MILITIA ACT (1904). An Act respecting the Militia and Defence of Canada.

CANADIAN ARMY. Canada. Parliament.

Published by Ottawa: Samuel Edward Dawson, 1904

About this Item

Octavo (9.75 inches). 4 Edward VII, Chapter 23 (Statutes of Canada). Caption title, 25 pages. Royal coat of arms. Neatly extracted from a bound volume and expertly mended. This Act reformed the militia by making Canadian officers the equal of British officers and removing the governor-general from exercising command. The legislation formalized improvements that had already been underway, incorporating new units that were deemed necessary for a national army including engineers, signal corps, intelligence experts, reconnaissance forces, medical corps, military staff clerks, pay corps, and officers training corps. Section 11 of the Act stated that: All male inhabitants of Canada, of the age of eighteen years and upwards, and under sixty, not exempt or disqualified by law, and being British subjects, shall be liable to service in the Militia; the Governor General may require all the male inhabitants of Canada capable of bearing arms, to serve in the case of a levee en masse. The Act abolished the position of General Commanding Officer (which had always been previously held by a British officer) and replaced it with a Militia Council (composed of civilian and military personnel) and General Staff (led by a senior Canadian officer), thus helping to modernize army leadership. The expanded Canadian military establishment also helped to influence Parliament to increase military spending. Seller Inventory # 081

Bibliographic Details

Title: MILITIA ACT (1904). An Act respecting the ...

Publisher: Ottawa: Samuel Edward Dawson

Publication Date: 1904

Binding: Soft cover

Condition: Very Good

Edition: 1st Edition