadians
and anxious about the consequences of large-scale foreign
immigration into the West, the war inspired the IODE to try
and improve prairie society through various patriotic,
educational, health, social welfare, and economic
development programs. Ironically, the Great War brought an
end to the imperial ideals that formed the base of lODE
ideology, and the society that the Daughters of the Empire
worked towards was never realized.
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Degree
Master of Arts (M.A.)
Department
History
Program
History