Manitoba Flashcards

The Manitoba Act of 1870 included a specific land grant under Section 31. How many acres were set aside for distribution among the children of the Métis people in Manitoba?

Answer: 1,400,000 acres

Section 31 of the Manitoba Act, 1870 reserved 1,400,000 acres specifically for distribution among the children of the Métis (described as 'half-breed' residents) to extinguish their Aboriginal land title. This was a central negotiating point of the Red River Resistance and a unique feature of Manitoba's entry into Confederation.

Louis Riel traveled to Ottawa in 1874 after winning re-election in Provencher riding. What actually happened when he arrived at the House of Commons?

Answer: He signed the Members' Register and took his oath of office, but was then expelled by a vote of the House before he could take his seat

Riel physically entered the House of Commons, signed the register, and took his oath of office — but the House then voted to expel him before he could sit or speak, citing his role in the execution of Thomas Scott during the Red River Resistance. He was elected three times total (1873, 1874, 1874 by-election) but never served a term.

The Manitoba Schools Question of the 1890s created a constitutional crisis when Manitoba abolished public funding for Catholic schools in 1890. The Laurier–Greenway Compromise of 1896 resolved the immediate crisis by doing what?

Answer: Permitting religious instruction during the final half-hour of the school day when enrolment warranted it, and allowing teaching in French where numbers justified

The Laurier–Greenway Compromise did not restore Catholic school funding — it was a limited concession that allowed denominational religious instruction in the last 30 minutes of the school day and French-language instruction where enrolments warranted. Catholic leaders largely viewed it as insufficient, and it left deep divisions. The compromise is notable for what it did NOT restore rather than what it granted.

During the Winnipeg General Strike of 1919, the federal government took a two-pronged legal approach to break the strike. Which combination of actions did it use?

Answer: Amended the Immigration Act and Section 98 of the Criminal Code to prosecute strike leaders, while RNWMP charged demonstrators on 'Bloody Saturday,' killing two men

The federal government did not invoke the War Measures Act. Instead, it amended the Immigration Act to allow deportation of British-born immigrants (targeting foreign-born leaders) and strengthened Section 98 of the Criminal Code to criminalize seditious organizations. On June 21 ('Bloody Saturday'), Royal North-West Mounted Police charged the crowd, killing two strikers. Strike leaders were arrested and tried, with some receiving prison sentences.

In 1985, the Supreme Court of Canada issued a landmark ruling in Reference re Manitoba Language Rights. What was the practical consequence of that ruling for the province?

Answer: All Manitoba statutes passed only in English since 1890 were declared unconstitutional but temporarily valid, giving Manitoba time to translate and re-enact them in both official languages

The Supreme Court ruled that Manitoba had violated Section 23 of the Manitoba Act, 1870 by passing laws only in English since 1890 — meaning roughly 4,500 unilingual laws were technically invalid. To avoid legal chaos, the Court invoked the doctrine of the 'rule of law' and declared these laws temporarily valid, granting Manitoba a period (ultimately several years) to translate and re-enact them in both English and French. It remains one of the most sweeping remedial orders in Canadian constitutional history.

Manitoba's provincial nickname, the 'Keystone Province,' is reflected on its historic coat of arms and in political rhetoric. What does the keystone metaphor specifically refer to?

Answer: Manitoba's central geographic position in Canada, likened to the wedge-shaped keystone that holds an arch together and bears the load of both sides

The 'Keystone Province' nickname refers to Manitoba's position at the geographic and economic centre of Canada — like the keystone of an arch, it sits between eastern and western Canada and was seen as essential to binding the country together. The Canadian Pacific Railway made Winnipeg the distribution hub of the Prairies, reinforcing this identity. While Manitoba did lead Canada in granting women the provincial vote (January 28, 1916), that is not the origin of the keystone nickname.