History of Canada

Thehistory of Canadacovers the period from the arrival of thePaleo-IndianstoNorth Americathousands of years ago to the present day. The lands encompassing present-dayCanadahave been inhabited for millennia byIndigenous peoples,with distinct trade networks, spiritual beliefs, and styles of social organization. Some of these older civilizations had long faded by the time of the firstEuropean arrivalsand have been discovered througharcheologicalinvestigations.

TheBattle of the Plains of Abrahamwas a pivotal battle during theFrench and Indian Warover the fate ofNew France,influencing the later creation ofCanada.

From the late 15th century,FrenchandBritishexpeditions explored, colonized, and fought over various places within North America in what constitutes present-day Canada. The colony ofNew Francewas claimed in 1534 with permanent settlements beginning in 1608.Franceceded nearly all its North American possessions to theGreat Britainin 1763 at theTreaty of Parisafter theSeven Years' War.The now BritishProvince of Quebecwas divided intoUpper and Lower Canadain 1791. The two provinces were united as theProvince of Canadaby theAct of Union 1840,which came into force in 1841. In 1867, the Province of Canada was joined with two other British colonies ofNew BrunswickandNova ScotiathroughConfederation,forming a self-governing entity. "Canada" was adopted as the legal name of the new country and the word "Dominion"was conferred as the country's title. Over the next eighty-two years, Canadaexpanded by incorporating other partsofBritish North America,finishing withNewfoundland and Labradorin 1949.

Althoughresponsible governmenthad existed in British North America since 1848, Britain continued to set its foreign and defence policies until the end ofWorld War I.TheBalfour Declaration of 1926,the1930 Imperial Conferenceand the passing of theStatute of Westminsterin 1931 recognized that Canada had become co-equal with the United Kingdom. The Patriation of the Constitution in 1982 marked the removal of legal dependence on the British parliament. Canada currently consists often provinces and three territoriesand is aparliamentary democracyand aconstitutional monarchy.

Over centuries, elements of Indigenous, French, British and more recentimmigrantcustoms have combined to form aCanadian culturethat has also been strongly influenced by its linguistic, geographic and economic neighbour, theUnited States.Since the conclusion of theSecond World War,Canada's strong support formultilateralismandinternationalismhas been closely related toits peacekeeping efforts.

Indigenous peoples

See also:Timeline of Canadian historyandList of years in Canada

Indigenous societies

Main article:Indigenous peoples in Canada

Further information:Technological and industrial history of Canada § The Stone Age: Fire (14,000 BC-AD 1600)

TheGreat Lakesare estimated to have been formed at the end of thelast glacial period(about 10,000 years ago), when theLaurentide Ice Sheetreceded.

ArcheologicalandIndigenous geneticevidence indicate that North and South America were the last continents into whichhumans migrated.During theWisconsin glaciation,50,000–17,000 years ago, falling sea levels allowed people to move gradually across the Bering land bridge (Beringia), fromSiberiainto northwest North America.At that point, they were blocked by theLaurentide Ice Sheetthat covered most of Canada, confining them to Alaska and the Yukon for thousands of years.The exact dates and routes of thepeopling of the Americasare the subject of an ongoing debate.

By 16,000 years ago theglacial meltallowed people to move by land south and east out of Beringia, and into Canada.TheHaida Gwaiiislands,Old Crow Flats,and theBluefish Cavescontain some of the earliestPaleo-Indianarcheological sites in Canada.Ice Agehunter-gatherersof this period leftlithic flakefluted stone tools and the remains of large butchered mammals.

The North American climate stabilized around 8000 BCE (10,000 years ago). Climatic conditions were similar to modern patterns; however, the recedingglacial ice sheetsstill covered large portions of the land, creating lakes of meltwater.Most population groups during theArchaic periodswere still highly mobile hunter-gatherers.However, individual groups started to focus on resources available to them locally; thus with the passage of time, there is a pattern of increasing regional generalization (i.e.:Paleo-Arctic,PlanoandMaritime Archaictraditions).

TheWoodland cultural perioddates from about 2000 BCE to 1000 CE and is applied to the Ontario, Quebec, andMaritime regions.The introduction of pottery distinguishes the Woodland culture from the previous Archaic-stage inhabitants. TheLaurentian-related peopleof Ontario manufactured the oldest pottery excavated to date in Canada.

Laurel complexin present daynorthern OntarioandManitoba

Complexes in present daysouthern Ontarioand southwesternQuebec

Local cultural expressions of theHopewell traditionduring theMiddle Woodland period

TheHopewell traditionis an Indigenous culture that flourished along American rivers from 300 BCE to 500 CE. At its greatest extent, theHopewell Exchange Systemconnected cultures and societies to the peoples on the Canadian shores ofLake Ontario.Canadian expression of the Hopewellian peoples encompasses thePoint Peninsula,Saugeen,andLaurel complexes.

Theeastern woodland areasof what became Canada were home to theAlgonquianandIroquoianpeoples. The Algonquian language is believed to have originated in the western plateau of Idaho or the plains of Montana and moved with migrants eastward,eventually extending in various manifestations all the way fromHudson Bayto what is todayNova Scotiain the east and as far south as theTidewater region of Virginia.

Speakers ofeastern Algonquian languagesincluded theMi'kmaqandAbenakiof theMaritimeregion of Canada and likely the extinctBeothukofNewfoundland.TheOjibwaand otherAnishinaabe speakersof thecentral Algonquian languagesretain an oral tradition of having moved to their lands around the western and centralGreat Lakesfrom the sea, likely the Atlantic coast.According to oral tradition, the Ojibwa formed theCouncil of Three Firesin 796 CE with theOdawaand thePotawatomi.

The Five Nations of theIroquois(Haudenosaunee) were centred from at least 1000 CE in northern New York, but their influence extended into what is now southern Ontario and the Montreal area of modern Quebec. They spoke varieties of Iroquoian languages.The Iroquois Confederacy,according to oral tradition, was formed in 1142 CE.In addition, there were other Iroquoian-speaking peoples in the area, including theSt. Lawrence Iroquoians,the Erie, and others.

Pre-Columbian distribution ofNa-Dene languagesin North America.

Pre-Columbian distribution ofAlgonquian languagesin North America.

On theGreat Plains,theCreeorNēhilawē(who spoke a closely relatedCentral Algonquian language,theplains Cree language) depended on the vast herds of bison to supply food and many of their other needs.To the northwest were the peoples of theNa-Dene languages,which include theAthapaskan-speaking peoplesand theTlingit,who lived on the islands of southern Alaska and northernBritish Columbia.The Na-Dene language group is believed to be linked to theYeniseian languagesof Siberia.TheDeneof the western Arctic may represent a distinct wave of migration from Asia to North America.

TheInterior of British Columbiawas home to theSalishan languagegroups such as theShuswap (Secwepemc),Okanaganand southern Athabaskan language groups, primarily theDakelh(Carrier) and theTsilhqot'in.The inlets and valleys of theBritish Columbia Coastsheltered large, distinctive populations, such as theHaida,Kwakwaka'wakwandNuu-chah-nulth,sustained by the region's abundant salmon and shellfish.These peoples developedcomplex culturesdependent on thewestern red cedarthat included wooden houses, seagoing whaling and war canoes and elaborately carvedpotlatchitems andtotem poles.

In theArctic archipelago,the distinctivePaleo-Eskimosknown asDorset peoples,whose culture has been traced back to around 500 BCE, were replaced by the ancestors of today'sInuitby 1500 CE.This transition is supported by archeological records andInuit mythologythat tells of having driven off theTuniitor 'first inhabitants'.Inuit traditional lawsare anthropologically different fromWestern law.Customary lawwas non-existent in Inuit society before the introduction of theCanadian legal system.

European contact

Further information:European colonization of the Americas

A model of the Norse settlement atL'Anse aux Meadowson the island of Newfoundland. The Norse settlement dates toc. 1000 CE.

The Norse,who had settledGreenlandandIceland,arrived around 1000 CE and built a small settlement atL'Anse aux Meadowsat the northernmost tip ofNewfoundland(carbon dating estimate 990 – 1050 CE).L'Anse aux Meadows, the only confirmed Norse site in North America outside of Greenland, is also notable for its connection with the attempted settlement ofVinlandbyLeif Eriksonaround the same period or, more broadly, withNorse exploration of the Americas.

