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German immigrants begin to arrive in numbers at Halifax. They were drawn to Canada by the prospect of farming on abundant and cheap land and preserving distinct religious lifestyles.
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Anthony Henday travelled farther into western Canada than any white person had before him, and his journal contained important glimpses of how the indigenous population lived at that time.
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The Acadians Deportation
Acadian delegates who refused the oath of allegiance were dispersed from Minas and over the next few months most of the Acadian population of Nova Scotia was rounded up and transported away. About one half of the Acadians perished. -
On the night of Sept 12-13, General James Wolfe led his soldiers up an unguarded footpath and set for battle before the fortress walls. Montcalm attacked in the morning but his line broke, and Québec fell into British hands. Both generals perished.
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This battle marked a turning point in the history of New France and eventually Canada. By defeating and securing the French stronghold at Québec, the British established a strong presence in New France. However, the removal of France as a North American power increased the confidence of British colonies which subsequently agitated for greater independence from Great Britain. The Battle indirectly led to the American Revolution, the creation of the United States, and the migration of Loyalists.
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The Treaty of Paris ended the Seven Years’ War between France, Britain and Spain. It marked the end of that phase of European conflict in North America, and created the basis for the modern country of Canada. France surrenders New France, now known as Quebec, to Britain.
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An ally of the French, Ottawa chief Obwandiyag, whom the English called Pontiac, began a series of raids against English forts. Their attempt to drive the English away from the area killed both soldiers and settlers.
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The Pontiac's War was the most successful First Nations resistance to the European invasion. Though it failed to oust the British from native lands, the conflict forced British authorities to recognize native rights. The Pontiac's military successes played a major role in demonstrating to the British that aboriginal peoples were still masters of their own ancestral lands.
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Royal Proclamation of 1763
The Royal Proclamation of 1763 was issued by King George III to establish a basis of government administration in the North American territories formally ceded by France to Britain in the Treaty of Paris, 1763, following the Seven Years War. -
Prince Edward Island, formerly part of Nova Scotia, becomes separate British colony.
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The Quebec Act was passed (effective May 1, 1775); it established French civil law, British criminal law, freedom of worship for Roman Catholics and government by appointed council. It extended the boundaries of the province to the Ohio Valley.
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The Quebec Act angered the Americans and was termed one of the Intolerable Acts by the Patriots, and contributed to the coming of the American Revolution. Following the victory of the American forces and the signing of the Treaty of Versailles in 1783, 50,000 loyalists arrived in Québec. The newly arrived Anglophones were dissatisfied with the privileges granted by the Quebec Act to the Francophones and they put pressure on the British administration.
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American forces laying siege to Québec launched a desperate night attack. American general Richard Montgomery was killed as the attack was repulsed with heavy casualties. The French habitants had failed to support the Americans and Canada remained British.
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The first United Empire Loyalists - 1124 refugees from New England - arrived in Halifax, NS. Another 40 000 or so followed them to NS and to Quebec. The immigration resulted in the formation of New Brunswick and Upper Canada.
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The fur traders of Montreal band together in the North West Company to compete with the traders of the Hudson's Bay Company.
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Around 40 000 United Empire Loyalist from the Thirteen Colonies start immigrating to Canada. Most settle in Nova Scotia, Quebec, and New Brunswick (established as a colony separate from Nova Scotia in 1784). Three thousand Black Loyalists settle near Shelburne, Nova Scotia.
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The British government created two new colonies, New Brunswick and Cape Breton Island. Many Loyalists were residing in the Atlantic.
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After helping the British during the American Revolution, the Iroquois are given two land grants. Thayendanegea (Joseph Brant) settles his followers at the Six Nations Reserve, near Brantford.
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Sir Alexander Mackenzie, propelled by the fur trade was the first European to traverse the North American continent north of Mexico. His 6,400 km trek to the Pacific on behalf of the North West Company revealed the promise of the Canadian Northwest and much of the geography of western North America.
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When Alexander Mackenzie reached the Pacific from Canada, by land, he played a momentous role in forging lucrative trading partnerships for Canada. However, his more significant contribution was his role in establishing a great nation.
