Preview

Rebellion 1837 Essay

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
709 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Rebellion 1837 Essay
The rebellion of 1837 were armed uprisings that took place in Upper and Lower Canada, which is now Ontario and Quebec, in 1837 to 1838. The two rebellions had similar causes. The British believed the lesson of the American Revolution was to restrain the power of the people. This resulted in small groups of well off men in each colony having a great deal of power. During the 1820s, tensions increased in both colonies, reformers demanded change, and the government resisted it.

In Lower Canada, the heart of the troubles was the conflict between French and English. The British did not like the fact they had a completely different culture and language, and wanted the assimulate the entire culture. As well, although the French Canadians had held the majority in the elected Legislative Assembly since the first election in 1792, the British governor still held the real power. He gave most of the government jobs to the English. Then came the Patriotes, a more extreme group of French-Canadian politicians that emerged in the late 1820's led by Louis-Joseph Papineau. When the governor refused to grant them the reforms that they demanded in the 92 Resolutions they send over, they brought the business of the Assembly to a halt to force the British authorities to changes.

In Upper Canada, the main discontent was about the government's land policies and its favouritism towards the Clergy and its supporters. 2/7 of the best land in Upper Canada was set aside for the clergy and Family Compact as a source of income, resulting in many bitter farmers. Many had to move to rural areas with poor farming conditions and had to travel around the land set aside, wasting precious time and energy. Immigrants from America resented the fat that the government denied them from their political rights. In the 1820s, William Lyon Mackenzie, a crusading journalists with great enthusiasm and little judgement, launched a fierce attack on the Family Compact. Despite several attempts to silence him,

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In the early to mid 1800s, the area that we know of today as Manitoba was called the Red River Valley. Its inhabitants consisted of mostly the Métis, people that had European fathers and native mothers. As a part of Rupert’s Land, the Red River Settlement was greatly affected by the Canadian government’s plan to purchase Rupert’s Land. Many factors contributed to the Canadian government desire to possess this vast territory. The National Dream to build Canada as a nation from “sea to sea” was threatened when the Americans purchased Alaska. As John A. MacDonald said, “I would be quite willing, personally, to leave that whole country a wilderness for the next half-century but I fear if Englishmen do not go there, Yankees will,” expanding Canada westwards was inevitable. In consideration of Manifest Destiny, the belief that the US was justified and destined to conquer all of North America, Prime Minister MacDonald states his fear that the Americans may conquer the surrounding territory around Canada. This motivated the government to purchase Rupert’s Land and to start expanding Canada westwards. In addition, with the growth of the population came a bigger demand for farmland. Stimulated by the cheap plots of land, settlers, mostly Protestants and members of the Orange Order, a group of people that were anti – French and anti – Catholic, established themselves in the Red River Valley. Inevitably, this led to inequity and prejudice against the French and English…

    • 1207 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    Canadian History Essay

    • 1139 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Today’s relationship between Quebec and the rest of Canada has been relatively steady. Over the years, Québec has certainly developed separately but in association with the rest of Canada. However, without influence from the past, their relationships would not be what it is today. The development of the French and English relationship follows a long and complicated history. Throughout history, tensions between French and English Canada have been evident. Looking back at World War I and II, one of the key issues that divided English and French Canada was conscription. Quebec was against conscription, while English-Canada supported it. However, this is not the only issue that influenced the relationship between Quebec and the rest of Canada. Throughout history, there have been many defining moments which have influenced this relationship. This essay will outline three defining moments. The first one is ‘the October crisis’, which caused a national sense of crisis when a French separatist group kidnapped 2 government officials. Then, the passing of Bill 101 which brought a controversy both inside and outside of Quebec. And thirdly, ‘The Constitution of 1982’ which changed the contract that linked Quebec to the rest of Canada. These three defining moments have greatly helped to establish the character of the relationship between Quebec and the rest of Canada.…

    • 1139 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the late 1700s, George Washington and John Adams had become the first two presidents of the united states after the removal of the articles of confederation and the establishment of the new constitution. Considering the fact that both men had been federalists, their goal was to establish a strong central government and unity within the united states, after it had gained its independence.…

    • 458 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    One of the biggest problems confronting the British Empire in 1763 was controlling land speculators in both Europe and the British colonies whose activities often led to frontier conflicts.[2] Many Native American peoples—primarily in the Great Lakes region—had a long and close relationship with France, and were dismayed to find that they were now under British sovereignty. Pontiac's Rebellion (1763–66) was an unsuccessful effort by Native Americans to prevent Great Britain from occupying the land previously claimed by France. The Proclamation of 1763 had been in the works before Pontiac's Rebellion, but the outbreak of the conflict hastened the process.[3] British officials hoped the proclamation would reconcile Aboriginals to British rule and thus help to prevent future hostilities.…

    • 439 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Frederick Douglass Essay

    • 821 Words
    • 4 Pages

    When the African-American man Frederick Douglass wrote his famous speech, “The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro”, America was in a time of great distress. It was the year 1852, and the view of abolitionists was quickly spreading. It was the time of both provocative literatures such as Uncle Tom’s Cabin, as well as important resolutions, such as the Dredd Scott decision, showing the contrast between views at the time, both positive and negative towards slavery. Frederick Douglass was a freed African-American who bought his way out of slavery, serving as an inspiration to other slaves. His speech, being an immensely mocking jeremiad, bitterly laments the state of the American society and its morals in a serious tone of not only shameful, but even caustic, as a jeremiad should. His use of literary techniques such as antithetical parallel structure and a constant layering effect due to repetition constructs the persuasive effect that makes his shameful tone effective towards his audience.…

