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Louis Riel and the Red River Rebellion
The Metis (half Native/French) fought for their rights in Western Canada (land protection too) because they believed that too many British people settled in their land. Louis Riel was a Roman Catholic Canadian and was the leader of the Metis people. In 1869-1870, there was the Red River rebellion. The Metis did not get land protection but they did make Manitoba officially bilingual. The Metis rebelled against the government and wanted land protection. However, the rebellion was not a success. -
The North-West Rebellion
Louis Riel returned to Canada after escaping to the U.S. in order to bypass the legal system in Canada. At this time, the federal government was intentionally cutting off supplies for the Metis in order to build the transcontinental railway without anything in the path. This sparked an outrage in the Metis people and caused a rebellion. This was also the rebellion where Riel was captured. The event was mostly caused by language rights and land protection hence why it's related to the topic. -
The Trial of Louis Riel
The significance of the event is the perspectives of both sides. The Prime Minister of Canada, John A. Macdonald viewed the French as "barking dogs" while the French regarded him the same way. The trial was not fair at all as the jury was made up of English people only, therefore, it took them a short amount of time to declare him guilty. Macdonald did not show any mercy and Louis Riel was hanged in Regina, Saskatchewan. It was the first major dispute between both sides since confederation. -
Federal Election of 1911
Wilfrid Laurier, a prominent figure in Canadian history, was the seventh Prime Minister and the first French Prime Minister of Canada (served from 1896-1911). In 1911, he proposed reciprocity with the U.S. because it would support western farmers as they felt Central Canada was not offering good prices for products in comparison to what they would gain out of trading with the south of the U.S. However, businesses did not like this idea because the U.S.' economy is hard to compete with. -
Election of Robert Borden
Robert Borden, leader of the Conservative party since 1901, was elected into office as Prime Minister of Canada in 1911. The Conservatives' counter argument to Laurier, leader of the Liberal party was that it would lead to annexation of Canada by the United States and would weaken Canada's sovereignty. -
Beginning of World War I
In 1914, Canada was not yet an independent nation. It was still under the rule of the British Empire. When Britain declared war on Germany, Canada was automatically brought into war. In the first few months of the first world war, there were no problems with enlistment and military service was set at volunteers only and not mandatory. As a result of the terrifying conditions of war and the spread of this information through newspapers, telegrams and soldiers, the recruits began to decrease. -
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Reaction to the Act
The act quickly became one of the most controversial topics for the country. This was because of the division among the people. Supporters of the act included family members of soldiers and supporters of Great Britain. However, French Canadians, farmers, unionized workers and non-British immigrants highly opposed this act mostly because of the fact that they view it as not their war. Farmers and unionized workers did not like the fact that they would lose employees. This caused lots of riots. -
Conscription Crisis of 1917
Fallen soldiers in battle can not be replaced quickly enough and more pressure by Britain was thrown on the Canadian government to send more men. This led to Robert Borden breaking one of his campaign promises; no conscription! In 1917, Robert Borden presented the Military Services Act which was forcing eligible people into mandatory military service. The disabled, clergy, conscientious objectors and those with essential jobs were exempt from conscription, but this would later come at a price. -
Khaki Election of 1917
Prime Minister Robert Borden desperately needed to gain the support of the Canadian people as the elections came closer and closer. As a result, he attempted to gain the support of those fighting overseas through the Military Voters Act which grants Canadians overseas the permission to vote. Also, he proposed the Wartime Elections Act which gave Canadian women related to servicemen the right to vote. However, all conscientious objectors and enemy aliens were revoked of their right to democracy. -
Results of Conscription
Conscription not only had an effect on groups and communities but on the country as a whole. People thought that the government was dishonest and not trustworthy because of their actions to force conscription despite the fact that they promised not to. The conscription crisis of 1917 has a lasting effect in history and is of great historical significance because it divided the country into two sides. Borden won the election as he was able to persuade Liberals into forming a Union Government. -
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La Grande Noirceur (Continued)
Duplessis' policies led Quebec to an era of economic depression and corruption. The people did not have any freedoms in education. It was controlled by the Roman Catholic church; it had too much power. Hospitals were also put into the church's hands. Duplessis also made horrible decisions, he would put orphans in hospitals and diagnose them with mental issues when they are completely healthy, just to make more money. Duplessis did not make any political, social, or economic advances. -
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La Grande Noirceur
The "great darkness" is a time period in the late 1930s-1950s where the provincial government of Maurice Duplessis, the premier of Quebec took bribes and had horrible policies that were pro-separatism. Duplessis promised to defend the French language and put the Roman Catholic church in charge of education while kicking the English businesses out of Quebec. Although Duplessis kept his promises on rights, he took bribes from whoever gave him more money regardless of ethnicity. -
Conscription Crisis (1944)
The conscription crisis of 1944 was very similar to 1917 although it was not as big of a crisis as it was in 1917. William M. King was the Prime Minister at the time. He was recognized for his attempts of delaying conscription but at one point, it was evident that it had to be done. A referendum of whether conscription should be allowed was held, all provinces except Quebec voted yes. The French were outraged because they have to suffer through conscription once again. -
Richard Riots
Maurice Richard was a professional NHL player under the Montreal Canadiens. He was portrayed as an idol and a hero by the French, he was their favorite player. Richard was violent in his plays. After hitting an opponent with a stick and knocking them out with his fists, he was suspended for the remainder of the season as well as the playoffs. This caused a public outrage and riots, the French thought they were being humiliated by excessive punishment. It heightened tensions between both sides. -
