Canadian Confederation Analysis

The transformation and union of the colonies of British North America into the Dominion of Canada is referred to as the Confederation of Canada. The establishment was created in 1867 by the British North American Act. Before the creation of the confederation only the United States was an independent nation in the Americas. Canada, as seen in the map “Confederation in the Beginning: 1867-1873” consisted of privatized land owners, Rupert’s Land and the Northwestern Territories while British North America consisted of colonies of British Columbia, Manitoba, Quebec, Ontario, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island. These colonies economic stance before the confederation were independent markets relying heavily on the …show more content…
You had mixed political views in Upper Canada were the loyalist were of Britain law while in Lower Canada they chose to follow French law. In the lecture materials, Professor Kinsinger explains that the debate was mostly about the pursuit of control and government contracts (Kinsinger lecture: 2/20/17). This caused the colonies to be separated by physical barriers and there was no sense of nationhood. This caused a disadvantage when it came time for trading and implementing a strong economy. Even more, the American Civil War affected the trade and put extreme tension across the entire continent. The growing fear of an American takeover during the Civil War was perhaps the leading cause of Canadian Confederation. The Civil War in the United States (1861-1865) was tearing the country apart. This movement in the United States added to the sense of urgency to move towards Confederation. MacDonald struggled but yet delivered a promise of defense for the British North American colonies. If they were united together the colonies would ensure that they were protected from the possibility of an American …show more content…
MacDonald struggled to build the nation on two cultures – British and French. MacDonald dealt with much opposition to the confederation and focused his power push on the economy rather than trying to bridge the cultural gap of the differing sides. However, he provided an effective leadership by adding British Columbia (1871), with the help of Cartier, at the same time the United States was perusing the lands which would become Alaska. Beforehand, MacDonald bailed out Nova Scotia in 1869, developed Manitoba along the Red River to thwart the United States from entering the