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Causes of Confederation
Causes of Confederation
• The idea of uniting the colonies of British North
America had been around for a long time – ever
since the Loyalists had arrived
• But it wasn’t until the 1860s that several key
elements came together to make the union both
a reality – and a necessity
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A change in British attitudes
A renewed fear of an American invasion
The impending loss of free trade with the United States
The promise (and financial debts) of a dawning age of rail
Political stalemate in the Canadas
And last but not least, the “glory argument” – that shimmering
romantic allure of creating something bigger, better, grander
A Change in Britain’s Attitude
• Britain was still the head of an empire and as
imperialistic as ever
• But emphasis on trade and profit rather than
military might and imperial monopolies
• British North American colonies now seen as a
“burden”
• British North America needed to grow up and
take more responsibility for its own affairs –
without leaving the British Empire entirely, of
course.
• A self-governing union, still under the final
authority of Great Britain, seemed like the ideal
solution
The U.S. Civil War
• Fear of an American takeover during the Civil
War was perhaps the leading cause of Canadian
Confederation.
• The Civil War in the United States (1861-1865)
was tearing the country apart.
• The slave-owning Confederate states of the
South had attempted to leave the union, and the
free states of the North (the Union) were
hammering them into submission.
The U.S. Civil War
• Canada didn’t support the slave-owning
southern Confederacy but it was caught up in
the struggle anyway
• Britain claimed to be neutral but showed clear
sympathy and even support for the breakaway
states of the South.
• The US government became very anti-British
and newspapers in Chicago and New York
warned Canada, “Just wait ‘til this war is over.
You’re next!”
The Impact of the US Civil War on
Canada
• The Civil War in the United States added a
sense of urgency to the move toward
Confederation
• An attack on Canada by the Americans seemed
very likely because of Britain’s not quite so
neutral position in the civil war
• Defence became a key concern for people in the
British North American colonies (Canada)
• Uniting together would be one way to ensure
that they were protected from the possibility of
American attacks. (Britain couldn’t be counted
on anymore)
The Impending End of Free Trade
• The colonies had worked out a Treaty of
Reciprocity (that is, open or “free” trade)
with the United States
• This allowed the Canadian and Maritime
colonies to sell their fish, lumber, coal, and
grain in the lucrative American market.
• Reciprocity brought prosperity but it also
made the colonies increasingly dependent
on US trade policies
The Impending End of Free Trade
• The Treaty was due to be renewed in
1865, but the tensions caused by the US
Civil War made it likely that they would let
the agreement lapse, ending free trade
• Once the American market had been cut
off, what then?
• A union of the British North American
colonies made a lot of sense.
• It would allow cross-colonial access to Maritime
fisheries, New Brunswick timber, Canadian
factories, and perhaps even the land and natural
resources of the vast Northwest
Annexation?
• Annexation is the legal incorporation of some
territory into another country
• The Americans announced that they would not
renew the Reciprocity Treaty, but what they were
trying to do was to force Canada to join the
American union
• They thought that ending free trade would force
the Canadians into annexation with the United
States, but instead the impending end of free
trade actually drew them closer together
“Crossroads”
Shall we go to Washington first, or Ottawa?
“Crossroads”
• Charles Tupper was a warm advocate of Confederation,
and did more than any other public man to induce his
native province, Nova Scotia (Acadia), to enter the union
in 1867.
• Joseph Howe, a much greater statesman than Tupper,
and a man of vast influence, was amongst the
opponents of the measure in question, and was
suspected of a preference for Annexation to the United
States.
• In the cartoon the Province is represented as halting
between the two opinions, and the loyal artist takes
pains to point out that the advantages are all in the way
that leads 'to Ottawa.”
The Railway Revolution
• If the American Civil War and the end of
free trade made Confederation necessary,
the railways made it possible.
• Trains could run year round
• Trains were much faster than travelling on
horseback
• The colonies had been isolated from each
other by the sheer scale of the Canadian
geography but that obstacle could now be
crossed
The Railway Revolution
• There were a lot of profits to be made from
railways
• It’s not a coincidence that many of the leading promoters of
Confederation had some affiliation with the railway (George
Etienne Cartier was the Grand Trunk Railway’s lawyer)
• The military threat from the United States made
it important to have a separate, internally
connected colonial railway that didn’t have to
pass through the United States
• It could be used to move troops from the
Maritimes to the interior quickly and efficiently
British North America 1840
Stalemate in the Province of
Canada
• The push for Confederation began in the United
Province of Canada – and for good reason
• They were experiencing a political deadlock
– The Province of Canada was split right down the
middle, along political, cultural, social, and linguistic
lines
– With equal seats awarded to both sides, anyone
wishing to hold power needed a majority that included
French-Canadian voters.
– The Act of Union which created the Province of
Canada actually strengthened the French-Canadian
position – not weakened it as it was supposed to
“Rep by Pop”
• The population of the Province of Canada was
growing and the biggest increase was in the
English-speaking region of Canada West
(Ontario)
• Despite the difference in population, the
Parliament was still divided on a strict 50-50 spit
of seats
• For George Brown and his Reformers, this was
plainly unfair and they began to call for “Rep by
pop!” or representation by population. It was,
said Brown, the only way to end “French
Catholic domination”
“Rep by Pop”
• Members in Canada East refused to accept the
“Rep by Pop” idea. The result? An ongoing
political stalemate
• One way to break the deadlock would be to
create a union with the other British colonies.
• Canada West and Canada East, as separate
provinces, would have their own government
and their own decision making process.
• This would give Canada West greater autonomy,
while still allowing for inter-colonial trade and
defence
Province of Canada Politics
• Conservatives (Tories)
– Canada West: John A. Macdonald’s “LiberalConservative” Party
– Canada East: George-Etienne Cartier’s parti
bleu (aligned with the Church, and pro British
and Anti-American in tone)
• Reformers (Grits)
– Canada West: George Brown’s Reform Party
– Canada East: Antoine-Aime Dorion’s radical
parti rouge
The Great Coalition
• On June 24, 1864, George Brown did something
remarkable. He rose in the Assembly and
offered to cross the floor. That is, he agreed to
end the political deadlock by joining a coalition
with his arch nemesis John A. Macdonald
• He had 3 conditions:
– The coalition work toward creating a larger united
federation of all British North America
– The government of Canada, and any future union, be
based on representation by population
– The federation expand westward to the Northwest
and perhaps even to the Pacific before the Americans
did
Charlottetown Conference
September 1864
Why are all the delegates men?
“Confederation! The Much-Fathered Youngster”
Quebec Conference
October 1864
Fenian Raids 1866
D’Arcy McGee
Charles Tupper
Joseph Howe
Leonard Tilley
A.A. Dorion
George Etienne Cartier
George Brown
Sir John A. Macdonald
Dominion of Canada
1867