Robinson Treaties

In modern-day Canada, treaties have been negotiated and signed throughout its history for various purposes. Treaties are the building blocks of Canada as they began prior to the creation of Canada between the Indigenous and the Crown. There are approximately seventy historical treaties that are accredited by the Canadian government between the Indigenous and the Crown (Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, 2008). The Haudenosaunee (Iroquois Confederacy) and the Anglo-American colonies signed a series of treaties between the late 1600s to early 1700s called The Covenant Chain (Jaenen, 2006). A series of peace and friendship treaties were negotiated between the English and the Indigenous in the Maritime regions during 1725-1779 (Albers, 2011).

In 1850, The Robinsons Treaties were cessions of land that covers north of the upper Great Lakes negotiated between the Indigenous habitants living in the land and officials of Canada (Albers, 2011). On the west coast, 14 treaties were signed between 1850 and 1854 by James Douglas and the Indigenous on Vancouver Island called the Douglas treaties (Hall, 2011). The Numbered treaties occurred over the years of 1871 and 1921, they cover the majority of Canada’s land which includes: Western Canada, northern Ontario and a portion of Yukon and Northwest Territories (Office of the Treaty Commissioner, 2008). Treaties allowed the further development of Canada by negotiating alliances, land agreements, and establishing peaceful relations between the Indigenous people of Canada and the British Crown.
“The Covenant Chain” was a series of complex alliances negotiated from treaties originating in the early 17th century (Jaenen, 2006). It created an alliance between the Haudenosaunee or also known as the Iroquois League and the Anglo-American colonies (Jaenen, 2006). The first alliance was made between specifically the Mohawk people and the British colony “New York”, to resolve the violence at the time near the area of New York (Goldi Productions, 1999). These treaties were referred to as chains because they linked multiple colonies and other tribes together in an alliance. Colonies such as Massachusetts and Connecticut would soon later joined the chain, the purpose of these treaties was to maintain peace and stability between the two parties Anglo-American colonies, and the Haudenosaunee, in order to preserve trade (Jaenen, 2006). The treaties within “The Covenant Chain” confronted the issues of land disputes, the violence between the British colonies and the Haudenosaunee and created alliances. These agreements needed renewals every year as well gifts from the British Colonies to the Haudenosaunee, this was to “polish the chain” and solidify the mutual respect and peace among the two or else the chain will break (Goldi Productions, 1999). The conventions and protocols of treaty making in Canada derived from the “Covenant Chain” by having basis on how to create an alliance from a treaty (Jaenen, 2006).
The Peace and Friendship treaties are treaties between the British Crown and the Mi'kmaq and Maliseet who lived in the Maritime regions in 1725-1779 (Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, 2008). The first “Peace and Friendships” treaty was introduced in 1725 in Boston called the “Treaty of Boston” (Goldi Productions, 1999). Representatives of the Crown from the east coast colonies such as Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Nova Scotia and Chiefs of the Mi'kmaq and Maliseet peoples signed the Boston Treaty (Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, 2008). The tribes of Mi'kmaq and Maliseet agreed to terms such as, not to harass any subjects of the British Crown (settlers), interfere with trade, and acknowledge British jurisdiction (Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, 2008) . In exchange, the Crown gave the Indigenous people the right to hunt/fish and plant crops on their own land. These agreements assured peace and friendship between the two Indigenous tribes and the crown and recognition of Indigenous rights (Goldi Productions, 1999). Both parties benefited from the signings, such as better trade and it also allowed the Indigenous people to keep their religious practices. These treaties kept were simple, to maintain peace between the two sovereign nations and create an alliance (Goldi Productions, 1999). The main purpose of these negotiations was to end hostilities in the maritime region and to have a strategic alliance between the Mi'kmaq, Maliseet and the British as the French and British competed for control in North America. The Peace and Friendship treaties formed the basis for modern treaty claims, to simply create peace among two parties.
The Robinson treaties refer to two treaties, the Robinson-Superior treaty, and the Robinson-Huron treaty (Albers, 2011).

They were signed by Crown representative William Benjamin Robinson and Ojibwa chiefs in 1850 (Albers, 2011). The purpose of the Robinson treaties was created to let mining companies to legally mine the natural resources in northern areas of Lake Superior and Huron 1779 (Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, 2008). Initially, William was instructed to get one treaty signed, however, he could not convince the Batchewana and some other Indigenous tribes (Sayers, 2016). So two were made instead, Robinson-Superior treaty and Robinson-Huron treaty, the Indigenous tribes who wanted the first proposed treaty signed the Robinson-Superior treaty 1779 (Sayers, 2016). This allowed the Montreal Mining Company to legally mine the northern part of Lake Superior (Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, 2008). Eventually, the Indigenous tribes who opposed the originally proposed treaty were forced to sign it as the Indigenous people were starving needed relief and support from the Crown (Sayers, 2016). The treaties opened the land’s natural resources for mining and exploration (Albers, 2011). In the treaties, the crown promised the Indigenous northern inhabitants: a one-time cash payment, annuities, the privilege to hunt and fish in the crown owned territory, and the creation of 24 new reserves (Albers, 2011). These treaties allowed colonies to further develop and grow the northern areas of Lake Superior and Lake