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The new Constitution gave women, aboriginals, Jews, and Catholics the right to vote. However, as was the custom in Great Britain, the right to vote was only granted to landowners; English merchants in Lower Canada opposed giving the colony the right to vote. They knew that, in Lower Canada, landowners were more common than in Great Britain: they made up an eighth of the population. This pitted the land-rich Canadian seigneurs against the capital-rich English merchants.
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The Constitutional Act of 1791 was an Act of the British Parliament creating Upper Canada and Lower Canada. Although it was a first step towards Canadian Confederation, its rigid colonial structures also set the stage for rebellion in the two Canadas. The Act was also notable for a voting franchise that was inclusive by the standards of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, particularly as it included women in Lower Canada who owned property.
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The province’s first governor, John Graves Simcoe, planned a centrally located town at Toronto. Simcoe saw the site as a commanding position for a naval and garrison base to guard a troubled American boundary. He had a little town laid out by the harbour, which he named York in honour of the Duke of York, son of King George III. Soon he was using York as a capital of Upper Canada, erecting parliament buildings and cutting roads inland.
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Alexander Mackenzie party reached the Pacific via the Bella Coola River, the first explorer to complete the journey overland. Though a physical triumph, Mackenzie's achievement failed to provide the fur traders with a viable route.
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An American diplomat, John Jay, oversees the signing of Jay's Treaty between the United States and Great Britain.It promises British evacuation of the Ohio Valley forts and marks the beginning of international arbitration to settle boundary disputes.
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First paper mill established in Lower Canada, producing paper from cloth rags.
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American slaves were able to escape to Canada via the Underground Railroad. British North America (present-day Canada), where slavery was prohibited, was a popular destination, as its long border gave many points of access. Most former slaves settled in Ontario. More than 30,000 people were said to have escaped there via the network during its 20-year peak period. By 1850, 100,000 slaves had escaped using the Underground Railroad.
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British explorer Simon Fraser founds Fort McLeod as the region's first permanent white settlement.
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Vermont passed an act to establish the line between the State and Canada and played an important geographical role in the Underground Railroad, which helped American slaves escape to Canada.
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The Upper Canada Militia Act states that all males between ages of sixteen and sixty are required to enroll as militiamen and are to be called out once a year for exercises.
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The HBC granted an area of about 185 000 km² to Lord Selkirk for formation of a colony at Red River. His first settlers arrived in the summer of 1812. Despite tribulations the settlement grew into the first European colony in the North-West.
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Battle of Queenston Heights American crossed the Niagara River and attacked the high ground of Queenston Heights. His sword drawn, Major-General Brock led troops into battle and was fatally wounded by an American sniper. The battle essentially lost, Grand River Mohawk warriors led by John Norton (Teyoninhokarawen) prevented American forces from retreating for several hours until reinforcements led by Major-General Roger Sheaffe arrived and forced over 1,000 American soldiers to surrender.
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After Laura Secrod alerted the Lieutenant of the surprise attack, two days later, on June 24, 1813, British and Native troops intercepted the Americans and forced their surrender at the Battle of Beaver Dams. In 1814, the peace treaty came into effect, and the border between the United States and Canada has never seen hostility since. Although Laura Secord received 100 pounds from England’s Prince of Wales in 1860, many years would elapse before her heroism was recognized.
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Laura Secord
A Queenston Ontario woman, Laura Secord, aided by Indians, treks more than 19 kilometres to warn British forces of plans she overheard of an American attack. Two days later, the Americans are ambushed and surrender to FitzGibbon. -
The Treaty of Ghent is signed, ending the War of 1812 and restoring Canada-U.S. borders. Both Britain and the United States agree to re-establish the "status quo ante bellum" and return to the pre-1812 state of affairs.
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The Hudson’s Bay Company and the North West Company merge after decades of often-fierce rivalry.
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Louis-Joseph Papineau, a member of the legislative assembly since 1814, travels from Montréal to England to oppose an Act of Union identifying the French Canadians as a minority without language rights. The act is not passed in the British Parliament.
