Northwest Uprising Part 1: Causes

The Metis Petitions In the petitions the Métis expressed their concerns and asked for help to be successful farmers The Métis wanted legal title to the land they lived on; they wanted the lands to be surveyed according to their long river lots. They had to adjust to farming because they are losing their bison population.

The Government’s Agenda 6.4 Million hectares of land left in the NW Territories, most of it held by land speculators MacDonald found that if this land were to be sold, the government could make a huge profit (71 million!) When railway costs rose, the government took away money from the Indian Affairs Department to offset the cost. The First Nations now had to rely on the government for survival. Many were close to starvation 

Louis Riel Returns to the NW In exile, Riel spent some time in an asylum and later settled in Montana. Returns in the spring of 1884 Louis Riel to help the Metis fight the government peacefully. In the fall of 1884 Riel and William Henry Jackson created the Métis Bill of Rights A later version of the Métis Bill of Rights was sent to Ottawa in December 1884, and although the government acknowledged it, the Métis’ celebration was premature

Trouble Builds If Riel made trouble troops could be sent by the railway to deal with it. People would see why they need the CPR for security reasons. Magistrate Lawrence Clarke supported the return of Louis Riel.

“Justice Commands Us” Metis sent another Petition demanding responsible government for the Northwest Territories Lawrence Clark was chosen as the representative by Riel and his council. Clark returned with the message: the only answer the Métis would receive for their petition was bullets Also, he said that a force of 500 North West Mounted Police was on its way to arrest Riel. On March 19th Riel told the Métis that a peaceful solution was impossible and said that “justice commands us to take up arms.”

Northwest Uprising Part 2: The Uprising

Conflict Begins The Northwest Mounted Police force in the area was the detachment at Fort Carlton, with too few to withstand a direct attack. Lieutenant- Governor Dewdney sent reinforcements, but it would take a full week for them to arrive. When the Metis moved to Fort Carlton to seize supplies falling just short of attacking Lawrence Clark did two things: He sent a message to the reinforcements, delaying their arrival by one day He then publically accused the NWMP Superintendent Crozier of cowardice.

Duck Lake March 26, 1885 - started as negotiations… but quickly got violent - after 30 minutes, 12 NWMP officers were dead and another 25 wounded Metis lost only 5 men Crozier (NWMP) retreated to Fort Carlton, Riel did not fight A VICTORY FOR THE METIS Poundmaker and Big Bear (First Nations Chiefs) began to help the Metis. MacDonald saw this uprising as an opportunity to prove the importance of his Railroad

Fish Creek April 24, 1885 1600 militia clashed with Gabriel Dumont (Metis) and only 60 Metis They held off the Canadian troops and prevented them from moving to Batoche Middleton forced to retreat with 10 dead and 45 wounded Metis 4 dead 2 wounded ANOTHER METIS VICTORY

Batoche- May 9- 12, 1885 Middleton had many new tactics and technologies for this battle- his weapons were far superior to the Metis The Metis made log pits in strategic locations- they kept well hidden 800 milita attacked 180 Metis Metis held their ground for 3 days Riel and Dumont met and discussed the fact that they were going to be defeated MILITIA VICTORY

Trial of Louis Riel Louis Riel was charged with treason and was taken to Manitoba where his lawyers plead him not guilty by reason of insanity He was found guilty and executed.

Aftermath of the Uprising The consequences of the NW Uprising would be severe for the Métis and the First Nations people. After losing the struggle to keep their land, the Métis were forced to live on land reserved for roads and became known as the “road allowance people”.

Aftermath Contd. The Métis also faced discrimination and prejudice, so many moved to the city. 56 First Nation men were charged with treason and then 44 of them were convicted although few First nations people had actively participated in the fighting.

Aftermath Contd. Very little translation was available in court, and prisoners were not allowed to make statements in their own defence.   In Battleford, on Nov 17, eight First Nations men were hanged for murder. Those who remained in jail became ill or died soon after release.

Aftermath Contd. The FN were confined to their reserves, at the mercy of the gov’t. Communities were isolated from each other and all ceremonies were banned. To this day, the FN people struggle for respect form the Canadian Population.