A commemorative stamp from 1947, depictingJohn Cabotaboard theMatthewoffCape Bonavistaduring his 1497 voyage

Underletters patentfrom KingHenry VII of England,the ItalianJohn Cabotbecame the first European known to have landed in Canada after theViking Age.Records indicate that on June 24, 1497, he sighted land at a northern location believed to be somewhere in theAtlantic provinces.Official tradition deemed the first landing site to be atCape Bonavista,Newfoundland, although other locations are possible.After 1497 Cabot and his sonSebastian Cabotcontinued to make other voyages to find theNorthwest Passage,and other explorers continued to sail out of England to the New World, although the details of these voyages are not well recorded.

Based on theTreaty of Tordesillas,the Spanish Crown claimed it had territorial rights in the area visited by John Cabot in 1497 and 1498 CE.However, Portuguese explorers likeJoão Fernandes Lavradorwould continue to visit the north Atlantic coast, which accounts for the appearance of "Labrador"on maps of the period.In 1501 and 1502 theCorte-Realbrothers explored Newfoundland (Terra Nova) and Labrador claiming these lands as part of thePortuguese Empire.In 1506, KingManuel I of Portugalcreated taxes for the cod fisheries in Newfoundland waters.João Álvares FagundesandPero de Barcelosestablished fishing outposts in Newfoundland and Nova Scotia around 1521 CE; however, these were later abandoned, with thePortuguese colonizersfocusing their efforts on South America.The extent and nature of Portuguese activity on the Canadian mainland during the 16th century remains unclear and controversial.

Canada under French rule

Main articles:New FranceandFormer colonies and territories in Canada

Jacques Cartiermeeting with theSt. Lawrence IroquoisatHochelagaduring his second voyage in 1535

French interest in theNew Worldbegan withFrancis I of France,who in 1524 sponsoredGiovanni da Verrazzano's navigation of the region betweenFloridaandNewfoundlandin hopes of findinga route to the Pacific Ocean.Although the English had laid claims to it in 1497 when John Cabot made landfall somewhere on the North American coast (likely either modern-day Newfoundland orNova Scotia) and had claimed the land for England on behalf ofHenry VII,these claims were not exercised and England did not attempt to create a permanent colony. As for the French, however,Jacques Cartierplanted a cross in theGaspé Peninsulain 1534 and claimed the land in the name of Francis I, creating a region called "Canada"the following summer.Cartier had sailed up the St. Lawrence river as far as theLachine Rapids,to the spot where Montreal now stands.Permanent settlement attempts by Cartier atCharlesbourg-Royalin 1541, atSable Islandin 1598 by Marquis de La Roche-Mesgouez, and atTadoussac, Quebecin 1600 byFrançois Gravé Du Pontall eventually failed.Despite these initial failures, French fishing fleets visited theAtlantic coastcommunities and sailed into theSt. Lawrence River,trading and making alliances withFirst Nations,as well as establishing fishing settlements such as inPercé(1603).As a result of France's claim and activities in the colony of Canada, the nameCanadawas found on international maps showing the existence of this colony within the St. Lawrence river region.

Samuel de Champlainwith twoInnuguides in 1603

In 1604, aNorth American fur trademonopoly was granted toPierre Du Gua, Sieur de Mons.The fur trade became one of the main economic ventures in North America.Du Gua led his first colonization expedition to an island located near the mouth of theSt. Croix River.Among his lieutenants was a geographer namedSamuel de Champlain,who promptly carried out a major exploration of the northeastern coastline of what is now the United States.In the spring of 1605, under Samuel de Champlain, the newSt. Croix settlementwas moved toPort Royal(today'sAnnapolis Royal, Nova Scotia).Samuel de Champlain also landed at Saint John Harbour on June 24, 1604 (the feast of St. John the Baptist) and is where the city ofSaint John, New Brunswick,and theSaint John Rivergets their name.

The establishment of Quebec City in 1608, with Samuel de Champlain and his party depicted in the bottom foreground.

In 1608 Champlain founded what is nowQuebec City,one of the earliest permanent settlements, which would become the capital of New France.He took personal administration over the city and its affairs and sent out expeditions to explore the interior.Champlain became the first known European to encounterLake Champlainin 1609. By 1615, he had travelled by canoe up theOttawa RiverthroughLake NipissingandGeorgian Bayto the centre ofHuroncountry nearLake Simcoe.During these voyages, Champlain aided theWendat(aka "Hurons" ) in their battles against the Iroquois Confederacy.As a result, the Iroquois would become enemies of the French and be involved in multiple conflicts (known as theFrench and Iroquois Wars) until the signing of theGreat Peace of Montrealin 1701.

The English, led byHumphrey Gilbert,had claimedSt. John's, Newfoundland,in 1583 as the first North AmericanEnglish colonyby royal prerogative of QueenElizabeth I.In the reign ofKing James I,the English established additional colonies inCupidsandFerryland,Newfoundland,and soon after established the first successful permanent settlements ofVirginiato the south.On September 29, 1621, a charter for the foundation of a New WorldScottish colonywas granted by King James toWilliam Alexander.In 1622, the first settlers left Scotland. They initially failed and permanent Nova Scotian settlements were not firmly established until 1629 during the end of theAnglo-French War.These colonies did not last long except the fisheries in Ferryland underDavid Kirke.In 1631, underCharles I of England,theTreaty of Suzawas signed, ending the war and returning Nova Scotia to the French.New France was not fully restored to French rule until the 1632Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye.This led to new French immigrants and the founding ofTrois-Rivièresin 1634.

Map of North America in 1702, showing areas occupied by European settlements. By the 18th century, the British and French had several competing claims innorthern America.

After Champlain's death in 1635, theRoman Catholic Churchand theJesuit establishmentbecame the most dominant force in New France and hoped to establish autopianEuropean and Aboriginal Christian community.In 1642, theSulpicianssponsored a group of settlers led byPaul Chomedey de Maisonneuve,who founded Ville-Marie, the precursor to present-dayMontreal.In 1663 theFrench crowntook direct control of the colonies from theCompany of New France.

Although immigration rates to New France remained very low under direct French control,most of the new arrivals were farmers, and the rate of population growth among the settlers themselves had been very high.The women had about 30 per cent more children than comparable women who remained in France.Yves Landry says, "Canadians had an exceptional diet for their time."This was due to the natural abundance of meat, fish, and pure water; the good food conservation conditions during the winter; and an adequate wheat supply in most years.The1666 census of New Francewas conducted byFrance's intendant,Jean Talon,in the winter of 1665–1666. The census showed a population count of 3,215Acadiansandhabitants(French-Canadian farmers) in the administrative districts ofAcadiaand Canada.The census also revealed a great difference in the number of men at 2,034 versus 1,181 women.

Wars during the colonial era

Further information:French and Indian Wars

See also:Military history of Canada

Hudson's Bay Companypersonnel surrenderFort Nelsonto French forces after theBattle of Hudson's Bay

By the early 1700s theNew France settlers were well establishedalong the shores of theSt. Lawrence Riverand parts of Nova Scotia, with a population of around 16,000.However, new arrivals stopped coming from France in the proceeding decades,meaning that the English and Scottish settlers in Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, and the southernThirteen Coloniesoutnumbered the French population approximately ten to one by the 1750s.

From 1670, through theHudson's Bay Company,the English also laid claim to Hudson Bay and its drainage basin, known asRupert's Land,establishingnew trading posts and forts,while continuing to operate fishing settlements in Newfoundland.French expansion along the Canadian canoe routes challenged the Hudson's Bay Company claims, and in 1686,Pierre Troyesled anoverland expedition from Montreal to the shore of the bay,where they managed to capture a handful of outposts.La Salle's explorations gave France a claim to theMississippi River Valley,where fur trappers and a few settlers set upscattered forts and settlements.

The port inside theFortress of Louisbourg.The French built the fortress during the mid-18th century to protect the Acadian colony onÎle-Royale.

There were fourFrench and Indian Warsand two additional wars in Acadia and Nova Scotia between the Thirteen American Colonies and New France from 1688 to 1763. DuringKing William's War(1688 to 1697), military conflicts in Acadia included theBattle of Port Royal (1690);a naval battle in the Bay of Fundy (Action of July 14, 1696); and theRaid on Chignecto (1696).TheTreaty of Ryswickin 1697 ended the war between the two colonial powers of England and France for a brief time.DuringQueen Anne's War(1702 to 1713), the BritishConquest of Acadiaoccurred in 1710,resulting in Nova Scotia (other than Cape Breton) being officially ceded to the British by theTreaty of Utrecht,including Rupert's Land, which France had conquered in the late 17th century (Battle of Hudson's Bay).As an immediate result of this setback, France founded the powerfulFortress of LouisbourgonCape Breton Island.

