Taking the West Summary

8/14/2019 Taking the West Summary

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1TAKING THE WESTCanadian History

The Coming of the Whites$ The Great Plains are a part of the Northwest Territory that would make excellent farmland, particularly

for the cultivation of grains. In Canada, these lands are generally referred to as the Prairies.

$ Various tribes of the Plains Indians called this vast area their home. For thousands of years, these peopleand their ancestors have lived lives centred around the buffalo hunt.

$ The Blackfoot tribe, of present-day Alberta, attached much spiritual significance to a rock that had

“fallen with fire” from the skies. They believed it was sent by the Creator to protect “all that isimportant to us.”

$ As the whites began to encroach upon Indian land, Methodist missionaries went to this rock and dug it up,

believing it to be a an example of idol worship, and a violation of the First Commandment. After it wasremoved, there was great anguish among the Blackfoot, and their medicine men predicted that famine,disease, and war would be the result of tampering with the rock. They felt it would be the death of the

Blackfoot.$ The first major entry of whites into the region came in the form of American traders who came north

from Montana Territory, part of the United States. They started by trading basic implements like knivesand pots for buffalo hides and robes, but soon it was realized that trading whiskey was far moreprofitable.

$ Whiskey was made from grain alcohol, red peppers, ink, shaving soap, and other assorted products. It

was cheap to make and highly addictive. Soon, the Blackfoot were trading everything they owned forwhiskey, which started the tribe on its slide to misery.

$ Alcohol abuse led to food shortages, which in turn led to starvation and death.

$ Prime Minister Macdonald became very concerned with the activities of these whiskey traders onCanadian territory. Not because he was bothered by what was happening to the Indians, but ratherbecause he feared American intentions to possibly take over the Canadian west.

$ Macdonald creates a police force to drive out the whiskey traders. They are named the North West

Mounted Police, or NWMP, the fore-runners of today’s RCMP, or Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The“Mounties” are able to gain the trust of the Blackfoot, and their main chief Crowfoot, who viewed themas people sent to “save” them from the Americans. The real mission of the Mounties, however, is toprepare the land for white settlers who will be coming from the east.

$ The original force of Mounties consisted of some 300 men under Superintendent McLeod. Even thoughthey were basically cavalry, they were referred to as “police” so the Americans wouldn’t think Canadawas sending an army out west and become provoked. Also, the Mounties were dressed in red sergeuniforms. This was so the Black foot wouldn’t confuse them with the “bluecoats” of the US Cavalry,which was busy eliminating their Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapaho brothers to the south.

The French in Manitoba

$ On one side of the Red River stood Winnipeg, a fast-growing community made up mostly of EnglishProtestants, many of which were Orangemen. They were very much anti-French and anti-Catholic.Steady immigration from the east meant that even more of these types would allow Winnipeg to continueto grow at a rapid rate.

$ On the other side of the Red River was St. Boniface, a smaller community populated almost entirely byFrench-Catholics. As very few French people moved to Manitoba from other places, the French-Catholicpopulation was doomed to be in a minority unless something was done.

$ Land grants that Metis were guaranteed in 1870 were dependant upon the balance in population between

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the Metis and settlers. This balance was now being threatened.

$ Bishop Alexander Tache of St. Boniface wants to encourage settlers from Quebec to come and live in

Manitoba. He sends Father Lacombe east to Quebec to try to convince people to do just that. Quebecpoliticians, though, are not very helpful. Quebec is already losing people to the textile mills in NewEngland, as French Canadiens are leaving the province to try and find work.

$ Quebecers working in the New England states are called the “Chinese of the East” because they aredesperate to work long hours for little pay. They form their own communities, though, and build Catholicchurches that are as impressive as the ones in Quebec. These small French-Canadien communities arereferred to as “Little Canadas” by the Americans. Father Lacombe begins to travel through thesecommunities in the hope that he might be able to convince people to give Manitoba a chance as a placeto work and live.

$ Also trying to recruit French settlers for Manitoba is Louis Riel. Riel has been on the run for five yearsand is still wanted for the murder of Thomas Scott. He is suffering from emotional exhaustion, though,and friends are very concerned about his mental health.

$ Riel has turned even more to his Catholic faith as a source of comfort, and is now convinced that he has

been selected by God himself as the “Prophet of the New World.” Fearing he has gone too far, somefriends of Riel sneak him secretly into Canada under a different name and bring him to a doctor, whodeclares him to be suffering from megalomania. He is placed in a mental institution in Quebec under anassumed name for 21 months.

Treaty Making

$ Blackfoot Chief Crowfoot is angry at the encroachment of white settlers onto the best parts of the landshe considers to belong to his people. Blackfoot war parties begin to interfere were survey crews workingto stake out the land. They are joined by the Blood and Piegan tribes.

$ In 1876, 2,000 Plains Cree gather on the North Saskatchewan River to meet with Alexander Morris,

governor of the Northwest Territories. They are thinking about signing what will become known as TreatyNumber 6.

$ The Cree are divided in opinion, and a meteor passing through the night sky on the eve of the treatysigning has been interpreted by many as a bad omen from the Great Spirit.

