Capitulation of Montreal (1760)

• The British won the War of the Conquest and took measures to ensure order and administer the conquered territory.

Capitulation of Montréal (1760)

• The siege of Québec ended on September 18, 1759, with Québec's capitulation.
• French troops were under Chevalier de Lévis’ command, who succeeded Montcalm.
• The French won a battle in Sainte-Foy at the end of April 1760 but could not recapture Québec.
• In May 1760, the British fleet's arrival on the Fleuve Saint-Laurent forced Lévis to leave Québec for Montréal.
• Montréal capitulated on September 8, 1760, as the city was surrounded by the British.
• French forces laid down their weapons, resulting in New France being conquered and placed under British control.
• The capitulation of Montréal was signed by New France's governor general, Pierre de Rigaud de Vaudreuil, and British Major General Jeffery Amherst.

Marquis de Vaudreuil

• The Marquis de Vaudreuil was New France' last governor-general (1755-1760).
• He was the sole governor general of New France born in New France
• In September 1760, Vaudreuil surrendered Montréal, negotiating terms that protected the property, laws, and religion of the Canadiens, hoping to save the lives of soldiers defending the city.

Military Administration of the Colony

• The capitulation of Montréal ended the War of the Conquest in North America, though the Seven Years’ War continued elsewhere.
• Great Britain had to maintain order and administer the conquered colony while waiting for the end of the war.
• Major General Jeffery Amherst led the colony and introduced a military regime, which was a provisional government.

Provisional Government Organization

• General Amherst abolished the Royal Government of the French Regime and kept the governments of Québec, Trois-Rivières, and Montréal in place.
• Amherst appointed British officers as governors: James Murray (Québec), Ralph Burton (Trois-Rivières), and Thomas Gage (Montréal).
• Militia captains were maintained in their civil duties as intermediaries between the Canadiens and the British, without major changes to administrative structures.
• Many Canadiens held administrative or judicial positions and retained them.

Canadiens Under Military Rule

• Following the conquest of the French colony the British imposed new regulations while respecting the terms agreed upon with the French at the capitulation of Montréal.
• Some Canadien rights were maintained, and cultural and social characteristics from New France survived.

New Measures for Canadiens

• Canadien militias had to lay down their arms.
• Canadiens had to swear allegiance to the British king, George III.
• French criminal law was abolished, and British military law would apply.

Retained Rights for Canadiens

• Canadiens could continue to own land/property without risk of deportation.
• Canadiens were free to practice the Catholic religion, even though Great Britain officially practiced Protestantism.
• Most French institutions were preserved, including the seigneurial system and French civil law.
• The French language was maintained in the administration.

Impact on Population and Economy

• The Conquest immediately impacted the population/economy.
• About 4,000 people, mostly the colonial elite (nobles, officers, traders, administrators) returned to France; most Canadiens stayed.
• Starting in 1760, a few hundred Anglophone merchants arrived from Great Britain and the Thirteen Colonies, hoping to profit from the fur trade, now conducted with Great Britain.

Canadien Merchants

• Canadien merchants were not excluded from the fur trade after the Conquest.
• Many worked for British merchants called Montrealers while others worked independently, profiting from trade networks and contacts.
• New British merchants relied on existing Canadien networks.

Rebuilding the Colony

• The War of the Conquest devastated the colony, especially Québec, where over 500 houses were burned and administrative and religious buildings were severely damaged.
• British raids along the Fleuve Saint-Laurent caused extensive damage; villages demolished, over 1,400 buildings burned, crops destroyed, and livestock decimated.
• Rebuilding the colony was a major undertaking due to shortages of financial resources, tools and other supplies.
• British authorities aided reconstruction and improved agriculture to prevent famine, but the rebuilding process was costly and took years.

Treaty of Paris (1763)

• The Treaty of Paris, signed on February 10, 1763, officially ended the Seven Years' War, resulting in Great Britain’s victory over France.
• France ceded New France to Great Britain, giving the British Empire control over vast territories in North America.
• Certain Canadien rights were recognized including retaining land and property and practicing Catholicism; those wanting to leave had 18 months to sell property to British subjects.
• The islands of of Saint Pierre and Miquelon remained as the French territory in North America after the treaty.