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Miramichi Fire kills more than 160 persons and consumes 6,000 square miles of forest in New Brunswick. The preceding summer was a particularity hot one, with bush fires common.
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Before the Miramichi Fire, people made their living in the forests and obtained their food by hunting and trapping. This all changed after the fire. The tops of the trees had burned and the bottoms were used to build cabins and shelters for the homeless. The tallest of trees that survived were sold to the ship builders for masts. Fortunately, enough of the forest survived for the lumber industry to carry on.
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Two schooners passed from Port Dalhousie to Port Robinson, Upper Canada, symbolically opening the Welland Canal and linking Lakes Erie and Ontario for the first time. The canal opened the way to the west and countered the threat of the US Erie Canal.
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Immigrants with Cholera land at Quebec. Grosse Île, near Québec, was opened as a quarantine station during the cholera epidemics and all ships stopped there for inspection. This station was a futile attempt by the government to control the disease that killed up to 10% of the population.
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Canada's first railway, the Champlain and St Lawrence Railroad, officially opened; it began operations on July 25. The railway heralded the most important change in transportation in Canadian history.
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The creation of a railroad network that would reach from the Atlantic to the Pacific, opening up vast regions to settlement and virtually building Canada, began with the Champlain and Saint Lawrence Railroad. It served as a way for those travelling between Montreal and New York to avoid a bumpy journey that bypassed a series of difficult rapids on the Richelieu. The construction of more rail lines in all directions soon followed, following a period of unprecedented growth in Canada.
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William Lyon Mackenzie led a rag-tag contingent of 800 men down Yonge Street toward Toronto. Government loyalists dispersed the rebels with a few shots, ending Mackenzie's erratic attempt to overthrow the colonial government.
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Lord Durham submitted his Report on the Affairs of British North America following his trip to Canada after the Rebellions. He recommended a legislative union of the two Canadas and responsible government, as well as assimilation of the French Canadians.
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The Act of Union was passed by the British Parliament in July 1840 and proclaimed 10 February 1841. It united the colonies of Upper Canada and Lower Canada under one government, creating the Province of Canada.
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In 1845 Sir John Franklin led a British team in an attempt to find the passage. Neither he, nor any of his men, returned. The many expeditions that searched for the lost crew over the next 12 years finally defined the coastal outlines of most of the Arctic islands, and reported an uncertain ice-free period for ships of only 1-2 months in August and September.
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James Boyle Uniake became leader of a new Reform government. Nova Scotia was thus the first colony in the British Empire in which responsible government was in effect. Responsible government meant that a colony enjoyed complete self-government in domestic affairs and that a government ruled only with the support of the majority of the elected Assembly (the origins of today's cabinet government).
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Joseph Howe in Nova Scotia, along with Baldwin and Louis LaFontaine in the Province of Canada, built up strong, moderate reform parties to gain responsible government. It was achieved first in Nova Scotia in January 1848, then it was granted to PEI in 1851, New Brunswick in 1854 and Newfoundland in 1855. This control of government was increased by degrees, so that Canadians gradually acquired command of their own political concerns and achieved national self-direction without revolution.
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The burning of the Parliament Buildings in Montreal was an important event in pre-Confederation Canadian history. It is considered a crucial moment in the development of the Canadian democratic tradition, largely as a consequence of how the matter was dealt with by then co-prime ministers of the united Province of Canada, Sir Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine and Robert Baldwin.
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Canada and the U.S. sign a Reciprocity Treaty, ensuring reduction of customs duties
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Queen Victoria chooses Ottawa as the new capital of the United Province of Canada.
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1858 Fraser River Gold Rush The first wave of miners from California arrived at Victoria, en route to the Fraser River Gold Rush. The Gold Rush caused a precipitous decline in the Native population and politically unified British Columbia.
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The richest discoveries of fine flour gold occurred between Hope and Yale in the Fraser River Canyon. This region was controlled by Americans who provoked conflicts between whites and aboriginals prior to the assertion of British sovereignty from the adjacent colony of Vancouver Island. All aboriginal lands of southern BC were invaded by large companies of miners that triggered the Indian Wars of Washington and Oregon, and by extension the Fraser River War of 1858.
