Ch a p t e r Si x

ConfederationConfederation

Figure 6-1 The British North America Act of July 1, 1867, formally brought together the Province of Canada, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia into a confederation called the Dominion of Canada. Under this act, the Province of Canada was divided into Ontario (formerly Canada West) and Québec (formerly Canada East). Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, and British Columbia were still governed as British colonies, whereas Rupert’s Land and the North-Western Territory were governed as territories. Colonies had more independence than territories.

GREENLAND(Denmark)

Alaska(U.S.)

UNITED STATES

HudsonBay

ArcticOcean

Atlantic Ocean

PacificOcean

British colonyBritish territoryDominion of Canada

Prince Edward Island

NewBrunswick

NovaScotia

Ontario

Rupert’s Land

The North-WesternTerritory

Québec

BritishColumbia

Newfoundland

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Why and how was the Dominion of Canada established as a confederation of British colonies in 1867?

Key Terms

political deadlock“rep by pop”Confederation American Civil WarManifest Destinyannexation FeniansreciprocityfederationBritish North

America Actenfranchisement constitutional

monarchyprorogue

Enduring Understandings

• ThehistoryofgovernanceinCanadaischaracterizedby

atransitionfromIndigenousself-governmentthrough

FrenchandBritishcolonialruletoaself-governing

confederationofprovincesandterritories.

• Canada’sparliamentarysystemisbasedontheruleofl

aw,

representativedemocracy,andconstitutionalmonarchy.

• Theroleofgovernmentandthedivisionofpowersand

responsibilitiesinCanada’sfederalsystemaresubjectso

f

ongoingnegotiation.

• French-EnglishdualityisrootedinCanada’shistoryand

is

aconstitutionallyprotectedelementofCanadiansociety.

• Britishculturaltraditionsandpoliticalinstitutionshave

playedaroleinshapingCanadianhistoryandidentity.

• Geographic,economic,cultural,andpoliticallinkstothe

UnitedStatescontinuetobeimportantfactorsinCanada’

s

development.

To explore this Essential Question, you will• examinethechallengesfacingBritishNorthAmericapriortoConfederation,including- politicaldeadlock- pressurefromtheUnitedStates- economicandgeographicchallenges- Britain’sdesiretoreduceitscolonialresponsibilities

• becomefamiliarwiththeprocessleadingtoConfederation,includingtheeventssurroundingtheCharlottetown,Québec,andLondonConferences

• investigatetheBritish North America ActandhowthenewDominionofCanadawouldbegoverned

• examinetheethicalissueregardingthefactthatFirstNationspeopleswerenotincludedintheConfederationconferencesandnegotiations

Getting StartedExaminethemapofCanadain1867ontheoppositepage,andconsiderthesequestions:• WhymightthecoloniesofBritishNorthAmericahavefeltthreatenedbytheUnitedStates?(ConsiderthattheUnitedStatespurchasedAlaskafromRussiaonMarch30,1867.)

• WhatcoloniesofBritishNorthAmericamighthavenaturallyformedunionswitheachother?

• WhattypeofproblemsexistedbetweentheseparatecoloniesofBritishNorthAmerica(thinkaboutgeography,theeconomy,andtransportation)?

• WhatpartsofBritishNorthAmericamighthavebeenmoresuitedgeographicallytojointheUnitedStatesthantojointheotherBritishNorthAmericancolonies?

171mhr  •  Confederation • Chapter 6

Challenges FaCing BriTish norTh ameriCa

Sincethe1840s,thecoloniesofBritishNorthAmerica(BNA)hadfacedavarietyofinternalchallengesandexternalpressuresthathelpedpushthecoloniestowardConfederation.

