World War I – 1914 – 1918) Canadians cheering the British King George V, at Salisbury Plain, England. These troops likely felt a real sense of pride and joy to be reviewed by their monarch.
Although Canada had attained semi independent Dominion status by the time World War 1 came about, the country was very much still tied to Britain, and many anglophones felt a strong connection to Britain culturally and through family ties. Today the king or queen of England remains the head of the Canadian government, but this is a constitutional fiction only; all decisions are made by the Canadian government which has since matured into a fully independent and vibrant country of its own. But when these men had the privilege of saluting their king, they were not just saluting a figure head. For them King George tuly represented the unbreakable bond between England and her colony and they were glad to fight for him and for the mother country.