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A convention of scattered reform elements of Upper Canada met in Toronto. Under George Brown's leadership the convention voted to support a legislative union of the Canadas and set the stage for closer collaboration between English and French.
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The Charlottetown Conference was held in Charlottetown, PEI. At the conference Maritime union was virtually dropped, and the delegates agreed to meet a new conference in Québec to discuss a Canadian scheme for a union of all the colonies.
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The British North America Act was passed by the British Parliament and given royal assent by Queen Victoria on March 29. It came into effect on July 1. The Act joined the colonies of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick in one federal union.
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Sir John A. Macdonald
The Dominion of Canada, uniting Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, comes into existence, with John A. Macdonald as first prime minister. -
Sir John A. MacdonaldThe Dominion of Canada, uniting Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, comes into existence, with John A. Macdonald as first prime minister.
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With 120 men, Louis Riel occupied Fort Garry in the Red River Colony to block the transfer of the Northwest from the HBC to Canada. The resistance resulted in the formation of the new province of Manitoba but Riel was exiled.
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Métis concerns were exacerbated by Canadian attempts to re-survey the settlement's river-lot farms, which had been laid out according to the seigneurial system of New France, in contrast to the square lots preferred by the English. Many Métis did not have clear title to their land, and although Ottawa intended to respect Métis occupancy rights, no assurances were given by the government. The Métis therefore feared the loss of their farms. The appointment of William McDougall also fuelled tension
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Manitoba is carved from the Rupert's Land territory to become the fifth province of Canada. The remaining land becomes known as the Northwest Territories.
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The Northwest Mounted Police (NWMP) - later the RCMP, were created and formed. Their task was to keep peace, look over the CPR, stop whiskey trade and cease the Americans from attacking Canada.
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Prime Minister Sir John Macdonald resigns as a result of scandal over the partial financing of the Conservative election campaign by the Canadian Pacific Railway Company.
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Treaty No. 7 was signed at Blackfoot Crossing in southern Alberta by the Blackfoot, Blood, Peigan, Sarsi and Stoney. Canadian officials understood that by the treaty First Nations surrendered some 35,000 sq miles of land to the Crown in return for reserves, payments and annuities.
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The immediate response of the Indians to the treaty was one of great happiness. The Blackfoot believed that nothing happened by chance; If a disaster occurred, there had to be a reason for it. A rapid decline in the number of buffalo occurred and the winter of 1877-78 was an open one, virtually without snow, and prairie fires drove the remaining buffalo far into Montana Territory. By spring, starvation was already haunting the bands that had failed to go south.
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Dominick Edward Blake, known as Edward Blake, was the second Premier of Ontario, Canada, from 1871 to 1872 and leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 1880 to 1887. He is one of theonly three federal permanent Liberal leaders never to become Prime Minister of Canada, the others being Stéphane Dion and the latter's immediate successor Michael Ignatieff. He served in the national politics of what developed as the affairs of three nationalities: Canadian, British, and Irish.
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In 1883, nickel-copper ore was discovered near this site during construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway. The discovery led to development of the nearby Murray Mine. Within a few years many more discoveries were made and Sudbury became Canada’s first major mining camp.
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The North-West Rebellion (or North-West Resistance) was a violent, five-month insurgency against the Canadian government, fought mainly by Métis militants and their Aboriginal allies in what is now Saskatchewan and Alberta.
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Québec History 24 -
Canada Hanged Louis Riel
Louis Riel was hanged for treason at the Regina jail. He had been convicted after a trial held in Regina from 28 July to 1 August. Macdonald's refusal to grant leniency made Riel a symbol of English-Canadian oppression. -
Métis leaders in Saskatchewan, articulate their grievances to the Canadian government, called upon Riel. Instead, he organized a military resistance, known as the North-West Rebellion of 1885. Ottawa used the new rail lines to send in combat soldiers, which ended with Riel getting arrested for treason. Rejecting many protests and popular appeals, Prime Minister MacDonald decided to hang him. Riel was seen as a heroic victim by Francophones and his execution had lasting negative impact on Canada.