Political DeadlockAsyoulearnedinChapter4,BritainhaddeclaredintheAct of Unionof1841thatthetwoCanadas—CanadaEastandCanadaWest—wouldhaveequalrepresentationintheelectedassemblyoftheProvinceofCanada.BritainmadethisdecisionbecauseCanadaEast’spopulationoutnumberedCanadaWest’spopulation,andthisguaranteeofequalrepresentationwassupposedtoallayCanadaWest’sfearofdominationbyFrenchCatholics.However,insteaditledtopolitical deadlock,inwhichgovernmentdecisionscouldnotbemadebecauseeachsideblockedtheotherfromadvancinganyagenda.By1861,duetoalargeinfluxofimmigrantsintoCanadaWestduring

the1850s,thecensusshowedthatCanadaWesthadalmost300000morepeoplethanCanadaEast.Becauseofthisdemographicchange,GeorgeBrown,aprominentleaderinCanadaWest,begantoadvocatethatrepresentationinthelegislatureshouldbeaccordingtopopulation.“Rep by pop”wouldgiveequalrepresentationtoeachvoteintheassembly.“Repbypop”becamearallyingcryamongpeopleinCanadaWestwhoagreedwithBrown’sviews.CanadaWest’spoliticalleaderssaw“repbypop”asademocraticwaytofurthertheirownagendas;FrenchCanadianleaderssawitasanattemptbyCanadaWesttoassimilatethem.

Forming New Alliances

Twoincreasinglyinfluentialleadersintheassembly,George-ÉtienneCartierfromCanadaEastandJohnA.MacdonaldfromCanadaWest,begantoworktogethertotrytoremainincontrolofthetumultuouselectedassemblyoftheProvinceofCanada.TheybothbelievedthatrepresentationbypopulationwasnottheanswertoCanada’sproblemsandtheyopposedBrown’sideas.Cartier,Macdonald,andBrownrealizedthatthepoliticaldeadlock

highlightedtheircolony’sFrench–Englishduality.Despitetheirdifferentbeliefs,allthreemenagreedthattheAct of UnionwasnotworkingandthattheycouldplayacrucialroleinchangingthefutureofCanada.

Figure 6-2 George Brown was a journalist and politician who became known for his belief in “rep by pop”—representation by population.

Figure 6-3 George-Étienne Cartier

Figure 6-4 John A. Macdonald

Thinking Historically

Establishing historical significance

Using primary-source evidence

Identifying continuity and change

Analyzing cause and consequence

Taking a historical perspective

Considering the ethical dimensions of history

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Economic and Geographic ChallengesWhilepoliticaldeadlockchallengedtheProvinceofCanada,theeconomyandwidegeographicaldistanceswerehavinganeffectonalltheBritishNorthAmericancolonies.ThosewhosupportedtheideaofConfederation(apoliticalunionofthecolonies)startedpromotingitaswaytoendtheireconomictroubles,inpartbycreatingagreatrailroadtoconnectthecolonies.

Trade and Financial Challenges

Inthelateeighteenthcenturyandearlynineteenthcentury,BritainhadgivengoodsandresourcescomingfromBritishNorthAmericapreferredtreatment.However,by1840,Britainstartedtodoawaywiththispreferentialtreatment.In1846,BritainrepealedtheCorn Laws,whichhadbeenineffectsince1791.ThisrepealhadadevastatingeffectontheProvinceofCanada’seconomy.TheCorn LawshadplacedalowerimportdutyonwheatandgrainscomingintoBritainfromBritishcolonies.WithouttheprotectionoftheCorn Laws,Canadianwheatandflourhadtocompetewithgrainsfrommanymorecountries.Canadianwheatandflourbecamemoreexpensive,soexportstoBritaindroppedbyover60percent.TheProvinceofCanadawasthrownintoarecession,a

periodofeconomicdecline.SomeCanadiansstartedtothinkintermsofacontinentalratherthanacolonialtradesystem.TheybegantobelievethattheyshouldmanufacturetheirownproductsandfindmarketsfortheseproductswithinthecoloniesofBritishNorthAmerica.TheBritishNorthAmericancoloniesbegantolookatworkingwithoneanotherasopposedtoworkingone-on-onewithBritain.

WhatinfrastructurewouldBritishNorthAmericaneedifthecoloniesweretotradewithoneanother?Whatchallengesmighttheseinfrastructureneedspose?