Louisbourg was intended to serve as a year-round military and naval base for France's remaining North American empire and to protect the entrance to the St. Lawrence River.Father Rale's Warresulted in both the fall of New France's influence in present-dayMaineand the British recognition that it would have to negotiate with the Mi'kmaq in Nova Scotia. DuringKing George's War(1744 to 1748), an army of New Englanders led byWilliam Pepperrellmounted an expedition of 90 vessels and 4,000 men against Louisbourg in 1745.Within three months the fortress surrendered. The return of Louisbourg to French control by the peace treaty prompted the British to foundHalifaxin 1749 underEdward Cornwallis.Despite the official cessation of war between the British and French empires with theTreaty of Aix-la-Chapelle,the conflict in Acadia and Nova Scotia continued asFather Le Loutre's War.

A migratory map showing the movements of Acadian deportees during theGreat Upheaval

The British ordered the Acadians expelled from their lands in 1755 during theFrench and Indian War,an event called theExpulsion of the Acadiansorle Grand Dérangement.The "expulsion" resulted in approximately 12,000 Acadians being shipped to destinations throughout Britain's North America and to France, Quebec and the French Caribbean colony ofSaint-Domingue.The first wave of the expulsion of the Acadians began with theBay of Fundy Campaign (1755)and the second wave began after the finalSiege of Louisbourg (1758).Many of the Acadians settled in southernLouisiana,creating theCajunculture there.Some Acadians managed to hide and others eventually returned to Nova Scotia, but they were far outnumbered by a new migration ofNew England Planterswho settled on the former lands of the Acadians and transformed Nova Scotia from a colony of occupation for the British to a settled colony with stronger ties to New England.Britain eventually gained control of Quebec City after theBattle of the Plains of Abrahamand theBattle of Fort Niagarain 1759, and finallycaptured Montrealin 1760.

Canada under British rule

Main articles:Canada under British ruleandBritish North America

Map showing British territorial gains following theSeven Years' War.Treaty of Parisgains in pink, and Spanish territorial gains after theTreaty of Fontainebleauin yellow.

As part of the terms of theTreaty of Paris (1763),signed after the defeat of New France in theSeven Years' War,France renounced its claims to territory in mainlandNorth America,except for fishing rights off Newfoundland and the two small islands ofSaint Pierre and Miquelonwhere its fishermen could dry their fish. France had already secretly transferred its vastLouisiana territoryto Spain under theTreaty of Fontainebleau (1762)in which KingLouis XVof France had given his cousin KingCharles III of Spainthe entire area of thedrainage basinof theMississippi Riverfrom theGreat Lakesto theGulf of Mexicoand from theAppalachian Mountainsto theRocky Mountains.France and Spain kept the Treaty of Fontainebleau secret from other countries until 1764.However under the Treaty of Paris, the eastern side of the Mississippi river basin became British territory. Great Britain returned to France its most important sugar-producing colony,Guadeloupe,which the French considered more valuable than Canada. (Guadeloupe produced more sugar than all the British islands combined, andVoltairehad notoriously dismissed Canada as "Quelques arpents de neige","A few acres of snow").

Following the Treaty of Paris, KingGeorge IIIissued theRoyal Proclamation of 1763.The proclamation organizedGreat Britain's new North American empireand stabilized relations betweenthe British Crown and Aboriginal peoples,formally recognizing aboriginal title, regulated trade, settlement, and land purchases on thewestern frontier.In the former French territory, the new British rulers of Canada first abolished and then later reinstated most of the property, religious, political, and social culture of the French-speakinghabitants,guaranteeing the right of theCanadiensto practice the Catholic faith and to the use ofFrench civil law(nowQuebec Civil Code) in the UK'sQuebec Actof 1774.

American Revolution and the Loyalists

Further information:Invasion of Quebec (1775)andNova Scotia in the American Revolution

British soldiers and theCanadian militiarepel an American column during theBattle of Quebec

During theAmerican Revolution,there was some sympathy for theAmerican causeamong theAcadiansand the New Englanders in Nova Scotia.Neither party joined the rebels, although several hundred individuals joined the revolutionary cause.Aninvasion of Quebecby theContinental Armyin 1775, with a goal to take Quebec from British control, was halted at theBattle of QuebecbyGuy Carleton,with the assistance of local militias. The defeat of the British army during theSiege of Yorktownin October 1781 signalled the end of Great Britain's struggle to suppress the American Revolution.

When the Britishevacuated New York Cityin 1783, they took many Loyalist refugees to Nova Scotia, while other Loyalists went to southwestern Quebec. So many Loyalists arrived on the shores of theSt. John Riverthat a separate colony—New Brunswick—was created in 1784;followed in 1791 by the division ofQuebecinto the largely French-speakingLower Canada(French Canada) along the St. Lawrence River and the Gaspé Peninsula and an anglophone LoyalistUpper Canada,with its capital settled by 1796 inYork(present-dayToronto).After 1790 most of the new settlers were American farmers searching for new lands; although generally favourable to republicanism, they were relatively non-political and stayed neutral in theWar of 1812.In 1785,Saint John, New Brunswickbecame the first incorporated city in what would later become Canada.

Landing ofloyalist migrantstoNew Brunswick,1783. After theAmerican Revolutionary War,the remainingBritish North Americancolonies saw an influx of loyalist migrants.

ABlack Loyalistwood cutter inShelburne, Nova Scotiain 1788

The signing of theTreaty of Parisin 1783 formally ended the war. Great Britain made several concessions to the US at the expense of the North American colonies.Notably, theborders between Canada and the United Stateswere officially demarcated;all land south and west of the Great Lakes, which was formerly a part of theProvince of Quebecand included modern-day Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio, was ceded to the Americans. Fishing rights were also granted to the United States in theGulf of St. Lawrenceand on the coast of Newfoundland and theGrand Banks.The British ignored part of the treaty and maintained their military outposts in the Great Lakes areas it had ceded to the U.S., and they continued to supply their native allies with munitions. The British evacuated the outposts with theJay Treatyof 1795, but the continued supply of munitions irritated the Americans in the run-up to the War of 1812.

Canadian historians have had mixed views on the long-term impact of the American Revolution.Arthur Lowerin the 1950s provided the long-standard historical interpretation that for English Canada the results were counter-revolutionary:

[English Canada] inherited, not the benefits, but the bitterness of the Revolution…. English Canada started its life with as powerful a nostalgic shove backward into the past as the Conquest had given to French Canada: two little peoples officially devoted to counter-revolution, to lost causes, to the tawdry ideals of a society of men and masters, and not to the self-reliant freedom alongside of them.

Recently Michel Ducharme has agreed that Canada did indeed oppose "republican liberty", as exemplified by the United States and France. However, he says it did find a different path forward when it fought against British rulers after 1837 to secure "modern liberty". That form of liberty focused not on the virtues of citizens but on protecting their rights from infringement by the state.

War of 1812

Main article:War of 1812

LoyalistLaura Secordwarning the British LieutenantJames FitzGibbonand First Nations of an impendingAmerican attack at Beaver Dams,1813

TheWar of 1812was fought between the United States and the British, with the British North American colonies being heavily involved.Greatly outgunned by theBritish Royal Navy,the American war plans focused on an invasion of Canada (especially what is todayeasternandwestern Ontario). The American frontier states voted for war to suppress the First Nations raids that frustrated the settlement of the frontier.The war on the border with the United States was characterized by a series of multiple failed invasions and fiascos on both sides. American forces took control ofLake Eriein 1813, driving the British out of western Ontario, killing the Shawnee leaderTecumseh,and breaking the military power ofhis confederacy.The war was overseen by British army officers likeIsaac BrockandCharles de Salaberrywith the assistance of First Nations and loyalist informants, most notablyLaura Secord.

The War ended with no boundary changes thanks to theTreaty of Ghentof 1814, and theRush–Bagot Treatyof 1817.A demographic result was the shifting of the destination of American migration from Upper Canada toOhio,IndianaandMichigan,without fear of Indigenous attacks.After the war, supporters of Britain tried to repress therepublicanismthat was common among Americanimmigrants to Canada.The troubling memory of the war and the American invasions etched itself into the consciousness of Canadians as a distrust of the intentions of the United States towards the British presence in North America.^{pp. 254–255}

Rebellions and the Durham Report

Further information:Rebellions of 1837andDurham Report

Leaders of thePatriote movementand their followers during theAssembly of the Six Countiesin 1837.

Therebellions of 1837against theBritish colonial governmenttook place in both Upper and Lower Canada. In Upper Canada, a band of Reformers under the leadership ofWilliam Lyon Mackenzietook up arms in a disorganized and ultimately unsuccessful series of small-scale skirmishes around Toronto,London,andHamilton.

