Review of Desmond Morton, When Your Number\u27s Up: The Canadian Soldier in the First World War. Toronto: Random House, 1993

Gardner, Nick

English

Scholars Commons

Canadian Military History
Volume 3 | Issue 2 Article 24
1-23-2012
When Your Number’s Up: The Canadian Soldier in the
First World War by Desmond Morton [Review]
Nick Gardner
University of Calgary
This Feature is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Commons @ Laurier. It has been accepted for inclusion in Canadian Military
History by an authorized administrator of Scholars Commons @ Laurier. For more information, please contact scholarscommons@wlu.ca.
Recommended Citation
Gardner, Nick (1994) "When Your Number’s Up: The Canadian Soldier in the First World War by Desmond Morton [Review]," Canadian
Military History: Vol. 3: Iss. 2, Article 24.
Available at: http://scholars.wlu.ca/cmh/vol3/iss2/24
as Nigel Hamilton used for the 
title of the second volume of his 
Montgomery biography. 
Simonds, according to 
Granatstein, was "the best soldier 
Canada has produced in the 
Second World War." Suchastrong 
categorical statement has been 
assailed in some quarters among 
Canadian historians. The general 
consensus seems to be that 
although that may be true, it also 
left much to be desired. There is 
no mention of Simonds' role in the 
closing stages of the war in the 
Rhineland. In fighting that was 
reminiscent of Flanders, the 
two-pronged attack was delayed 
until the start of February so that 
armoured mobility was lost in 
the mud while air support was 
reduced by cloud and poor 
visibility. Startling mistakes were 
made by usually reliable 
commanders. Some contend that 
Simonds allowed his rivalry with the 
popular Horrocks to lead him into 
murderous and needless fighting. 
The point is moot to this day. 
My allotted space does not 
allow me to do justice to this very 
worthwhile book. There are lapses 
as has been pointed out. Some 
generals receive treatment that is 
cursory at best (Foulkes, Kitching, 
Worthington) while others whose 
careers were spectacular and 
successful (Holly Keefler) leave the 
reader like Oliver Twist asking for 
"More please, sir!" 
The section of the political 
generals, particularly Maurice 
Pope, are thought-provoking and 
disturbingly prophetic. Pope's 
remarkable loyalty and clear-
headedness deserve to be better 
known. This dovetails nicely into 
Granatstein's candid and well-
balanced treatment of the 
absence of French-Canadian 
generals. His interpretation of Ken 
Stuart's role in this situation is 
debatable as was his involvement in 
the manpower shortage crisis. It is 
revealing to read Crerar's opinion 
of General La Fleche as being 
"entirely unmoral ... very dangerous 
. . . an utter egomaniac." In the 
light of what has been revealed 
about Crerar himself, this is a 
clear case of "the pot calling the 
kettle black." 
Granatstein concludes that 
Canada's "share of victory owed 
more to the common soldiers than 
to the generals." Nevertheless, 
victory could not have been 
achieved without the generals who 
because of their "psychological 
colonial status" were "condemned 
to practise deference to their 
betters and control in the 
presence of subordinates." 
Specialists may and will quibble 
with Granatstein on some or many 
points but most will be satisfied, 
even impressed, generally. 
Gil Drolet 
* * * * * 
When Your 
Number's Up 
The Canadian Soldier in 
the First World War 
Desmond Morton. When Your 
Number's Up: The Canadian 
Soldier in the First World War, 
(Toronto: Random House, 1993) 
354 pages, $32.50. 
W hile the exploits of the Canadian Expeditionary 
Force at Vimy Ridge, St. Julien 
and elsewhere along the Western 
Front have been documented 
thoroughly, the individuals who 
made up the ranks of the CEF 
have not been considered in any 
great depth. With this intent in 
mind Desmond Morton has 
writtenhislatestbook, When Your 
Number's Up, which examines 
these Canadian soldiers and "the 
factors that shaped their lives and 
hastened their deaths." [p.vii] . 
The study is informed by an 
impressive array of existing 
scholarship on the First World 
War, much of it Morton's own 
work. In addition, the author has 
examined a wide variety of primary 
material, including diaries, letters 
and correspondence of Canadian 
soldiers. He is thus able to capture, 
in an anecdotal fashion, the 
experiences ofthese men, thereby 
providing a uniquely personal 
perspective on Canada's role in 
the conflict. 
Morton begins his study by 
assessing the nation's response to 
the outbreak of hostilities in 1914, 
noting that for most Canadians, 
war seemed "a remote, romantic 
adventure." He illustrates the 
unbridled fervour which charac-
terized the first weeks of the war 
in Canada, culminating with the 
departure of the First Contingent 
of the CEF in early October. As 
recruiting continued, however, it 
gradually became apparent that 
Canadian enthusiasm for military 
service had its limits. Sam 
Hughes' Department of Militia was 
soon forced to resort to increasingly 
imaginative recruiting schemes. 
By the fall of 1915, Morton 
suggests, somewhat charitably, 
"Anyone with a bright idea and 
access to the Minister" could 
organize a battalion for overseas 
service. [p.57] Judging by the 
turmoil thatensuedinmanyparts 
