History- Confederation Review. The Great Migration

Transcription

1 History- Confederation Review The Great Migration This contributed to the diversity in Canada s makeup. Many Irish came over as a result of the Potato famine, and these people were Protestants. This conflicted with the French Catholics in Canada East. Also included the Underground Railroad, which was a system of Safehouses through the United States that helped ensure Black Slaves had safe passage through the United States into Canada. We did not believe in slavery. How did this Contribute to Confederation? Raised the population and contributed to the diversity of the country. As a result of the population boom, it was going to be necessary to change the way government worked. Equal Representation would no longer work. Physical and Economic Features of BNA BNA was full of different landscapes, Mountains in The West, plains inland, Canada West lagged behind Canada East in terms of industrial strength. Canada East began to industrialize in the 1840 s, and the majority of employees in factories were kids and women. If men did work in factories, they typically were paid a lot more. Food, Footware and textiles were the major industries in Canada East during the 1800 s The lives for First Nation s had not changed much prior to Confederation, for the Natives living in the western territories (British Columbia, Ruperts Land) Majority of economy in Eastern Canada was ship building, because of their close proximity to the ocean. Because the colonies were so diverse and different physically it would require many special types of transportation in order to do business, and colonies could not afford to do it on their own. Colonies also trade among each other, but had to pay tariffs. If they united as one, they could eliminate tariffs and make themselves a little stronger. They also had many different products because of the natural environments found in each colony. They could take their resources and sell them to each other, providing each other with things they may not have had access to. (i.e. The East Coast provides fish for the internal colonies)

2 Defense Issues Great Britain withdrew it s troops in the 1850 s, and this made BNA vulnerable to attack because they did not have a consistent force to help defend each colony Fenian s, a group of retired Civil War veterans attached BNA, and were intending to hold it hostage, in exchange for the freedom of Ireland in Britain. The American s also thought it was their destiny to own all of North America, and it was just a matter of time before the decided to invade and take it over. This too scared the politician s, especially since the American s were mad over the St. Alban s Raid. These defence issues pushed BNA towards Confederation because they felt vulnerable to attack and takeover. Therefore if they united under one country, they would have the opportunity to form a large consistent force that could defend all of the colonies. Trouble with Trade Colonies in the 1800 s trade with one another, but they had to pay tariffs to trade their goods in another territory. Britain had a set of Preferential Tariffs that helped them ensure that the colonies would be able to survive. Example- Britain would charge less tariffs on goods imported into England from BNA, thefore making people choose BNA goods. (Ex. Log from BNA- $ = $1.15, Log from Baltic Region- $ = $1.25 The American s took advantage of this, and sent their grain into BNA, which would then be sold in England for cheaper than everywhere else. This worked well for BNA as they made a lot of money shipping American Goods. The Corn Laws as they were called were cancelled by England, therefore making it difficult for the colonies to trade their goods in England, as they now had to compete with other economies. This encouraged BNA to form as a country, because as one country they would be able to sell their goods to each other, and form a larger trade group, therefore helping their economy to survive. Transportation Issues Large gaps in the railway system made it difficult for east-west trade, and the railway was very expensive. A railway line would allow products to move quicker, cheaper and open new markets. Small businesses would gain money and the railway would turn a huge profit on shipping costs.

3 BNA would need a loan to build a railway, but each colony could not get a loan for enough to complete their own section, as the bank wanted a larger assurance that the loan would be paid back. This pushed the colonies towards Confederation because if they united, they would be able to secure a larger loan and build the railway that would help their colony grow. Political Deadlock This is the reason why many decisions could not be made, and why things were difficult between Canada East (Quebec) and Canada West (Ontario) The system of Government at the time was a system of equal representation, where both groups had the same number of votes. Each group would vote down one another s bills, as they fought regularly over language rights, religious rights People were to be persuaded that uniting would give each colony a little bit more power, and a system of Rep by Pop would be put in place, where things may actually be able to progress because there wouldn t be equal representation. This would possibly only benefit Canada West, as they were the largest colony. Changing British Attitudes People of England had had enough of their tax dollars going to BNA to pay for their expenses, be it railway, defence or infrastructure. They wanted England to keep tax dollars and spend them in England and therefore they wanted the colonies to be more independent. Britain had quit paying for items like defense, forts and transportation. They were tired of their tax dollars not being spent in their own country, and BNA realized that times were going to get tough for them without British support. It would become important to think about Confederation because they could then collect their own tax dollars and decide how they would spend them in their own colony.

4 Sir John A. MacDonald Entered Legistlature in 1864, and was Canada s first Prime Minister. Created the national policy for Canada. He was accused of accepting bribes as a government official. Sir John A. was bitter enemies with George Brown. They always voted down each other s bills and did not get along at all. George Brown Leading supporter of Rep by Pop He was an innovator, and wanted Confederation to happen. He wanted a better country. He knew he had to work together with Johnny Mac in order to get things done. The Natives Once valued allies in the fight against the Americans. They were also a crucial part of the early BNA economy. They were given no representation in the affairs of the colonies, and were simply used when needed. They had no representatives at the Confederation debates, and therefore had no say in what happened with them. Their way of life was seriously destroyed as the population of white people continued to grow, and they had to keep moving north and west to avoid the newly expanding cities. The Conferences The Charlottetown Conference took place in Charlottetown PEI in September of The Maritime Colonies were getting together to discuss a new union between them, a Maritime Union. When Canada East and West caught wind of this, they decided they would go to this conference to throw in the idea of Confederation, a country from Sea to Sea. The Quebec Conference October 1864, all politicians met. Lasted three weeks. Discussed rules for sharing power in Confederation. Sir John A. MacDonald wrote most of the 72 Resolutions that came out of the conference. The deal came out with mixed reviews, but allowed for a Provincial Gov t and a Federal Gov t. Most of the delegates supported the Quebec Resolutions.

5 The London Conference Took place in London England in Dec to March Delegates came from the Canada s, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick PEI and Nfld. Decided against confederation. Roman Catholic Bishops wanted the protection of a Separate School System. They couldn t decide what to call the country, so they decided on The Dominion of Canada. They drafted the British North America Act which determined how the laws of the land would be made, and divided Federal and Provincial Powers. Feb. 11 th, 1867, the Queen of England received this draft Act, and it was then quickly passed by the House of Lords, The act received Royal Ascent on March 29 th, 1867 and came into law on July 1 st, Why is it important to Confederation? The conferences were worthy of discussion because they were the reason our country came into being. This is where the politicians agreed to divide up powers and determine how our country would run. If the representatives from Canada East and West had not gone to PEI for the Charlottetown Conference, our country may not have ever come into being. The Quebec conference was the most important conference as it is where the representatives made the decisions on how the country would look and what it s form of government would be. The London conference was the final conference, where the Queen gave her approval to let Canada be it s own country, under the Dominion of England and the Queen. The conferences contributed to Confederation because this was the very time of law making and decision making that made our country.