Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas...

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Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: – Careless: The Union of the Canadas – Careless: Brown of The Globe – Creighton: The Young Politician

Transcript of Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas...

Page 1: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Sources:– Careless: The Union of the Canadas

– Careless: Brown of The Globe

– Creighton: The Young Politician

Page 2: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

The Rebellions & Union

The Durham Report:

“The quarrel, which I was sent for the purpose of healing, had

been a quarrel between the executive government and the

popular branch of the legislature. The latter body had,

apparently, been contending for popular rights and free

government. The executive had been defending the

prerogative of the Crown...”

Page 3: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

The Rebellions & Union

The Durham Report:

“... there existed a far deeper and more efficient cause, – a

cause which penetrated beneath its political institutions and

into its social state... I expected to find a contest between a

government and a people: I found two nations warring in the

bosom of a single state: I found a struggle, not of principles,

but of race...”

Lord Durham’s Report II, p 14-16.

Page 4: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

The Rebellions & Union

The Durham Report:

“...I perceive that it would be idle to attempt any amelioration

of laws or institutions until we could first succeed in

terminating the deadly animosity that now separates the

inhabitants of Lower Canada into hostile divisions of English

and French.”

Lord Durham’s Report II, p 14-16. .

Page 5: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

The Rebellions & Union

• Durham makes two key recommendations:

1. Responsible Government

2. Assimilation of French Canadians

• British Government keener on 2nd: Act of Union 1841

Page 6: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

The Union of the Canadas

• Institutional element of assimilation was “legislative union”

– Upper & Lower Canada fused

– Single legislative assembly

– 42 seats for each “section”

– Under-represented Lower Canada (Quebec)

Page 7: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

The Struggle for Responsible Government

• British balked at Responsible Government:

“...although you consult with them [the Exec Council], and are

willing to pay due deference to their advice, you are yourself

the head of your administration… not even bound to adopt

their advice, although always bound to receive it.”

Lord Stanley to Metcalfe (Quoted in Careless 1967, 79)

Page 8: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

The Struggle for Responsible Government

• Struggle for responsible government marks 1840s

• Cohesive alliance of Reformers in Upper & Lower Canada defeat Tories & Ultramontanes

• Highly polarized political system with elections marked by overt corruption and violence

Page 9: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

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An Ideological Map of The Province of Canadas in the 1840s

Page 10: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

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An Ideological Map of The Province of Canadas in the 1840sThe 1st Parliament (1841-43)

Oppose Governor

Support Governor

Reform & Responsible Government

Family Compact & Chateau Clique

Page 11: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

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An Ideological Map of The Province of Canadas in the 1840sThe 1st Parliament (1843-44)

Reform Government... notice its regional basis

Tory Opposition

Reform & Responsible Government

Family Compact & Chateau Clique

Page 12: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

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An Ideological Map of The Province of Canadas in the 1840sThe 2nd Parliament (1844-47)

Reform Opposition

Tory Government

Page 13: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

The Struggle for Responsible Government

• Struggle for responsible government marks 1840s

• Cohesive alliance of Reformers in Upper & Lower Canada defeat Tories & Ultramontanes at 1847-48 elections

• The battle for Responsible Government won, the division between the Reform coalition (on the left) and their Tory opponents (on the right) weakens

• Unleashes potentially chaotic and complicated political landscape marked by sectarian and regional as well as political divisions

Page 14: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Sectionalism & Gridlock

• A series of contentious bills reveals how polarized and unstable the political situation is:

i. Rebellion Losses Bill, 1849

ii. Annexationist Manifesto

iii. Common Schools Bill, 1850

iv. Seigneurial Bill, 1853

v. Clergy Reserves Act 1854

Page 15: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Sectionalism & Gridlock• ...and what a lot of English Canadians in Lower Canada

thought about the Rebellion Losses Bill:

Page 16: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Sectionalism & Gridlock