Linking the Colonies: The Role of the Railway

Leadersquicklyrealizedthatiftradebetweenthecolonieswastobeaviableoption,aneffectivesystemofrailtransportationwouldhavetobebuilttolinktheEasttotheWest.IfarailwaywasexpandedacrosstheprairiesandintoBritishColumbia,rawgoodscouldbetransportedfromtheWesttomanufacturingpointsintheeasternpartofBritishNorthAmerica.ItwasalsobelievedthatthebuildingoftherailwaywouldhelpopenupnewsettlementopportunitiesandestablishastrongerBritishpresenceintheWest.NovaScotia,NewBrunswick,andtheProvinceofCanadaallhad

theirownrailroads,butthecostswerestaggeringandeachgovernmentwasstrugglingtocopewiththedebtfrombuildingitsrailroad.Iftherailroadsystemwastoexpand,thecolonieswouldneedtoworktogether.Thiswaytheywouldbeabletoinvestintherailwayasoneunitandnegotiatewithpossibleinvestorsandbuildersasasingleentity.Theindependentcoloniesstartedtolooktowardthefuturetogether.

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Figure 6-5 This photo shows the building of a railway bridge, circa 1870, in New Brunswick. The high costs of building railways placed enormous stress on the budgets of small colonies. Confederation was looked upon by some leaders as a way of sharing the debt load and a step toward creating a railway across the continent.

CHECKBACK

CHECKFORWARD

YouwilllearnmoreaboutCanada’srailwaydevelopment

inChapter8.

173mhr  •  Confederation • Chapter 6

Territory and Trade Challenges from the United StatesAnotherchallengethatpushedBritishNorthAmericatowardConfederationwastheatmosphereofconflictinNorthAmerica.TheAmericanCivilWaranditsimmediateaftermathnotonlyencouragedtheunionoftheBritishNorthAmericancolonies,butalsodirectlydeterminedtheformthattheirgovernmenttook.

The American Civil War

ItisnecessarytohaveabasicunderstandingoftheAmerican Civil WarinordertounderstandhowitaffectedBritishNorthAmerica.Between1861and1865,severalsouthernstatesdeclaredtheirsecession(withdrawal)fromtheUnitedStatesandformedtheConfederateStatesofAmerica.TheUnitedStatesgovernmentrejectedthesouthern

secessionanddeclaredthattheactwasarebellion.Largelyovertheissuesofslaveryandcontrolovereconomicandpoliticaldecisionmaking,theConfederateStatesfoughtagainstthenorthernstates(knownastheUnionStates)inabitterandbrutalwar.Thewarendedin1865,withtheNorthdefeatingtheSouth,buttheeffectsoftheAmericanCivilWarreachedfaroutsidethegeographicalboundariesoftheUnitedStates.BritainandFranceboth

proclaimedneutralityinthewar.However,Britain’sboomingtextileindustryneededcotton,whichwasproducedinthe

southernstates.In1862,UnionshipsattemptedtoblockshipmentsofcottonfromleavingtheSouth.Toavoidtheblockade,Britishinvestorsbuiltshipscalledblockaderunners.Thesesmall,fastshipswereabletosmugglecottonoutoftheSouthtoBritain.ManyAmericansinthenorthernstatesbegantolooksuspiciouslyatBritain,becausealthoughtheBritishgovernmentstilldeclareditsneutrality,itdidlittletostoptheblockaderunners.Britain’slackofcompleteneutralityincreasedAmerican–Britishtensions.

WhywouldBritain’srelationshipwiththeUnitedStatesaffectBritishNorthAmerica?Suggestpotentialconsequences.

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Figure 6-6 The British blockade runner, Dee, was one of many ships used to continue trade with the Confederate States by evading the Union blockade.

174 Cluster 2 • British North America (1763–1867) • mhr

The Trent Affair

InNovember1861,anAmericanwarshipstoppedtheBritishmailshipTrent,whichwasheadingbacktoBritainwithtwoConfederateagentsonboard.TheyweretravellingtoBritaintoaskforBritishsupportfortheConfederatecause.TheAmericanstookthetwoagentsprisoner,despitetheshipbeinginneutralwaters.Britainthreatenedtoretaliateiftheagentswerenotreleased.AmericanPresidentAbrahamLincolnfreedtheprisonersashedidnotwanttohavetofaceawarwithBritainwhilehewasalsofightingtheConfederateStates.Despitethereleaseoftheprisoners,therelationshipbetweenAmericaandBritainremainedstrained.BecauseBritainhadthreatenedtoretaliate,someAmericanswanted