of the country, it would seem that 
"bright" ideas were not always 
a necessity. 
Despite spirited recruiting 
efforts, Morton maintains that by 
late 1916 the well of volunteers 
had largely run dry. He discusses 
the unrest that accompanied 
conscription, noting that while 
121 
1
Gardner: <em>When Your Number’s Up</em> [Review]
Published by Scholars Commons @ Laurier, 1994
compulsory service has since been 
condemned as a needless and 
oppressive, such charges are 
largely the product of hindsight. 
Indeed, had the war continued 
until 1920, as the Allies 
anticipated, the necessity of 
conscription would have been 
quite evident. Morton follows 
the soldiers of the CEF in their 
preparations for war, arguing 
that much of their training in the 
first years of the conflict was of 
limited value. He recounts the 
experience of one Canadian 
corporal on manouveures in 
England, who, after ordering his 
section to crawl forward to 
capture a machine-gun post, was 
informed by a reproachful staff 
officer that "No British soldier 
crawls into battle on his belly!" 
[p.90] Both in Canada and 
England, the training regimen 
proved woefully inadequate for the 
grim conditions that the soldiers 
would encounter at the front. 
While insufficient training 
coupled with inexperience often 
led to disastrous losses early in 
the war, Morton argues that as 
the conflict progressed, the CEF was 
able to develop effective tactics. 
Mter the devastating experience of 
the Somme, a battle characterized 
by Canadian soldier Frank 
Maheux as "worse than hell," the 
author contends that a tactical 
"revolution" took place as the 
Canadian Corps regrouped in 
front of Vimy Ridge. With the 
refocussing of tactics at the 
platoon level, Morton suggests 
that "Canadian infantry would be 
organized and trained to fight their 
own battles and not be patriotic 
automata." [p.164] As the war 
progressed, Canadian success 
increased as the infantry improved 
upon its new tactics of fire and 
movement. At the same time, the 
artillery "mastered a practical 
science," with devastating effects. 
122 
In addition to tactics, Morton 
explores some of the bleaker 
realities facing Canadian soldiers. 
Perhaps the most graphic section 
of the book addresses the nature 
of wounds and diseases at the 
front. Relying on the accounts of 
soldiers, surgeons and nurses, 
complemented by several rather 
chilling photographs, Morton 
relates clearly the grisly assortment 
of fates that befell many men. 
Prisoners of war suffered under 
dreadful conditions as well. While in 
theory they were protected by the 
dictates of the Geneva Convention, 
the author demonstrates that 
captured Canadian soldiers were 
often mistreated and malnourished 
by their captors. 
Morton concludes his study on 
a bitter note, with a discussion of 
the reintegration of the members 
of the CEF into Canadian society 
at the end of the war. The author 
is critical of the response to the 
needs of veterans, noting that 
while programs were devised for 
the rehabilitation of many soldiers, 
such plans soon fell by the 
wayside as Canadians found more 
pressing problems. With the 
depression of 1921, funds for 
disabled veterans' jobs all but 
disappeared. As Morton notes 
caustically: "Employing them had 
tumed out to be more patriotic 
than profitable." [p.271] 
I:q addition to providing a vivid 
portrayal of the experiences of the 
soldiers who comprised the CEF, 
Desmond Morton has captured 
the changing nature of the war in 
which they fought. Throughout 
the book, the author emphasizes 
the evolution in the conditions 
faced by soldiers at the front, in 
the tactics they employed in 
battle, and in the nature of the 
Canadian society from which they 
emerged. It should be noted that 
the study relies heavily on the 
author's previous work in this 
area. Readers familiar with 
Morton's many studies of the CEF 
and Bill Rawling's recent book on 
tactics will find that When Your 
Number's Up contains few new 
revelations regarding the 
Canadian experience in the war. 
Nonetheless, the book provides 
intriguing glimpses of many 
aspects of the struggle through 
the eyes of Canadians who 
participated, at the same time 
helping to dispel the misleading 
image of the First World War as a 
static and meaningless conflict. 
Nick Gardner 
University of Calgary 
* * * * * 
Achilles in Vietnam 
Combat Trauma and the 
Undoing of Character 
Jonathan Shay, MD, Ph.D. Achilles 
in Vietnam: Combat Trauma and 
the Undoing of Character. (New 
York: Atheneum, 1994) 236 
pages, $20.00 US 
J onathan Shay has written a remarkable book. This book 
is at once erudite, eloquent and 
outspoken. Even though Canada 
was not involved in the prosecution 
of the Vietnam War, it is a book 
which should be read by every 
officer or non-commissioned 
officer who commands, will 
command, or intends to 
command, troops in battle. For 
them, this is a very important 
type to which they are not 
normally exposed by their training. 
This is also a text that will have 
great value to officers and NCOs 
who are expected to be employed 
in peacekeeping duty, a duty for 
which Canada is justly famous 
worldwide. This observation is 
made not because of Dr. Shay's 
2
Canadian Military History, Vol. 3 [1994], Iss. 2, Art. 24
http://scholars.wlu.ca/cmh/vol3/iss2/24