Relations with Native Peoples After the Conquest

• The Treaty of Paris caused concern for Native peoples as relations with the British deteriorated.
• General Amherst modified diplomatic relations that existed between the French and Native peoples, ending the provision of weapons and alcohol, and introducing new rules for the fur trade; these actions reflected a desire to subjugate rather than treat them as allies.
• This attitude and measures were not welcomed by Native populations.

Pontiac’s Revolt (1763-1766)

• Native nations feared losing lands and being treated as conquered peoples.
• Several Native nations formed a coalition in May 1763 to oppose the British, led war chief Pontiac.
• The coalition conquered almost every fort in the Great Lakes region and the Ohio Valley, resulting in a violent war.
• The Native coalition was weakened by defeats and a smallpox epidemic, so several nations made peace in the summer of 1764.
• Pontiac agreed to sign a peace treaty in July 1766.

The Indian Department

• The British government created the Indian Department in 1755, to negotiate alliances with Native nations during the War of the Conquest.
• As of 1763, the Department was responsible for relations/negotiations between the colonies and Native peoples and became an intermediary between British military leaders and Native chiefs during Pontiac's Revolt.

Royal Proclamation Basics

• In October 1763, shortly after the Treaty of Paris signing, the British government issued the Royal Proclamation, leading to major changes.
• Royal Proclamation set the boundaries of Britain's North American colonies.
• Part of what used to be New France became the Province of Quebec.

Creation of a Native Territory

• The British Crown claimed a vast territory and created a reserve for Native tribes.
• Territories included The Great Lakes region and the Ohio Valley.
• Colonists could not settle or exploit territories without authorization from the British.

British Royal Proclamation

• The Royal Proclamation gave instructions to British subjects on the occupation of Native territory.
• The Royal Proclamation forbade subjects from: making settling without special leave, creating purchases, acquiring licenses, or otherwise taking possession lands.

Political Organization

• The Royal Proclamation of 1763 abolished the military regime and established a civilian government.
• A governor general, appointed by the King, had all the power in the colony.
• James Murray became the first Governor General of the Province of Quebec in 1763.
• A Legislative Assembly was to be created in the colony, however, the British never did.

System of Justice

• The Royal Proclamation also transitioned the judicial system from colony to English traditions.
• All civil and criminal trials ran on the structure of the British system.
• A chief justices was appointed to oversee all courts and proceedings instead of a higher political figure.

Instructions to Governors

• Implemented to assimilate the colonist into British customs and traditions.

Instructions to James Murray

• King George III sent instructions to Governor James Murray to establish British and ensure assimilation.
• The key measures in King George III's instructions were English as the only administrative language, divide the land into townships, apply English civil and criminal law, establish the Anglican Church, build Protestant schools, promote British immigration, impose the Test Act, ban Catholic access to the legislative assembly, and prohibit new Catholic priests.

Attempts at Religious Changes

• Changes to the region involved creating "Protestant schools" so that colonist children would be educated under the new British law.
• All actions and considerations were to make the conversion to Protestantism peaceful and organic.

Concessions

• Murray sought to assimilate the Canadiens, but they were more numerous than the British.
• Murray could not properly apply the king's instructions, as he was convinced force or quick attempts assimilation would not work.
• Because of the previous, Murray decided to show tolerance and compromise with the Catholic church

Letters Between Officials

• Officials agreed that if the British showed a sense of compromise and respect, the citizens would remain allegiant.
• Without good faith, the colonists may have attempted to separate themselves, officials noted.

Concessions Made to Church

• There was no bishop after Monseigneur Pontbriand's death (1760), endangering the Canadian Catholic Church's future.
• The Catholic Clergy relied on the authorities in Britain to allow their ordination of new priests so that their religion would continue to be served.
• James Murray allowed the selection of a new bishop, knowing he desired the Catholic Clergy's support because of their influence with the colonists.

Division Amongst Colonists

• Murray's compromise policy did not gain support from all his colonists, who's split into two camps, the French and the British.
• The French Party supported Murray's policy with the British opposing the agreement.

French and British Parties

• The French administrators, politicians, and military agreed with the policy of religious compromise.
• The composition of the British party fought to assimilate colonist without question and comprise.

Changes of Power

• New members of the British party sent many petitions to the king so that Murray would be removed.
• It was demanded that a new leader familiar with the structure of the territory be appointed.
• James Murray was brought back to Great Britain in 1766.

Guy Carleton

• Governor in 1768, who was viewed as fair to both parties.
• Carleton wanted to keep French influence on the territory, so supported the decisions of past governors and the past religious compromises