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The Quiet Revolution
The revolution did not have violence hence the name "quiet." It limited the control of the church. The status of women increased. The businesses in control of hydroelectricity were no longer in control. And, the management of businesses and high level government positions went to the French. Jean Lesage won the election based off of his slogan, "time for change." There was an increase in literature, art and music. Lesage promised the French that they would have more control over their future. -
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The Quiet Revolution's Effect - The Birth of Separatism
People began to feel proud and nationalistic. They also felt a sense of superiority or difference and felt very privileged. There was a growth of the belief of separatism among the people. Quebec wanted special status in Canada as well as more control over programs in Quebec. It caused an increase in tensions between the English and the French because the French began wanting to separate. The French thought that so long as they were associated with Canada, they would never be treated equally. -
The FLQ & the Visit from the French President
The Front de libération du Québec was a terrorist group formed in the 1960s with the political goal of separating Quebec from the rest of Canada. They felt the only way they would be recognized is through violence. They conducted bombings in the 1960s and 70s and killed several citizens and officers. French president, Charles de Gaulle visited Expo 67 after being invited by the Quebec government. He made a controversial statement, "vive le Quebec libre!" He supported the liberation of Quebec. -
Bi and Bi Commission
At the time, Lester B. Pearson was the Prime Minister of Canada. His response to the separatism was to establish the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism. This commission is setup to promote bilingualism and biculturalism. This applies to education where students can request to attend schools in the language they prefer. -
The Official Languages Act (1969)
This means that Canada as a whole is officially a bilingual country with French and English as the official languages. This also resulted in the increase of francophones appointed to government positions. -
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The October Crisis
Associates and members of the FLQ kidnapped a French provincial cabinet minister, Pierre Laporte and a British Diplomat, James Cross. The War Measures Act was enacted as a result of the struggles of law enforcement to keep law and order and therefore needed more power in order to keep this. This was a controversial decision as it reduced civil liberty and freedom greatly in exchange for security. The kidnappers murdered Laporte however Cross was released and the kidnappers were exiled. -
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The October Crisis (Continued)
The terrorist actions resulted in greater support for the use of violence and crimes in order to gain Quebec's independence and it greatly increased electoral movements of independence, which includes support for the Parti Québécois, which would later form the provincial government of Quebec in 1976. It alerted many Canadians to how important and serious the independence movement is. The French and FLQ believed that Quebec was controlled by the English but they had different solutions to this. -
Bill 22
Due to the fact that immigrants preferred to learn English over French, the French wanted to protect their language and culture and did not want to become a minority in Quebec. Bill 22 was passed which meant French is the official language for public services in Quebec. Immigrants did not have a free choice over what language they choose to be educated in, they must pass an English comprehension test and if they don't then they receive education in French. This contradicted the bill in 1969. -
Election of Parti Québécois
Le Parti Québécois was a provincial party in Quebec which had the main goal of separating from Canada. They won in 1976 which was the first time a political party with the goal of separating was elected. This sparked a sense of curiosity by everyone because it was a matter of what is going to happen next. -
Bill 101 & Impact
The Parti Québécois passed this bill in 1977 which was a more extreme version of Bill 22. French was the only language to be used in the government including courts and businesses. This meant that commercial signs can only be displayed in French and that French became the official language of the workplace. This forced some English businesses to leave and over 50,000 people left the province in 1977. The Alliance Quebec fought against this in court. The result is English has to be on signs. -
Independence Referendum (1980) & Sovereignty Association
Premier of Quebec, Levesque requested a referendum for Quebec's independence. The results were not in favor of independence. Less than 20% of people in Quebec wanted independence because some feared that America would dominate Quebec economically and politically. However, over 80% wanted to see change. As a result, Levesque proposed the sovereignty association which means that Quebec would be politically independent but economically associated with Canada. 40% voted yes and 60% voted no. -
The Night of the Long Knives
Pierre Trudeau wanted to make a revised version of the constitution including the supreme court and the charter of rights and freedoms. Premiers of other provinces did not agree with this because they feel they will lose power and they will not have control over final decisions as it will be left to the supreme court. Gang of 8 disagreed with Trudeau. They stayed at the same hotel except Levesque. This means that they could still discuss and make a deal, which they did without Quebec's premier. -
Meech Lake Accord
The agreement wanted to add Quebec to the constitution, this means a change in the constitution and required the signature of the parliament of all ten provinces. Quebec wanted to receive special status and wanted to be recognized as a "distinct society" in order to accept the deal. But, the definition and interpretation of "distinct society" was too open and vague because there are other ethnic groups that can be recognized the same way. Some provinces did not sign this. The result was failure. -
Quebec Independence Referendum (1995)
Another referendum was held, it was very close. Because of this, the Clarity Act of 1999 meant that Quebec no longer has the right to separate without having to negotiate with nine other provinces, the federal government, Aboriginals living in Quebec, and other minorities. This was the last major event where Quebec was on the verge of independence. It was a defining moment in Canadian history.
