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Granted!
300 000 square km of land is granted to Lord Selkirk, a Scottish philanthropist. This is viewed as the inciting incident because by helping the Scottish farmer's, Selkirk offends the Metis by taking their fertile soil. The ignorence is on the part of the HBC for granting him the 300 000 square km of land. -
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Events Leading Up To The Red RIver Rebellion
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Miles Macdonell and his 128 men
First colonization of the Red River Valley began in 1812. Miles Mcdonell named as Governer of colony by Lord Selkirk and told to not interfere with NWC trading operations. This is significant because it will later lead to the Pemmican Proclamation. -
Pemmican Proclamation
Miles Mcdonell, promulgated a proclamation forbidding the trade of Pemmican, similar to modern-day energy bar, outside of the colony. This is due to the Scottish farmers faliure of crops, and Mcdonell is responsible to keep them alive. Therefore, the Pemmican retained could be used as the souce of food for winter. Metis is now even more offended because Mcdonell has began to interfer with the Metis trading with the NWC, which includes the trade of Pemmican. -
Get Out!
Mcdonell, already disobeying Selkirks orders to not interfere with NWC trading operations, then goes on to force NWC employees out of the Red River Valley. -
Fighting Back...
In the summmer of 1814, two of NWC's employees, Alexander Macdonell and Ducan Cameron, are ordered by the NWC in a joined effort with the Metis, to drive the colonists away. Together, they harassed the colonists, burned down buildings, destroyed crops and fired rifles at night. This is seen as an act of aggression by Miles Mcdonell. -
They came, They saw, They left.
Due to the "uprising" by the NWC and Metis, more than 100 colonists left the Red River Settlement, the remaning colonists left for the Norway house at the North End of Lake Winnipeg. Miles Mcdonell is later arrested. -
If only it were so Semple!
Robert Semple is brough forth as the new Govener. Ironiclly, he does not oppose the Pemmican Proclamation and instead, orders the burning of Fort Gibraltar, an empty NWC post. Faliure of communication with the NWC lead to this being seen as an act of agression by Metis. This is seen by most historians as a major contributing factor in the later event, Battle of Seven Oaks. -
Prepare for Battle...
A party of Metis lead by Cuthbert Grant raided HBC boats and took a large amount of Pemmican. Grant decided to move it to Lake Winnipeg, where NWC fur traders could be supplied. But on June 19, they were spotted by a lookout from Red River Valley. -
Battle Of Seven Oaks
Robert Semple and 28 men confront the Metis and Grant. A gun fight ensued, with Semple and 20 men dead, the battle ends in less than 15 minutes. -
Free trade!
In 1849, 4 Metis traders and one French trader, Pierre Guillaume Sayer are arrested for independent trading. Orginally, the Metis men were found gulity for trading independently, but after a mob of angry armed Metis demanding justice, no charges or fines were ordered by the judge. The Metis men then carried on to shout "Le commerce est libre! Vive la liberte!" which meant businese is open, long live freedom. This meant that the HBC could no longer enforce it monopoly and trading rules... -
Racial tension
Due to the Metis Catholic beliefs, many new settlers from the orange order arriving discriminated againist the french metis against because of the orange orders anti french, anti catholic beliefs. Doctor John Schultz, one of the first to arrive. Opened general store and took over only newspaper, the Nor’Wester. He also organized a small group of supporters in the 1860s named “Canadian Party” with hopes to take over the Red River colony. -
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Sold!
Rupert's land, the land on which the Red River settlement is on, is sold to Canada in 1869. No Metis were involved in the negotitations, because they did not "legally own" the land. Land surveyers began to come and divide land, on which the Metis still lived in. This outraged the Metis. -
Return of Louis Riel
Louis Riel, a Metis and 24 years old, returns from his studies in Montreal to Red River. He would later set up the National metis Committee and provisional gov for Red River valley, in hopes of stopping Metis land from being taken away by the new owner, the Candian Gov. -
Riel Rebellion
In fear of the Candian gov getting up in arms and taking away the Red River valley, Riel acted first with the Metis and arrested John Schultz and the 48 supporters of the orange order as a sign of "standing their ground". A negotitation ensues and Manitoba is created.