Huron.
Between 1850 and 1854, James Douglas negotiated a series of 14 land purchases agreements with the chiefs of Songhee, Klallam, Sooke, and Metchosin often referred to “Fort Victoria Treaties” or the “Douglas Treaties” (Claxton, 2007). The treaty-making process began on Vancouver Island with James Douglas, the Chief Factor of the Hudson Bay Company, and then later second appointed governor of the colony of Vancouver Island summoned the chiefs for a conference to negotiate a deal (Claxton, 2007). The chiefs sold their land to the HBC, nine agreements were concluded in 1850 between James Douglas and the Songhees, Klallam, and T’souke who inhabited the lands between Cadboro Bay and Sheringham Point (Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, 2008). After the success of the initial agreements, two more were signed in 1851 between the Kwakiutl and James Douglas near Fort Rupert, the agreements secured accessed to coal deposits and resolved the conflict between miners who lived in the area around the deposits (Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, 2008). Furthermore, the land from the Indigenous people at Fort Victoria, Fort Rupert, and Nanaimo were exchanged for reserves, it allowed the Indigenous people to hunt/fish in the ceded territories, and also allowed the Indigenous people to keep their village sites (Hall, 2011). The Douglas treaties covered approximately 358 square miles around Victoria, Nanaimo, Saanich, Sooke, port hardy and all of Vancouver Island, they were now treaty land. The Douglas treaties covered approximately 358 square miles (Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada, 2008). The objective of these treaties was to provide land vital for the HBC’s operations which includes agriculture, mining, and settlement.
The Numbered Treaties are introduced over the years of 1871 and 1921, they are a large series of 11 land cession treaties made between the government of Canada and Indigenous people of Canada (Gray, 41). Shortly after the creation of the confederation of Canada on July 1, 1867, Canada began a treaty-making campaign to extend its sovereignty over the western land in response to the Americans wanting to expand wherever land that was unsettled. Furthermore, as Canada was undergoing a growth in settlers, the number of buffalo started to decline on lands being settled from settlers moving west (Office of the Treaty Commissioner, 2008). As a result, buffalo and bison started to disappear which pressured the Indigenous people to sign the Numbered Treaties (Office of the Treaty Commissioner, 2008). The Indigenous people primarily wanted in the treaties was to preserve their future, have peace with the government/settlers and education for the next generations to come (Office of the Treaty Commissioner, 2008). The treaties provided and offered, large areas of land with natural resources for industrial development and land to settle (Gray, 41). In exchange for Indigenous land, the primary and principle of these treaties included several of promises were made to the Indigenous were written and orally promised (Gray, 41). The treaties promised provisions such as annuities, clothing for chiefs, reserves, agricultural implements, education and the rights to hunt/fish/trap (Office of the Treaty Commissioner, 2008). The Numbered Treaties vary between treaties. For example, Treaty 4 includes the principle promise of the Numbered Treaties as mentioned above, Treaty 6 also includes the principle promise but with the addition of relief from famine and the medicine chest (Office of the Treaty Commissioner, 2008). Treaties 1 to 7 from 1871 to 1877 were to open lands for the agricultural settlement of the prairies regions, gain peaceful access and the key to the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway (Wilhelm, 32). Treaties 8 to 11 from 1899 and 1921 allowed access to natural resources up north. The numbered treaties were important in establishing land settlements for the development of Canada and alleviated the pressure of the threat of United States expansion by settling on the land (Office of the Treaty Commissioner, 2008). Today, the settled land created from Numbered Treaties is what is now Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and northern British Columbia, without the Numbered Treaties those provinces would not exist.
Historical treaties signed between the Indigenous people of Canada and the British Crown made a significant impact in the development in Canada in terms in alliances, trade, and land settlement. These early historical treaties such as the “Covenant Chain” created alliances between Indigenous people and British colonies, which were important in keeping good relations for negotiating more treaties in the future. Moreover, the Peace and Friendship treaties were simply to create peace and good relations between the Mi'kmaq and Maliseet in the maritime regions. Treaties were not only for peace and friendship but land cessions as well. The Robinson’s Treaties were negotiated between William Robinson and the Ojibwa Chiefs, the purpose of the treaties allowed mining in the Indigenous lands of the Ojibwa which helped further develop colonies. The Douglas Treaties were land purchase agreements on Vancouver Island between James Douglas and the chiefs of Songhee, Klallam, Sooke, and Metchosin where several promises were made to the Indigenous for settlement land. The biggest treaty for settlement land were the Numbered Treaties, they allowed vast amounts of land to be settled by the Canadian government. In exchange, several of promises have been made and gave special rights to the Indigenous people. Almost all of Canada is treaty land from the Numbered Treaties as provinces were built on top of them. The importance of treaties shall never be forgotten as it helped build Canada by engaging in negotiations between Indigenous people of Canada and the Crown that led to several peaceful compromises.