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The Manitoba School Act abolished publicly funded support for separate schools for Catholics. The aggrieved French minority argued that the Act violated the agreements under which Manitoba
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Electrical power started to be generated from the falling water of Niagara Falls making cheap power available for industries and homes. The first time in the world that hydro-electricity was used to power a plant was at John Barber's paper mill in Georgetown, Ontario in 1888.
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Clifford Sifton removed red tape, broadened the selection of potential immigrants and offered incentives to those who would come to settle the Canadian West, "the last, best West." The result was an influx of immigrants from eastern and southern Europe that changed the composition of the Canadian population forever.
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Helped Canada's population soar to 2 million in the first decade of the 20th Century. Advertisements attracted Germans, Americans, Swedes, British, Ukrainians, Dutch, Icelanders, Norwegians, Russians and many others to Canada. Increased the diversity and population of Canada, making it more Multicultural.
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In the federal election, the Liberals defeated the Conservatives with 118 seats to 88. Wilfrid Laurier became Canada's first French-Canadian prime minister and marked a turning point in Canadian politics after years of Conservative Party rule.
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Canada competes in the Olympics, in St. Louis, for the first time.
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Acts proclaiming Alberta and Saskatchewan as Canada’s newest provinces receive royal assent.
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The riots that broke out were the accumulation of growing enmity toward the waves of Asian immigrants that were flooding parts of Canada. By the end of October 1907, new arrivals totaled 11,440. Of these immigrants, the Japanese accounted for 8,125. Labour Minister MacKenzie-King was detailed to write a Royal Commission into the events. He also recompensed the damage with $36,000 to the injured communities. The Vancouver race riot resulted in bans on immigration for the Japanese race.
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Anti-Asian race riot in Chinatown. A white supremacist crowd marched to alberta Vancouver city hall to demand a White Canada. They proceeded to attack Chinatown and then the Japanese community around Powell Street.
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Many of the polar explorers of this age barely made it back alive, and some didn’t make it back at all. After World War I, polar expeditions were generally organized on a more sensible basis. Robert Peary reached the North Pole on Apr.06.1909 - or so he claimed.
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Naval Service Act of 1910 was the federal act that gave rise to the Royal Canadian Navy to replace the role of Royal Navy in protecting the sovereignty of the Canadian waters. The Naval Service Act established the Royal Canadian Navy, 4 May 1910.The Naval Service Bill of 1910 was a piece of Canadian government legislation, which was put forward by Prime Minister Sir Wilfrid Laurier.
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Prior to the bill's introduction Canada did not have a navy of its own, a state of affairs that left the Dominion dependent on the British Royal Navy for maritime defence. The Naval Service Bill was intended to provide Canada with a separate naval force, but one that, if needed, could be placed under British control during time of war.
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While World War I was raging in Europe, the Canadian Parliament Buildings in Ottawa caught fire on a freezing February night in 1916. With the exception of the Library of Parliament, the Centre Block of the Parliament Buildings was destroyed and seven people died.
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On Easter Monday, four Canadian divisions and one British brigade captured Vimy Ridge, near Arras, France, with a loss of 3578 killed and 7000 wounded. It was a brilliant victory for the Canadians, who sensed a new national awareness.
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The Halifax Explosion 1917 Nova Scotia, Canada
At Halifax, the French munitions ship Mont Blanc collided with the Belgian relief ship Imo. The resulting explosion, the largest before the advent of the atomic bomb, killed more than 1600 people and injured 9000 in Canada's worst disaster. -
Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island authorized women to vote in 1918, 1919 and 1922 respectively. For its part, Newfoundland and Labrador, which joined Canada in 1949, granted women the right to vote in 1925.Only Québec women remained excluded from political life and they would have to wait several more years to regain their right to vote.
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The discovery of a life-saving treatment for diabetes at the University of Toronto in 1921 made headlines worldwide and was formally acknowledged just two years later when the Nobel Prize for Medicine was awarded to two of the team members.
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Although insulin doesn't cure diabetes, it's one of the biggest discoveries in medicine. When it came, it was like a miracle. People with severe diabetes and only days left to live were saved. And as long as they kept getting their insulin, they could live an almost normal life.
