A very popular topic of debate among historians is the anti-confederates in Nova Scotia’s and their relationship with the American Revolution. The debate condenses down into a single basic question; why did Nova Scotia join confederation instead of joining the American Revolution? In the 1860’s Nova Scotia had two choices, they could either join Canada with confederation or become part of the thirteen colonies, now the United States. To answer that questions historians need to look at what this situation was in North America at the time. It is important to take into perspective the loyalist view of anti-confederates and their opinion against confederation and support the American Revolution. There are many reasons that have to be carefully examined to understand why they did not join. Firstly, did the geographical location and surrounding colonies/ provinces have an effect on Nova Scotia’s decisions? What was the economic situation in their colony, and how did that attribute to which country they joined? Also, how did the terms of confederacy push and pull the colony’s want to join? Lastly, what role the loyalists played in this decision. When we research these questions we find that these three reasons were the cause of Nova Scotia joining confederation opposed to the American Revolution. One of the major deciding factors was location of Nova Scotia. Despite the fact that Nova Scotia showed great support to revolt, the factor of geographical location diminished their ability to get troops into the settlement. For the troops that would get there it would be very dangerous, because they were surrounded by water. This meant that ships could easily gain access to the province, and defending it would take a lot of troops to cov... ... middle of paper ... ... The loyalty that we had to the British crown has in some senses faded, and become more of a celebrity fad that people follow for entertainment. Works Cited Emily P.Weaver. “Nova Scotia and New England During the Revolution.” The American Historical Review Vol. 10, No. 1 (Oct., 1904), pp. 52-71. Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Historical Association. McKay, Ian G. "The Canadian Passive Revolution, 1840-1950." Capital & Class 34, no. 3 (10, 2010): 361-381, Queen’s University, Ontario, Canada. Reid, John G. "Pax Britannica or Pax Indigena? Planter Nova Scotia (1760--1782) and Competing Strategies of Pacification." Canadian Historical Review 85, no. 4 (December 2004): 669-692. America: History and Life with Full Text. Wallace, W. “The Growth of Canadian National Feeling.” The Canadian Historical Review Vol. 1, No. 1 (March, 1920), pp 136-165.
It was once stated by F.R.Scott “ There are two miracles in canadian history. The first is the survival of French Canada, and the second is the survival of Canada.” His quote came to reality as of Canada grew to be a stable and secure country where everyone would want to be. Yet to accomplish this, many obstacles and events occurred such as the Spanish Succession war in 1713 , the seven years war in 1763, the constitutional act in 1791 and finally the Act of Union in 1841. First in 1713, the Spanish Succession war occurred where the British took control of Acadia. Soon after that, in 1763 the Seven Years War ended where the British took over New France and was later renamed British North America. Before the British most of the colonies were
After the French and Indian War, the British were unimpressed with the colonial war efforts and generally assumed they were unable to defend the western frontier, whereas the colonists thought they had done well in all of the wars and were confident that they could defend themselves. This led to conflict between the two nations, brought on by the costs of the wars. Landowners in Britain wanted to reduce the taxes placed upon them. King George III and the Whigs supported a colonial policy that would abandon salutary neglect and force the colonies to support the cost of the British empire. In addition to this the British began to be more present in the colonies, beginning with Pontiac’s rebellion where the British sent troops instead of letting the colonial forces respond to the attack, because of their thoughts on the colonists military efforts. The Proclamation o...
3 Wade. Mason. Search for a Nation. The Bryant press Limited, Toronto. 1967 [4] Canadians and Conflicts.
...ton, Pierre. Marching as to War: Canada's Turbulent Years, 1899-1953. Toronto: Doubleday Canada, 2001. Print.
In conclusion Canada gained independence because of a series of events that took place during the twentieth century. If it hadn’t been for these events, Canada to this day might have been a part of the British Empire. Through discussion on the Chanak affair we signalled that we wanted autonomy. Through our hard work and lives, the world knew we had the ability to stand alone as a strong nation. While, our international reputation of being a “peacekeeping” country the right to stand as an independent self-governing nation. But finally through the Canada Act, we stood solely independent from our Empire. It is obvious that the twentieth century provided us with great chances to become an independent strong nation.
