Responsible government and Confederation

Daniel is twenty-eight. He came from Ethiopia and works as a personal support worker in London, Ontario. He's planning a July first picnic by the lake with friends from work. One friend asks, so what actually happened on July first? Daniel knows it's Canada Day, with fireworks at night. But he isn't sure what happened in eighteen sixty-seven.

So here's the question. How did the colonies win the right to run their own affairs, and what is Confederation? Remember, this is a free, independent course. It is not a government course.

The official study guide, Discover Canada, explains this in its chapter called Canada's History. In eighteen thirty-seven and eighteen thirty-eight, there were armed rebellions near Montreal and in Toronto. They were defeated. Lord Durham, sent from England to report, said Upper and Lower Canada should be joined, and given responsible government. Responsible government means the ministers must have the support of most of the elected members.

In eighteen forty, Upper and Lower Canada were joined as the Province of Canada. Nova Scotia was the first colony to get full responsible government, in eighteen forty-seven and eighteen forty-eight. Lord Elgin brought it to the Province of Canada. In eighteen forty-nine, Sir Louis-Hippolyte La Fontaine became the first head of a responsible government in the Canadas. Other leaders of reform were Robert Baldwin and Joseph Howe.

Now, Confederation. Confederation means the joining of the first provinces into one country, with a federal and a provincial level of government. From eighteen sixty-four to eighteen sixty-seven, leaders called the Fathers of Confederation worked this out. The British Parliament passed the British North America Act. And on July first, eighteen sixty-seven, the Dominion of Canada was born.

It started with four provinces. Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. July first was called Dominion Day until nineteen eighty-two. Now it is Canada Day. The word Dominion was suggested by Sir Leonard Tilley of New Brunswick. The idea came from Psalm seventy-two, which speaks of dominion from sea to sea.

Two leaders stand out. Sir John A. Macdonald was Canada's first Prime Minister. He was born in Scotland, and he was a lawyer in Kingston, Ontario. January eleventh, his birthday, is Sir John A. Macdonald Day. It is a day to remember him, not a day off work. Sir George-Étienne Cartier was the key architect of Confederation from Quebec.

Then the country grew. Manitoba and the Northwest Territories came in eighteen seventy. British Columbia in eighteen seventy-one. Prince Edward Island in eighteen seventy-three. Yukon in eighteen ninety-eight. Alberta and Saskatchewan in nineteen oh-five. Newfoundland and Labrador in nineteen forty-nine. And Nunavut was created in nineteen ninety-nine.

Let's make it stick. Think of Daniel's picnic table. It has four legs. Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick. Four legs, four provinces, one table, on July first, eighteen sixty-seven. Everyone else pulled up a chair later.

Here's a common confusion. Nova Scotia was the first colony with full responsible government. But La Fontaine was the first head of a responsible government in the Canadas. Both are true. Nova Scotia, first colony. La Fontaine, first leader in the Canadas.

The mistake people make is thinking Canada began with all its provinces and territories. It began with just four provinces. The others joined over more than one hundred and thirty years, and the newest, Nunavut, is a territory.

Here's the one thing to remember. Confederation joined four provinces into one country on July first, eighteen sixty-seven. Responsible government means the ministers need the support of most elected members.

This week, read the Canada's History chapter from the rebellions to Confederation. Then say the four first provinces out loud. Next time, the West, the railway, and a growing country.