    • 821 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Louis Riel Hero

    • 1554 Words
    • 7 Pages

    The second major rebellion that took place with Louis Riel as the leader was the Northwest Rebellion of 1885, which further aggravated the Canadian government. Leading up too the rebellion, the Métis were continued to be unjustly treated by the Canadian government. At the time, the Canadian Pacific Railway was being built, and costs were high.…

    • 1554 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Tensions between the French and English speaking Canadians has been a topic issue for quite some time now. Throughout the years it has been questioned as to wether or not the French and English speaking Canadians have the potential ability to be together as a nation. Various votes have been held in order to try and establish what the people of Canada feel about this situation. However, the history of the English and French speaking Canadians prove that Canada is an impossible nation. Foreign Policies, such as the Naval Services Bill, the Boer War and Conscription all contribute to why Canada is an impossible nation. Political Issues involving the Constitution Act, 1982, the Referendum Act Two, 1995 and the Clarity Act are three other indicators of why Canada should not remain as one nation. Furthermore, there is the factors of Language and Culture Issues, including Manitoba Schools Question, the Quiet Revolution and Bill 101, 1976. All these issues will be summed up in order to make it apparent that the French and English speaking Canadians do not have what it takes to be one nation.…

    • 1576 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    During the 1800s and early 1900s the farmers of Canada benefitted greatly from the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway because of the ease of transportation of goods it provided. The CPR allowed farmers to send their goods east towards the bulk of the population of Canada where they could be easily and quickly sold to waiting customers. This made the lives of farmers in the prairies much easier because their products were available to a larger population resulting in much more money for the work they did. However, while farmers benefitted, the provinces faced the challenge of a centralized government. Provinces like Saskatchewan and Alberta could not profit as much from the work of their farmers because farmers were taxed by the federal government. This meant that the provinces would have a more difficult time expanding, economically speaking, than they would have if they received taxes from the farmers. The reason that the government felt that it was necessary to tax the farmers was because there really was no limit to their expansion. With the vastly unsettled mid-west of Canada, there were virtually no limits on the expansion of farms, only limits of what the farmers could manage. As a result, some farmers were able to profit massively from the highly productive farmlands. Canada’s overall economy benefitted greatly by the success of its western farmers because of…

    • 1561 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Boston Tea Party Essay

    • 649 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The truth of the accounts that took place December 16, 1773, a day remembered by Americans as The Boston Tea Party, is one that is disputed. It seems as though there is a basic story of American patriots dressed as Indians, carrying tomahawks and hatchets boarding three ships in the Boston Harbor and throwing overboard over 300 cargo containers full of British East-Indian Company tea that was sent by England to tax the colonies without agreement. These acts were carried out without damage to any other goods aboard or the vessels themselves, and without anyone being harshly injured.…

    • 649 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Competing Ideologies

    • 834 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Cited: Francis, R. Douglas, Richard Jones, and Donald B. Smith. Destinies: Canadian History since Confederation. Toronto: Nelson, 2008. Print.…

    • 834 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Lower Canada rebellions that took place in 1837 and 1838 had complicated roots. It would be an over simplification to state that the differences were just between the governor and the assembly or only political. The rapidly growing population had many facets that caused rifts between itself and the ruling government in place. Social differences, economic opportunity, and political perspectives all had roles to play in creating a climate that led to open armed rebellions. These differences led to strong political divisions between the Executive council (as opposed to just the governor) and the Assembly that personified the issues that led to the rebellion.…

    • 844 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Throughout the 20th century, the relations between the French and the English in Canada had a significant negative impact on Canadian history. The defining moments that changed French-English relations in Canada were the WWI conscription crisis, the creation and the governing of the Union Nationale Party in the 1930s, and Quebec's Quite Revolution in the 1960s.…

    • 1500 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In Upper and Lower Canada of 1837, change in the government was demanded. But because of no change, rebellions were born. In Upper Canada, the economy was failing and William Lyon Mackenzie and other radical leaders wanted an American-style democracy. Lieutenant-Governor Sir Francis Bond Head was to win the Assembly's support by running for the elections. He did win, but it did not achieve what Mackenzie had wanted. Starting a rebellion was his only choice now, but Mackenzie found that he had little support because he and the rebels had little military experience and the radicals he tried to convince to join him, would not. Either way, Mackenzie failed the rebellion, he and his men fleeing to America for safety. Like Mackenzie's failure of…

    • 265 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Monmouth Rebellion Essay

    • 567 Words
    • 3 Pages

    James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth, 1st Duke of Buccleuch, led the Monmouth Rebellion after the death of his father, Charles II. He failed to seize the throne from his uncle, James II.…

    • 567 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Revolt of 1857

    • 1983 Words
    • 8 Pages

    The Indian soldiers in the East India Company’s army rebelled against the British in 1857. The English historians have painted this revolt as a mutiny of the sepoys. But the Indian historians describe it as the First war of Indian Independence. It is also known as the Great Revolt of 1857.…

    • 1983 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics