Issue 2 (63)

HOW CANADIANS COMMEMORATE THE WARS OF 1812–1814 and 1914–1918
Year 2019 Number 2(63)
Pages 50-55 Type scientific article
UDC 94(71) BBK 63.3(7Êàí)5
Authors Schimmelpenninck van der Oye David
Topic CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL MEMORY IN TEXTS AND PRACTICES
Summary The article examines how Canadians commemorate their involvement in the War of 1812 and in the First World War. Unlike Russians, who observe Victory Day (Den pobedy) every year on May 9 as a festive holiday, the Canadian commemoration of the end of the Great War, November 11, is a somber event marked by two minutes of silence and quiet contemplation of the war dead. As a people that see themselves as peacekeepers rather than warriors, Canadians do not have a holiday that celebrates a military victory. However, they consider the participation in the war of their own units as an important step towards full independence from Great Britain. The War of 1812, the American attempt to wrest Canada from Great Britain during the Napoleonic Wars, was defeated by British troops. However, Canadians tend to see it as their victory, won by their volunteers in the militia. They see the War of 1812 as an event that unified them as a distinct nation. In this regard, one can talk about its significant role in the formation of the Canadian national identity. Studying the forms of commemorations and sites of memory dedicated to the wars of 1812–1814 and 1914–1918, reveals the specifics of the memorial culture of Canadians.
Keywords First World War, British-American War of 1812–1814, Canada, Canadian nationalism, anniversaries, politics of memory, historical memory
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