togetbackatBritainbyattackingBritishNorthAmerica.Inresponse,theBritishdispatched14000troopstoBritishNorthAmerica.Becausetherewasnorailway,ittookalongtimetotransferthetroopstowheretheywereneeded.AlthoughtheUnitedStatesneverdidattack,itislikelythatBritishNorthAmericawouldnothavebeenabletodefenditselfduetoitsinabilitytoquicklytransfertroops.

St. Alban’s Raid

Intheautumnof1864,agroupofConfederatesoldiersattackedthetownofSt.Alban’s,Vermont,usingMontréalastheirbase.Aftertheraid,thesoldiersescapedbackacrossthebordertoavoidprosecution.Britishgovernmentauthoritiesarrestedthesoldiers,butlaterreleasedthem.TheUnitedStatesgovernmentwasfurious,anditthreatenedBritishNorthAmericaiffutureattackerswerenotturnedovertoAmericanauthorities.ThethreatofattackfromtheUnitedStatesmadetheBritishcoloniesrealizethat,asseparateentities,theyhadlittleornomeanstodefendthemselves.

Figure 6-7 On November 8, 1861, a Union Navy vessel captured two Confederate agents travelling to Britain on a mail ship. This event strained American-British relations in what became known as the Trent Affair.

175mhr  •  Confederation • Chapter 6

United States Expansionism: Manifest Destiny

DuringandaftertheAmericanCivilWar,therewasconcerninBritishNorthAmericathatbecauseBritain,andbyconnectionBritishNorthAmerica,wasperceivedassupportingtheConfederateStates,theUnitedStateswouldnowlookatitsnorthernneighbourinangerandmightretaliate.UnderlyingthesefearswasthepopularityofthedoctrineofManifest DestinyamongmanyAmericansatthistime.ManifestDestinywasabeliefthattheUnitedStateswasdestined,byGod,tocontrolallofNorthAmerica.Duringthe1840s,theAmericanswereexpandingacrossthecontinent,leadingtotheannexationofTexasin1845,eventhoughMexicostillclaimedTexasasitsown.AftertheMexican–AmericanWar(1846–1848),theUnitedStatesacquiredNewMexicoandCaliforniafor$15million.TheUnitedStatesalsolookedtothenorthwestlandsofthecontinentasarichsourceofnaturalresources.TheoutbreakoftheAmericanCivilWarstrengthenedthesenseof

ManifestDestiny.AvocalgroupofAmericanexpansionistsbelievedthatoncethewarwasover,theUnitedStatesshouldturnitsattentiontotheannexationofBritishNorthAmerica.AlthoughtheultimategoalsofManifestDestinywereneverreached,thepopularityoftheideaundoubtedlyweighedonthemindsofmanyBritishNorthAmericanleadersandresidents.

Examinehowlightanddarkareusedinthepainting.Whatimpressiondoesthistechniquegiveviewers?Lookattheleftsideofthepainting.Whatandwhois“America”clearingoutofthewayforthenewcomers?

E

They [the United States] coveted Florida, and seized it; they coveted Louisiana, and purchased it; they coveted Texas, and stole it; and then they picked a quarrel with Mexico, which ended by their getting California . . .. Had we not the strong arm of England over us, we would not now have had a separate existence . . ..

— Thomas D’Arcy McGee, Member of the Legislative Assembly,

Province of Canada

Voices

Figure 6-8 American Progress, by John Gast, 1872. The idea of Manifest Destiny continued in the United States well after the American Civil War. In this painting, “America” is shown floating over the plains, guiding the way for farmers, the railway, and stage coaches.

