War historian Tim Cook on why Remembrance Day resonates with Canadians

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When the Ottawa Citizen launched its We Are the Dead project on Remembrance Day 2011, we had no idea the extent to which it would be embraced by readers curious about the stories behind the names of Canada’s war dead. That interest doesn’t surprise Tim Cook, chief historian and research director of the Canadian War Museum. Cook is the author of 19 books on Canada’s military history, from the South African War to the Korean conflict. His most recent book, The Good Allies, examines the relationship between Canada and the US during World War II.

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Q: What is it about Remembrance Day and projects like We Are the Dead that seems to resonate so much with people?

A: Why do you think we still care? I am asked that. People say, ‘Even World War II was 80 years ago. The world has moved on…’

I think there are several elements that still resonate with Canadians. The first is the magnitude and shock of this catastrophic event. A third of Canadian adult men served and so many Canadians were affected by this war. During the First World War, even though it was 110 years ago, more than 66,000 Canadians died. So many families were affected by this war, across the country, across all classes and almost all religions. That is one of the reasons why it lives on from descendant to descendant to descendant.

Question: It often seems like a very personal reaction from people.

A: Not every Canadian is concerned about this – not every Canadian even knows about it. But at the museum we often get letters from people who say: ‘I just found out that I have a great-grandfather or a great-uncle who served in the war. How can I find out more?’ A key element of this desire to know more is that this history runs in our families. It’s in our blood. It goes back generations. There are, in fact, millions of Canadians who have a connection to this war.

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Question: Why is the First World War especially important to Canadians?

A: Every year around this time we return to acts of remembrance and remembrance. Although our memory extends to other wars and other conflicts and to our contemporary members of the Canadian Armed Forces, much of the commemorative language and systems date back to the Great War. Think of the poppy. Think of John McCrae and the poem In Flanders Fields. Consider Armistice Day, which was renamed Remembrance Day in 1931. Think of our national monument and Vimy Ridge. Although Remembrance Day is about connecting the past with the present from many wars, the Great War has a particularly prominent place.

It was a defining moment for Canada and we taught it as such.

Q: It seems Canadians are determined not to forget.

A: In 2010, with the death of John Babcock, our last surviving World War I veteran, I remember journalists asking me: Is this the end? Will the Great War fade away and become something like the War of 1812, which is really only dredged up in history classes or in museums? But it seems to me that the Great War is in reality something completely different. We see this now, the importance and impact of offspring. They play a very crucial role in commemoration. Are they only interested in their family history? That’s clearly part of the story. But does that family history also allow them to better understand the war efforts and the history of their country? There are many people who are involved in genealogical research, I think the war is a special event that allows them to learn more about their country.

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Q: For We Are the Dead, we rely on readers to help us tell the stories. Without them we probably wouldn’t be successful.

A: We cannot discount the incredible work of Library and Archives Canada in digitizing war documents. We have many more resources available online and through specialist genealogy sites and newspapers and whatever else allows us to do this important work. Recently, the Library and Archives began digitizing the records of the 42,000 Canadians who died in the Second World War. That will open up new research. We do not have the entire 1.1 million personnel files, but once privacy laws and resources at Library and Archives permit, it will prompt a new exploration of that generation of Canadians at war.

We can be grateful for that opportunity to remember our shared history, which continues to pulsate in the present and which we will pass on to the next generation. You asked why we haven’t forgotten the Great War and those who fought in it or were shaped by it, and we continue to want to explore these individuals as people. I think ultimately because it still haunts us.

This conversation has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

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