$ One Cree Chief, Poundmaker, is against signing the treaty, and feels the whites have no rights to take

away Cree land. Another Chief, Starblanket, sees a treaty with the whites as the only way the Cree cansurvive in the face of the steady stream of white settlers.

$ Eventually, the Cree accept and sign Treaty Number 6. A promise by the federal government to provide

food in times of famine has been the deciding point, as the Cree are desperate to avoid starvation.

$ With the treaty, the Cree believe themselves to be equals to the whites, but are unaware that the federalgovernment has just passed the Indian Act, which, in effect, makes all Indian peoples in Canada wards of the state, the legal equivalent of orphans.

$ In 1877, Crowfoot signs Treaty Number 7 on behalf of the Blackfoot.

Macdonald, Protectionism, and the Winnipeg Economic Boom

$ In the 1878 election, John A. Macdonald campaigned with the slogan “the old flag, the old party, the oldleader.” Although this sounds strange by today’s standards, the people of Canada supported Macdonald

because of the economic depression that gripped Canada during the Liberal government of AlexanderMackenzie. Macdonald returned as prime minister because people longed for the ways things werebefore the depression.

$ Macdonald put the blame for the depression on the United States, claiming that cheaper manufacturedproducts from that country undercut Canadian manufactured products. Macdonald offered a system ofeconomic “protectionism,” where American products would be subject to higher tariffs, making themmore expensive than similar Canadian products.

$ The West of Canada was emerging as a major market for farm equipment and other agricultural-related

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products. Many industries in Ontario began to re-tool their operations to meet the needs of this market.$ It was vital that the railroad to the west be completed, especially since it would be needed to ship

products from the East to the West of Canada.

$ Winnipeg was emerging as the major population centre of the west, as it stood at the gateway to thePrairies. Especially as the railway began to move farther west, Winnipeg became home to the manybusinesses that provided products and materials necessary for the construction of the railroad.

$ Land was becoming a hot commodity in Winnipeg. Many Metis, who had been given land as part of the

Manitoba Act of 1870, started to sell their land to white land speculators at reduced prices in order topay for food and stave off starvation. These land speculators would then re-sell the land for enormousprofit.

The Railroad

$ As an incentive to continue construction of the railroad, the federal government offered the railroad

company, Canadian Pacific Railroad, free land along the railroad right of way that could be sold to raisemoney to fund the construction. Much of this land is still held by the railway company today, andrepresents an enormous real estate value, since land close to the tracks was worth more than land fartheraway form the tracks.

$ Many settlers and speculators bought land along the northern route to Edmonton that it was thought the

railroad would follow. Their dreams were shattered when the CPR decided to build the railway 200 milesfarther south to Fort McLeod, which will one day become known as Calgary.

$ It is a dreary existence on the Prairies for many settlers, especially women. Trips to town for suppliesoften involved several days of travel. Their homes were, in the early days, fairly primitive and made fromsod or what wood could be found. Many women suffered extreme loneliness living in their “woodenboxes” on the endless landscape in perfect silence, with no neigbours or any other people anywhere closeby. Some were known to have committed suicide to escape their loneliness and “cabin fever.”

The Land of Discontent

$ Discontent is beginning to brew in the Canadian West, and it can be found in several different groups.

$ White settlers, having been lured to the west by government advertising campaigns promising a betterlife, are now upset that the government has left the “high and dry.” Settlers are living a hard life on thePrairies and feel the government is not doing its part to support them. These settlers begin to formorganizations and groups to lobby the government for more help.

$ The Indians are upset, as they are now beginning to conclude that the government has cheated them ontheir promises made during the treaty signings. The government is knowingly withholding food from theBlackfoot and the Cree in order to cut back on expenses, and this is causing many deaths among thenative population through starvation.

$ Crowfoot and his Blackfoot warriors are getting restless, and could become hostile with the slightestprovocation. A number of Mounties try to arrest some Cree warriors, causing many Cree to quickly andmenacingly surround them. Chief Big Bear stepped in to prevent the Mounties from being harmed, andeven allowed his two braves to be arrested. Still, the Cree, like the Blackfoot, are angry.

$ The Metis, having been pushed farther west into the Saskatchewan, are virtually in the same position

they were in during the late 1860's that led to their uprising in Manitoba. White settlers surveying andmoving into their lands has the Metis looking to find some form of justice. One of their leaders, GabrielDumont, looks for a strong leader who might be able to take up the Metis cause. After much negotiatingby Dumont and others, the Metis finally have the man who will lead them. Louis Riel returns to theCanadian West determined to lead the Metis to another victory such as he did during the creation ofManitoba.

The Return of Louis Riel

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$ Most recently, Louis Riel had been living as a school teacher in Montana. Approached by Metis leaders,including Gabriel Dumont, Riel agrees to return home to his “people”.