176 Cluster 2 • British North America (1763–1867) • mhr

Fenian Raids

BesidestheAmericanCivilWar,otherAmericanproblemsthreatenedBritishNorthAmerica.In1859,agroupofIrishmenformedabrotherhood,calledtheFenians,intheUnitedStatestopromotetheliberationofIrelandfromBritishcontrol.TheFeniansbelievedthatiftheycouldcapturesomeBritishNorthAmericancolonies,theycouldholdthecoloniesransominreturnforIreland’sfreedom.In1866,theFeniansmadeseveralattemptstoraidBritishNorthAmerica.Inthespringof1866,forexample,theFenianslaunchedasmall

strikeagainstNewBrunswick.FiveFenianscrossedtheborder,heldupacustomsofficer,toredowntheUnionJack(theBritishflag),andthenwereforcedbackacrosstheborderbytheNewBrunswickmilitiaandBritishtroops.AsecondFenianattackwasmoreserious.OnMay31,1866,about

1500FenianscrossedtheNiagaraRiverintoCanadaWest.IntheBattleofRidgeway(nearFortErie),fightingtookplacebetweentheFeniansandaforceofCanadianmilitiaandBritishsoldiers.OnJune3,theFeniansretreatedacrosstheborder,afterkillingsixCanadiansandwoundingthirtyothers.FenianraidsintoBritishNorthAmericacontinueduntil1871,includinganattemptedraidintoManitobathatfailedbeforeitreachedtheborder.TheFenianraidshelpedpromoteadesireforaunionamongtheBNAcolonies,whichbegantobelievetheyneededauniteddefence.

We are the Fenian Brotherhood,Skilled in the art of war,And we’re going to fight for IrelandThe land that we adore,Many battles we have won,

along withThe boys in blue,And we’ll go and capture Canada forWe’ve nothing else to do.

— Fenian marching song

Voices

Figure 6-9 The Battle of Ridgeway was the largest and deadliest of the Fenian raids into British North America.

177mhr  •  Confederation • Chapter 6

The End of Reciprocity

AlongwiththeotherthreatsfromtheUnitedStatesatthetime,aneconomicinfluencenudgedBritishNorthAmericansalongthepathtounion.In1854,theUnitedStatesandBritishNorthAmericancoloniesagreedtoaReciprocityTreatythatallowedforfreetradeonproductssuchastimber,grain,coal,livestock,andfish.Inthespringof1866,theUnitedStatescancelledtheReciprocityTreaty.OnereasonforthecancellationwasthatsomeAmericansbelievedthatiftheUnitedStatescouldcrippletheeconomyofBritishNorthAmerica,theBritishcolonieswouldbeforcedintoaunionwiththeUnitedStates.However,thatwasnottheresult.NowthatBritishNorthAmericahadlostitssecondguaranteed

marketinthepasttwentyyears,leadersrealizedthattheireconomicfortunesweretiedtothepoliciesofothernations.ThisrealizationmademanyBritishNorthAmericanleadersseethebenefitsofclosereconomicandpoliticalcooperationwithoneanother.

The Imperial Nudge: British Support for ConfederationAfterthemid-1840s,Britain’scolonieswerenolongerregardedaspreciouseconomicassetstotheempire.Bythe1860s,Britishauthoritiesindicatedagrowingdesiretohavecolonies,suchasthoseinNorthAmerica,assumeagreaterfinancialresponsibilityfortheirowndefenceinordertoreducetheburdenonBritishtaxpayers.ManyBritishofficialswelcomedanyideas,suchasConfederation,thatmightpermitthecoloniestobemoreindependentandreducetheneedforfinancialandmilitarysupport.BritainalsobelieveditsownrelationshipwiththeUnitedStatesmight

improveifBritishNorthAmericawasmoreindependent.BritaindidnotwanttohaveresponsibilityformanagingBritishNorthAmerica’srelationshipwiththeUnitedStates,aswellasitsown.Britainpromisedlow-interestloansforrailwaydevelopmentasanenticementforthecoloniestosupportConfederation.ColonialgovernorswhodidnotsupportConfederationwerereplacedbygovernorsmoresympathetic totheidea.

Recall . . . Reflect . . . Respond

1. WhatfactorswithinBritishNorthAmericawerepushingsomeofthecoloniestowardConfederation?

2. WhatexternalfactorsinfluencedConfederation?C C C C

I am in favour of a union of these provinces because it will enable us to meet . . . the abrogation [cancellation] of the American Reciprocity Treaty . . .. I do not believe the American government is so insane as to repeal the treaty. But . . . if they do repeal it, should this union of British America go on, a fresh outlet for our commerce will be opened up to us.

