The Suicide Clause

This article explores the ways in which Canadian military authorities responded to suicide during the Second World War. Attestation papers represented an agreement between Canadians and the state. They would serve, but in return, Canada owed them certain considerations should they die during their service. Servicemen suicide, then, raised questions about Canada’s obligations to its servicemen. Divided by the requirements of the law and compassion for families, military authorities struggled to find the appropriate way to handle suicide. This paper argues that convention treated suicide as insufficient grounds upon which to break the covenant between serviceman and state