Why Did Germans Migrate to Canada?

Why did Germans migrate to Canada?  Many German families migrated to Canada because of allegiances and alliances in various wars, including the American Revolution. Those from Germany or who consider themselves German also moved to Canada for religious reasons. Finally, there are many German families who migrated to Canada because of World War II.

First, it must be noted that the question of why Germans migrated to Canada is not as straightforward as it might originally seem. Canada is home to a large population of people who consider themselves of German descent. In fact, Germans represent one of the largest cultural populations within Canada.

However, interestingly enough, not many of those people are actually descended from ancestors who lived in Germany. Instead, the majority of them are rooted in German families that made their homes in Switzerland, Austria, Russia, and most other countries in Eastern Europe. Not everyone knows the story behind how, and why, this first happened, though. Below are several reasons why Germans migrated to Canada.

Wars and Migration to Canada

The first group of settlers from Germany appeared in Canada around 1751. Many German people had served on the British Army in the recent battle in which Great Britain took over Nova Scotia, and they chose to come to the new territory to make their homes.

Yet another wave of migration to Canada occurred during the American Revolution in 1775, when a number of German Loyalists (those devoted to Great Britain rule) left America and moved up to Canada due to the war. Further, Britain called upon a huge amount of German soldiers to help fight the Revolution, some of whom remained in Canada (these were known as the Hessians).

Religious Reasons for Migration to Canada

Religion is another reason why Germans migrated to Canada. The Mennonites, a religious group of Christian Anabaptist pacifists, had a large German population in Eastern Europe during the 1700s. In the very late 1800s, the Tsarist regime in Russia put them into a precarious position with a great deal of religious persecution, and a large flood of them moved to Canada as a refuge. This wave of immigrants largely settled in Canada’s western areas, where the climate was similar to that of Russia.

World War II and Migration to Canada

Many people make the assumption that Germans in Canada are there as a result of refugees escaping the Third Reich before and during World War II. This, in fact, isn’t correct. After World War I, anti-German sentiment ran high, and in 1919 Canada set down a prohibition on German immigration into the country, along with immigration from any other countries who had been enemies in the conflict.

This ban lasted until 1923. Even during the 1930s, Canada didn’t admit many of the Jewish refugees who were seeking a haven from Hitler’s overtaking of Germany. After the war, however, with the help of government refugee assistance agencies, 15,000 Germans came into Canada from 1947 to 1950. Finally, beginning in 1950, all restrictions on German immigration were lifted and 25,000 new German immigrants landed on Canadian soil within the next 10 years.