• A series of contentious bills reveals how polarized and unstable the political situation is:

i. Rebellion Losses Bill, 1849

ii. Annexationist Manifesto

iii. Common Schools Bill, 1850

iv. Seigneurial Bill, 1853

v. Clergy Reserves Act 1854

Page 17: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Sectionalism & Gridlock

• 1850s marked by sectionalism, gridlock, unstable government

• Tensions are:

– Religious (1): Catholic vs Protestant

– Religious (2): Church vs. State

– Constitutional: Republican vs British Government

– Regional: West vs East

• Situation is problematic because:

– No majority party

– Parties are not disciplined

– Alliances are made & broken by patronage & quid pro quo

Page 18: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Catholic

Protestant

British

Republican

Church

State

An Ideological Map of The Province of Canadas

Page 19: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas The 3rd Parliament (1848-51) of the Province of Canada

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The Reformers problem is that their coalition gets too big and internally heterogeneous

Page 20: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Catholic

Protestant

British

Republican

Church

State

An Ideological Map of The Province of Canadas in the 1850s

Rouges

Blues

Page 21: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Catholic

Protestant

British

Republican

Church

State

An Ideological Map of The Province of Canadas in the 1850s

Rouges

Blues

Liberal - Conservatives

Clear Grits

Page 22: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Catholic

Protestant

British

Republican

Church

State

An Ideological Map of The Province of Canadas in the 1850s

Rouges

Blues

Liberal - Conservatives

Clear Grits

Reformers

Page 23: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Catholic

Protestant

British

Republican

Church

State

An Ideological Map of The Province of Canadas in the 1850s

Rouges

Blues

Liberal - Conservatives

Clear Grits

Reformers

2

630

18

20 6

2?

Page 24: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Sectionalism & Gridlock

• Situation often exacerbated by:

– Ongoing Sectarian tension:

• University Endowments

– Sectional Strategies:

• Movement of Capital

– Events:

• Gavazzi Riots, 6 June 1853

• “£10,000 Job” Scandal

Page 25: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Chaos (Instability) in Multiple Dimensions

• No equilibrium in 2+ dimensions

• Clearly, not all alliances possible, but

– Opposition could always break coalitions

– Vulnerable to events

– Hamstrung by institutions: The double-majority!

Page 26: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Catholic Protestant

The Double Majority & Veto Points

• Median voter pivotal in 1 dimension

• With simple majority, 43rd member determines outcome

Page 27: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Catholic

Ultra Montane

Protestant

(High Tory)

The Double Majority & Veto Points

• Double-Majority: majority overall & majority in each section!

• Creates multiple pivotal voters

• Each pivot is a potential veto point

22nd Lower Canada Member

(PIVOTAL)

Median Voter

(43rd Member)

22nd Upper Canada Member (65th Member)

(PIVOTAL)

Page 28: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Escaping Gridlock & Chaos

• Brown & Macdonald searching for stable solution:

– Step-by-step elimination of political dimensions

– Move to uni-dimensional politics or dimension-by-dimension median

Page 29: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Brown’s Problem:

• Sectarian appeals (No Popery!) give Brown solid but

limited support

• How can Brown expand his appeal?

Page 30: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Brown’s Strategy:

• The Globe champions Tory-Blue alliance on church-state dimension (1851)

• Events & issues undermine this strategy:

– Supplementary School Bill, 1852

– Ecclesiastical Corporations Bill, 1853

– Gavazzi Riots, 1853

Page 31: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Macdonald’s Problem:

• English-French coalition a fixed fact:

“No man in his senses can suppose that this government

can for a century to come be governed by a totally

unfrenchified government.” (Careless 1967, 189)

• How to remove issues that exacerbate French-English

tension…and still get elected?

Page 32: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Macdonald’s Strategy:

• Build moderate Liberal-Progressive party

• Sideline Tories by supporting secularization against Hincks-Morin cabinet (i.e., turn on old allies!)