\u3cem\u3eWhen Your Number’s Up: The Canadian Soldier in the First World War\u3c/em\u3e by Desmond Morton [Review]

Wilfrid Laurier University

Canadian Military HistoryVolume 3 | Issue 2 Article 241-23-2012When Your Number’s Up: The Canadian Soldier in theFirst World War by Desmond Morton [Review]Nick GardnerUniversity of CalgaryThis Feature is brought to you for free and open access by Scholars Commons @ Laurier. It has been accepted for inclusion in Canadian MilitaryHistory by an authorized administrator of Scholars Commons @ Laurier. For more information, please contact scholarscommons@wlu.ca.Recommended CitationGardner, Nick (1994) "When Your Number’s Up: The Canadian Soldier in the First World War by Desmond Morton [Review]," CanadianMilitary History: Vol. 3: Iss. 2, Article 24.Available at: http://scholars.wlu.ca/cmh/vol3/iss2/24as Nigel Hamilton used for the title of the second volume of his Montgomery biography. Simonds, according to Granatstein, was "the best soldier Canada has produced in the Second World War." Suchastrong categorical statement has been assailed in some quarters among Canadian historians. The general consensus seems to be that although that may be true, it also left much to be desired. There is no mention of Simonds' role in the closing stages of the war in the Rhineland. In fighting that was reminiscent of Flanders, the two-pronged attack was delayed until the start of February so that armoured mobility was lost in the mud while air support was reduced by cloud and poor visibility. Startling mistakes were made by usually reliable commanders. Some contend that Simonds allowed his rivalry with the popular Horrocks to lead him into murderous and needless fighting. The point is moot to this day. My allotted space does not allow me to do justice to this very worthwhile book. There are lapses as has been pointed out. Some generals receive treatment that is cursory at best (Foulkes, Kitching, Worthington) while others whose careers were spectacular and successful (Holly Keefler) leave the reader like Oliver Twist asking for "More please, sir!" The section of the political generals, particularly Maurice Pope, are thought-provoking and disturbingly prophetic. Pope's remarkable loyalty and clear-headedness deserve to be better known. This dovetails nicely into Granatstein's candid and well-balanced treatment of the absence of French-Canadian generals. His interpretation of Ken Stuart's role in this situation is debatable as was his involvement in the manpower shortage crisis. It is revealing to read Crerar's opinion of General La Fleche as being "entirely unmoral ... very dangerous . . . an utter egomaniac." In the light of what has been revealed about Crerar himself, this is a clear case of "the pot calling the kettle black." Granatstein concludes that Canada's "share of victory owed more to the common soldiers than to the generals." Nevertheless, victory could not have been achieved without the generals who because of their "psychological colonial status" were "condemned to practise deference to their betters and control in the presence of subordinates." Specialists may and will quibble with Granatstein on some or many points but most will be satisfied, even impressed, generally. Gil Drolet * * * * * When Your Number's Up The Canadian Soldier in the First World War Desmond Morton. When Your Number's Up: The Canadian Soldier in the First World War, (Toronto: Random House, 1993) 354 pages, $32.50. W hile the exploits of the Canadian Expeditionary Force at Vimy Ridge, St. Julien and elsewhere along the Western Front have been documented thoroughly, the individuals who made up the ranks of the CEF have not been considered in any great depth. With this intent in mind Desmond Morton has writtenhislatestbook, When Your Number's Up, which examines these Canadian soldiers and "the factors that shaped their lives and hastened their deaths." [p.vii] . The study is informed by an impressive array of existing scholarship on the First World War, much of it Morton's own work. In addition, the author has examined a wide variety of primary material, including diaries, letters and correspondence of Canadian soldiers. He is thus able to capture, in an anecdotal fashion, the experiences ofthese men, thereby providing a uniquely personal perspective on Canada's role in the conflict. Morton begins his study by assessing the nation's response to the outbreak of hostilities in 1914, noting that for most Canadians, war seemed "a remote, romantic adventure." He illustrates the unbridled fervour which charac-terized the first weeks of the war in Canada, culminating with the departure of the First Contingent of the CEF in early October. As recruiting continued, however, it gradually became apparent that Canadian enthusiasm for military service had its limits. Sam Hughes' Department of Militia was soon forced to resort to increasingly imaginative recruiting schemes. By the fall of 1915, Morton suggests, somewhat charitably, "Anyone with a bright idea and access to the Minister" could organize a battalion for overseas service. [p.57] Judging by the turmoil thatensuedinmanyparts of the country, it would seem that "bright" ideas were not always a necessity. Despite spirited recruiting efforts, Morton