The Formation of the Canadian
Federation
The two party system
 Conservatives: John A. Macdonald (Canada West)
and George-Étienne Cartier (Canada East)
 Their purpose was to build political and commercial
ties within United Canada
 Liberals: George Brown (Canada West) and AntoineAimé Dorion (Canada East)
 Their purpose was to push for liberal ideas in in
government. The two liberal sides did not agree on
culture though. Brown feared “French domination”
Conservatives
 John A. Macdonald
(Canada West)
 George-Étienne Cartier
(Canada East)
Liberals
 George Brown (Canada
West)
 Antoine-Aimé Dorion
(Canada East)
Ministerial
Instability
Neither the
Conservatives (blue) or
the Liberals (red) could
form a majority
government because
neither could win a
majority in both
Canada West and
Canada East.
This led to multiple
elections and minority
governments which
were unable to pass
laws and did not work
effectively.
Canada West
Canada East
Clear Grit
Party
(majority)
Parti Bleu
(Majority)
Conservative
Party
(Minority)
Parti Rouge
(minority)
Minority and Majority Governments
 Majority government: A government formed by the
party that wins more than 50% of the seats in the
Legislative Assembly.
 Minority government: A government formed by the
party that wins less than 50% of the seats in the
Legislative Assembly. To pass laws, the governing
party needs the support from other parties.
British North America
Pressure from the United States
 In 1860, Civil War breaks out in the United States
with the Northern States (US govt.) fighting the
Southern States over the issue of slavery.
 Great Britain supports the South against the North.
 The US stops trading with Canada.
 People in Canada fear that the US will try and
capture Canada and Rupert’s Land as a consequence
for supporting the South.
US Civil War: North vs. South
Reasons to unite all the BNA colonies
 To unite the country politically and avoid having
multiple minority governments
 To form a strong country that could prevent the US
from trying to attack Canada
 To create a new market for Canadian businesses to
sell their products since the US stopped trading with
Canada.
The economic context
 1846-1849: Great Britain moves away from their
economic policy of mercantilism to free trade. This
forces BNA colonies to develop trade amongst
themselves.
 1850-1867: First phase of industrialization began
due to industrial capitalism. Industrialization
strengthened ties between the colonies.
3 Aspects of 1st phase of Industrialization
 Creation of a transportation network. Ex: canals and
railways.
 Heavy Immigration (mainly from Great Britain)
 Urbanization: the concentration of the population in
the cities.
Example of Industrialization: Lachine Canal
Lachine Canal
 The project was funded by industrial capitalists like
John Redpath (Redpath Sugar)
 Canal was built to bypass the Lachine Rapids and let
boats move on to the Great Lakes.
 The construction of the Canal created many jobs for
Irish immigrants new to Canada.
 The project also attracted many Canadiens to move
to city to find work. Most of them lived close to the
canal in densely populated neighborhoods. (Pointe
St. Charles, Saint-Henri)
Economic Reason to unite BNA colonies
 The BNA colonies are no longer supported
economically by Great Britain. They need to develop
economic connections between them if they want to
survive.
 A United Canada would make that easier to do
because the government could provide more money
for construction projects like canals and railways.
The Canadian Federation
 The Great Coalition –Brown, Liberal leader of
Canada West, and Macdonald and Cartier,
Conservative leaders of Canada West and East.
United together in a coalition government to end
ministerial instability by uniting all the BNA colonies
and forming a new country.
 Delegates from the colonies met at three conferences
between 1864-1866 (Charlottetown, Québec City,
and London) to discuss what form the union would
take.
Charlottetown Conference – to persuade the the
Maritime provinces to join Canada
Quebec Conference – to decide what powers the
federal and provincial governments should have
London Conference – confirming the creation of
Canada as a British Dominion
The Canadian federation (cont)
 July 1, 1867, the BNA Act took effect. Canada became
a British dominion and a constitutional monarchy,
and adopted a parliamentary system.
 The constitution divided powers between the federal
and provincial levels government
 Federal powers = military, foreign policy, etc.
 Provincial powers = education, health care, etc.