<
 
 
 
 
×
>
Vous consultez une page Web conservée, recueillie par Bibliothèque et Archives Canada le 2007-05-18 à 10:31:36. Il se peut que les informations sur cette page Web soient obsolètes, et que les liens hypertextes externes, les formulaires web, les boîtes de recherche et les éléments technologiques dynamiques ne fonctionnent pas. Voir toutes les versions de cette page conservée.
Chargement des informations sur les médias

You are viewing a preserved web page, collected by Library and Archives Canada on 2007-05-18 at 10:31:36. The information on this web page may be out of date and external links, forms, search boxes and dynamic technology elements may not function. See all versions of this preserved page.
Loading media information
X
Skip navigation links (access key: Z)Library and Archives Canada / Bibliothèque et Archives Canada
Graphical element FrançaisContact UsHelpSearchCanada Site
HomeAbout UsWhat's NewWhat's OnPublications


Introduction
leaf
Prelude
The Shaping of Canada
Why Confederation?
On the Road to Confederation
People in the Background
Provinces
People
Gallery
For more info
Glossary
For Teachers
Take the Tour
Graphical element: Quill pen and hand
Banner: Confederation for Kids Header

Prelude to Confederation: The Making of Canada

The Shaping of Canada

Today Canada is the second-largest country in the world. It has an area of almost 10 000 000 square kilometres, and is made up of ten provinces and three territories. Canada became a country in 1867, but the story of the people and the land that would become Canada is much older. Many events over the last five hundred years have shaped the way Canada looked at the time of Confederation.

In the 1500s explorers from Europe came to North America to claim lands. They realized that this land was rich in resources. Soon settlement began, with people seeking a new life in the new world. The two European countries that figured the most in North America were Britain and France. They met Aboriginal Nations that had been living for thousands of years in what is now Canada. These First Nations and Britain and France often had difficult relations. They often went to war with each other but sometimes they were friends.

Britain vs. France

When the Seven Years War ended in 1763, France had to surrender its land in North America to Britain. From this time on Britain had control of most of North America.

Britain vs. America

At the time of the war with France most of Britain's colonies in North America were in what we now call the United States. However, these thirteen colonies were angry at the way Britain had been treating them, so in 1775 they began a war with Britain for their independence. The Americans won the war and the British were forced to recognize the United States as its own country. Because of the war Britain lost much of its land, and had a bad relationship with the United States. The land left over was called British North America. This would become Canada almost 100 years later.

British North America

In the 1860s there were many British colonies in what is now Canada: British Columbia, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and the Province of Canada. At this time the idea of all the colonies joining to make a new country became popular. But what were the reasons behind this move towards Confederation?


PreviousNext