Canada is a country with a centuries-old history full of important events. A nation that has customs and culture that come from several countries, and that go back many years in time. A territory that has gone through various periods and historical stages throughout the centuries that must be known. At Curio Sfera -Historia.com , we explain the history of Canada and its origin .
Don’t miss the history of the flags
What are you going to find here [ Hide ]
- 1Origin of Canada
- 2Discovery, exploration and colonization of Canada
- 3British rule of Canada
- 4Canadian Confederation
- 5Modern History of Canada
- 6History of the Canadian flag
Origin of Canada
To know the history and origin of Canada , you must first know what it is like and its geographical location.
After Russia, Canada (Canada) is the largest state on Earth.
Located in North America, it occupies the northern part of the continent, except Alaska, which belongs to the USA .
Its extension, however, has not allowed the population to be exhaustively distributed; 90% of Canadians live in the strip adjacent to the southern border of the country.
Far from representing an impediment to its development, this relationship between demography and the physical environment has shaped a socioeconomic reality that is distinguished by the full availability of enormous natural resources and the possibility of their being distributed in a comfortable way.
Perhaps few countries present such a stark contrast as Canada. If on the one hand it is a very modern nation, an economic power of the first order that is part of the main international forums, on the other it is still a country to discover. A border between the wild world and civilization, an immense territory in which there are vast unexplored areas, in short, a still living banner of the pioneer epic.
- Continent: America.
- Surface: 9,959,400 km2.
- Capital: Ottawa.
- Population: 33,124,512 inhabitants.
- Currency: Canadian dollar.
- Official languages: English and French.
Discovery, exploration and colonization of Canada
The Icelanders reached the shores of Canada around the 9th century , but John Cabot (Juan Caboto), a sailor in the service of England, was the first official explorer .
Jacques Cartier began his exploration of the country by going up the Saint Lawrence River to present-day Montreal (1534-35).
In the 17th century, the organization of the colony began: Quebec was founded in 1608 and Montreal was founded in 1642 . The colony was granted to the New France Company , created for this purpose in 1627, until its conversion into a royal domain (1663).
The colonial population , established in the San Lorenzo Valley, grew in a few years under the protection of agriculture. But French rule lacked solid foundations: small number of settlers to cope with the ambitions of expansion of the English establishments, poor organization, feudal property regime, excessive power of the clergy, lack of political and commercial autonomy.
English pressure began with the founding of the Hudson’s Bay Company (1670), dedicated to the fur trade. Later, the Anglo-French rivalry in Europe reverberated in America.
Thus, the Treaty of Utrecht forced France to cede Nova Scotia, and the Seven Years’ War was used by Great Britain to defeat the French army (Plain of Abraham, 1759) and seize control of Canada.
This occupation was sanctioned by the Treaty of Paris (1763).
British rule of Canada
After the incorporation of Canada, Great Britain followed a policy of attracting the French population, the majority in the colony.
And so in 1774 the Quebec Act was signed , which recognized French Canadians the free exercise of Catholic worship and the right to govern themselves according to their own laws.
This explains the little impact that the uprising of the American colonies had in Canada. The attempted revolt failed before the walls of Quebec (1775), when Montgomery’s troops were defeated.
The independence of the United States (1783), determined the emigration to Canada of numerous American families loyal to Great Britain, who settled in the upper basin of the San Lorenzo and altered the ethnic composition of the country.
This forced the division of the Canadian territory into two provinces (Constitutional Act 1791), Upper and Lower Canada , with a British and French majority, respectively, each with its own parliamentary regime.
A new war between Canada and the USA (1812-1814), momentarily united all the provinces to reject the invasion. Later, the tension between the British Government and the colonists grew until it culminated in the rebellions of 1837-38, located in Upper Canada (Mackenzie) and Lower Canada (Papineau).
The movement, although it was repressed, showed the British Government the advisability of a reform of a democratic character and, following the advice of Lord Durham, promulgated a new Constitution ( Act of Union, 1840-1841 ), reuniting in a single province the Upper and Lower Canada. The importance of the governor, of British appointment, was diminished and the ministers increased their power when being granted responsibility in the Legislative Assembly (1848).
A time of prosperity began, reflected in the increase of the population and stimulated with successful measures (secularization of the properties of the Protestant clergy, abolition of stately properties, construction of railways).
The cropping area expanded to the west, agricultural production increased by 100% and Canadian wheat doubled in price. But ministerial instability, the decrease in public works and the interruption of trade with the United States, as a result of the Civil War, slowed the development of the country and made the establishment of a confederation necessary.
Canadian Confederation
In 1867, the Canadian Confederation was approved , which originally grouped the provinces of Ontario (Upper Canada), Quebec (Lower Canada). New Brunswick and Nova Scotia .
Later the other territories were incorporated, as the colonization of western Canada progressed.
In 1869, the lands were purchased from the Hudson’s Bay Company and in 1870 Manitoba entered the Confederacy. British Columbia (1871), Prince Edvvard Island (1873), Alberta and Saskatchewan (both in 1905), completed the westward expansion, favored by the construction of transcontinental railroads (Canadian Pacific, Canadian National).
