|
1929 Crash | Economic Slowdown
| Bennett in Power |
The Ottawa Conference |
Prairie Drought |
Relief |
The Regina Riots | Alberta &
Bible Bill | Statute of
Westminster | Woodworth & the
C.C.F.
|
The Union Nationale |
Relief Camps |
Bennett's Conversion |
King's Return |
European Unrest |
Royal Visit
When the depression began in 1929/30 the
economic meltdown that took place was beyond the control
of provincial governments. Strong, coordinated, mutual
actions were needed from the U.S., Canada and several
European nations which did not happen. This result was
that within the next 4 to 6 years, most incumbent
governments were thrown out of office as soon as an
election was held.
Quebec was no
different from the other provinces in that it suffered
high unemployment, general economic decline, loss of
faith but much of the electorate in the government and
capitalism as it was then perceived and a desire to see
action by the government to help the people. Quebec was
different in who it blamed for the crisis and what they
rallied to as far as a politic message was.
Maurice Duplessis had belonged to the
Conservatives but blaming the English business community
that controlled much of Quebec's commerce, decided to
form a new party which would fight for the rights of the
French Canadian majority in the province. His party, the
Union Nationale, used issues such as the conscription
crisis of the 1st world war, the seemingly uncaring
attitude of the English business men about the people,
the desire of the French Canadian population to run
their own affairs and the principles of family values as
represented and propagated by the Quebec Roman Catholic
church. In 1936
the Union Nationale won the provincial election and
Duplessis became the Premier of the province. The
coalition of interests which he had put together and the
benefits for the common French Canadian in Quebec, which
he seemed to be fight for allowed him to run the
province in almost any manner he wished without
resorting to any particular political philosophy.
The spread of the
Union Nationale outside of Quebec to the other provinces
was never a real possibility because many of the factors
which made it so strong in Quebec, would make it
extremely weak elsewhere. It was a French Canadian
nationalist party and Duplessis would go on to rule the
province, except for a brief period between 1939 and
1944 when world issues overwhelmed Canada, until his
death in 1959.
His most famous action
was the Padlock law which allowed the provincial
government to shut down and arrest any group or person
that it felt was subversive to the good government
principles of Quebec. Although it was supposedly aimed
at communists, Duplessis used it whenever he wanted to
silence opposition or trouble makers for his government.
The Union Nationale played a key
role in the political life of Quebec for over 40 years
and when it finally dissolved the nationalistic
political forces which had supported it ended up largely
switching another new party, the Partis Québécoise under
another dynamic leader, Rene Leveque. |