In Lower Canada, a more substantial rebellion occurred against British rule. Both English- and French-Canadian rebels, sometimes using bases in the neutral United States, fought several skirmishes against the authorities. The towns ofChamblyandSorelwere taken by the rebels, and Quebec City was isolated from the rest of the colony. Montreal rebel leaderRobert Nelsonread the "Declaration of Independence of Lower Canada"to a crowd assembled at the town ofNapiervillein 1838.The rebellion of thePatriote movementwas defeated after battles across Quebec. Hundreds were arrested, and several villages were burnt in reprisal.

Theburning of the Parliament Buildings in Montrealin 1849. Painting byJoseph Légaré,c. 1849.

The British government then sentLord Durhamto examine the situation; he stayed in Canada for five months before returning to Britain, bringing with him hisDurham Report,which strongly recommendedresponsible government.A less well-received recommendation was the amalgamation of Upper and Lower Canada for the deliberate assimilation of the French-speaking population.The Canadaswere merged into a single colony, theUnited Province of Canada,by the 1840Act of Union,and responsible government was achieved in 1848, a few months after it was accomplished in Nova Scotia.The parliament ofUnited Canadain Montreal wasset on fire by a mob of Toriesin 1849 after the passing of an indemnity bill for the people who suffered losses during the rebellion in Lower Canada.

Between theNapoleonic Warsand 1850, some 800,000 immigrants came to the colonies of British North America, mainly from theBritish Isles,as part of thegreat migration of Canada.These includedGaelic-speakingHighland Scotsdisplaced by theHighland Clearancesto Nova Scotia and Scottish and English settlers to the Canadas, particularly Upper Canada. The Irish Famine of the 1840s significantly increased the pace ofIrish Catholicimmigration to British North America, with over 35,000 distressed Irish landing in Toronto alone in 1847 and 1848.

Pacific colonies

Further information:History of British Columbia

Map of theColumbia District,also referred to asOregon Country.The region wasdisputed territorybetween the UK and the US until 1846, with the signing of theOregon Treaty.

Spanish explorers had taken the lead in thePacific Northwest coast,with the voyages ofJuan José Pérez Hernándezin 1774 and 1775.By the time the Spanish determined to build a fort onVancouver Island,the British navigatorJames Cookhad visitedNootka Soundand charted the coast as far as Alaska, while British and Americanmaritime fur tradershad begun a busy era of commerce withthe coastal peoplesto satisfy the brisk market for sea otter pelts in China, thereby launching what became known as theChina Trade. In 1789 war threatened between Britain and Spain on their respective rights; theNootka Crisiswas resolved peacefully largely in favour of Britain, the much stronger naval power at the time. In 1793Alexander MacKenzie,a Scotsman working for theNorth West Company,crossed the continent and with his Aboriginal guides and French-Canadian crew, reached the mouth of theBella Coola River,completing the first continental crossing north of Mexico, missingGeorge Vancouver's charting expedition to the region by only a few weeks.In 1821, the North West Company and Hudson's Bay Company merged, with a combined trading territory that was extended by a licence to theNorth-Western Territoryand theColumbiaandNew Caledoniafur districts, which reached the Arctic Ocean on the north and the Pacific Ocean on the west.

TheColony of Vancouver Islandwas chartered in 1849, with the trading post atFort Victoriaas the capital. This was followed by theColony of the Queen Charlotte Islandsin 1853, and by the creation of theColony of British Columbiain 1858 and theStikine Territoryin 1861, with the latter three being founded expressly to keep those regions from being overrun and annexed by American gold miners.The Colony of the Queen Charlotte Islands and most of the Stikine Territory were merged into the Colony of British Columbia in 1863 (the remainder, north of the 60th Parallel, became part of theNorth-Western Territory).

Confederation

Main article:Canadian Confederation

1885 photo ofRobert Harris'1884 painting,Conference at Quebec in 1864.The scene is an amalgamation of the Charlottetown and Quebec City conference sites and attendees, theFathers of Confederation.

TheSeventy-Two Resolutionsfrom the1864 Quebec ConferenceandCharlottetown Conferencelaid out the framework for uniting British colonies in North America into a federation.The Resolutions became the basis for theLondon Conference of 1866,which led to the formation of the Dominion of Canada on July 1, 1867.The termdominionwas chosento indicate Canada's status as a self-governingpolityof the British Empire, the first time it was used about a country.With the coming into force of the UK'sBritish North America Act, 1867(enacted by theBritish Parliament), Canada became a federated country in its own right.(According to James Bowden, writing inThe Dorchester Review,"Ottawa turned its back on 'Dominion' in the 1940s and 1950s," impelled by what historian C.P. Champion referred to as "neo-nationalism." )

Federation emerged from multiple impulses: the British wanted Canada to defend itself; the Maritimes needed railroad connections, which were promised in 1867;English-Canadiannationalismsought to unite the lands into one country, dominated by the English language andloyalistculture; many French-Canadians saw an opportunity to exert political control within a new largely French-speaking Quebec^{pp. 323–324}and exaggerated fears of possible U.S. expansion northward.On a political level, there was a desire for the expansion of responsible government and elimination of the legislative deadlock between Upper and Lower Canada, and their replacement with provincial legislatures in a federation.This was especially pushed by the liberalReform movementof Upper Canada and the French-CanadianParti rougein Lower Canada who favoured a decentralized union in comparison to the Upper Canadian Conservative party and to some degree the French-CanadianParti bleu,which favoured a centralized union.

Territorial expansion west (1867–1914)

Main article:Post-Confederation Canada (1867–1914)

See also:Territorial evolution of Canada

See also:Numbered Treaties

Construction for theCanadian Pacific Railwayat the lowerFraser Valleyin 1881

Using the lure of theCanadian Pacific Railway,a transcontinental line that would unite the nation, Ottawa attracted support in the Maritimes and in British Columbia. In 1866, the Colony of British Columbia and the Colony of Vancouver Island merged into asingle Colony of British Columbia.After Rupert's Land was transferred to Canada by Britain in 1870, connecting to the eastern provinces, British Columbia joined Canada in 1871. In 1873,Prince Edward Islandjoined. Newfoundland—which had no use for a transcontinental railway—voted no in 1869, and did not join Canada until 1949.

TheBattle of Fish Creekin 1885 was aMétisvictory over theCanadian Militiaduring theNorth-West Rebellion

In 1873,John A. Macdonald(First Prime Minister of Canada) created theNorth-West Mounted Police(now theRoyal Canadian Mounted Police) to help police theNorthwest Territories.Specifically the Mounties were to assert Canadian sovereignty to prevent possible American encroachments into the area.The Mounties' first large-scale mission was to suppress the second independence movement byManitoba'sMétis,amixed-bloodpeople of joint First Nations and European descent, who originated in the mid-17th century.The desire for independence erupted in theRed River Rebellionin 1869 and the laterNorth-West Rebellionin 1885 led byLouis Riel.Suppressing the Rebellion was Canada's first independent military action and demonstrated the need to complete the Canadian Pacific Railway. It guaranteed Anglophone control of the Prairies and demonstrated the national government was capable of decisive action. However, it lost the Conservative Party most of their support in Quebec and led to a permanent distrust of the Anglophone community on the part of the Francophones.

Thelieutenant governor of the North-West Territoriesexplaining the terms ofTreaty 8to First Nations atFort Vermilion,1899

As Canada expanded, the Canadian government rather than the British Crown negotiated treaties with the resident First Nations' peoples, beginning withTreaty 1in 1871.The treaties extinguishedaboriginal titleon traditional territories, createdreservesfor the indigenous peoples' exclusive use, and opened up the rest of the territory for settlement. Indigenous people were induced to move to these new reserves, sometimes forcibly.The government imposed theIndian Actin 1876 to govern the relations between the federal government and the Indigenous peoples and govern the relations between the new settlers and the Indigenous peoples.Under theIndian Act,the government started theResidential School Systemto provide education to the Indigenous peoples.

In the 1890s, legal experts codified a framework of criminal law, culminating in theCriminal Code, 1892.This solidified the liberal ideal of "equality before the law" in a way that made an abstract principle into a tangible reality for every adult Canadian.Wilfrid Laurierwho served 1896–1911 as the Seventh Prime Minister of Canada felt Canada was on the verge of becoming a world power, and declared that the 20th century would "belong to Canada"

TheAlaska boundary dispute,simmering since theAlaska Purchaseof 1867, became critical when gold was discovered in theYukonduring the late 1890s, with the U.S. controlling all the possible ports of entry. Canada argued its boundary included the port ofSkagway.The dispute went to arbitration in 1903, but the British delegate sided with the Americans, angering Canadians who felt the British had betrayed Canadian interests to curry favour with the U.S.

