Chapter 6: Listening to the People How and why certain people wanted to change the BNA government. Notes and activities

The layout of the government In the 1830s, the colonial government in BNA took the form of a Representative Government. This means that the interests of the people who lived here were controlled by the British monarchy through British representatives. Local people could make suggestion but did not have any say in social, economic or political regulations. The government was comprised of: The Monarchy The Governor The Legislative Council The Executive Council The Assembly The electorate (voters) - Who could vote in BNA???? The Power and control came from the top. Therefore the Assembly had very little say or real power in this form of government

Read p. 100 and 101 of your text to clarify the roles of each group in this Representative Government. Fill in the graphic and define the terms on the worksheet provided. Notice the arrows of power and where the two meet: the electorate’s power ends once the Assembly is voted in. The Assembly’s power ends once the legislative and executive councils consider their suggestions.

The Push for Change At the end of the 1830s, the public was protesting against representative government. These people (note: still white men) were known as reformers. A reformer is someone who wants to make positive change in a society. Why were reformers unhappy with representative government?

The Rebellions of Upper and Lower Canada Between 1837-1838, there was violent conflict in Canada East (Quebec) and Canada West (Ontario) due to economic, social , and political tensions during this time period. *Note: Canada East is called Lower Canada in the 1830s. Canada West is called Upper Canada in the 1830s. Read the text and continue with the worksheets distributed in class about these violent protests against the representative government.

Important information regarding the rebellions A rebellion is: a violent revolt against those in power. The leader of the Parti Patriote (The reformer party in Lower Canada) was Louis- Joseph Papineau. He was a member of the elite French class, but he was worried that the British colonial government threatened French culture. The leader of the Reformers (The reformer party in Upper Canada) was William Lyon Mackenzie. He came from a poor family, and he had a newspaper which published negative critiques of the representative government.

The roles of the churches and newspapers In the 1800s, religious teachings were most important. Therefore, political parties were usually also based on religious beliefs. For example, a man named John Strachan was the bishop of the Anglican Church in Upper Canada. He was also a part of the legislative council in the representative government. Do you think he (and other members like him) would have been FOR or AGAINST the establishment of a new form of government? Why?

The roles of the churches and newspapers The only way to obtain information on current events was either through word-of-mouth, or through the newspapers. It will not come as a surprise, then, that most newspapers also had a political point of view, and many were even owned by members of political parties. This way, the political parties could send messages to the public to help gain support. Read p. 107 about how Joseph Howe changed public opinion in his region by publishing his newspaper. After this, do the THIEVES analysis in your booklet.

A Change in British Attitude Between 1847 and 1855 there was a change in British attitude about the BNA colonies. These attitude changes help explain why Great Britain eventually granted the BNA colonies Responsible Government. Change #1 – Trade preferences BNA was rich in resources, and the more growth in industry (such as forestry, agriculture) meant that Great Britain had to partake in more complicated trading since it controlled its economy. Change #2 – Free Trade BNA entrepreneurs found that buying from and selling to the U.S. actually made them a better profit than working with Great Britain. So Britain found they had less control of the economy anyway.

Responsible Government Starting in 1847, Great Britain started granting Responsible government to the colonies of BNA. This does not mean they were completely separate from Great Britain, but the structure of government did change. Think about the word “responsible.” How do you think responsible government functions differently from Representative government? Discuss!

Responsible Government- Members elected to the assembly had more control and also sat on the executive council. Therefore, the interests of the pubic were considered more important than the interests of the crown. The government was comprised of: The Monarchy The Governor The Legislative Council The Executive Council The Assembly The electorate (voters) Though the Monarchy was still the head, more power and control came from the bottom. And the governor was tasked with satisfying the suggestions of the councillors and the crown.