Loyalists were American colonists of various and diverse ethnicities who battled on the side of the British during the American Revolution. They had a tremendous impact on the expansion of Canada since thousands of loyalists emigrated to Canada after the American Revolution. Without the loyalists, Canada would be eminently tinier and would most likely have a different judicial procedure, government and economy.
Why did they choose to become loyalists?
One of the primary reasons people chose to become a loyalist was because they were enticed with either property, payment and/or much-needed supplies or maintained the thought that the British would aid them throughout the war as well as had a stronger overall system (government, economy, justice
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In all of America, 15-20% were loyalist; Many of which who immigrated to Canada.
The aftermath of the loyalists
Each loyalist made a unique decision after the American revolution usually based on their ethnicity, wealth, and social standing. Most Loyalists emigrated to Canada, corresponding to The Canadian Encyclopedia around 30,00, which had a significant impact on the economic advancement of our society. Loyalists who chose to remain in America were relentlessly and occasionally brutally beat up, harassed and assaulted by gang members and even regular town folk.
The direct effect onto Canada as a result of the Loyalists
Loyalists had an immense impact on Canada, notably since over 30,000 loyalists migrated there exclusively settled over the years of 1783-1784. Most of them moved into what is now known as Nova Scotia, Quebec, New Brunswick and Ontario. Many loyalists made a significant difference in Canada. One of the most famous of them was Egerton Ryerson who was a Canadian minister, educator, politician, and public education advocate in early Ontario. There is even a university named after him, Ryerson University which is a school to almost 40,00 students. They gave Canada its first ample population, and they established educational, social, religious and governmental
Evaluate the relative importance of the following as factors prompting Americans to rebel in 1776:
On the brink of revolution, the colonies were divided amongst themselves. Two factions with different ideologies “The Patriots” & and the “The Loyalist”, to know these factions we must first know another. Because both parties played a pivotal role in the “American Revolution”.
They were the people who actively participated and sacrificed their lives. Therefore the side they chose to fight on was heavily influenced by their “local interests, grudges, and unfulfilled yearnings [Page 87].”In summary, poor farmers, wanted political rights and land. For slaves they yearned for freedom. Women wanted to have the same rights as men. Native Americans wanted the colonists to stop encroaching on their land. Many of these desires coincided while other clashed. Therein lay the chaos that drove the American Revolution. While many of the people did not succeed the ideas they fought for became deeply embedded into
About one-third of the colonists were patriots who were ready to take any means necessary to fight for independence for their country. The patriots were so passionate about their cause that they would torture or even kill loyalists or indifferent people. Because of this strong passion, the colonists had much more to gain then the British had to lose. The British had other colonies and other forms of export and import to create a profit, but if the Colonists lost they would have lost their independence and freedom.
Approximately 620,000 Canadians fought during the First World War. Nearly 700,000 if we account for the men and women that enlisted in the Canadian units outside of the Canadian Expeditionary Force and in the British forces. Of which, almost 173,000 Canadians were wounded and about 67,000 Canadians had lost their lives by November 11th, 1918. These casualties were devastating in numbers. Canada needed to regain the good faith of its people, despite the fact that it was still a colony of Britain. Canadians knew very little about why the war had started, or the significance of the events that instigated it. But, Canadians were called upon to fight it, therefore now was the greatest need for there to be better compensation for our returning Veterans than ever before. This was the time when the ground work for the Veterans Assistance Programs of today was laid down. Of ...
wanted to fight for what they believed in. In fact, the reasons why Confederate and Union
After greatly contributing to the war, especially in the Battle of the Atlantic, Canada ended up having the 3rd largest navy and 4th largest air force. Now, for such a small nation of only around 11 to 12 million, this was a large military force. Since Canada had done so well in the war (already their second world war as a country) Canada started to grow further and further apart from Mother Britain. There was a feeling a greater sense of pride and a more nationalistic notion. Canadians everywhere no longer saw themselves as British, Scottish, or American, they were Canadian. Canada was now a respected country, and I might add, a pretty powerful one too.
Many colonists held a stronger loyalty to their American Colonies than to England by the eve of the Revolution. The battles and trials that they endured gave them an identity and a unity, they had survived through many hardships and any group that does that had some sort of bond. The unique combining of cultures, geography, and the many political ordeals that American colonists had endured provided them with a sense of identity and unity.
