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6Confederation has two meanings to it. It could be an organization that consists

of a number of parties or groups united in an alliance or league. And, it could be a

more or less permanent union of countries with some or most political power

vested in a central authority. Both are similar and in Canadas case, it is the same.

In 1867, Canada West, Canada East (also Known as the British North American

colonies of the United Province of Canada) New Brunswick and Nova Scotia

decided to join together in a federal union. They joined in confederation as four

provinces: Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. And, of course

anyone who had anything to do with this union gained power over their own affairs

and turned some of their power to a central government. Canadas federal

government happens to be this central government and is located in Ottaw.But, it

didnt stop there. It extended and here is how it went

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Reasons forConfederationThere were six reasons for confederation at the time and

here they are

There was a political deadlock that led to the Great Coalition.

The United Province of Canada (also known as Canada West and Canada

East) decided to have a Legislative assembly. Canada West sent the Liberal-

Conservative party and the Reform party. Canada East sent le parti bleuand le parti

rouge. The coalition government currently in power had a hard time getting a strongamount of people on agreeing to pass legislation which caused a political deadlock.

This eventually led to the Great Coalition. All the parties involved formed a

political alliance and began to co-operate with each other.

Coalition: a temporary joining together of two or more political parties.

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A railway was needed to trade and move troops.

There always seemed to be some difficulty from getting to the United Province

of Canada to the Atlantic colonies, especially in winter when the St. Lawrence

River would freeze. It separated them. The idea of making an intercolonial railway

to join the colonies formed. With an intercolonial railway transporting goods,

troops, and people to and from the colonies would be that much easier.

The Reciprocity Treaty ended the free trade between British North American

colonies and the United States.

From 1854 to 1865, there was low-taxed trade between the British North

American colonies and the United States. The colonies traded more with the

United States then they did with each other. In 1865, The United States ended the

Reciprocity Treaty they were under with the colonies. The colonies began to think

that if they traded amongst themselves without any taxes that it would help their

economy.

Reciprocity Treaty: a treaty concluded between two countries, conferring equal

privileges as regards, customs or charges on imports, or in other respects.

There was a threat of American expansion into British North American.

With the American Civil War going on and the Manifest Destiny policy,

people feared the worst. The Colony of British North America not only feared that

but worried that the United States would try to take control of their land because ofthe gold rush they had between the 1850s and the 1860s.Their were also some

Americans settled in the Red River Settlement that wanted to join with the United

States and there was already a great deal of trading between them. Let us also not

forget the Fenians that wanted to end British rule over Ireland.

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Manifest Destiny: a policy of expansion based on the belief that all of the North

American continent should belong to the United States of America.

The Fenians: it was a group of Irish Catholics in the United States.

Great Britain wanted her colonies to be more self-sufficient.

The people of Great Britain began to change their opinions about the British

North American colonies, would it be beneficial or just a burden. The British North

American colonies were aware of their concern and began to prepare for the

outcome. For whatever result came out of it, the colonies remained intensely loyal

to their mother land, Great Britain.

The expansion of the settlement.

The land at Canada West was decreasing so they looked to the lands to the

west as areas to settle in. But of course, they had competition because the

Americans also wanted that land. The colonies thought that if they were to join

together, they would settle their before the Americans.

ONTARIO QUEBEC

NEW BRUNSWICK

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NOVA SCOTIA MANITOBA

NORTHWEST TERRITORIES BRITISH COLUMBIA

PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND YUKON TERRITORY

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SASKATCHEWAN ALBERTA

NEWFOUNDLAND &

LABRADOR

NUNAVUT

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Confederation did not happen overnight, of course. It took a long time

debating the advantages and disadvantages. People had different opinions on

whether it was a good idea or not. They were divided, either with or against

confederation. Some were not even interested. There were a number of

conferences between the provinces discussing this situation.

1. Charlottetown conference2. Quebec conference3. London conference

Charlottetown:

New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island met in 1864 to

discuss the Maritime Union. The United Province of Canada asked to attend

and tried to persuade the people into joining a larger union with the British

colonies. A decision could not be made so they decided to meet later on in

Qubec.

Maritime Union: a proposed political union of the three maritime provinces

of Canada to form a single new province.

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Qubec:

All of them returned after a while to Quebec to continue where they left

off. A large amount of people from the Province of Canada and New

Brunswick with confederation, although there were some people in CanadaEast who feared this would cause them to lose their French language and

culture. For the people in Nova Scotia, it was different. The people who

were with confederation were those who lived near the future railway

because it would really benefit them, but those who live farther away were

not interested. In Prince Edward Island, there were those who feared losing

their power because most of their income comes from the tariffs on trade. If

there would be confederation, there would be no tariffs and hence the people

were against confederation. And last but not least, Newfoundland. The

people there had so little in common with the United Province in Canada so

they couldve cared less. In the end, only three provinces were interested of

confederation at the time: the United Province of Canada, New Brunswick

and Nova Scotia. The outcome of the delegates debates and conclusions

was put in 72 resolutions.

Tariffs: a tax of duty to be paid on a particular class of imports or exports.

72 Resolutions: they were a set of proposals drafted at the 1864 Quebec

conference.

Delegate: a person sent or authorized to represent others, in particular, an

elected representative sent to a conference.

London:

This is where all the representatives met for one last final time to

present the 72 resolutions to Great Britain. The 72 resolutions became theBritish North America Act. Queen Victoria signed this act and it went into

effect. On May 22, 1867, the Dominion of Canada was created.

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ConferencesGovernments:

Although the provinces became one, the people still had different

opinions about the level of government they should have. Some wanted a

national government while others wanted a provincial government. It came

down to the decision where the Dominion of Canada would have two levels

of government: federal (which included national and central government)

and provincial. The government system is now one of federalism.

National Government: any political organization that is put in a place to

maintain control of a nation.

Provincial Government: belonging or peculiar to some particular province.

Federalism: a system of government in which power is divided between a

central authority and constituent political units.

After Confederation

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There were some difficulties along the way, of course. There were still

some people in Nova Scotia who were against confederation and there were

some protests. The fear that the United States would still try to take over

remained, but there is an upside. Inventions increased, education became

universal and compulsory and the leisure activities were magnificent. Someworking conditions were very poor, but it got better with time.

And with time, more provinces in North America formed and

joined confederation and became Canada in all. THE END.

1867 1905

1870 1949

1871 1999

1873

1898

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