Canada History and Confederation Flashcards

The Charlottetown Conference of 1864 was originally convened for a purpose other than Canadian Confederation. What was its original intent?

Answer: To discuss Maritime union among New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island

The Charlottetown Conference was initially called to discuss a union of the Maritime provinces only — New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. The Province of Canada (John A. Macdonald and George-Étienne Cartier's delegation) essentially crashed the meeting and redirected discussions toward a broader British North American confederation.

Which of the following accurately describes the constitutional status of Prince Edward Island at the time of Confederation in 1867?

Answer: It declined to join Confederation in 1867 and only joined in 1873 after the federal government agreed to buy out absentee landlords

PEI refused to join Confederation in 1867, largely due to the unresolved land question — most of the island's land was owned by absentee British landlords. It finally joined in 1873 after the federal government agreed to fund the purchase of those landlord estates and resolve the long-standing land tenure dispute.

The British North America Act, 1867 was a statute passed by which legislative body, and where does its amending authority originally reside?

Answer: The British Parliament (Westminster); amending authority remained in Westminster until the Constitution Act, 1982

The BNA Act was passed by the British Parliament at Westminster in 1867. Because Canada lacked full sovereignty, amending the constitution required going back to the British Parliament — a situation that persisted until Pierre Trudeau's patriation of the Constitution in 1982 via the Constitution Act, which brought the amending formula to Canada.

George-Étienne Cartier's role in Confederation is often described as indispensable. Which of the following best captures his most critical political achievement in securing Confederation?

Answer: Convincing French-Canadian legislators in Canada East that their language, civil law, and Catholic institutions would be protected under the new federal structure

Cartier's decisive contribution was persuading a skeptical French-Canadian population and legislature in Canada East that Confederation was safe — that Quebec's distinct civil law (the Civil Code), French language, and Catholic educational institutions would be constitutionally guaranteed. Without his political authority in Quebec, Confederation could not have proceeded.

The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) in London served as Canada's highest court of appeal until 1949. How did the JCPC's rulings generally reshape Canadian federalism compared to the original Fathers of Confederation intent?

Answer: The JCPC broadly interpreted provincial jurisdiction under Section 92, producing a more decentralized federation than the Fathers intended

The JCPC consistently favoured a narrow reading of federal powers (especially POGG) and an expansive reading of provincial jurisdiction under Section 92 (property and civil rights). This produced a more decentralized federation than Macdonald and other Fathers intended — they had envisioned a strong central government. The Supreme Court of Canada, after becoming the final court in 1949, began restoring more balance.

Manitoba's entry into Confederation in 1870 was directly precipitated by the Red River Resistance. Which of the following statements about the Manitoba Act, 1870 is accurate but frequently overlooked?

Answer: Manitoba was created as a tiny 'postage stamp' province, with Crown land and public lands controlled by Ottawa rather than the province — a restriction not lifted until 1930

Manitoba entered Confederation in 1870 as a very small province (nicknamed the 'postage stamp province') and, critically, Ottawa retained control over Manitoba's Crown and public lands — unlike Ontario and Quebec where provinces controlled their own lands. This denial of 'responsible government over public lands' was not corrected until the Natural Resources Transfer Agreements of 1930. The bilingual protections in the Manitoba Act were also later violated and not fully restored until the Supreme Court's 1985 reference ruling.