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During 1756 to 1763, the Seven Years War spanned from Europe to the Americas with Britain and France at the forefront in the colonies. The Treaty of Paris ended the conflict, transferring New France over to British rule. This marks the beginning of a British North America, where the larger populace of French inhabitants were given religious freedom, property rights and civil law to maintain order. By allowing them this freedom, it led way to the English-French tensions within Canada.
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To separate the French and the Loyalists of the American Revolution who were seeking for refuge up North, Quebec was divided into Upper and Lower Canada. Both were given their council and elected assembly, but the powers were still in British hands, as they sought to assimilate the French. The appointed councils were given financial power over the elected assemblies, setting the stage for a Tory and Reformer conflict and furthering the French and English division.
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In June of 1812, the US declared war on Great Britain, invading Canada in the process. Battles were fought in Upper and Lower Canada, the Great Lakes and the Atlantic until the Peace Treaty of Ghent (1814) ended the War. The participation of the civilian militia boosted the national identity of Canadians, believing they were mostly responsible for fighting off the invaders. This war showed that Canada couldn't rely on Britain forever and needed to use their new pride to build their own defence.
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From 1837-38, both Canadas wanted a government responsible for its people, unlike the current ruling oligarchies, the Family Compact the Chateau Clique. Papineau led the Patriotes in Lower Canada, while Mackenzie led the Reformers on the other side. Both rebellions escalated to violence and were stamped out by Canadian militia and the participants were executed, exiled or convicted. The rebellions showed just how much the people wanted a democratic process, bringing the attention of Britain.
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After taking in to account the reformers of the rebellion and the citizens words, Lord Durham, appointed Governor of Canada, proposed giving the elected assembly more power, rather than the crown. He expressed uniting Upper and Lower Canada, which the French Canadians opposed. The British government only accepted the latter, as it would helped economic development. This set the stage for unification and the idea of a responsible government.
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After Durham's proposition, the two Canadas were united. Its Legislative Assembly had 42 seats for each side, however East Canada out-populated the other by 200k. The conditions were not seen as fair by the french as British law and language took power. They also had to take the West's much higher debt. This unification brought the Tories and Reformers to the forefront, the former wanting Canada to stay as it is, while the latter demanded for responsible governance.
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The corn laws with its low duties for grain that made it easier to trade with Britain were repealed in 1846. Britain wanted to move towards free trade and cheaper labour, which movements like the Anti-Corn Law protested. This was an economic blow for Canada and demonstrated the grip of Britain loosening. This forced Canada to look elsewhere for trade and pushed for a domestic market as well as reliance on self governance.
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When the Reformer Party won elections on January 1848 responsible government saw its first light in Canada. It was led by the coalition of Louis Hippolyte LaFontaine and Robert Baldwin, with the support of Governor General, Henry George Grey. They passed the the Rebellion Losses Bill, which sought to compensate reformers of East Canada from the financial losses of 1837. Despite the displeasure of Tories, it was signed, helping to demonstrate a government responsible to its people.
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In 1861-64, the British were supplying their cotton from the Southerners during the Civil War, which the US saw as support. By extension, Canada was affected. Threats of invasion especially ramped up during the Trent Crisis where confederates were found on a British Warship, and the building of the Alabama in Britain that caused damaged to the US, who then demanded payment or Canada. These tensions caused the end of free trade with the US, and a want for reliable defence against the Americans.
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To help cease the political deadlock, in June of 1864 the conservatives and reformers came together to form an alliance. Reformer George Brown joined with Conservatives John A MacDonald and George Etienne Cartier to begin serious negotiations about a strong, lasting government that was nonexistent during 1861-64 through unification. They wanted change from the political deadlock, and with this cooperation they endorsed the idea of a federation and set the plans for a confederation into motion.
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The Governor General of the province of Canada wrote to the Governor of Nova Scotia requesting attendance to their Maritime union meeting in Charlottetown. They were invited and were able to convince the Maritimes into joining the British North American colonies to form a confederacy. This shifted the Maritime exclusive union into a wider North American colonies pact and led to the negotiations of the 72 Resolutions.
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Canadian Delegates presented the resolutions in the next conference in Quebec where they outlined the constitutional blueprint for Canada. The Confederacy would be under a federal system with provincial governments who could make decisions for their jurisdiction. It's upper state would have appointed councils for the smaller colonies and the lower house would have elected members, for majority rule. This finally addressed the political deadlock and showed the real possibility of a Confederacy.
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A group of Irishmen living in the US called the Fenian Brotherhood wanted Ireland to be free from Britain's grasp. To make their point, they decided to attack Canada, the closest tie to the British Empire on April of 1866. Their attack at New Brunswick and the Niagara junction caused 6 Canadians to die. Public fear grew from this and Canadians saw just how much they needed a common defence, helping tip the favour towards a confederation.
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The Reciprocity Treaty Canada negotiated with the US acted as a cushion after the British repealed the Corn Laws. Due to the tensions during the Civil War, the US did not want to renew the treaty. Anti-Americanism started to grow because of their previous threats. This helped draw the British North American colonies closer for economic support and political defence.
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On December 4 of 1866, 16 delegates from the North American colonies met with each other and the representatives of the British Government to establish the terms of the Confederacy. On February 11, 1867, a final draft was presented to Queen Victoria. After the readings to the House of Parliament, and receiving final approval from the Queen, the British North American Act was passed on March 29, 1867, officially making British North America the Dominion of Canada on July 1, 1867.