CANADA

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People of Canada

Canada is a good example of the way peoples of different ways of life and different languages can live side by side under one government. The population of Canada has risen from 11,5 million in 1941 to 25 million in 1980. Most of the newcomers are from Europe, Asia and the USA, so that today less than 44% of Canada’s population is of British origin. Quebec Province is still 90% French. There are some groups of French Canadiands in Ontario and Manitoba, but the numbers are quite small.

There are many Indians, Pacistanis and Chinese, and also blacks from the USA, among the immigrants who are pouring into Canada now. Some Canadians are afraid that before long Canada will have coloured citizens that white. Other Canadians are disturbed by the growing racism in their country. Canada, like so many countries, has only just begun to treat her own non-white citizens, Eskimos (or Inuit) and the Indians, as generously as they deserve. The Indian and Eskimo populations have grown quite a lot in the last few years. The government is at last realizing that it has a duty towards this people that it has neglected for so long.

All Canadian children have to learn both French and English at school, but Francophones and Anglophones do not enjoy learning each other’s language. Still, most Quebecois middle class families, living in Montreal are bilingual - they speak English and French equally well.

Until the Second World War, every Canadian province except Quebec was overwhelmingly British. Some Canadians were more patriotic than the British themselves and were really angry if anyone walked out of a cinema while ‘God Save the King’ was being played. Now Canadians think of themselves as a people in their own right, not tied to either Britain or the USA. The USA has not been a threat to Canada for almost two hundred years. In fact, the 6,416 km US-Canadian frontier is the longest continuous frontier in the world, has no wire fence, no soldiers, no guns on either side. It is called ‘The Border’.

History of Canada

Date

People

Influences, results

25000 years ago

From Asia across the Bering Strait

People can be divided into 6 groups:

1. The arctic peoples (in the far north) à hunting.
2. The sub-arctic peoples (from Newfoundland to British Columbia) à hunting, fishing à the Beothuks.
3. The eastern woodlands tribes (Great Lakes, St. Lawrence River, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island) à agriculture à permanent settlements à the Iroquois.
4. The plains peoples (the prairies, from lake Winnipeg to Rocky Mountains) à hunting, fishing à the Cree, the Blackfoot.
5. The plateau peoples (British Columbia) à hunting, gathering.
6. The northwest peoples (from Vancouver to Alaska) à hunting, fishing à the Haida.

6000 years ago

The Eskimos

The Inuit (Eskimos) à hunting.

1000 AD

The Vikings from Iceland and Green-land

Occupied the eastern edge of Canada, founded Norman settlement which existed only 1 year.

1497 AD

English seaman John Cabot

Reached Newfoundland.

1534 AD

1535 AD

French explorer Jacques Cartier – founder of Canada

Discovered the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

Settled Kanata (a Huron-Iroquois word “village”) which gave the name to the whole country Canada.  

1608 AD

1642 AD

French explorer Champlain

Established the first permanent settlements at Quebec (“where the river becomes narrow”).

Montreal.

1663 AD  

Canada became a province of France (60.000 French settlers).

1670 AD

British Trade Company

Hudson’s Bay Company (fur) occupied northern territories of the country à Ontario.

1713 AD

1717 AD

The British

Newfoundland were under

Nova Scotia British control.

1754 AD  

French-Indian War.

1756 AD – 1763 AD  

Rivalry between the English and the French à

The Seven Years’ War in which Great Britain gained military victory.

1759 AD

1763 AD  

The British captured Quebec.

The British obtained control of the rest of New France. France handed Canada over to Britain.

1774 AD  

The Quebec Act (France retained the rights to their own language, religion and civil laws).

1775 AD – 1783 AD  

The American Revolution.

1791 AD  

Canada was divided into Upper (English speaking Ontario) and Lower Canada (French speaking Quebec).

1793 AD

Sir Alexander Mackenzie

Reached the Pacific Ocean.

1812 AD

Lord Selkirk

Formed a settlement of Scot Immigrants, Manitoba.

1812 AD –

1814 AD  

British-American War which ended in a draw.

1837 AD –

1839 AD

British Lord Durham

Political agitation.

1840 AD  

Act of Union (Quebec and Ontario were united). They didn’t like to be under British or American control.

1848 AD  

Canada got internal self-government.

1867 AD, July 1st

The Canadian

Dominion of Canada (a national holiday, Day of Canada). 4 provinces were united Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick.

By 1912 AD  

All provinces had become part of the central government.

1931 AD

Canada

A voluntary member of Commonwealth.

1945 AD

Canada

A member of United Nation Organization.

1949 AD  

Newfoundland became part of the central government.

1949 AD

Canada

A member of NATO.

1950s  

A time of unprecedented wealth (the middle class mushroomed).

1960 AD  

Canada’s first Bill of Rights was signed.

1995 AD  

Canada won in the so-called fish wars with Spain.

2000 AD  

Canada maintains its position in NATO and is one of the so-called G-7 countries. (The G-7 group of Germany, France, the USA, the UK, Japan, Italy and Canada meet regularly to develop major economic policies.)