maintains that by late 1916 the well of volunteers had largely run dry. He discusses the unrest that accompanied conscription, noting that while 121 1Gardner: <em>When Your Number’s Up</em> [Review]Published by Scholars Commons @ Laurier, 1994compulsory service has since been condemned as a needless and oppressive, such charges are largely the product of hindsight. Indeed, had the war continued until 1920, as the Allies anticipated, the necessity of conscription would have been quite evident. Morton follows the soldiers of the CEF in their preparations for war, arguing that much of their training in the first years of the conflict was of limited value. He recounts the experience of one Canadian corporal on manouveures in England, who, after ordering his section to crawl forward to capture a machine-gun post, was informed by a reproachful staff officer that "No British soldier crawls into battle on his belly!" [p.90] Both in Canada and England, the training regimen proved woefully inadequate for the grim conditions that the soldiers would encounter at the front. While insufficient training coupled with inexperience often led to disastrous losses early in the war, Morton argues that as the conflict progressed, the CEF was able to develop effective tactics. Mter the devastating experience of the Somme, a battle characterized by Canadian soldier Frank Maheux as "worse than hell," the author contends that a tactical "revolution" took place as the Canadian Corps regrouped in front of Vimy Ridge. With the refocussing of tactics at the platoon level, Morton suggests that "Canadian infantry would be organized and trained to fight their own battles and not be patriotic automata." [p.164] As the war progressed, Canadian success increased as the infantry improved upon its new tactics of fire and movement. At the same time, the artillery "mastered a practical science," with devastating effects. 122 In addition to tactics, Morton explores some of the bleaker realities facing Canadian soldiers. Perhaps the most graphic section of the book addresses the nature of wounds and diseases at the front. Relying on the accounts of soldiers, surgeons and nurses, complemented by several rather chilling photographs, Morton relates clearly the grisly assortment of fates that befell many men. Prisoners of war suffered under dreadful conditions as well. While in theory they were protected by the dictates of the Geneva Convention, the author demonstrates that captured Canadian soldiers were often mistreated and malnourished by their captors. Morton concludes his study on a bitter note, with a discussion of the reintegration of the members of the CEF into Canadian society at the end of the war. The author is critical of the response to the needs of veterans, noting that while programs were devised for the rehabilitation of many soldiers, such plans soon fell by the wayside as Canadians found more pressing problems. With the depression of 1921, funds for disabled veterans' jobs all but disappeared. As Morton notes caustically: "Employing them had tumed out to be more patriotic than profitable." [p.271] I:q addition to providing a vivid portrayal of the experiences of the soldiers who comprised the CEF, Desmond Morton has captured the changing nature of the war in which they fought. Throughout the book, the author emphasizes the evolution in the conditions faced by soldiers at the front, in the tactics they employed in battle, and in the nature of the Canadian society from which they emerged. It should be noted that the study relies heavily on the author's previous work in this area. Readers familiar with Morton's many studies of the CEF and Bill Rawling's recent book on tactics will find that When Your Number's Up contains few new revelations regarding the Canadian experience in the war. Nonetheless, the book provides intriguing glimpses of many aspects of the struggle through the eyes of Canadians who participated, at the same time helping to dispel the misleading image of the First World War as a static and meaningless conflict. Nick Gardner University of Calgary * * * * * Achilles in Vietnam Combat Trauma and the Undoing of Character Jonathan Shay, MD, Ph.D. Achilles in Vietnam: Combat Trauma and the Undoing of Character. (New York: Atheneum, 1994) 236 pages, $20.00 US J onathan Shay has written a remarkable book. This book is at once erudite, eloquent and outspoken. Even though Canada was not involved in the prosecution of the Vietnam War, it is a book which should be read by every officer or non-commissioned officer who commands, will command, or intends to command, troops in battle. For them, this is a very important type to which they are not normally exposed by their training. This is also a text that will have great value to officers and NCOs who are expected to be employed in peacekeeping duty, a duty for which Canada is justly famous worldwide. This observation is made not because of Dr. Shay's 2Canadian Military History, Vol. 3 [1994], Iss. 2, Art. 24http://scholars.wlu.ca/cmh/vol3/iss2/24

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\u3cem\u3eWhen Your Number’s Up: The Canadian Soldier in the First World War\u3c/em\u3e by Desmond Morton [Review]

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