Canada

• More British settlers. 'Loyalist' settlers from America continued to arrive in the 1790s.
• In 1825, the province administration moved from the system of free land grants to settlers to one of sale by auction and in 1825, the private land company The Canada Company was given a royal charter to aid the colonisation and development of the province.

• Governed by a lieutenant governor, reliant on the tax raising powers of a locally elected legislative assembly. 
• Had an appointed council who exercised executive power, responsible to London.
• Executive council was chosen and could be removed by lieutenant governor. 
• Family compact remained in control.
• Legislative assembly- 16 reps, elected by landowning males and an appointed legislative council.
• Family compact- Anglican (Lord Durham 'petty, corrupt, insolent Tory clique')

• Land tenure system based on British freehold tenure, most belonged to the Crown.
• Did recognise the indigenous people.
• 1/7 of land designated as clergy reserves.
• Best way to maintain = support of the Anglican Church.
• Mostly Protestant (Baptists, Congregationalists and Methodists)

• Lacked infrastructure and capital investment- had a small population.
• Revenue raised by sale of land to The Canada Company was used to pay the salary of officials.
• Population of 350,000 in 1835.
• Mostly spoke English- greater British population and loyalist Americans.

• Colonised by pre-revolutionary France.
• Land was granted to a seigneur who then granted the land to tenants in subsistence form in exchange for rent: Feudal System.
• Canadian habitants were protected by contracts- overseen by the state.

• Britain guaranteed free practice of Catholicism in the Quebec Act 1774 and accepted the use of French civil law in private law. 
• Principally French speaking- legislative assembly was in English.
• Brought into being by 1791 Constitution- same political structure as Upper Canada.

• Governors selected executive council from loyalists/British.
• This created the Chateau Clique (wealthy families in control)

• 1820s- rural stagnation, patriots began to emerge.
• Governor 1820-28 Lord Dalhousie:
  • Often at war with French speakers.
  • Assembly were refusing to vote money to pay officials and Dalhousie prorogued the assembly in 1827.
  • He refused to accept patriot leader as speaker.

Threat from USA:

Quebec Act- by allowing French-Canadians religious freedom and their legal system, the British hoped that any attempts by the USA to stir rebellion would fail.

Established legislative assemblies with financial autonomy- hoped to avoid what happened in America. 

Radical reformers:

1836 election:

Actions of Lieutenant Governors:

Emigration:

• December 1837: Mackenzie launched the revolt. About 1,000 men gathered in 4 days at Montgomery's tavern at Yonge Street Toronto. 
• Objectives were unclear- general plan was to attack property and Family Compact businesses.
• 5 December: Several hundred poorly armed and unorganised rebels marched south.
• They exchanged gunfire with a smaller group of loyalists. The bulk of the rebel force fled in confusion when the fire began.
• 3 days later: the remaining rebels were dispersed after loyalist reinforcements arrived.
• There was a small, second confrontation in Brantford, insurgents were again dispersed.

• Mackenzie and other leaders fled to Navy Island in the Niagara River where he declared a provisional state.
• Numbers rose to 600, some due to Mackenzie's promises of 300 acres of land for supporters.
• Their supply ship was burned. 
• 13 Jan 1838: Mackenzie fled under heavy militia bombardment. He was captured by the US military and sentenced to 18 months for violating neutrality laws. 

Hundreds of rebels and sympathisers left for America. Those who stayed were arrested and two were hanged.

After 1837 those who wanted an American style revolution either fled to America or kept quiet in Upper Canada.

Upper Canada was now loyal and desired to remain British- talk of Upper Canada. 

Britain blamed the Family Compact for the revolution.

Moderate reformers came to the fore and attractd Lord Durham- Baldwin.