The government of the Confederacy was exercised alternately by conservatives and liberals. The former held power from 1867 to 1896, when a conflict with the Catholic Church (freedom of teaching) led to their downfall.
The liberal party, led by Wilfrid Laurier, tried in its first term (1896-1911) an autonomist policy. During World War I , Canada participated with 600,000 soldiers together with the allies, which allowed it to be present at the Versailles negotiations .
In 1921 the Liberals, now led by Mackenzie King, returned to government, and in 1926 the Imperial Conference granted independence for Canada .
In these years Canada reached a rapid development: exploitation of gold deposits. asbestos and nickel; construction of hydroelectric plants; wood and paper industries; increase in agricultural crops.
But the crisis of 1929, slowed its expansion and caused the rise to power of the Conservatives (1930-35) and the creation of new parties of socialist inspiration. In 1935 Mackenzie King came to power again and during his government Canada intervened in World War II together with the Allies (Hyde Park Pact. 1941).
Modern history of Canada
During World War II, Canada mobilized 900,000 men, and at the end of the war 350,000 soldiers were on the various European fronts.
The Liberal Party continued in power until 1957, and during his tenure an agreement was signed with the United States for the defense of the Arctic areas (1946).
Canada joined the United Nations (UN) in 1945 and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1949 as a founding member.
In 1949 Great Britain ceded the island of Tertanova to Canada . On the death of Mackenzie King (1950) the liberal Saint-Laurent was appointed Prime Minister.
In 1957, after an economic crisis, the progressive conservatives won the elections and the head of the conservative party, J. Diefenbaker, held the head of government until 1963, when he was overthrown for his refusal to equip the Canadian armed forces with atomic weapons.
After the elections of April 1963, the head of the Liberal Party, Lester Pearson, formed a minority government. Shortly after, the nuclear agreement with the United States took place (acceptance of atomic weapons).
In the 1960s, the separatism of the Francophone minority took hold .
In June 1968, the liberal party of Pierre Elliott Trudeau achieved an absolute majority, but the political climate became rarefied when the Minister of Labor, Laporte, was assassinated in 1970 by members of the Quebec Liberation Front.
After a year as a conservative executive, in 1980 Trudeau returned to power, and was strengthened after the Quebec referendum to decide the negotiation of an “associated sovereignty” was adverse to the nationalists.
Likewise, it managed to approve the first Constitution drawn up in Canada (December 1981), which, although it was vetoed by the Government of Quebec, was proclaimed in Ottawa by Elizabeth II (April 1982).
The effects of the economic crisis caused a rapid loss of popularity for Tiudeau, who was replaced by a government of the conservative progressive party led by Brian Mulroney.
In 1990, three provinces refused to ratify the Lake Meech agreement (June 3, 1987), which granted Quebec a different status in exchange for its adherence to the Constitution; and a consensus proposal to solve the crisis was defeated in a referendum (October 26, 1992), Mulroney resigned in February 1993 and after the October elections the liberal Jean Chrétien formed a government. A new referendum on the independence of Quebec (October 30, 1995), was resolved with a meager difference in favor of no.
At the request of the federal government , the Supreme Court ruled (1988) that Quebec did not have the right to unilateral self-determination because it is not a colony nor is it militarily occupied.
However, the Canadian government left open the possibility of negotiation in the event of a majority yes to independence. The decline in the separatist vote in the 1988 provincial elections, however, pushed the prospect of a new referendum away.
History of the flag of Canada
The flag of Canada was officially created in 1921 by British King George V .
Between 1870 and 1965, the official date of the Canadian flag , the current flag was the Red Ensign , a red banner adorned on the left, in the canton, by the Union Jack , and on the right, on the wing, by the coat of arms of Canada.
As of 1946, the possibility of implanting a unitary and representative flag of the provinces began to be studied. Almost two decades of studies and more than 1,500 projects would be necessary to achieve this goal. And the result was the current flag of Canada.
As for the meaning of the flag of Canada and its colors , you should know that there are three elements that make it up:
- The Leaf: In the eastern forests, the maple turns red during the Indian summer. The leaf of this deciduous tree has been the national emblem of Canada since the mid-19th century . Placed between the two vertical red bands, it symbolizes the geographical position of the country, between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans .
- The two red bands: they are located to the right and left of the flag. They symbolize the two great oceans that bathe the coasts of Canada, the Atlantic and the Pacific.
- The WhiteStripe: Flanked by two red stripes to the glory of fallen soldiers during World War I, the white stripe symbolizes the snow that, from the Inuit, tundra, and arctic savannah regions to the Hudson Bay lands ( the largest in the world), covers Canadian soil in winter.
Finally, don’t miss the history of Chile
Do you want to know more about the history of the countries?
From Curio Sfera -Historia.com , we hope that this historical review entitled History of Canada, has been useful to you.
a