CONFEDERATIONTHE EVENTS.

Charlottetown Conference

Strangers in Charlottetown

56:03 – 1:02:03

Canadian government delegation to Charlottetown, Maritime Union or Confederation

The Charlottetown Conference

Sept. 1st, 1864. Charlottetown, PEI

The Maritime provinces were talking about a Maritime union.

The Canadians had asked to attend as they wanted to put forth their plan of all British North American provinces to unite – for Confederation

PEI was considered the cradle of Confederation.

The Charlottetown Conference

The Canadians were asked to speak first, which included: George Cartier, John A. MacDonald, George Brown, Alexander Galt and D’Arcy McGee was also present.

They spoke of the advantages of uniting:Free trade between the colonies = Businesses

would grow and jobs would be plentiful;An intercolonial railway could be built to connect all

provinces;A central government would be set up for matters

affecting all provinces – but each province would still have its own government to look after its own affairs.

The Charlottetown Conference By Wednesday September 7, 1864, the delegates

from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island gave a positive answer to the Canadian delegation

Expressed the view that the federation of all of the provinces was considered desirable if the terms of union could be made satisfactory and the question of Maritime Union was waived

They agreed to meet and discuss the idea of Confederation at the Quebec Conference.

The Quebec Conference

• Three Weeks in Québec

• 1:02:03-1:19:16

• Québec Conference 1864, Grand Ball, St Albans raid

The Quebec Conference

Oct. 28th, 1964. Quebec City, Quebec. 7 delegates from NB 7 delegates from PEI 5 delegates from NS 2 delegates from NFLD (they were not at the Charlottetown conference) 12 delegates from Canada East and Canada West. These people are considered the Fathers of Confederation. They work out a plan known as the Seventy-Two Resolutions which

would form the basis of a scheduled future conference. The Conference adjourned on October 26

The Quebec Conference

For the Reformers of Canada West, led by George Brown, the end of what they perceived as French-Canadian interference in local affairs was in sight.

 For Maritimers such as Tupper of Nova Scotia or Tilley of New Brunswick, horizons were suddenly broadened to take in much larger possibilities for trade and growth

Highlights of the Seventy-Two Resolutions There would be a strong central (federal) government to look after

affairs affecting the whole country such as defence, trade, and foreign affairs.

Each province would have its own government to look after local matters.

The system of government would follow the British Constitution and the head of the government would be the king or queen of England.

The federal government would be made up of an elected House of Commons and an appointed Legislative Council (Senate).

Members of the House of Commons would be elected according to the principle of representation by population.

Members of the Legislative Council would be appointed and each region would have 24 members. (Canada West, Canada East and Atlantic Canada)

NFLD and NWT and BC would be allowed into the union as terms could be worked out.

The Outcomes

Let Their Memory be Dark

1:19:16-1:25:40

Institut Canadien, Rouges and the Catholic Church, Confederation debated in the Canadas

Province of Canada Who Why

For Confederation The Great Coalition: MacDonald, Brown, Cartier , Galt & McGee

Most members of Canada West (English speaking)

Conservatives (Bleus) led by Cartier (mainly French -speaking

End political deadlock, strengthen defence, improve trade, build trans-continential railway

Chance to expand to the West, union with other English-speaking colonies

Separate Provincial government for Quebec would be a way of protecting French-Canadian way of life.

Canada West

• They would become a powerful nation

• It would provide a barrier-free market

• Canada would become the third largest seagoing nation in the world after Britain the USA

• It would encourage people to immigrate to Canada

• In case of war, they would stand together

Province of Canada Who Why

Against Confederation English-speaking minorities in Canada East

French-speaking Liberals (Rouges) in Canada East – led by Dorion

Fear of being at a disadvantage in a province with a French-Canadian majority

Fear that a central government dominated by English Canadians would threaten French Canadian way of life

Canada East Cartier explained that French and English

would be equal partners. He promised that they would not lose their way of life. He said that if they did not join that they could be swallowed by the USA.

Dorian wanted a referendum, which means that all the people of Canada East would be given a chance to vote on the question and not just members of the Assembly. His request was refused.

The vote went in favour of Confederation.

New Brunswick Premier Tilly was in favour of Confederation

and decided to have an election on the question.

The anti-confederates believed that NB would lose too much control over their own affairs.

At the Quebec Conference, it had been decided that each province would receive a sum of money (subsidy) each year from the central government. The amount was based on the population of the colony. In NB, this amounted to .80 cents per person.

Opponents complained that Tilly was selling New Brunswickers out for .80 cents each

Tilly and his party was defeated

Nova Scotia Leading anti-confederate was Joseph Howe.

He was the best known politician in Atlantic Canada.

He was also a popular newspaper editor. He influenced many people with his “Botheration

Letters.” Comparing Confederation to a piece of cloth, it is

weak and poorly planned piece of material. Is it a good idea to put new wine (NS) in an old bottle (Province of Canada) or to attach new cloth to an old item of clothing? Is union strong when a wise man, doing a steady business, is tricked into joining a gambler? Was Samson stronger when combined with Delilah, who tied him with ropes and cut off his hair?

The premier of NS was Charles Tupper, who decided to wait as he did not want the same result as NB.

PEI

• Advantages were unclear.• PEI was a small colony and

would only have a small amount of representatives in a Canadian government.

• There was widespread opposition and the topic was dropped

• PEI joined in 1873.

NFLD and Labrador They felt few ties with Canada and

Confederation had little appeal. They had longstanding bonds with Britain. CF Bennett, a wealthy merchant, spoke

out against Confederation. He warned that the government would tax their boats, fish etc. and that goods in Canada would be so cheap that NFLD products would not sell.

On the night Confederation was defeated in NFLD, there was a parade in St. John’s. Anti-confederationists pushed a large coffin labeled Confederation.The coffin was buried during a fake funeral.

NFLD did not join confederation until 1949.

The Maritimes

Good Management and Means

1:25:40-1:34:53

The Maritime colonies, Fenian brotherhood raids

Outcome of Atlantic Colonies PEI and NFLD were not ready in 1867 Britain supported the idea as it would mean only one colonial

government to deal with. They would also not have to send soldiers and expanding west would create more business opportunities.

Britain instructed the lieutenant-governor to arrange for a pro-confederation decision Former Premier Tilly took up the cause again – he received money from railway promoters, shipping and timber interests and the Canadian government. US also ended free trade. They played up the Fenian raids and Tilly won.

In NS, a new, pro-Confederation, lieutenant-governor was appointed. Sir Fenwick Williams was a hero in the British navy and he backed up Tupper.

Tupper and Tilly pushed for union.

The British North America Act Dec. 1866, London Conference Canada East and West, NB and NS Revised the 72 Resolutions so they would be passed

as an act and made law in British Parliament. The British North America Act went into effect on

July 1st, 1867. It created “One Dominion under the Name of

Canada.” Dominion is a term form a verse in the Bible that

described a land that reached from sea to sea. The Dominion of Canada became the official name of our country.

Definitions and Historical SignificanceTerm Definition Historical Significance

Charlottetown Conference

A meeting organized by the Maritime colonies to discuss a union among them. Politicians from other colonies came to the conference to discuss their plans for a wider union

The Maritime delegates were impressed by the advantages cited by the delegates from Canada East & West and agreed to meet at the Quebec Conference to discuss union

Seventy-Two Resolutions A plan worked at the Quebec Conference to ensure that there would be a string union with a powerful central government

These resolutions are the foundation of the BNA Act of 1867, which created the Dominion of Canada.

Quebec Conference A meeting of delegates from all the colonies who gathered to sit down and work out the details of a plan for a union

This conference initiated formal plans for constructing a system of government that was unique to Canada

Term Defintion Historical Significance

Anti-Confederationists Those opposed to Confederation. They were numerous and powerful in NB, PEI and NFLD

The Fathers of Confederation worked hard in all their regions to have the 72 resolutions pass in their Assemblies. PEI and NFLD rejected Confederation in 1867.

Subsidy A sum of money that each colony would receive from the central government each year, based upon the population of the colony.

Opponents of Confederation in NB used the subsidy to attack the plan and accused the delegates of selling New Brunswickers to the Canadians for 80 cents each.

Referendum A vote of all citizens on a question

Although Cartier refused Dorion’s request for a referendum, there have been referendums in Quebec in 1980 and 1995

The London Conference

A Great Revolution

1:34:53-1:40:29

London Conference 1866

London Conference Following the Quebec Conference, the

Province of Canada's legislature passed a bill approving the union

The union proved more controversial in the Maritime provinces, however, and it was not until 1866 that New Brunswick and Nova Scotia passed union resolutions

Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland continued to opt against joining.

London Conference In December 1866, sixteen delegates from the

Province of Canada, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia traveled to London

Queen Victoria received each in private audience At meetings held at the Westminster Palace Hotel,

the delegates reviewed and approved the 72 resolutions

In January 1867 the delegates began drafting theBritish North America Act. Agreed that the new country should be called Canada Canada East should be renamed Quebec Canada West should be renamed Ontario

London Conference There was, however, heated debate about how the

new country should be designated. Ultimately, the delegates elected to call the new country the Dominion of Canada

Draft of the British North America Act by February 1867.

The Act was presented to Queen Victoria on February 11, 1867

The Act received royal assent on March 29, 1867, and set July 1, 1867, as the date for union

We Are Canadian

July 1, 1867

1:40:29-1:46:16

John A. Macdonald as Prime Minister, Brown’s ode, celebrations