— George Brown, Legislative Assembly, Province of Canada, 1865

Voices

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179mhr  •  Confederation • Chapter 6

Causes of ConfederationCauses of Confederation

1. InthischapterwelookatthecausesthatledtoConfederation.Ifyouweretocontinuethechart,whatmightbesomeoftheconsequencesofConfederation(thinkaboutpeoples,provinces,andtheeconomy)?

2. Withapartner,brainstormacurrenteventorissuethathasmultiplecauses.Outlinethevariouscausesinachartsimilartotheoneabove.

Asyouengageinhistoricalthinking,therearetwothingstokeepinmindaboutcauseandconsequence.First,itisimportanttorememberthateventsoftenhavemultiplecauses.Second,broadunderlyingcausesareoftenasimportantasimmediatecauses.Confederationisanexcellentexampleofhow

multipleissuesresultedinahistoricaleventtakingplace.Inexaminingthediagrambelow,youwillnoticehowdifficultitistoarguethatoneparticularissuecausedConfederation.Instead,manyissuescontributedtoConfederation.Noticealsothatwithin

eachofthegeneralissuesortopicsthatcausedConfederation,thereisamorespecificcauseofConfederation.Youcanseethatcausationinhistoryisnotasimplematter.Oneofthechallengesthathistoriansfaceis

assessingnotonlywhatthecausesofahistoricaleventwere,butalsowhichofthecausesmayhaveplayedthemostsignificantrole.Inmanycases,youwillfindthathistoriansareabletoagreeonthegeneralcausesofahistoricalevent,butmaydisagreeonthemostsignificantfactor.

Analyzing Cause and ConsequenceAnalyzing Cause and Consequence

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Figure 6-10 Major Direct Causes of Confederation

Political deadlock in the Province of Canada

Economic challenges

Pressures from the United States

Canadian Confederation

French–English conflict

Short-lived governments

End of reciprocity with the United States

End of free trade with Britain

Trade barriers between colonies

Need for railway to improve trade between colonies

American Civil War

Fenian raids

Manifest Destiny

Need for railway to assist troop movement in case of attack from the United States

seeKing PoliTiCal soluTions: The road To ConFederaTion

The “Great Coalition”InthetwodecadesfollowingtheAct of Unionin1841,thejobofgoverningtheProvinceofCanadabecameincreasinglyunmanageable.Althoughcoalitiongovernments,suchastheBaldwin–Lafontainecoalition,hadbeenformedtobridgethedividebetweenCanadaEastandCanadaWest,eachhadeventuallycollapsed.TherewerealsodivisionsamongmembersoftheassemblyfromeachsideoftheProvinceofCanada.Bythe1850s,CanadaWest’selectedmembersoftheassemblyweredividedintotworivalparties:theClearGritsledbyGeorgeBrown,andtheLiberal-ConservativesundertheleadershipofJohnA.Macdonald.CanadaEast’smembersoftheassemblyweredividedbetweenthePartiBleu,underGeorge-ÉtienneCartier,andthePartiRouge,underAntoine-AiméDorion.From1858to1862,MacdonaldandCartierservedasco-premiersof

Canada.However,eventhatcombinationcouldnotstrugglefreefromthepoliticaldeadlockthathadenvelopedthegovernment.MacdonaldandCartierneededsupportfromtheirbiggestrival—GeorgeBrown.Despitetheirrivalry,Brown,Cartier,andMacdonaldallbelievedthat

therehadtobeabetterwaytostructureCanada.In1864,themenwereabletoputasidetheirpersonalfeelingstoformtheGreatCoalition.TheirsinglegoalwasthecreationofaunionofalltheBritishNorthAmericancolonies.

