HIST 1221 post-confederation Canadian
history exam new update Thompson Rivers
University
, HIST 1221 post-confederation Canadian history exam new update Thompson Rivers University
*Unit 1: Pre- to Post-Confederation* - --1. Describe the broad patterns of modern history since 1867.
2. Identify the external and internal causes of Confederation.
3. Assess the critiques of the federal project in the late 1860s and early 1870s.
Liberalism - --- Closely tied to modernity
- Focus on individual and rights and freedoms
- Much of federalism debate centered around pro or opposition to liberalism
- All citizens are equal
- Urbanization leads to increased density hence need for liberal ideas and policies
Modernity - --- Things moving so much quicker than ever before
- Science versus superstition; individual merit and upward social mobility versus a life-sentence in a
single social class determined by the status of one's parents; cities rather than the countryside
- Rejection of previously held norms
Long and Short 19th and 20th - --- Long 19th = "the period from the French Revolution (1789) to the
outbreak of global war in 1914"
- Short 20th = "Whether measured from August 1914 or the Treaty of Versailles that ended the Great
War, the "short 20th century" is said to have concluded in 1991."
- Helps to see long term trends
Causes of Confederation, 1867 - --- Post-civil war American had large, mobile army
- Railway would increase trade among BNA
- However, many feared interventionist government; were already self-sufficient; saw bloody effects of
federalization elsewhere (America)
,Ajzenstat, Janet. "Human Rights in 1867." In The Canadian Founding: John Locke and Parliament - --
*Argument:* Many today would express skepticism over a parliament's ability to secure rights for its
citizens. This, however, betrays a lack of appreciation for the ingenious work of the Canadian Founding
Fathers who, in the BNA Act of 1867, constructed governing bodies of great sophistication that were
sufficiently safeguarded against corruption and tyranny.
*Main Points:* Ajzenstat demonstrates how the Canadian Founding Fathers built a parliament based on
the application of enlightened, Lockean ideals. The separation of the legislative and executive bodies
eliminated the possibility of a government creating and executing laws to its own advantage. The
separation of the legislature into two houses, as well as the primacy given to the elected and
geopolitically diverse House of Commons, further ensured that no law may be passed without sufficient
debate or the implicit consent of the general population. That no government heir to a Lockean
formulation of parliament has undergone a revolution is taken as evidence of its efficacy.
Smith, Andrew. "Toryism, Classical Liberalism, and Capitalism: The Politics of Taxation and the Struggle
for Canadian Confederation." - --*Argument:* Despite the commonly held belief among historians that
Confederation can be counted as the triumph of liberal values, an examination of the historical record
reveals that much of Canada resisted the rhetoric of unification precisely for it's supposed illiberal values
and many tax-wary, classical liberal colonists feared a unified Canada would be the dawn of a Tory-
interventionist style of government. Worries over taxation were integral to many Confederation debates
in the colonies.
*Main Points:* Smith then turns to the Newfoundland confederation debates of 1867 and 69,
demonstrating how the anti-statist culture among elites and the working class alike led to the victory of
the anti-Confederation party. In Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, anti-tax fear mongering was frequently
resorted to by anti-union debaters and newspapers, with even pro-union politicians admitting to the
likely but beneficial increase in taxes. In Lower Canada, distrust of big government was likewise
widespread. In Upper Canada, fear of frivolous spending in Ottawa was also present, though some pro-
Confederate Reformers praised union as a possible escape from the economic drain of French
Canadians.
*Unit 2: Birthing Pains—Confederation's Early Conflicts* - --1. Describe the territorial growth of Canada
since 1867.
2. Summarize the contrasting and conflicting positions taken by the various BNA colonies regarding
Confederation.
, 3. Compare the anti-Confederation movements and their significance.
4. Distinguish the Canadian agenda from that of the First Nations.
5. Describe and evaluate the institutions created and utilized for the purpose of expanding the Dominion
of Canada and its authority.
What led to a change of mind in PEI as regards Confederation? - --Economic standstill; Ottawa promises
to pay for railroad
What were the sources of regional dissatisfaction with Confederation from 1867 to the 1890s? - --- Nova
Scotia felt their orientation should be towards the Atlantic, Britain and a Martime Union, not inland
cities that they had nothing in common with
- Quebec was unhappy with the treatment of French Canadians and Metis
Why were many of the western First Nations prepared to sign treaties with Canada? - --They were
experiencing a sharp decline in Bison numbers as well as Sioux nation refugees. They also assumed the
treaties would be on going.
What factors led to the Northwest Rebellion of 1885? - --Canada did not negotiate terms with the Metis
in the area, and instead sent over land surveyors to divide the land which angered them. They started
up a provisional government to resist annexation — Canada responded aggressively out of worry of
losing the land to the US
What roles did Louis Riel play in the two decades after Confederation? What was his legacy over the
short-term? - --- Doubled the government in the Prarie West and added diversity (Englishmen,
Protestants)
Excused a toxic, Anti-catholic Canadian man named Thomas Scott
- Responsible for the birth of Manitoba
- Saw the rallying of all people, regardless of politics or religious denomination, around the Riel militia
- Conservative values and respect for authority bubbling up spontaneously
- vilified in the English-speaking provinces, lionized in French-Catholic Quebec
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