An Empire Divided by Andrew O’Shaughnessy conveyed the reasons for non-participation on the part of the British West Indies during the American Revolution. He explores concepts such as double consciousness on part of the planters, as well as economic and political ideologies of the planters and the slaves during the late 1700s.
Quinn, David B. North America From Earliest Discovery to First Settlements. New York: Harper & Row Publishers, 1977.
Canadians were frustrating, wonderful, and hard. Soldiers returning from the war expected jobs, but were faced with unemployment, inflation and strikes. Inflation had doubled the cost of living where wages had not and those fortunate to be employed still faced immense financial difficulty. Many people joined unions for better pay and working conditions, 1919 saw the most strikes at a staggering three hundred and six, people were angry and discontented. The 1920s were a time of crime corruption and extreme poverty, yet by mid era difficult conditions began to improve. Foreign investors gained confidence in Canada and as a result new industries were developed, The twenties really did 'roar' and with this boom of change Canada underwent the transformation that was the gateway to the future.
The French colonized the region of Acadia, which is now Nova Scotia, and the Acadians were the French colonists who lived in the area. However, there were also English colonists in the area and the groups didn’t get along well. The French lost Nova Scotia to the British in a war which led to the Treaty of Utrecht (signed in 1713) which formally named Acadia as a British territory (Dormon, 39). The treaty forced the Acadians to swear an oath of allegiance to the British crown which they refused because this would require them to renounce their Catholic religion for that of the Anglican church, because of this the likelihood of another war with the French was high. The Acadians refusal to swear an oath to the British caused the British to order a deportation of the Acadians who then fled with whatever they could carry.
During the years of 1675 and 1676 the North American colonies experienced conflicts that shaped the dynamics of their colonial life. King Phillip's War would effectively end relations between the New England colonists and the Indians. Also, the rebellion in Virginia led by Nathaniel Bacon stressed the growing discontent of poor frontier farmers for British rule. The consequences of these two events clearly had an impact on different levels that would extend well beyond their time. Therefore, the years 1675 and 1676 played a very significant role in the Northern American colonies.
Meney, Florence. "La Peiné de Mort au Canada" ["Moving Towards Abolition"]. Radio Canada. N.p., 2007. Web. 23 Jan. 2014. .
Britain, like Spain, had permanent colonies, settlements, and claims in the new world. The one prized colony to their colonial chest was Canada, supplying fur, trade, and money to the British people. In regards to Britain’s currently existing colony, the Monroe doctrine professed no disavowal of the right of the British to manage their respective colony (Yale Law School). Yet, the British territorial claims in Oregon, supported by the notion of preexisting settlements by their fur trading company, was naturally at direct odds with the United States’ belief in Manifest Destiny. This issue already provided a reason for Monroe and Adam’s to be uneasy over British presence in the new world. It was in the national interest of the United States to put an end to the prospect of colonization of the Oregon
Thompson, John Herd, and Mark Paul Richard. "Canadian History in North American Context." In Canadian studies in the new millennium. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2008. 37-64.
The British North America Act went into effect July 1st, 1867 creating a union known as the Dominion of Canada, but this did not complete the debate on the Confederation issue. Many Nova Scotians continued their opposition to the idea and it would take considerable time before all Nova Scotians would accept the fact of Confederation. “These Nova Scotians, disgruntled at their treatment by Great Britain, found that their loyalty had markedly diminished. The more they considered taking over the responsibility for their own affairs from England, however, the greater trust they had to place in Confederation.”25 Confederation struck a balance between the rights of English and French speaking Canadians. Nevertheless, many divisions, conflicts, and debates would occur not only in Quebec but also in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick over this balance. Economic disparities between the Maritimes and the rest of Canada would also create many problems for the years following 1867. As a result, Confederation can be viewed as a beginning and not an end.
... Ed. W. Gordon West and Ruth Morris. Toronto, Canada: A Canadian Scholar? Press, 2000.