• Focus on shared commercial (rail) interests

Page 33: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Catholic

Protestant

British

Republican

Church

State

An Ideological Map of The Province of Canadas in the 1850s

Rouges

Blues

Liberal - Conservatives

Clear Grits

Reformers

2

630

18

20 6

2?

Page 34: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Catholic

Protestant

British

Republican

Church

State

An Ideological Map of The Province of Canadas in the 1850s

Rouges

Blues

Liberal - Progressives

Clear Grits

Reformers18

High Tories

Page 35: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Catholic

Protestant

CommercialRural

Rouge

Clear Grits

Blues

Ind. Reform

Liberal-Progressives

Tories

Background to Confederation

Macdonald’s Ideological Vision

Page 36: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Brown’s Alternative Strategy:

• By 1852 Canada West underrepresented

• “Rep-by-Pop”

– Removes Catholic “advantages”

– Limits church influence in state affairs

– Avoids gridlock of “double-majority”

• Rep-by-pop “without regard to a separating line between

Upper and Lower Canada” lost 57-15 (March 1853)

Page 37: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Double-Majority

Rep-by Pop

CommercialRuralRouge

Clear Grits

Blues

Ind. Reform

Liberal-Progressives

Tories

Background to Confederation

Brown’s Ideological Vision

Page 38: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Brown’s New Problem:

• Can he ally with Rouges?

“It is clear that the natural allies of the Reformers of Upper Canada are the Rouges.”

Brown to Sandfield Macdonald (1854)

(Careless 1960, v. 1, 191)

Page 39: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Collapse of Hincks’ Government

• The double-majority principle brings down government

– Hincks’ resignation: “I could not command the confidence of the section of the province to which I belong.”(Careless 1967, 210)

• Is double-majority a constitutional rule?

– Hincks: “exceedingly desirable in practical politics, but quite absurd as a constitutional requirement.

Page 40: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Advantage Macdonald

• Hincks loses vote on speaker, 59-62 (5 Sept 1854)

• BUT supports Macdonald’s coalition!

“Of all the abortions it could enter the mind of men to

conceive – it is the greatest.” The Globe, Sept 12, 1854

• 38 MPs condemn new cabinet

Page 41: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Move and Counter-move:

• Macdonald gets rid of sectional issues (e.g., Clergy Reserves, Seigneurial Bill )

• Brown builds bridges:

– Supports Clergy Reserves & Seigneurial Bill

– Invites Grits to form united Reform party, 1856

Page 42: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

The Double-Shuffle

• Difficult to hide sectionalism:

– Taché Act, 1855

– Corrigan murder trial, 1856-7

– Movement of Capital Question

• 21 May 1955 – won by 70-47, but no double-

majority

• Ask Queen to decide!

Page 43: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Page 44: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

Dorion & Brown:

• Dorion (Rouge leader) opines on federation in 1856

• Brown writes Holton:

“No honest man can desire that we remain as we are. Yet what other way out of our difficulties can be suggested but a legislative union with rep by pop – a federal union – or dissolution.” (Careless 1960, 253)

Page 45: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

The Double-Shuffle

• Queen chooses Ottawa… Ottawa!

• Rouge motion that Ottawa unacceptable (July 28, 1858)

1. Montreal should be capital, not Ottawa

2. Ottawa should not be the capital

• Splits Blues and passes 64-50

• Cabinet calls adjournment: 61-50

Page 46: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

The Double-Shuffle

• Macdonald & Cartier resign!

• Head sends for Brown:

– “The Governor General gives no pledge or promise,

express or implied, with reference to dissolving

Parliament.”

Page 47: Background to Confederation in The Canadas Sources: –Careless: The Union of the Canadas –Careless: Brown of The Globe –Creighton: The Young Politician.

Background to Confederation in The Canadas

The Double-Shuffle

• Brown & Dorion weak

• Ministers have to face by-elections

• Lose confidence vote 70-31

• Independence of Parliament Act, 1857