$ Riel immediately sets out to build alliances between the other discontented people of the west. He

invites Big Bear to Batoche for talks. The Cree Chief is amazed at the plentiful nature of food on the

table. Riel promises him food and more if he were to attach his Cree to the Metis in order to demandbetter treatment from the federal government.$ The discontented white settlers back away from Riel because they believe he is too radical and might

provoke too much of an aggressive response from the federal government. They may be right.

$ Riel and the Metis announce that the Saskatchewan is a “nation” belonging to the Metis, with its capitalat Batoche. Riel feels that this will force the government to talk terms with the Metis. Instead, PrimeMinister Macdonald sends 100 armed Mounties to Batoche.

$ On their way, the Mounties run into a heavily armed force of 300 Metis at a place called Duck Lake.Three Mounties and one civilian volunteer are killed in the skirmish. Riel takes this as a sign from Godthat his cause is just.

The Impact of Duck Lake

$ When word of Duck Lake reaches Ottawa, Liberal leader Edward Blake immediately asks if the Indians

are receiving the food they been promised under treaty obligations. He wants to know why Indians areinvolved at Duck Lake.

$ Macdonald has a real problem on his hands. He has the military strength to handle a Metis rebellion, buta full-scale Indian uprising leaves him frightened, especially Crowfoot’s 2000 well-armed Blackfootwarriors. Macdonald decides to try and wedge the Blackfoot out of any involvement in an uprising.

$ Macdonald makes sure the Blackfoot receive their food, dulling their anger. Crowfoot, their chief, hadbeen to Winnipeg and had seen the size of the large city and the number of whites who lived there. Hedidn’t want to find himself in a fight with the whites if he could avoid it. Crowfoot signals Ottawa thatthe Blackfoot will remain loyal to the Queen and stay out of the fight.

$ The Cree, under Big Bear, are restless. After hearing of the victory at Duck Lake, they become convinced

that they can win if they side with Riel. Casting Big Bear aside, the Cree take over the community ofFrog Lake and demand food from the Indian Agent. He is shot and killed when he refuses, and 10 otherpeople are killed by the Cree, including two Catholic priests.

$ The rest of Canada is outraged by the events at Frog Lake. Volunteers flock to join the first CanadianArmy, and this force is sent to Winnipeg in two weeks by using the train, which was about to go out ofbusiness due to bankruptcy. Soon, Macdonald had 2000 troops in Winnipeg, and the expedition to attackthe Metis in the land of the Saskatchewan began to take shape.

Battle of Batoche

$ Canadian Army is placed under the command of General Frederick Middleton. He divides his force intothree separate columns. One will go to Calgary, and from their march north to Edmonton. Another willgo to Fort Battleford to neutralize the Cree under Poundmaker. The third, and largest column willadvance on the Metis capital of Batoche.

$ Middleton is ambushed by Metis under the command of Gabriel Dumont at a place called Fish Creek.The Metis fight well and are successful at delaying Middleton’s advance.

$ Louis Riel appeals to the Indians to join the fight at Batoche. Poundmaker, who had defeated theCanadians at Battleford, won’t fight an offensive war, so refuses to go, leaving the Metis alone to fightMiddleton’s force.

$ Riel is sliding deeper into his religious mania and obsession. He prays non-stop, wants to re-name thedays of the week, believes God wants him to name an new pope, and wants to move the Vatican toBatoche. Some of his followers become concerned because they are fighting for land rights, not God.

$ Middleton approached Batoche with a numerical advantage and superior firepower, including cannons and

gatling guns. The Metis fight stubbornly and desperately, but run out of ammunition and

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retreat/surrender.$ Riel and Dumont get away, but Riel surrenders to authorities three days later. Big Bear and Poundmaker

also surrender.$ The military victory over the Metis was costly for the Canadian government, but it raised the morale of

the nation, particularly in Ontario. That good feeling would be short-lived

The Trial of Louis Riel

$ Riel is held prisoner at NWMP Headquarters in Regina. He wants his trial to be in Quebec where he islikely to be treated more sympathetically. Prime Minister Macdonald doesn’t want to give Riel anyopportunity to grandstand, and in fact, would prefer to hang him, the sooner the better.

$ Riel is charged with High Treason, an offense that carries the death penalty. The trial was supposed to

be in Manitoba, but was shifted quietly to Regina so there would be no chance of Metis sympathizersbeing on the jury. The trial becomes almost circus-like, with a $10.00 admission to watch.

$ Riel’s lawyers wish for him to plead insanity, as it will save him from hanging, but Riel claims he is ofsound mind. He does not like what pleading insanity might do to his “message.”

$ The jury finds Riel guilty, but recommends mercy, but the judge ignores that and sentences him to hang.

$ Riel is hanged at Regina on November 16, 1885. Quebec is outraged, and Quebec cabinet ministers are

labeled as traitors in that province. In Montreal, a demonstration of 50,000 burn Macdonald in effigy.The Conservative Party will pay a heavy price in Quebec, as voters turn away from them in anger overRiel. It will be almost a century before they win the majority of seats in Canada’s second most-populatedprovince.

$ In Ontario, there is celebration over Riel’s death, and even some large anti-French demonstrations.

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Taking the West Summary