In 1905,SaskatchewanandAlbertawere admitted as provinces. They were growing rapidly thanks toabundant wheat cropsthat attracted immigration to the plains byUkrainiansand Northern and Central Europeans and by settlers from the United States, Britain and eastern Canada.

Laurier signed a reciprocity treaty with the U.S. that would lower tariffs in both directions. Conservatives underRobert Bordendenounced it, saying it would integrate Canada's economy into that of the U.S. and loosen ties with Britain. The Conservative party won the1911 Canadian federal election.

World Wars and Interwar Years (1914–1945)

Main article:Canada in the World Wars and Interwar Years

First World War

Main article:Military history of Canada during World War I

A train filled with soldiers departs from Toronto's Union Station shortly afterWorld War Ibegan in 1914

TheCanadian Forcesandcivilianparticipation in the First World War helped to foster a sense ofBritish-Canadian nationhood.The highpoints ofCanadian military achievement during the First World Warcame during theSomme,Vimy,Passchendaelebattles and what later became known as "Canada's Hundred Days".The reputation Canadian troops earned, along with the success of Canadian flying aces includingWilliam George BarkerandBilly Bishop,helped to give thenation a new sense of identity.TheWar Officein 1922 reported approximately 67,000 killed and 173,000 wounded during the war.This excludes civilian deaths in war-time incidents like theHalifax Explosion.

Support for Great Britain during the First World War caused a majorpolitical crisis over conscription,withFrancophones,mainly from Quebec,rejecting national policies.During the crisis, large numbers of enemy aliens (especially Ukrainians and Germans) were put under government controls.TheLiberal partywas deeply split, with most of itsAnglophoneleaders joining theunionist governmentheaded by Prime MinisterRobert Borden,the leader of theConservative party.The Liberals regained their influence after the war under the leadership ofWilliam Lyon Mackenzie King,who served as prime minister with three separate terms between 1921 and 1949.

Women's suffrage

Further information:History of Canadian women § Feminism and woman suffrage

See also:Canadian women during the world wars

When Canada was founded, women could not vote in federal elections. Women did have a local vote in some provinces, as inCanada Westfrom 1850, where women owning land could vote for school trustees. By 1900 other provinces adopted similar provisions, and in 1916 Manitoba took the lead in extending fullwomen's suffrage.Simultaneously suffragists gave strong support to the prohibition movement, especially in Ontario and the Western provinces.

Nursing sisters at theCanadian hospital in France during the First World Warcasting their votes for the 1917 general election

TheMilitary Voters Actof 1917 gave the vote to British women who were war widows or had sons or husbands serving overseas.UnionistsPrime Minister Borden pledged himself during the 1917 campaign to equal suffrage for women. After his landslide victory, he introduced a bill in 1918 for extending the franchise to women. This passed without division but did not apply to Quebec provincial and municipal elections. The women of Quebec gained full suffrage in 1940. The first woman elected to Parliament wasAgnes Macphailof Ontario in 1921.

1920s

On the world stage

The German delegate is portrayed signing the peace treaties at theParis Peace Conference,surrounded byAllieddelegates. The Canadian delegate,George Fosteris visible in the back row (fourth from the left)

Convinced that Canada had proven itself on the battlefields of Europe, Prime MinisterRobert Bordendemanded that it have a separate seat at theParis Peace Conferencein 1919. This was initially opposed not only by Britain but also by the United States, which saw such a delegation as an extra British vote. Borden responded by pointing out that since Canada had lost nearly 60,000 men, a far larger proportion of its men, its right to equal status as a nation had been consecrated on the battlefield. British Prime MinisterDavid Lloyd Georgeeventually relented, and convinced the reluctant Americans to accept the presence of delegations from Canada,India,Australia,Newfoundland,New Zealand, and South Africa. These also received their own seats in the League of Nations.Canada asked for neither reparations nor mandates. It played only a modest role in Paris, but just having a seat was a matter of pride. It was cautiously optimistic about the new League of Nations, in which it played an active and independent role.

In 1922 British Prime Minister David Lloyd George appealed repeatedly for Canadian support in theChanak crisis,in which a war threatened between Britain and Turkey. Canada refused, leading to the fall of Lloyd George.TheDepartment of External Affairs,which had been founded in 1909, was expanded and promoted Canadian autonomy as Canada reduced its reliance on British diplomats and used its own foreign service.Thus began the careers of such important diplomats asNorman RobertsonandHume Wrong,and future prime ministerLester Pearson.

In the 1920s, Canada set up a successful wheat marketing "pool" to keep prices high. Canada negotiated with the United States, Australia, and the Soviet Union to expand the pool, but the effort failed when the Great Depression caused distrust and low prices.

I'm Alone,a Canadian ship used tosmuggle alcoholacross the border during the alcohol prohibition era in the United States

With prohibition underway in the United States, smugglers bought large quantities of Canadian liquor. Both the Canadian distillers and the U.S. State Department put heavy pressure on the Customs and Excise Department to loosen or tighten border controls. Liquor interests paid off corrupt Canadian border officials until the U.S. finally ended prohibition in 1933.

Domestic affairs

In 1921 to 1926,William Lyon Mackenzie King's Liberal government pursued a conservative domestic policy with the object of lowering wartime taxes and, especially, cooling wartime ethnic tensions, as well as defusing postwar labour conflicts. The Progressives refused to join the government but did help the Liberals defeat non-confidence motions. King faced a delicate balancing act of reducing tariffs enough to please the Prairie-based Progressives, but not too much to alienate his vital support in industrial Ontario and Quebec, which needed tariffs to compete with American imports. King and Conservative leaderArthur Meighensparred constantly and bitterly in Commons debates.The Progressives gradually weakened. Their effective and passionate leader,Thomas Crerar,resigned to return to his grain business, and was replaced by the more placidRobert Forke.The socialist reformerJ. S. Woodsworthgradually gained influence and power among the Progressives, and he reached an accommodation with King on policy matters.

Prime MinisterWilliam Lyon Mackenzie King(left) at the1926 Imperial Conference.King sought to redefine the role of governor general at the conference, as a result of theKing-Byng affairearlier that year.

In 1926 Prime Minister Mackenzie King advised theGovernor General,Lord Byng,to dissolve Parliament and call another election, but Byng refused, the only time that the Governor General has exercised such a power. Instead, Byng called upon Meighen, the Conservative Party leader, to form a government.Meighen attempted to do so but was unable to obtain a majority in the Commons and he, too, advised dissolution, which this time was accepted. The episode, theKing–Byng affair,marks a constitutional crisis that was resolved by a new tradition of complete non-interference in Canadian political affairs on the part of the British government.

Great Depression

Main article:Great Depression in Canada

Road construction betweenKimberleyandWasa, British Columbiaby Relief Project workers, 1934

Canada was hit hard by the worldwideGreat Depressionthat began in 1929. Between 1929 and 1933, the gross national product dropped 40 per cent (compared to 37 per cent in the US). Unemployment reached 27 per cent at the depth of the Depression in 1933.Many businesses closed, as corporate profits of $396 million in 1929 turned into losses of $98 million in 1933. Canadian exports shrank by 50% from 1929 to 1933. Construction all but stopped (down 82 per cent, 1929–33), and wholesale prices dropped 30%. Wheat prices plunged from 78c per bushel (1928 crop) to 29c in 1932.

A crowd gathers for free food at the Yonge Street Mission in Toronto during theGreat Depression

Urban unemployment nationwide was 19 per cent; Toronto's rate was 17 per cent, according to the census of 1931. Farmers who stayed on their farms were not considered unemployed.By 1933, 30 per cent of the labour force was out of work, and one-fifth of the population became dependent on government assistance. Wages fell as did prices. The worst hit were areas dependent on primary industries such as farming,miningand logging, as prices fell and there were few alternative jobs. Most families had moderate losses and little hardship, though they too became pessimistic and their debts became heavier as prices fell. Some families saw most or all of their assets disappear and suffered severely.

In 1930, in the first stage of the long depression, Prime MinisterMackenzie Kingbelieved that the crisis was a temporary swing of the business cycle and that the economy would soon recover without government intervention. He refused to provide unemployment relief or federal aid to the provinces, saying that if Conservative provincial governments demanded federal dollars, he would not give them "a five-cent piece."The main issue was the rapid deterioration in the economy and whether the prime minister was out of touch with the hardships of ordinary people.The winner of the 1930 election wasRichard Bedford Bennettand the Conservatives. Bennett had promised high tariffs and large-scale spending, but as deficits increased, he became wary and cut back severely on Federal spending. With falling support and the depression getting only worse, Bennett attempted to introduce policies based on theNew Dealof PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt(FDR) in the United States, but he got little passed. Bennett's government became a focus of popular discontent. For example, auto owners saved on gasoline by using horses to pull their cars, dubbing themBennett Buggies.The Conservative failure to restore prosperity led to the return of Mackenzie King's Liberals in the1935 election.