Papineau:

Economy:

Gosford Mission:

• Sep-Oct 1837: 500+ form the paramilitary 'Societe des Fils de la Liberte' in Montreal.
• 26 Oct: Confederation of the 6 countries meet. Papineau speaks against rebellion, Walfred Nelson says the time has come- new patriot voice.
• 6 Nov: street fighting begins (Doric Club vs the Societe).
• 10 Nov: British cavalry and patriote militia exchange shots in Montreal.
• 16 Nov: rebel force ambush a military attachment. Sent to arrest patriote leaders, several wounded. Gosford issues warrants for their arrest.
• 23 Nov: patriote force victory at St Denis- Nelson's leadership.
• 25 Nov: British General Wetherall defeats patriotes at St. Charles.
• 29 Nov: Wetherall enters Montreal with 30 prisoners from St. Charles.
• 5 Dec: martial law declared.
• 14 Dec: 100 patriotes fleeing a burned church in St Eustache are shot. British burn homes of known patriotes.
• Dec 1837- Jan 1838: Gosford has the situation under control, patriotes are either prisoners or fled to America.
• Nov 1838: Durham's departure is followed by raids along the border by exiled patriotes- 'Second Rebellion' (unsuccessful)

Extent greater than Upper Canada. Over 500 patriotes jailed and an estimated 13,000 rebels were involved.

British passed an Act on 10 Feb 1838 suspending the 1791 Constitution of Lower Canada and Gosford was empowered to run the province with a special council of members. He revoked martial law on 27 April 1838, judging that the ring leaders were apprehended. 

Rebels were ethnically French-Canadian: racial division affected the British view. It was imperative that Lower Canada was organised so French-Canadians could no longer command a majority in any assembly.

Always had to rein in the Chateau-Clique.

London now accepted that a new constitutional settlement must be found but were very alive to the needs of the British settlers.

Durham: 

• Arrived in Canada on a white charger dressed in full silver and white regalia of a Knight of the Order of Bath. Lived at Chateau St Louis.
• Visitors ate on silver and gold plates and served vintage champagne.
• 'Radical Jack' or 'Jog Along Jack'
• Incredibly wealthy
• One of the last Whig grandees- open to new ideas, willing to change (key figure in 1832 Great Reform Act)

Melbourne:

• Whig aristocracy. Home secretary 1830-34. PM in 1834 and then 1834-41.
• Disliked reform except in some circumstances- as the least worst option.
• Wife had an affair with Lord Byron.
• Forced an attempted blackmail attempt by husband of Caroline Norton.

9 October 1838

• Durham pardoned most prisoners but banished the 'most' guilty to Bermuda.
  • This led to a Bill of Indemnity by Lord Brougham.
  • Melbourne did not defend Durham.

• Durham resgined because he was not prepared to submit to censure from London over Bermuda and because he was annoyed with Melbourne's criticisms over his advisers. 
• He felt that he had been publicly undermined by Melbourne.
• Melbourne however could not afford to defend Durham.

Wakefield:                                                   

• Involved in the South Australian Association in Adelaide. Met Durham through New Zealand Land Scheme.
• Regarded the system of free land grants in Canada to be at the root of its issues
• Time in prison- developed systematic colonisation in prison. Afterwards he could not enter politics but attempted to influence land schemes in the colonies. 
• Hoped to be the Commissioner of Lands but had too shady of a past. Instead he acted as an unpaid adviser and secretary, advocating union of the Canadas. 
• Has merely 1 appendix on crown lands in Durham Report- tax on wild lands with no settlers.

Buller:

• Durham's official chief secretary, appointed nominal head of the Commission into crown lands.
• Sympathetic to French-Canadians, felt British policy led them to revolt.
• Responsible for 'Responsible Government for Colonies 1840'. His idea to banish rebels.
• Able, well liked young man, on many reforming committees. 
• Remained in Canada until December 1838.

Principal recommendations were...

Criticisms: treatment of French-Canadians, disrupting Lower Canadian way of live, that it maintained British power and the absence of indigenous population of Canada.

Results:

Long term: Durham died in 1840, no mention of responsible self-government or union of Canadas in his obituary. 

Responsible self-government granted to all Canadian colonies between 1848 and 1855, then Australia and New Zealand during the 1850s.