-
The Great Migration
The Great Migration to Canada
during the Great Migration Period, Tens of thousands came from Ireland, England, Scotland, and Wales. They went to Canada looking for opportunity, to avoid illness and religious perseution.
These new immigrants added their language, customs and beliffs -
Act of Union creates United Province of Canada
The act of the Union came into affect on February 10, 1841. This
bill united Upper and Lower Canada under one government. The Act of Union established a single parliament with equal representation. -
Britain takes away Corn Laws
The repeal of the corn laws was a move toward free trade for the British. This was bad for the colonies as they could not offer the same low price as the Europeans could for wheat and timber. Canadian farmers lost a lot of money and they felt betrayed by Britain. -
United Province of Canada gets Reponsible Government
Canadians finally got what they wanted - a responsible government. This meant that the elected representatives of the people would now be the ones who passed laws. -
Reciprocity Treaty with U.S.
Reciprocity was an agreement between the United States and Canada tarriffs and fees charged on goods traded between the two countries -
The Great Coalition
Since their was often Political Deadlock in Canadian parliament, three of the four parties (Liberal-Conservative Party, the Reform Party, and the Parti bleu) decide to work together. This unification of the parties was called the Great Coaliation. These parties were in favour of confederation and hoped the maritime provinces would join them. -
American Civil War (North&South)
The American civil war was fought between the North (The Union), who were trying to abolish slavery, and the South (The Confederacy), who did not want slavery to end. This war made Canadians feel uneasy because they thought the war might come across onto Canadian soil. -
Reciprocity Treaty With U.S ends/ Fenians raid BNA
The Fenians were an Irish group who wanted to free Ireland from Britain. This group attacked BNA, hoping Britian would take their soldiers out of Ireland in order to defend Canada.
Also in this year, the USA did not want free trade with BNA anymore. This meant that the colonies would now have to trade amongst eachother, but a dearth of railway tracks would make this a difficult task. -
Canada United in Confederation
After requesting and being granted permissin from the British government, the colonies of BNA were allowed to seperate and the new country of the Dominion of Canada came into existence.
