Description
Book SynopsisMilitia Myths traces the cultural history of the citizen soldier from 1896 to 1921, an ideal that lay at the foundation of how Canadians experienced and remember the First World War.
Trade ReviewIn the superb analysis of Militia Myths ...Canadian historian James Wood recaptures the ideological origins and evolution of the conceptual foundations that shaped Canada’s Army during its most formative years ... he has in a single effort replaced many outdated and erroneous myths about Canada’s Army with solid evidence-based research and analysis, effectively delivering what will undoubtedly become a must-have book in every Canadian military library.
Militia Myths is one of the best books in Canadian military - history I’ve read this year, and it is highly recommended to all. -- Major Andrew Godefroy * Canadian Army Journal, V. 14.1 *
Wood’s work expands our knowledge of the Canadian militia beyond the elite imperialists and general officers commanding. By a close study of the
Canadian Military Gazette and the speeches of militia officers and advocates, he shows the complex varieties of thought regarding the role of the citizen soldier in Canadian defense. By doing so he muddies the waters of the traditional historiography surrounding imperialism and the militia in Canada. More a history of military thought than a discursive study of popular conceptions, the work will appeal to academic military historians, while leaving gendered analysis and discourse and identity studies to the social historians. -- Jack L. Granatstein * H-War *
This is a very good study of the development of the Canadian citizen soldier ... that makes a significant contribution to the scholarly literature in the field of Canadian military history. -- Matthew Tudgen * Canadian Military Journal, vol. 12, no. 2, Spring 2012 *
Table of ContentsIntroduction: Canadian Ideas of the Citizen Soldier
1 A Military Spirit in Canada, 1896-98
2 An Army for Empire, 1898-1901
3 “Don’t Call Me Tommy,” 1901-04
4 “Who Are You Going to Fight?” 1905-08
5 Continental Commitments, 1909-11
6 Involuntary Action, 1911-14
7 War and Citizenship, 1914-17
8 Victory and Vindication, 1918-21
Conclusion: A Citizen’s Duty in “Canada’s Century”
Appendices
Notes
Bibliography
Index
