A review by dashadashahi
Maple Leaf Empire: Canada, Britain, and Two World Wars by Jonathan F. Vance

3.0

Vance investigates the period between 1871, when Britain pulled out military support in Canada, and 1946 with the end of the Second World War and the departure of most Canadian soldiers, and their families, from Britain. During the nineteenth century, Britain’s departure forced Canada to begin developing its own defence systems, often mirroring British traditions. As Vance aptly puts it, “The beginnings of a distinctly Canadian culture also lay with the British regular solider” (p. 9). Indeed, during the Boer War Canada developed “autonomy and distinctiveness” as a nation and military while also moving closer together with Britain (p. 29). During the First World War Canadians returned, often with excitement, to the homeland. It was in this period that Canadian soldiers, and their wives and families, set up Canadian institutions and structures in Britain such as hospitals, clubs, and military outposts. Initially, Britons saw Canadians as the same breed, although slightly lesser, using the term “colonial” in a negative way. However, after the colony’s success at Ypres, Canadians were viewed as hardy, hard-working, and capable, similar to the view cultivated during the Boer War. The Second World War continued Canada’s “colonization” of Britain. Canadians were not always on their best behaviour in Britain, committing crimes and impregnating women. Similarly, war brides often struggled to adjust to the new rural and prairies landscape. Nonetheless, Canadians cultivated a strong presence in Britain, a “maple leaf empire” which reinvigorated British-Canadian connections and traditions. Although this empire quickly dissipated after the Second World War, often without plaques to memorialize Canada’s history with certain buildings and locations (p. 222).