Henri Bourassa

JosephNapolonHenri Bourassa was a French Canadian political leader and publisher. In 1899, Bourassa was outspoken against the British governments request for Canada to send a militia to fight for Britain in the Second Boer War. Prime Minister Sir Wilfrid Lauriers compromise was to send a volunteer force, but the seeds were sown for future conscription protests during the World Wars of the next halfcentury. Bourassa challenged, unsuccessfully, the proposal to build warships to help protect the empire. He led the opposition to mandatory conscription during World War I, arguing that Canadas interests were not at stake. He opposed Catholic bishops who defended military support of Britain and its allies. Bourassa was an ideological father of FrenchCanadian nationalism.

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Source: Wikipedia