1. Responsible Government Rebellions, Laws & the Act of Union

2. The Problem With Canada Following the war of 1812 citizens in Canada began to discover a problem! The Problem = the Constitutional Act of 1791 Act gave the power of ruling to the elite minority The rest of the world was demanding rights for the majority (aka majority rule)

3. How was CND Ruled? Upper and Lower Canada was ruled by oligarchy. Oligarchy – a small ruling class Mostly English-speaking & members of the Anglican Church Used their power for large industrial projects (canals) Benefit of their own economic enterprises Canadian oligarchy: Upper – Family Compact Lower – Château Clique

4. The Elite Dominate Oligarchy gave only the Anglican Church large amounts of land called Clergy Reserves that would finance the church. The oligarchy made up the appointed men in the Executive Council They would override and block laws passed by the elected assembly Propose taxes and manage government operations. This made the average citizen ANGRY because their voices were being ignored and tensions grew on both sides.

5. Reformers Reformers – People who wanted responsible government. Responsible Government – a government who is held accountable to its citizens The Reformers used newspapers as their primary tool for spreading their message of injustice and change.

6. The Reformers Upper Canada leader – William Lyon Mackenzie and his paper “The Colonial Advocate” Lower Canada leader – Louis-Joseph Papineau and his paper “Le Canadien” Reform movements in both Upper and Lower Canada were focused on increasing the political and economic rights of the population. LC had an additional element…. economic and political rights but also cultural security for the French speaking majority of Lower Canada

7. Rebellion The tension between Oligarchy and Reformers grew. The elected assembly of Canada passed two bills demanding the appointed council to respect the elected assembly. Upper Canada – The Seventh Report on Grievances Lower Canada – The Ninety-Two Resolutions These bills would be IGNORED! Reformers would have to take a more DRASTIC approach!

8. 1837 Rebellions In 1837 armed rebellion breaks out in Lower Canada and Upper Canada Would last less than a month. Reformers marched and fought government forces in Montreal and Toronto but would be quickly defeated Results: 20 Rebels hanged and Mackenzie and Papineau sought safety in the Untied States Government starts paying attention !

9. Lord Durham’s Report England is worried about losing control of Canada They send Lord Durham to Canada to develop solutions for preventing further rebellion. He discovers two causes of rebellion: 1) The oligarchy in Upper Canada- “petty, corrupt, insolent…clique” not responsible to the ppl. 2) Divisions between French and English in Lower Canada

10. Durham’s Solutions Durham had two solutions: 1) A Government that would respond to the needs of the people. Aka - Responsible Government for the colonies rather than Representative Government 2) For the colonies to unite as one. (by doing this assimilating the French into the larger English colony eliminating Upper and Lower Canada)

11. Act of Union 1841 Made Upper (Canada West) & Lower (Canada East) Canada into one colony - Province of Canada Colony has one governor One Elected Assembly One language in legislature Canada East & Canada West Canada would have equal representation (42 members each)

12. Act of the Union 1841 Result of the Act of Union: French politicians grouped together to prevent assimilation and often acted as a voting block when voting on policies originating in Western Canada. Politicians learnt how to work together by forming coalition Coalition – is formed when two or more political parties agree to work together for a common purpose. 1840--shifting policies in Britain- such as Free Trade- meaning that it no longer gave preferential trade arrangements to its colonies….thus causing a loosening of economic control….. 1848- Nova Scotia was the first colony to gain Responsible Government