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The Halibut Treaty was a 1923 Canadian–American agreement concerning fishing rights in the northern Pacific Ocean. It was the first treaty negotiated by Canada, independent of Britain. Before this time Canada had always looked to Britain to ratify any international agreements they made.
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Mackenzie King had the distinction to take Canada through the Second World War (1939-1945). Under his leadership, Canada fought an effective war, putting into the field around 1,000,000 men, while equipping and feeding many others.
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R.B. Bennett was the Prime Minister (Conservative Party) of Canada from 1930 to 1935, during the worst of the Great Depression years.
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The Great Depression assured his victory in the 1930 election. He promised aggressive action to combat the Depression, but found it difficult to develop a coherent program. His business instincts did not serve his political interests. His major initiative, to persuade the British Empire to adopt preferential tariffs, brought economic relief to Canada but not enough. His establishment of relief camps for single men lost him popularity.
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The John B. King Explosion was a Canadian maritime disaster on June 26, 1930, when a drill boat containing dynamite was struck by lightning near Brockville, Ontario. 30 people were killed.
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After negotiations with Ottawa, Alberta gains control of its natural resources. Saskatchewan and Manitoba also receive the same power that same year.
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The Statute of Westminster received royal assent after being passed by the British Parliament. By establishing complete legislative equality between the parliaments of Britain and Canada, it is the closest Canada has come to a declaration of independence.
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A surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. The Royal Rifles of Canada from Québec and the Winnipeg Grenadiers - and they had arrived in Hong Kong only three weeks before as part of an attempt to strengthen the island colony's defences.
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The federal government announced that all people of Japanese origin living in the coastal regions of British Columbia would be relocated to the BC interior or inland farming areas.
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Many men were separated from their families and sent to road camps in Ontario and on the BC/Alberta border. To stay together, some families agreed to work on sugar beet farms in Alberta and Manitoba. Those who resisted and challenged the orders of the Canadian government were rounded up by the RCMP and incarcerated in a barbed-wire prisoner-of-war camp in Angler, T Ontario. This event demonstrates what Canadian society was like in 1941-Canadians of Asian descent were viewed as racially inferior.
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The Canadian Citizenship Act is passed, meaning a Canadian citizen is no longer classified as British subject first.
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Newfoundland entered the Dominion of Canada as the 10th province through an Act of Westminster. The first session of the legislature was held at St John's on July 13.
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Parliament passes a motion seeking a constitutional amendment that would create pensions for all Canadians over 70.
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Vincent Massey was Canada's first native-born governor general. In 1952 Massey became governor general, a post he filled with distinction and in a manner that minimized the break with the past that the appointment of a Canadian represented.
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The Canadian Forces were involved in the 1950–1953 Korean War conflict and its aftermath. Canada participated on the side of the United Nations in the Korean War, with 26,000 Canadians participating in the Korean War, and Canada sending eight destroyers. Canadian aircraft provided transport, supply and logistics. 516 Canadians died in the conflict, 312 of the deaths were from combat.
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Pearson, previously a career diplomat and then the Minister for External Affairs, had pulled off what seemed to be impossible. On October 13, 1957, it was announced that Lester B. Pearson had won the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in resolving the Suez Canal Crisis.
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Pearson's and his Liberal minority governments introduced universal health care, student loans, the Canada Pension Plan, the Order of Canada, and the new Flag of Canada. Pearson also convened the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism, and he struggled to keep Canada out of the Vietnam War. In 1967, his government passed Bill C-168, which abolished capital punishment in Canada by restricting it to a few capital offenses for which it was never used and which themselves were abolished
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The Liberals under Jean Lesage won the Québec provincial election, finally breaking the hold of the Union Nationale, and signalling a time for change and reform that has become known as the Quiet Revolution. Lesage was sworn in as premier on 5 Jul.
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The House of Commons approved the Canadian Bill of Rights, which received royal assent on August 10. Although the Bill did not bind the provinces, it obliged the federal government to guarantee civil rights and freedoms to all Canadians.