In 1935, the Liberals used the slogan "King or Chaos" to win a landslide in the1935 election.Promising a much-desired trade treaty with the U.S., the Mackenzie King government passed the 1935 Reciprocal Trade Agreement. It marked the turning point in Canadian-American economic relations, reversing the disastrous trade war of 1930–31, lowering tariffs and yielding a dramatic increase in trade.

The worst of the Depression had passed by 1935, as the Government of Canada launched relief programs such as theNational Housing Actand the National Employment Commission. TheCanadian Broadcasting Corporationbecame acrown corporationin 1936. Trans-Canada Airlines (the precursor toAir Canada) was formed in 1937, as was theNational Film Board of Canadain 1939. In 1938, Parliament transformed theBank of Canadafrom a private entity to a crown corporation.

One political response was a highly restrictive immigration policy and a rise innativism.

Strikers from unemployment relief camps on a train inKamloops,en route to Eastern Canada, 1935

Times were especially hard in western Canada, where a full recovery did not occur until the Second World War began in 1939. One response was the creation of new political parties such as theSocial Credit movementand theCooperative Commonwealth Federation,as well as popular protest in the form of theOn-to-Ottawa Trek.

Statute of Westminster

Main article:Statute of Westminster, 1931

Following theBalfour Declaration of 1926,the British Parliament passed theStatute of Westminsterin 1931 which acknowledged Canada as coequal with the United Kingdom and the otherCommonwealth realms.It was a crucial step in the development of Canada as a separate state in that it provided for nearly complete legislative autonomy from the Parliament of the United Kingdom.Although the United Kingdom retained formal authority over certain Canadian constitutional changes, it relinquished this authority with the passing of theCanada Act 1982which was the final step in achieving full sovereignty.

Second World War

Main article:Canada in World War II

Aconvoy from Halifaxen route to the UK, taken fromHMCSAssiniboinein 1940

Canada's involvement in the Second World Warbegan when Canada declared war onNazi Germanyon September 10, 1939, delaying it one week after Britain acted to symbolically demonstrate independence. Canada played a major role in supplying food, raw materials, munitions and money to the hard-pressed British economy, training airmen for the Commonwealth, guarding the western half of theNorth Atlantic Oceanagainst GermanU-boats,and providing combat troops for the invasions of Italy, France and Germany in 1943–45.

Of a population of approximately 11.5 million, 1.1 million Canadians served in the armed forces in the Second World War.Many thousands more served with theCanadian Merchant Navy.In all, more than 45,000 died, and another 55,000 were wounded.Building up theRoyal Canadian Air Forcewas a high priority; it was kept separate from Britain'sRoyal Air Force.TheBritish Commonwealth Air Training PlanAgreement, signed in December 1939, bound Canada, Britain, New Zealand, and Australia to a program that eventually trained half the airmen from those four nations in the Second World War.

TheBattle of the Atlanticbegan immediately, and from 1943 to 1945 was led byLeonard W. Murray,from Nova Scotia. German U-boats operated in Canadian and Newfoundland waters throughout the war, sinking many naval and merchant vessels.TheCanadian armywas involved in the faileddefence of Hong Kong,the unsuccessfulDieppe Raidin August 1942, theAllied invasion of Italy,and the highly successfulinvasion of France and the Netherlandsin 1944–45.

Canadian prime minister,Mackenzie Kingvoting on a plebiscite to introduce conscription for overseas service in 1942

On the political side, Mackenzie King rejected any notion of a government of national unity.The1940 federal electionwas held as normally scheduled, producing another majority for the Liberals. TheConscription Crisis of 1944greatly affected unity between French and English-speaking Canadians, though was not as politically intrusive as that of the First World War. During the war, Canada became more closely linked to the U.S. The Americans took virtual control ofYukonin order to build theAlaska Highway,and were a major presence in the British colony ofNewfoundlandwith major airbases.After the start of the war with Japan in December 1941, the government, in cooperation with the U.S., began theJapanese-Canadian internment,which sent 22,000 British Columbia residents of Japanese descent to relocation camps far from the coast. The reason was intense public demand for removal and fears of espionage or sabotage.The government ignored reports from theRCMPand Canadian military that most of the Japanese were law-abiding and not a threat.

Post-war era (1945–1960)

Main article:History of Canada (1945–1960)

Prime MinisterLouis St. Laurentshakes hands withAlbert Walsh,after delegates from Canada and Newfoundland sign the agreement to admit the latter into Confederation

Prosperity returned to Canada during the Second World War and continued in the following years, with the development ofuniversal health care,old-age pensions,andveterans' pensions.The financial crisis of the Great Depression had led theDominion of Newfoundlandto relinquish responsible government in 1934 and become acrown colony ruledby a British governor.In 1948, the British government gave voters threeNewfoundland Referendumchoices: remaining a crown colony, returning to Dominion status (that is, independence), or joining Canada. Joining the United States was not made an option. After bitter debate Newfoundlanders voted to join Canada in 1949 as a province.

The foreign policy ofCanada during the Cold Warwas closely tied to that of the United States. Canada was a founding member ofNATO(which Canada wanted to be a transatlantic economic and political union as well). In 1950, Canada sent combat troops to Korea during theKorean Waras part of the United Nations forces. The federal government's desire to assert itsterritorial claims in the Arcticduring the Cold War manifested with theHigh Arctic relocation,in which Inuit were moved fromNunavik(the northern third of Quebec) to barrenCornwallis Island;this project was later the subject of a long investigation by theRoyal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples.

In 1956, theUnited Nations respondedto theSuez Crisisby convening aUnited Nations Emergency Forceto supervise the withdrawal of invading forces. The peacekeeping force was initially conceptualized by the Secretary of External Affairs and future Prime MinisterLester B. Pearson.Pearson was awarded theNobel Peace Prizein 1957 for his work in establishing the peacekeeping operation.

ARoyal Canadian Air ForceCIM-10 Bomarcmissile. Acquired as an alternative to the defunctAvro Arrowprogram, its adoption garnered controversy given its nuclear payload.

Throughout the mid-1950s, prime ministersLouis St. Laurentand his successorJohn Diefenbakerattempted to create a new, highly advanced jet fighter, theAvro Arrow.The controversial aircraft was cancelled by Diefenbaker in 1959. Diefenbaker instead purchased theBOMARCmissile defence system and American aircraft. In 1958 Canada established (with the United States) theNorth American Aerospace Defense Command(NORAD).

There were voices on both left and right that warned against being too close to the United States. Few Canadians listened before 1957. Instead, there was wide consensus on foreign and defence policies from 1948 to 1957. Bothwell, Drummond and English state:

That support was remarkably uniform geographically and racially, both coast to coast and among French and English. From the CCF on the left to the Social Credit on the right, the political parties agreed that NATO was a good thing, and communism a bad thing, that a close association with Europe was desirable, and that the Commonwealth embodied a glorious past.

However, the consensus did not last. By 1957 the Suez crisis alienated Canada from both Britain and France; politicians distrusted American leadership, businessmen questioned American financial investments; and intellectuals ridiculed the values of American television and Hollywood offerings that all Canadians watched. "Public support for Canada's foreign policy came unstuck. Foreign policy, from being a winning issue for the Liberals, was fast becoming a losing one."

1960–1981

Main article:History of Canada (1960–1981)

In the 1960s, theQuiet Revolutiontook place in Quebec, overthrowing the old establishment which centred on theRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Quebecand led to modernizing of the economy and society.Québécois nationalistsdemanded independence, and tensions rose until violence erupted during the 1970October Crisis.John Saywell says, "The two kidnappings and the murder of Pierre Laporte were the biggest domestic news stories in Canada's history"In 1976 theParti Québécoiswas elected to power in Quebec, with a nationalist vision that included securingFrench linguistic rightsin the province and the pursuit of some form ofsovereignty for Quebec.This culminated in the1980 referendum in Quebecon the question ofsovereignty-association,which was turned down by 59% of the voters.

The proclamation for the national flag of Canada, issued in 1965.

In 1965, Canada adopted themaple leaf flag,although not withoutconsiderable debate and misgivingsamong large number of English Canadians.TheWorld's FairtitledExpo 67came to Montreal, coinciding with theCanadian Centennialthat year. The fair opened on April 28, 1967, with the theme "Man and His World" and became the best attended of allBIE-sanctionedworld expositionsuntil that time.

