Breaking Barriers: Stories of Canadian Women in Military Service During the First World War
A Remembrance Day Event
Nov 11, 2026 — 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Lecture
Join us for this fascinating lecture. Drawing on her research, Dr. Morin-Pelletier uncovers little-known stories of Canadian women during the First World War and explores how their experiences challenged traditional gender roles.
Dr. Mélanie Morin-Pelletier
Guest Speaker
Dr. Mélanie Morin-Pelletier is the Historian, War and Society at the Canadian War Museum. Since joining the Museum in 2012, she has curated major exhibitions including Fighting in Flanders – Gas. Mud. Memory. (2014), The Home Front, 1917 (2015), Vimy – Beyond the Battle (2017), and Armour (2018). Most recently, she curated Lost Liberties – The War Measures Act (2021) at the Canadian Museum of History.
Her current research interests focus on the human experience of war, whether on the battlefield, in military hospitals, or on the home front. She is the author of Briser les ailes de l’ange. Les infirmières militaires canadiennes (1914-1918) (2009) and has published numerous articles on Canadian military nursing and the impact of war on the Canadian home front.
Dr. Morin-Pelletier holds a Bachelor’s degree in Education, a Bachelor’s degree in History and Geography, and a Master’s degree in History, all from the University of Moncton. She also holds a PhD in History from the University of Ottawa and completed postdoctoral training at McGill University. She has taught History at the University of Ottawa and the Royal Military College of Canada.