Furthermore the new economic style of landlords and tenants had caused the Highlands to enter an oppression period by greedy and non-negotiable landlords who intended to maintain their newly acquired wealth and position. It was during this period that North America was subjected to the Highlands as a potential location to settle and perverse the Scots Highland traditional way of life, religion and clan independence. Emigration to PEI was divided into two period categories. Typically the first and significant emigration was in 1770 and followed by the emigration of 1815. In 1770 the prime emigrates who left Scotland were members of the higher privilege population or entire communities who had pooled their financial resources together and moved en masse. The main pull factor for emigration during 1770 was the option for an increase of prosperity of the Gaelic culture. Due to the fallout of the Forty-Five Rebellion and the Battle of Culloden, the British government articulated their intention to destroy Gaelic society, while encouraging the assimilation of Gaels into the urban and industrial cities of the Lowlands and England. The Catholic Scots of the Highland had a viable concern about their culture since it had dictated their lifestyle, organization and structure since the Medieval period. In effect, these Highlanders were not comfortable with a new system that destroyed their culture and a style that was forced by a government who deemed their culture as barbaric.The second emigration period in 1815 was derived from the consequence of war with Napoleon and the British government unwantedness of the Scottish ‘troubled population’. In effect the second wave of emigrates in 1815 were encouraged by the government to leave the United Kingdom due inpart to congestion of tenants, starvation and
The American Revolution should never have happened. The British were not tyrannical, oppressive rulers although the American colonies perceived them to be so. The American colonists misperceptions led to revolution and independence.
Their diversity helped to form the multicultural mosaic that we know today. The influence of the Loyalists on the evolution of Canada still remains evident. The British North American provinces of Upper Canada and New Brunswick were created as places of refuge for the United Empire Loyalists. The mottoes of both Ontario and New Brunswick reflect this Loyalist history. Ontario's motto is Ut incepit fidelis sic permanet which when translated means "Loyal she began, loyal she remains” this is also written on Ontario’s coat of arms. New Brunswick’s motto Spem Reduxit when translated means “Hope restored” is also testament to the influence of the United Empire
If you live in the United States, you probably are aware of the American Revolution. Most educated adults in America can name at least on hero of pre-Revolutionary America such as Samuel Adams, John Hancock, Paul Revere and Thomas Jefferson . But to what extent did these few men, credited with our freedom, actually participate in events that lead up to the revolution? How many countless men remained unnamed and unnoticed despite the work they put into the Revolution? These men have often been overlooked in textbooks, despite the fact most of the freedoms we have now are derived from their brave actions. But why did these men get the wheels of a revolution turning? What was the reason they had for their actions, the very ones that led America and Great Britain to begin a fight not only for freedom, but for life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness?
In the 1770’s the British army was well known for its monetary wealth and professional well trained militia. American colonists were slowly getting more and more fed up with the inequality and taxation under British rule so they took a stand. Americans known as Rebels or Patriots fought in the Revolutionary War to gain independence from Britain. Some colonists also known as loyalists, thought that the Patriots had no chance against the professional militia so they stayed loyal to the crown. Although improbable at the start of the American Revolution, the colonists were able to defeat the British army and formally gain independence because they had great leadership from George Washington, similar goals that created high morale, and aided from
Canadians contributed in many ways to help our country's great efforts in the First World War. Canadians had literally the whole country and made enormous demands on the Canadian people, whether they were involved in the actual fighting or remained on the home front to work in industry or farming to support the war effort. Canada grew tremendously through the war as a nation, individually and emotional. Canadian troops had to be strong and responsible as they were always running from one front to another and had to be strong so that the little thing don’t bother them so they don’t become emotionally unstable, then could end there life. Strength played a major role through the war as did courage and every Canadian troop had those two components making them a strong army to attack against.
Currently, Canada remains the world’s second largest country, full of vast and rich resources from all corners of the nation. None of the accomplishments and achievements that Canada has made to date would have been possible without Confederation. Without intense pressure from the Americans, and without the common goal that a few men shared of unifying a country, Canada would not be the strong, free, independent and united nation that it is today.