Legislative restrictions onCanadian immigrationthat had favoured British and other European immigrants were amended in the 1960s, opening the doors to immigrants from all parts of the world.While the 1950s had seen high levels of immigration from Britain,Ireland,Italy,and northern continental Europe, by the 1970s immigrants increasingly came fromIndia,China,Vietnam,JamaicaandHaiti.Immigrants of all backgroundstended to settle in themajor urban centres,particularly Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver.

During his long tenure in the office (1968–1979, 1980–1984), Prime MinisterPierre Trudeaumade social and cultural change his political goals, including the pursuit ofofficial bilingualism in Canadaand plans for significantconstitutional change.The west, particularly thepetroleum-producing provinceslike Alberta, opposed many of the policies emanating from central Canada, with theNational Energy Programcreating considerable antagonism and growingwestern alienation.Multiculturalism in Canadawas adopted as the official policy of the Canadian government during the prime ministership of Pierre Trudeau.

1982–2000

Main article:History of Canada (1982–present)

Printed copies of theCanadian Charter of Rights and Freedomsbeing handed out. The charter was enacted as a part of theConstitution Act, 1982.

In 1981, the Canadian House of Commons and Senate passed a resolution requesting that the British Parliament enact a package of constitutional amendments which would end the last powers of the British Parliament to legislate for Canada and would create an entirely Canadian process for constitutional amendments. The resolution set out the text of the proposedCanada Act,which also included the text of theConstitution Act, 1982.The British Parliament duly passed the Canada Act 1982, the Queen grantingRoyal Assenton March 29, 1982, 115 years to the day since Queen Victoria granted Royal Assent to theConstitution Act, 1867.On April 17, 1982, the Queen signed the Proclamation on the grounds of Parliament Hill in Ottawa bringing theConstitution Act, 1982into force, thus patriating theConstitution of Canada.Previously, the main portions of the constitution had existed only as an act passed of the British parliament, though under the terms of the Statute of Westminster, it could not be altered without Canadian consent.Canada had established complete sovereignty as an independent country, with the Queen's role as monarch of Canada separate from her role as the British monarch or the monarch of any of the other Commonwealth realms.

In addition to the enactment of a constitutional amending formula, theConstitution Act, 1982enacted theCanadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.The Charter is a constitutionally entrenchedbill of rightswhich applies to both the federal government and the provincial governments, unlike the earlierCanadian Bill of Rights.Thepatriation of the constitutionwas Trudeau's last major act as Prime Minister; he resigned in 1984.

Memorial forAir India Flight 182in Toronto. The bombing of Air India Flight 182 is the largest mass killing in Canadian history

On June 23, 1985,Air India Flight 182was destroyed above the Atlantic Ocean by a bomb on board exploding; all 329 on board were killed, of whom 280 wereCanadian citizens.The Air India attack is the largest massmurder in Canadian history.

TheProgressive Conservative(PC) government ofBrian Mulroneybegan efforts to gain Quebec's support for theConstitution Act, 1982and end western alienation. In 1987, theMeech Lake Accordtalks began between the provincial and federal governments, seeking constitutional changes favourable to Quebec.The failure of the Meech Lake Accord resulted in the formation of a separatist party,Bloc Québécois.The constitutional reform process under Prime Minister Mulroney culminated in the failure of theCharlottetown Accordwhich would have recognized Quebec as a "distinct society"but was rejected in 1992 by a narrow margin.

Mexican PresidentCarlos Salinas,U.S. PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush,and Canadian Prime MinisterBrian Mulroneystanding during the initial signing ceremony for theNorth American Free Trade Agreementin 1992

Under Brian Mulroney,relations with the United Statesbegan to grow more closely integrated. In 1986, Canada and the U.S. signed the "Acid Rain Treaty" to reduce acid rain. In 1989, the federal government adopted theFree Trade Agreementwith the United States despite significant animosity from the Canadian public who were concerned about the economic and cultural impacts of close integration with the United States.

On July 11, 1990, theOka Crisisland disputebegan between theMohawk peopleofKanesatakeand the adjoining town ofOka, Quebec.The dispute was the first of a number of well-publicized conflicts between First Nations and the Canadian government in the late 20th century. In August 1990, Canada was one of the first nations to condemnIraq'sinvasion of Kuwait,and it quickly agreed to join theU.S.-led coalition.Canada deployed destroyers and later aCF-18 Hornetsquadron with support personnel, as well as afield hospitalto deal with casualties.

Following Mulroney's resignation as prime minister in 1993,Kim Campbelltook office and became Canada's first female prime minister.Campbell remained in office for only a few months: the 1993 election saw the collapse of the Progressive Conservative Party from government to two seats, while the Quebec-based sovereigntistBloc Québécoisbecame theofficial opposition.Prime MinisterJean Chrétienof the Liberals took office in November 1993 with amajority governmentand was re-elected with further majorities during the1997and2000 elections.

"No" side

"Yes" side

Campaign signs for both sides of the1995 Quebec sovereignty referendum

In 1995, the government of Quebec held asecond referendum on sovereigntythat was rejected by a margin of 50.6% to 49.4%.In 1998, the Canadian Supreme Court ruledunilateral secessionby a province to be unconstitutional, and Parliament passed theClarity Actoutlining the terms of a negotiated departure.

2001–present

Main article:History of Canada (1982–present)

Environmental issues increased in importance in Canada during the late 90s, resulting in the signing of theKyoto Accordon climate change by Canada's Liberal government in 2002. The accord was in 2007 nullified by Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservative government, which proposed a "made-in-Canada" solution to climate change.

The March of Hearts rally in support of same-sex marriage atParliament Hillin 2004. Same-sex marriage was legalized in 2005 with the passage of theCivil Marriage Act.

Canada became the fourth country in the world and the first country in the Americas to legalizesame-sex marriage nationwidewith the enactment of theCivil Marriage Actin 2005.Court decisions, starting in 2003, had already legalizedsame-sex marriagein eight out of ten provinces and one of three territories. Before the passage of the act, more than 3,000 same-sex couples had married in these areas.

TheCanadian Allianceand PC Party merged into theConservative Party of Canadain 2003, ending a 13-year division of the conservative vote. The party was elected twice as a minority government under the leadership ofStephen Harperin the2006 federal electionand2008 federal election.Harper's Conservative Party won a majority in the2011 federal electionwith theNew Democratic Partyforming theOfficial Oppositionfor the first time.

Under Harper, Canada and the United States continued to integrate state and provincial agencies to strengthen security along theCanada–United States borderthrough theWestern Hemisphere Travel Initiative.From 2002 to 2011,Canada was involved in the Afghanistan Waras part of theU.S. stabilization forceand the NATO-commandedInternational Security Assistance Force.In July 2010, the largest purchase inCanadian military history,totallingCA$9billion for the acquisition of 65F-35 fighters,was announced by the federal government.Canada is one of several nations that assisted in thedevelopment of the F-35and has invested overCA$168 millionin the program.

Map with areas labelled where theTruth and Reconciliation Commissionheld outreach and statement-gathering events over the impact ofresidential schoolswith the indigenous peoples

In 2008, the Government of Canada formally apologized to the indigenous peoples of Canada for the residential school system and the damage it caused.The government set up theTruth and Reconciliation Commission of Canadathat year to document the damage caused by the residential school system and the reconciliation needed to proceed into the future. It provided a "call to action" report in 2015.

On October 19, 2015, Stephen Harper's Conservatives were defeated by a newly resurgent Liberal party under the leadership ofJustin Trudeauand which had been reduced to third-party status in the 2011 elections.

Multiculturalism(cultural and ethnic diversity) has been emphasized in recent decades. Ambrose and Mudde conclude that: "Canada's unique multiculturalism policy... which is based on a combination of selective immigration, comprehensive integration, and strong state repression of dissent on these policies. This unique blend of policies has led to a relatively low level of opposition to multiculturalism".

From January 2020 to May 2022, Canada was greatly impacted byCOVID-19 pandemic,which caused over 40,000 deaths in the country, the third highest mortality toll in North America (behind the United States and Mexico).

Historiography

Main article:Historiography of Canada

The Conquest of New Francehas always been a central and contested theme of Canadian memory. Cornelius Jaenen argues:

The Conquest has remained a difficult subject for French-Canadian historians because it can be viewed either as economically and ideologically disastrous or as a providential intervention to enable Canadians to maintain their language and religion under British rule. For virtually all Anglophone historians it was a victory for British military, political, and economic superiority which would eventually only benefit the conquered.

