The Laurier Era: 1896 - 1911 A Review from Grade 10

Challenges Faced

Manitoba Schools Question – resolved by Laurier/ resulted in loss of faith in Conservatives and demise or party’s government rule

Immigration & Aboriginal issues

Canadian expansion

French-English Relations

Movement towards autonomy from Britain

Conflict on the horizon

Immigration Issues

English – wanted to keep a “White Man’s” Canada and fear of lack of jobs

French – fear that immigrants would make them a smaller minority in Canada

Immigrants often preferred to learn English over French

Increase in immigrants at end of last century – Sifton’s “Last Best West”

Non-white immigrants increasing – CPR, economic reasons

Anti-immigration groups created eg. Asiatic Exclusion League

Conflict over Immigration

Vancouver Riots – September 7, 1907Asiatic Exclusion league encourages riot; 30,000 people smash and loot China town and Japanese areas

Laurier passes continuous passage laws and negotiated near-end to Japanese immigration in near future

Continuous Passage Laws – ships had to sail directly to Canada without stopping

Komagata Maru – 1914East Indian ship not allowed to dock/ sent back to India for failing to follow continuous passage laws

Chinese Immigration

CP pgs 10-11From you knowledge of grade10 Social Studies & your text, give the occupations the Chinese immigrants were brought to Canada to fill

List the complaints that the Chinese immigrant would have against the Canadian government

List the complaints the white Canadians would have against the Chinese immigrants

What is meant by a “head tax” & how much did a Chinese immigrant have to pay

Should the Canadian government give money to Chinese-Canadians to make up for the head tax charged to them in the early part of the 20th century?

Conflict

Boer War: 1899-1903Britain vs. Transvaal & Orange Free State in South Africa (supported by Dutch Boers)

Britain wanted help of Dominions – Laurier sent ‘volunteer’ army to appease all Canadians

Established precedent for supporting Britain in time of war (WWI) but no one was happy

Alaska Boundary DisputeLord Alverstone (British rep on tribunal) ruled that Lynn Canal belonged to Americans

Canadians questioned colonial status of Canada

Laurier – Political Cartoon

Other issues for Laurier

Language Rights – French was no longer the automatic language of instruction in Catholic schools (Manitoba Schools Question compromise)

Expanding territory – two new provincesAlberta & Saskatchewan (Sept, 1, 1905)

No control over own resources (cash payment)

Autonomy bill – guaranteed place for Catholic Schools and French-language teaching

Aboriginal peoplesLoss of land, diminished population, residential schools

The Naval Issue - 1910

Arms race in Europe – Britain vs. Germany

Britain wanted Canada to contribute to their navy

Conflict between nationalists (Canada-first) vs. imperialists (wanted to support Britain)

Laurier’s compromise – Canadian navy to defend coast that could help Britain if war declared

Two ships (Rainbow and Naiobi) seen as a joke – “Tin Pot Navy” and compromise satisfied no one

End of the Laurier Era

1911 – Laurier’s Liberals governed a country with a healthy economy (results of the Laurier boom)

1866 – Canada’s reciprocity treaty with the US had ended; by 1911 US President Taft offered Canada a reciprocal trade agreement on raw materials and natural products

Reciprocity = “freer trade”

For: western farmers (did not want to pay high tariffs on US-made machinery)

Against: eastern manufactureres (did not want to compete with US products) & French Canadians (did not want to be under thumb of Americans)

Reciprocity Cartoon

1911 Election

Laurier called an election with reciprocity as one of his main issues

Conservatives questioned Laurier’s loyalty to Britain; played on fears of economic and political annexation

Conservatives (under Borden) won the election and became our new Prime Minister

French Canadians were angry over naval issue and felt they had not benefitted from Laurier boom

English Canadians opposed reciprocity and feared losing identity to Americans