Movement for Maritime UnionIfaunionoftheBritishNorthAmericancolonieswastobecomeareality,itwasimperativethattheAtlanticcoloniesbeincluded.However,someAtlanticcolonistswereskepticalofConfederation.Theywereconcernedthat,becauseoftheirsmallpopulation,theywouldhavelittleinfluenceinaunitedparliament.TheysawthemselvesasdistantandisolatedfromtheCanadas.WithsomanyargumentsagainsttheAtlanticcolonies’participation

inConfederation,itwasnaturalthatAtlanticcitizensandleadersturnedfirsttotheideaofaMaritimeunionbetweenNewBrunswick,NovaScotia,Newfoundland,andPrinceEdwardIsland.TheideaofaMaritimeunionwasnotnew,butin1864itgeneratedrenewedenthusiasm.ItwasdecidedthataconferencewouldbeheldinSeptember1864,

inCharlottetown,PrinceEdwardIsland,todiscussthepossibilityofaMaritimeunion.RepresentativesfromtheCanadasmanagedtoobtainaninvitationtotheconference,andtheirparticipationwouldchangethecourseofCanada’shistory.

This Confederation scheme cannot benefit our trade. We have not a single article we can send to Canada . . . while we would have to pay three times the taxes in proportion to our numbers . . ..

— Robert Thomson, New Brunswick House of Assembly, 1866

Voices

CHECKBACK

CHECKFORWARD

Youreadaboutthe Baldwin–Lafontaine coalitioninChapter4.

180 Cluster 2 • British North America (1763–1867) • mhr

The Charlottetown ConferenceTherepresentativesfromtheAtlanticcoloniesdecidedtohearwhattheCanadianshadtosaybeforediscussingthepossibilityofaMaritimeunion.ThemembersoftheCanadiandelegationimpressedtheAtlanticcolonieswiththeirargumentsandpromisesaboutthebenefitsthatthecolonieswouldgainfromaunion.MacdonaldremindedthemofthethreatthattheAmericanCivilWarbroughttothecoloniesanddiscussedhowtheywouldbebetterabletodefendthemselvesiftheywereunited.TheCanadiancoalitionalsopromisedthatacentralizedgovernmentwouldassumethedebtsofthecoloniesthatjoined.Forsomecolonies,burdenedwithdebtfromrailwaybuilding,thislastpromiseseemedlikeasolutiontoagrowingproblem.Bytheendoftheconference,theideaofaMaritimeunionwas

dropped,andtherewasageneralagreementthatawiderunioncouldbenefitallthecolonies.ItwasdecidedthatanotherconferencewouldbeinheldinQuébecCitythenextmonth.

The Québec ConferenceInOctober1864,thirty-threedelegatesarrivedinQuébecCitytodiscussthedetailsofaconfederationofcolonies.UsingtheideasthathadbeenoutlinedattheCharlottetownConference,thepoliticiansbeganthedifficulttaskofcreatingaconstitutionfortheproposednewnation.AllthedelegatesagreedthattieswithBritainwouldbekeptand

thattheBritishconstitutionwouldbeadheredtoascloselyaspossibleincreatingtheconfederation’sconstitution.Therewasalsoagreementthattheunionwouldbeafederation,meaningthattherewouldbemorethanonelevelofgovernment.Therewouldbeanational(federal)governmentthatwouldaddresstheneedsofalltheregions,andtherewouldalsobeprovincialgovernmentsthatwouldlookafterregionalconcerns.TherewasalsoagreementthatthecentralgovernmentwouldbemadeupofaHouseofCommonsandaSenate.However,therewas

disagreementabouthowpowerwouldbesharedbetweenthetwolevelsofgovernment.Intheend,thecoloniesreachedanagreementthatincludedseventy-tworesolutionsonhowthenewcountrywouldberun.ThisdidnotmeanthatConfederationwasareality.Eachofthedelegatesthenhadtoreturntohiscolonyandgetsupportfortheplan.Someofthehardestworkwasyettocome.

Figure 6-11 Fathers of Confederation, by Robert Harris, 1884. In his work, Harris amalgamated the Charlottetown and Québec conference sites and attendees to create this picture. Knowing this, can Harris’s painting be used as a reliable source of historical evidence? Explain your answer.

WEB CONNECTIONS

To learn more about Confederation, visit the Shaping Canada web site

and follow the links.

181mhr  •  Confederation • Chapter 6