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Canadian Indians and the First World War

Timothy C. Winegard, 2012, For King and Kanata. Canadian Indians and the First World War, Winnipeg : University of Manitoba Press, 240 p.

Timothy C. Winegard vient de publier aux presses de l’université du Manitoba un ouvrage d’histoire militaire traitant une fois de plus de la participation des Autochtones à la Première Guerre mondiale. Néanmoins, cet ouvrage adopte une perspective originale dans la mesure où l’engagement des Autochtones dans cette guerre est analysé en tant qu’il participe à transformer les relations entre les différentes institutions et organisations en charge des Autochtones. L’auteur met ainsi en évidence les tensions et les dynamiques institutionnelles consécutives à la volonté des Autochtones de s’engager dans ce premier conflit mondial. Nous reproduisons ici la quatrième de couverture et la table des matières disponibles sur le site University of Manitoba Press. Nous ferons, dans un prochain billet, un compte-rendu critique détaillé de cet ouvrage qui s’inscrit dans notre démarche compréhensive de recherche.

Quatrième de couverture :

The first comprehensive history of the Aboriginal First World War experience on the battlefield and the home front.

When the call to arms was heard at the outbreak of the First World War, Canada’s First Nations pledged their men and money to the Crown to honour their long-standing tradition of forming military alliances with Europeans during times of war, and as a means of resisting cultural assimilation and attaining equality through shared service and sacrifice. Initially, the Canadian government rejected these offers based on the belief that status Indians were unsuited to modern, civilized warfare. But in 1915, Britain intervened and demanded Canada actively recruit Indian soldiers to meet the incessant need for manpower. Thus began the complicated relationships between the Imperial Colonial and War Offices, the Department of Indian Affairs, and the Ministry of Militia that would affect every aspect of the war experience for Canada’s Aboriginal soldiers.

In his groundbreaking new book, For King and Kanata, Timothy C. Winegard reveals how national and international forces directly influenced the more than 4,000 status Indians who voluntarily served in the Canadian Expeditionary Force between 1914 and 1919—a per capita percentage equal to that of Euro-Canadians—and how subsequent administrative policies profoundly affected their experiences at home, on the battlefield, and as returning veterans.

Table des matières :

Introduction

Ch 1: Indians and the Settler-State Experience

Ch 2: The Image of the Indian

Ch 3: Modern Warfare and the Noble Savage

Ch 4: The Privileges of Civilized Warfare: 1914

Ch 5: In the Interest of the Indians: 1915–1916

Ch 6: All the King’s Men: 1917–1918

Ch 7: Indian Soldiers

Ch 8: On the Home Front

Ch 9: Peace and Prejudice

Conclusion

Epilogue