Flashback Canada Chapter 5: Confederation Won
1. Celebrations and Misery
“With the first dawn of this summer morning, we
hail the birthday of a new nation. A
united British America takes its place among the nations of the world.” George Brown”
“Died -at her residence in the city of
Fredericton, The Province of New Brunswick, in the 83rd year of her
age,” read the headline of a newspaper in New Brunswick.
It is a myth that all
the members of the colonies were entirely united in the formation of the Dominion
of Canada.
2. How will we gain full independence?
Unlike the Americans
who violently rebelled against the British Empire in the 18th
century, Canada politely asked for the legal approval from British Parliament.
3. The London Conference
Sixteen delegates are
sent to London. They work with the
British Government to draft or write a number of bills (a bundle of proposed
laws) to be approved by the British Parliament.
Once approved, the bills become a series of laws or an act. The 72 Resolutions become bills and then
finalized as the British North American Act.
This is our constitution or rule book for our government.
One detail remains:
what model would be used?
4. Models of Government
Out of practicality and familiarity, the
delegates look at the British and American models of government.
5. Ideas from the American Model
a) There is a federal government that deals
with large issues and provincial government that deals with local issues.
b) The American model works better for
governing a larger nation.
c)
However, the American model gives a lot of power to each state/
province. This results into the American
Civil War.
“In framing the Constitution,
care should be taken to avoid the mistakes and weaknesses of the United States
system.” John
A. Macdonald
6. Ideas from the British Model
a) The
Queen is the head of government, but she must follow the advice of the elected
members of government.
b) The elected represented discuss, propose and
make laws in the House of Commons.
c) There will be representation by population.
d) To ensure French Rights or ‘la survivance’
(the survival of French culture), Quebec is guaranteed 65 elected officials, so
the English majority can be less likely to dominate decisions.
e) If the elected government in power loses the
trust of the majority of representatives, they can be voted out of power.
f) The Senate must approve all bills to become
official laws. If not, they are sent
back for revision. Senators are
appointed and not elected.
7. Our Government Model
King or Queen of England (inherited position)à
Governor General (appointed by the King, Queen
and British Government)à
the appointed Senateà
the
Prime Minister (the leader of the party with the most elected members)à
the Prime Minister’s Cabinet (hand-picked
elected members to control ministries such as the Ministry of Finance)à
the members of the House of Commons in Ottawa
(elected members from regions across the Dominion of Canada)à
the
People of Canada who are eligible to vote (Women do not have the right to vote.
These are men over the age of 35 who own property.)
8. Our
New Constitution (a Country’s Rule Book)
Despite being an economic and military burden
to Britain, the British were impressed by the wide support from most yet not
all of the Canadian population. The
debate is short, and few changes are proposed.
A livelier debate followed in Britain over a new dog tax.
Joseph Howe, an anti-Confederate shows up to
argue against Confederation in London.
The British were not amused, nor did they pay much attention to him.
Queen Victoria finalizes everything by signing
the Constitution Act of 1867. The
Dominion of Canada consisting of four provinces (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia,
and the new province of Ontario, and the new province of Quebec).
9. The Division of Power: Who gets what and
who does what!
A constitution explains the rules, laws and
practices for the government. The
Constitution Act of 1867 gave more power to the federal branch and less power
to the provincial branch.
10. Provincial Powers
a) education
b) property rights
c) mines and forests
d) licensing of businesses
e) hospitals and mental health facilities
f) provincial taxes such as sales tax
g) provincial courts and prisons
11. Federal Powers
a) trade
b) defence
c) foreign affairs
d) banks
e) shipping
f) fisheries
g) criminal law
h) federal taxes
i) postal services
j) Aboriginal peoples and land on which they
were forced to move
12. Other Details
Shovels had to hit the ground. The Intercolonial Railway would go over the St.
Lawrence River and connect the rest of Ontario and Quebec to the Province of
Nova Scotia.
All debt would be absorbed from the colonies by
the federal government.
Custom duties or taxes from imports went to the
federal government and were sent back to the provinces in the form of
subsidies.
13. French Canadian Rights
The French kept their language, religion,
schools and civil law. English and
French were to be used in government and federal courts.
14. Women & Aboriginal Peoples
Women did not have the right to vote. This soon
became a major issue.
The First Nations were not recognized as
independent, so they were under the authority of the federal government. This decision has created unresolved issues
to this day in Canada.
15. Other Minority Groups
Black Loyalists from Nova Scotia, German
settlers in Ontario, Ukrainian people in the Prairies, and Chinese labourers
who built our railway were not consulted in the formation of the Dominion of
Canada.
16. Ushering in a New Country
The first Governor General, Lord Monck, was
appointed to open the first session of Parliament.
17. Naming the New Country
The Kingdom of Canada was avoided since it
would offend Americans who revolted against the British monarchy, so Tilley
suggested that a name be drawn from the Old Testament since the population of
Canada was largely Christian. The name
comes from Psalm 72 of the Bible that reads “He shall have dominion from sea to
sea…”
18. Canada’s Centennial in 1967 or its 100th
Birthday
In grade 10, you will study the impact of
Canada’s centennial. Why do you think
Etobicoke has a park named Centennial? These are among the many things created
to celebrate Canada’s 100th
birthday.
19. Canada’s Parliament Building
Construction began for the Parliament
building. Despite a fire that nearly
destroyed the building in 1916, it was rebuilt in 1922 and the prominent Peace
Tower was completed in 1927.
20. The Dawn of Photography or Life Long Before
the Selfies and Smart Phone
The first photograph was taken in Quebec City
in 1840. The wealthy hired William
Notman of Montreal to photograph them.
Patrons had to sit still for a few minutes and not move. A neck brace would hold them from behind, so
they would not move. Photography slowly
became more accessible to the general public over time.
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