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Canadian Confederation, or the Confederation of Canada, was the process by which the federal dominion of Canada was formed beginning 1 July 1867 among the provinces, colonies, and territories of British North America. Usage In terms of political structure, Canada is a federal state and not a confederate association of sovereign states. However, Canada is commonly reckoned—in addition to Switzerland, whose official name in English is the Swiss Confederation—among the world's most decentralized federations. In a Canadian context, Confederation generally describes the political process that united the colonies in the 1860s and related events, and the subsequent incorporation of other colonies and territories. The term Confederation is now often used to describe Canada in an abstract way, "the Fathers of Confederation" itself being one such usage. Provinces and territories that became part of Canada after 1867 are also said to have joined, or entered into, Confederation (but not the Confederation). The term is also used to divide Canadian history into pre-Confederation and post-Confederation periods, the latter of which includes current events. Colonial organization Before 1867, British North America was a collection of six separate colonies: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, the Province of Canada (now Quebec and Ontario), Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, and British Columbia. Only the first three listed here entered into Confederation at first, but all did eventually, the last being Newfoundland in 1949. The remainder of modern-day Canada was made up of Rupert's Land and North-Western Territory, which were owned by the Hudson's Bay Company and ceded to Canada in 1870, and the Arctic Islands, which were under direct British control and became part of Canada in 1880. Early projects The idea of a legislative union of all British colonies in America goes back to at least 1754, when the Albany Congress was held, preceding the Continental Congress of 1774. At least twelve other projects followed. The idea was revived in 1839 by Lord Durham in his Report on the Affairs of British North America. In 1857, Joseph-Charles Taché proposed a federation in the Courrier du Canada. In 1858, Alexander Tilloch Galt, George-Étienne Cartier and John Ross travelled to Great Britain to present the British Parliament with a project for federation of the British colonies. The proposal was received by the London authorities with polite indifference. By 1864, it was clear that continued governance of the Province of Canada under the terms of the 1840 Act of Union had become impracticable. Therefore, a Great Coalition of parties formed in order to reform the political system. British North America Act, 1867 Confederation was accomplished when Queen Victoria gave royal assent to the British North America Act (BNA Act) on March 29, 1867. That act, which united the Province of Canada with the colonies of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, came into effect on July 1 that year. The act dissolved the Act of Union (1840) which had previously unified Upper Canada and Lower Canada into the united Province of Canada. Separate provinces were re-established under their current names of Ontario and Quebec. July 1 is now celebrated as Canada Day. Prime Minister of United Canada John A. Macdonald and others encouraged New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island to come to talks on creating self-government in the form of one united dominion. Some of the political leaders of the maritime colonies worried about being dominated by the population centres of Ontario and Quebec through the electoral system proposed for a central government. The Fathers of Confederation elected to call the new country the Dominion of Canada, after rejecting "kingdom" and "confederation", among other options. The term "dominion" originates from Psalm 72:8 (KJV) and was suggested by Sir Samuel Leonard Tilley. The original "confederation" gathering was by delegates of the four Atlantic region colonies at Charlottetown in September 1864, with the agenda being a discussion of a Maritime Union (or Atlantic Union). On behalf of Canada, Macdonald asked that delegates from that colony be allowed to attend. During the conference, Macdonald suggested a union of all British colonies in North America. At a second conference in Quebec City in October, further details were worked out. The Quebec Conference was originally used to show the Maritimers hospitality and to explain the idea of Confederation, and it worked. New Brunswick and Nova Scotia requested completion of a railway, the Intercolonial, to connect them with Quebec. At this point, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland opted to stay out of the proposed union. A further conference was held in London, England in December 1866. Queen Victoria proclaimed on March 29, 1867, that the new dominion would come into being July 1. Dominion elections were held in August and September to elect the first Parliament, and the four new provinces' governments recommended the 72 individuals (24 each for Quebec and Ontario, 12 each for New Brunswick and Nova Scotia) who would sit in the Senate. There were several factors that influenced Confederation, both caused from internal sources and pressures from external sources. Internal causes that influenced Confederation: External pressures that influenced Confederation: While the BNA Act gave Canada more autonomy than it had before, it was far from full independence from the United Kingdom. Foreign policy remained in British hands, the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council remained Canada's highest court of appeal, and the constitution could be amended only in Britain. Gradually, Canada gained more autonomy, and in 1931, obtained almost full autonomy within the British Commonwealth with the Statute of Westminster. Because the provinces of Canada were unable to agree on a constitutional amending formula, this power remained with the British Parliament. In 1982, the constitution was patriated when Queen Elizabeth II gave her royal assent to the Canada Act 1982. The Constitution of Canada is made up of a number of codified acts and uncodified traditions; one of the principal documents is the Constitution Act, 1982, which renamed the BNA Act 1867 to Constitution Act, 1867. Fathers of Confederation
Table of participation Joining Confederation See also: History of Canada After the initial act of union in 1867, Manitoba was established by an act of Parliament on July 15, 1870, originally as an area much smaller than the current province. British Columbia joined Canada July 20, 1871, by act of Parliament (and encouraged to join by Sir John A. MacDonald's promise of a railway within 10 years). Prince Edward Island joined July 1, 1873 (and, as part of the terms of union, was guaranteed a ferry link, a term which was deleted upon completion of the Confederation Bridge in 1997). Alberta and Saskatchewan were established September 1, 1905, by acts of Parliament. Newfoundland joined on March 31, 1949, also with a ferry link guaranteed. Canada acquired Rupert's Land from the Hudson's Bay Company and the British-claimed Northwestern Territory in 1869, and took ownership in July 15, 1870, merging them and naming them Northwest Territories. In 1880, the British assigned all North American Arctic islands to Canada, right up to Ellesmere Island. From this vast swath of territory were created three provinces (Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta) and two territories (Yukon and Nunavut), and two extensions each to Quebec, Ontario, and Manitoba. List of provinces and territories in order of entering Confederation Below is a list of Canadian provinces and territories in the order in which they entered Confederation; territories are italicized. At formal events, representatives of the provinces and territories take precedence according to this ordering, except that provinces always supersede territories. For provinces that entered on the same date, the order of precedence is based on the provinces population at the time it entered Confederation. Note See also | |||||||||
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