Historians of the 1950s tried to explain the economic inferiority of the French Canadians by arguing that the Conquest:

destroyed an integral society and decapitated the commercial class; leadership of the conquered people fell to the Church; and, because commercial activity came to be monopolized by British merchants, national survival concentrated on agriculture.

At the other pole, are those Francophone historians who see the positive benefit of enabling the preservation of language, religion, and traditional customs under British rule. French-Canadian debates have escalated since the 1960s, as the Conquest is seen as a pivotal moment in the history of Quebec's nationalism. Historian Jocelyn Létourneau suggested in the 21st century, "1759 does not belong primarily to a past that we might wish to study and understand, but, rather, to a present and a future that we might wish to shape and control."

Anglophone historians, on the other hand, portray the Conquest as a victory for British military, political and economic superiority that was a permanent benefit to the French.

Allan Greer argues thatWhig historywas once the dominant style of scholars. He says the:

interpretive schemes that dominated Canadian historical writing through the middle decades of the twentieth century were built on the assumption that history had a discernible direction and flow. Canada was moving towards a goal in the nineteenth century; whether this endpoint was the construction of a transcontinental, commercial, and political union, the development of parliamentary government, or the preservation and resurrection of French Canada, it was certainly a Good Thing. Thus the rebels of 1837 were quite literally on the wrong track. They lost because theyhadto lose; they were not simply overwhelmed by superior force, they were justly chastised by the God of History.

See also

• List of Canadian historians
• Canadian studies

National historic significance

• Events of National Historic Significance
• National Historic Sites of Canada
• Persons of National Historic Significance

History by topic

BC

AB

SK

MB

ON

QC

NB

PE

NS

NL

YT

NT

NU

History by province or territory

• Constitutional history of Canada
• Economic history of Canada
• History of Canadian newspapers
• History of Canadian sports
• History of cities in Canada
• History of education in Canada
• History of medicine in Canada
• History of rail transport in Canada
• Social history of Canada
• Orange Order in Canada
• Anti-Quebec sentiment
• Acadian Renaissance

Academia

• Canadian Journal of History
• Canadian Historical Review
• Journal of Canadian Studies;:Media
• Heritage Minutes
• History Trek,Canadian History web portal designed for children

Further reading

Main article:Bibliography of Canadian history

Further information:List of Canadian historians

• For an annotated bibliography and evaluation of major books, seeCanada: A Reader's Guide,(2nd ed., 2000) by J. André Senécal,onlineArchivedNovember 28, 2020, at theWayback Machine,91pp.
• Black, Conrad.Rise to Greatness: The History of Canada From the Vikings to the Present(2014), 1120ppexcerpt
• Brown, Craig, ed.Illustrated History of Canada(McGill-Queen's Press-MQUP, 2012), Chapters by experts
• Bumsted, J.M.The Peoples of Canada: A Pre-Confederation History;The Peoples of Canada: A Post-Confederation History(2 vol. 2014), University textbook
• Chronicles of Canada Series(32 vol. 1915–1916) edited by G. M. Wrong and H. H. Langtononline detailed popular history
• Conrad, Margaret, Alvin Finkel and Donald Fyson.Canada: A History(Toronto: Pearson, 2012)
• Crowley, Terence Allan; Crowley, Terry; Murphy, Rae (1993).The Essentials of Canadian History: Pre-colonization to 1867—the Beginning of a Nation.Research & Education Assoc.ISBN978-0-7386-7205-2.
• Felske, Lorry William; Rasporich, Beverly Jean (2004).Challenging Frontiers: the Canadian West.University of Calgary Press.ISBN978-1-55238-140-3.
• Granatstein, J. L., and Dean F. Oliver, eds.The Oxford Companion to Canadian Military History,(2011)online review.
• Francis, R. D.; Jones, Richard; Smith, Donald B. (2009).Journeys: A History of Canada.Cengage Learning.ISBN978-0-17-644244-6.
• Lower, Arthur R. M. (1958).Canadians in the Making: A Social History of Canada.Longmans, Green.
• McNaught, Kenneth.The Penguin History of Canada(Penguin books, 1988)
• Morton, Desmond (2001).A short history of Canada.McClelland & Stewart Limited.ISBN978-0-7710-6509-5.
• Morton, Desmond (1999).A Military History of Canada: from Champlain to Kosovo.McClelland & Stewart.ISBN9780771065149.
• Norrie, Kenneth, Douglas Owram and J.C. Herbert Emery. (2002)A History of the Canadian Economy(4th ed. 2007)
• Riendeau, Roger E. (2007).A Brief History of Canada.Infobase Publishing.ISBN978-1-4381-0822-3.
• Stacey, C. P.Arms, Men and Governments: The War Policies of Canada 1939–1945(1970), the standard scholarly history of WWII policies;online free

Scholarly article collections

• Bumsted, J. M. and Len Keffert, eds.Interpreting Canada's Past(2 vol. 2011)
• Conrad, Margaret and Alvin Finkel, eds.Nation and Society: Readings in Pre-Confederation Canadian History;Nation and Society: Readings in Post-Confederation Canadian History(2nd ed. 2008)
• Francis, R. Douglas and Donald B Smith, eds.Readings in Canadian History(7th ed. 2006)

Primary sources and statistics

• Bliss, J.W.M.Canadian history in documents, 1763–1966(1966), 390pponline free
• Crowe, Harry S. et al. edsA Source-Book of Canadian History: Selected Documents and Personal Papers(1964) 508pponlineArchivedJune 12, 2018, at theWayback Machine
• Kennedy, W.P.M., ed. (1918).Documents of the Canadian Constitution, 1759–1915.Oxford UP.;707pp
• Reid, J.H. Stewart; et al., eds. (1964).A Source-book of Canadian History: Selected Documents and Personal Papers.Longmans Canada. Archived fromthe originalon November 2, 2007.RetrievedAugust 29,2017.;484pp; primary sources on more than 200 topics
• Talman, James J. and Louis L. Snyder, eds.Basic Documents in Canadian History(1959)onlineArchivedJune 12, 2018, at theWayback Machine192 pp
• Thorner, Thomas ed."A few acres of snow": documents in pre-confederation Canadian history(2nd ed. 2003)online free to borrow
  • Thorner, Thomas ed.A country nourished on self-doubt: documents in post-confederation Canadian history(2nd ed 2003)online free
• Urquhart, Malcolm Charles and F.H. Leacy, eds.Historical statistics of Canada(2nd ed. Ottawa: Statistics Canada, 1983). 800 p.ISBN0-660-11259-0

Historiography

Main article:Historiography of Canada § Further reading

• Berger, Carl.Writing Canadian History: Aspects of English Canadian Historical Writing since 1900(2nd ed. 1986), 364pp evaluates the work of most of the leading 20th century historians of Canada.
• Careless, J. M. S. "Canadian Nationalism – Immature or Obsolete?"Report of the Annual Meeting of the Canadian Historical Association / Rapports annuels de la Société historique du Canada(1954) 33#1 pp: 12–19.online
• McKercher, Asa, and Philip Van Huizen, eds.Undiplomatic History: The New Study of Canada and the World(2019)excerpt.
• Muise D. A. ed.A Reader's Guide to Canadian History: 1, Beginnings to Confederation (1982);(1982) Topical articles by leading scholars
  • Granatstein J.L. and Paul Stevens, ed.A Reader's Guide to Canadian History: vol 2: Confederation to the present(1982), Topical articles by leading scholars
• Taylor, Martin Brook; Owram, Douglas (1994).Canadian History: A Reader's Guide: Beginnings to Confederation.University of Toronto Press.ISBN978-0-8020-6826-2.;essays by experts evaluate the scholarly literature
  • Taylor, Martin Brook; Owram, Douglas (1994).Canadian history. 2. Confederation to the present.University of Toronto Press.ISBN978-0-8020-7676-2.;essays by experts evaluate the scholarly literature
• Rich, E. E. "Canadian History."Historical Journal14#4 (1971): 827–52.online.

External links

• The Canadian Encyclopedia
• National Historic Sites of Canada(archived 5 June 2011)
• The Dictionary of Canadian Biography
• Canadian Studies– Guide to the Sources (archived 21 August 2014)
• The Quebec History encyclopediaby Marianopolis College
• The Historica-Dominion Institute,includes Heritage Minutes (archived 1 January 2012)
• H-CANADA, daily academic discussion email list
• Canadian History & KnowledgeArchivedAugust 31, 2018, at theWayback Machine–Association for Canadian Studies
• Baldwin Collection of CanadianaatToronto Public Library