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Saskatchewan’s Medical Care Insurance Act takes effect, creating Canada’s first comprehensive public health-care program.
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Pearson acted on a long-standing complaint in Québec that Canada’s symbols were too British he suggested a new Canadian flag. The Maple Leaf was chosen as a symbol for the new flag because it seemed to represent all Canadians. However, it increased tensions in Canada because many English Canadians opposed the new flag because they felt Pearson was pandering to Quebec. There was a heated debate which split the country but it is now accepted by both English Canadians and Quebeckers.
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A new national flag of Canada was adopted after much debate. The Senate gave its approval on 17 December. Queen Elizabeth signed the royal proclamation on 28 January and the new flag, with its red maple leaf and side bars, flew officially for the first time on 15 February 1965.
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Jean-Robert Bourassa,July 14, 1933 – October 2, 1996) was a politician in Quebec, Canada. He served as the 22nd Premier of Quebec in two different mandates, first from May 12, 1970, to November 25, 1976, and then from December 12, 1985, to January 11, 1994, serving a total of just under 15 years as Provincial Premier. The span between his two mandates is the longest of any Premier, Bourassa also has the longest span between his first and last day as a Quebec Premier.
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The October Crisis begins as the Front de Liberation du Quebec kidnaps British diplomat James Cross and, later, Labour Minister Pierre Laporte. Trudeau invokes the War Measures Act, which allows government to temporarily suspend civil liberties. Cross is released 60 days later but Laporte is found dead.
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This is the only time that the War Measures Act had been put in place during peacetime in Canada. The events of October 1970 marked a significant loss of support for the violent wing of the Quebec separatist movement that had gained support over nearly ten years and increased support for political means of attaining independence, including support for the separatist Parti Québécois, which went on to take power at the provincial level in 1976.
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Rene Levesque’s separatist Parti Quebecois wins a stunning election victory in Quebec.
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Québec passes Bill 101, restricting English schooling to children of parents who had been educated in English schools (Aug. 26).
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In the Québec referendum on sovereignty-association, Quebecers voted 60 per cent against giving the provincial government the right to negotiate sovereignty.
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Since Confederation, French-speaking Catholic Canadians had been struggling to protect their cultural and traditional values. The idea of sovereignty has been part of Québec’s political landscape for over 45 years. The polls show that voters were not only considered protecting their values via the independence of Quebec, but also the potential future issues regarding Quebec’s economy, industry, and defense.
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The signing of the proclamation on April 17, 1982, marked the end of efforts by many successive governments. The new Constitution was accompanied by The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and an amending formula that would no longer require an appeal to the British Parliament.
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The Free Trade Agreement was a trade agreement reached by negotiators for Canada and the United States on October 4, 1987 and signed by the leaders of both countries on January 2, 1988. The agreement phased out a wide range of trade restrictions in stages over a ten-year period. This trade eliminated barriers to trade goods and services between Canada and the United States.
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The Supreme Court overturns the law that required a panel at an accredited hospital to determine if a woman’s life or health was endangered before allowing her to have an abortion. The decision paves way for abortion on demand.
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Kim Campbell replaces Brian Mulroney as the head of the Progressive Conservatives, becoming Canada's first female Prime Minister.
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The Oka Crisis was a standoff between Mohawk protesters, police, and army. People living in the neighbouring Mohawk community of Kanesatake rose up in defence of what they said was their land, when the town of OKA wanted to expand their golf course on dispted terrritory.
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The Nuclear Safety and Control Act (NSCA) of Canada replaced the Atomic Energy Control Act of 1946 with new, more effective and explicit legislation to regulate the activities of the Canadian nuclear industry. The NSCA also provided for the establishment of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), which replaced the Atomic Energy Control Board (AECB).
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The Prime Minister of Canada, the Right Honourable Stephen Harper, made a Statement of Apology to former students of Indian Residential Schools, on behalf of the Government of Canada.
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Apology Statement
The treatment of Aboriginal children in Residential Schools is a sad chapter in Canadian history. For more than a century, Residential Schools separated over 150,000 Aboriginal children from their families and communities. The prime minister of Canada issued an apology letter to the aboriginal people of Canada.
