Imperialists Nationalists Sir Robert BordenSir Albert Edward Kemp Sir Wilfrid LaurierHenri Bourassa The Conscription Crisis of 1917 (French: Crise de la conscription de 1917) was a political and military crisis in Canada during World War I.

The disturbances began on a Thursday when the Dominion Police detained a French-Canadian man who had failed to present his draft exemption papers.

The final and bloodiest conflict happened Easter Monday when crowds once again organized against the military presence in the city, which by then had grown to 1,200 soldiers.

Though the actual number of civilian casualties is debated, official reports from that day name five men killed by gunfire.

The experience of the first contingent suggested that they could expect nothing but ill-treatment as French-speaking Catholics in English-speaking battalions filled with what they perceived as mostly Protestant men and officers who were unable to communicate with them.

Indeed, Montreal's La Presse editorialized that Quebec should create a contingent to fight as part of the French Army.

While a few other French-speaking groups were also allowed to be created, mostly by Reserve officers, they were all disbanded to provide replacements for the 22nd, which suffered close to 4,000 wounded and killed in the course of the war.

There were over 300,000 recruits by 1916, but Prime Minister Robert Borden had promised 500,000 by the end of that year, even though Canada's population was only 8 million at the time.

The Act was passed: allowing the government to conscript men aged 20 to 45 across the country if the Prime Minister felt that it was necessary.

Laurier had opposed conscription from the beginning of the war, arguing that an intense campaign for volunteers would produce enough troops.

They never fully supported the war effort, which resulted in the Federal government expressing deep concern over French Canada's nationalist and anti-war stance.

[10]: 540  The nation was divided between English-speaking imperialists who supported the overseas war effort and French-speaking nationalists who believed that conscription was a second attempt to impose the Conquest, therefore it needed to be resisted at all costs.

While in London, Borden had received a lot of pressure to send more troops to fully support the allied forces.

[12] The debate surrounding conscription would be one that would have a significant impact on both Federal and provincial politics for many years following World War I.

The most violent opposition occurred in Quebec, where anti-war attitudes drawn from French-Canadian nationalism sparked a weekend of rioting between March 28 and April 1.

The disturbances began on a Thursday when the Dominion Police detained a French-Canadian man who had failed to present his draft exemption papers.

By the following Good Friday evening, an estimated 15,000[dubious – discuss] rioters had ransacked the conscription registration office as well as two pro-conscription newspapers within Quebec City.

[10]: 9, 15–17, 83 This escalation of violence along with rumours of an alleged province-wide uprising prompted Quebec City Mayor Henri-Edgar Lavigueur to contact Ottawa and request reinforcements.

[10] The final and bloodiest conflict happened Easter Monday when crowds once again organized against the military presence in the city, which by then had grown to 1,200 soldiers – all of whom came from Ontario.

Though the actual number of civilian casualties is debated, official reports from that day name five men killed by gunfire; dozens more were injured.

This stemmed from a clash between English Canada's linkage to the British Empire and opposing currents in French-Canadian nationalism, which became exacerbated during wartime and ultimately erupted over conscription.

The severity and swiftness of Ottawa's response demonstrated their determination to impose conscription and prevent a national crisis.

Moreover, the military crackdown which lasted in Quebec until the end of the war resulted in an increase in state power in the wake of growing French-Canadian nationalism.