European Exploration and Indigenous Peoples

European Exploration and Settlement

• Europeans, initially believing they had reached the East Indies, encountered various Indigenous groups across Canada.
• Indigenous peoples' livelihoods varied, from hunting and gathering to crop cultivation.
• Examples include the Huron-Wendat and Iroquois (farmers/hunters), Cree and Dene (hunter-gatherers), Sioux (nomadic bison hunters), and Inuit (Arctic wildlife hunters).
• West Coast natives preserved fish through drying and smoking.
• Warfare existed among Indigenous groups due to competition for resources and prestige.
• European diseases decimated Indigenous populations due to lack of immunity.
• Early Europeans and Indigenous groups forged economic, religious, and military alliances.
• Vikings reached Labrador and Newfoundland (L'Anse aux Meadows).
• John Cabot (Italian immigrant to England) charted Canada's East Coast in 1497.
• Jacques Cartier (French) explored the Atlantic coast between 1534 and 1542, claiming land for France.
• Cartier learned the Iroquoian word "kanata" meaning village, contributing to the name "Canada."

Early French Colonies in North America

• French explorers Pierre de Monts and Samuel de Champlain established the first European settlement north of Florida in 1604 (St. Croix and Port-Royal).
• Champlain built a fortress in present-day Quebec City in 1608.
• Colonists faced harsh climates.
• The French allied with the Algonquin, Montagnais, and Huron, enemies of the Iroquois.
• The French and Iroquois later made peace in 1701.
• Extensive fur trade developed, driven by beaver pelt demand.
• French leaders like Jean Talon, Bishop Laval, and Count Frontenac played crucial roles.
• Count Frontenac refused to surrender Quebec to the English in 1690.
• Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville was a prominent military leader and hero for New France.

British Involvement and Conflicts

• King Charles II granted the Hudson's Bay Company exclusive trade rights in 1670.
• The company competed with Montreal-based traders.
• Voyagers and Coureurs des bois were skilled canoe-traveling fur traders who formed alliances with First Nations.
• English colonies on the Atlantic Coast grew more populous and wealthy.
• Britain and France fought for control of North America.
• The British defeated the French at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham (1759), ending France's American empire.
• Brigadier James Wolfe and Marquis de Montcalm, commanders for the armies, died in battle.
• Quebec was renamed the "Province of Quebec" under British rule.
• British Parliament passed the Quebec Act (1774) to better govern the French Catholic majority.
• The Quebec Act granted religious freedom to Catholics and allowed them to hold public office.

American Revolution and Loyalist Migration

• The 13 British colonies south of Quebec declared independence (1776).
• Loyalists (people loyal to the British Crown) fled oppression during the American Revolution to settle in Nova Scotia and Quebec.
• Joseph Brant led many Loyalist Mohawk Indians to Canada.
• Loyalists were diverse in origin and religion.
• Some formerly enslaved or freed individuals came north to seek better lives.
• Some black Nova Scotians migrated to Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Development of Democratic Institutions and Abolition of Slavery

• Representative assemblies were established in Halifax (1758), Prince Edward Island (1773), and New Brunswick (1785).
• The Constitutional Act of 1791 divided Quebec into Upper (Ontario) and Lower (Quebec) Canada.
• Canada's legislative assemblies were granted representation by elected members.
• The name Canada became officially recognized.
• British North America encompassed the Atlantic colonies and the two Canadas.
• First movements in British Parliament emerged to end the transatlantic slave trade.
• Upper Canada (first) and later the British Empire abolished slavery.
• Escaped slaves in the United States settled in Canada via the Underground Railroad.

War of 1812

• The War of 1812 was a battle for control that prevented Canada from joining the US.
• Canada and First Nations volunteers supported British soldiers.
• Major-General Sir Isaac Brock captured Detroit but died in battle.
• Lieutenant-Colonel Charles de Salaberry defended against American invaders.
• The Americans burned York (now Toronto).
• In return, British forces under General Robert Ross burned the White House.
• The British paid for a costly Canadian defence system.
• The present-day Canada-US border resulted from the war, ensuring Canadian independence.

Expansion and Confederation

• British Columbia joined Canada in 1871 following a promise of a transcontinental railway.
• The Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) was completed in 1885, symbolizing national unity.
• Chinese workers were subject to discrimination (the Head Tax).
• Canada's economy grew.
• Sir Wilfrid Laurier encouraged immigration to the West.

Métis Resistance and Expansion

• The Métis people of the Red River were not consulted when Canada claimed the Northwest (1869).
• Louis Riel led an uprising, seizing Fort Garry.
• Canada established Manitoba as a new province.
• Riel was later tried and executed for high treason.
• Settlers in the West also faced resistance from Indigenous nations in 1885, leading to a second rebellion.

First and Second World Wars

• Most Canadians were proud members of the British Empire.
• Volunteers fought in the Boer War (1899-1902).
• Canadians volunteered and fought in WW1, notably capturing Vimy Ridge.
• The Canadian Corps suffered 60,000 killed and 170,000 wounded.
• Ottawa interned 8,000 Austro-Hungarian subjects (primarily Ukrainian men).
• Canada played a significant role in WW2, including the invasion of Normandy's Juno Beach and the liberation of the Netherlands.
• Canada contributed substantially to the Allied war effort, including training aircrew and protecting merchant ships.
• Canadians in WWII suffered 44,000 killed.
• The Canadian Government's wartime wrongs involved the involuntary relocation and property confiscation of Japanese Canadians.

Women's Suffrage and Aftermath

• Dr. Emily Stowe was a founding member of the women's suffrage movement.
• Manitoba granted women the vote in 1916.
• In 1917, the federal government granted women the right to vote.
• In 1918, most Canadian women (21+) had the right to vote federally.
• Thérèse Casgrain and others led the movement for female suffrage in Quebec, which got voting rights in 1940.
• Remembrance Day remembers the sacrifices and honours the over one million brave men and women who served and the 110,000 who lost their lives in all wars.

Economic Challenges and Post-War Developments

• The "Roaring Twenties" were a time of prosperity.
• The stock market crash of 1929 led to the Great Depression.
• Unemployment reached 27% in 1933.
• Farmers in Western Canada suffered greatly due to low grain prices and drought.
• A demand for social safety nets arose (minimum wages, work week, unemployment insurance).
• The Bank of Canada was established.
• Immigration decreased and refugee turns became common.

British Commonwealth and Ongoing Development

• The British Empire evolved into the British Commonwealth of Nations after WWI.
• Canada remained a key member.
• Close ties exist between Canada and successor states of the Empire like India, Australia, New Zealand, and Caribbean nations.
• Canada's economy and industrialization increased.
• There are prominent individuals like Phil Edwards (track and field athlete).