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1783.09.20 |
Treaty of Paris: Britain recognised
the independence of the United States of America; remaining
British possessions in North America were: |
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- Newfoundland (1583)
- Nova Scotia (1713), including Cape
Breton Island, and mainland territories later called New
Brunswick
- Québec (1763), including
territory later called Ontario
- Ile St. Jean (1769)
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but the United States failed to
keep its promises to Loyalists, most of whom settled in Canada,
and Britain failed to surrender forts in the U.S. Northwest;
Rupert's Land remained under the control and possession
of the Hudson Bay Company |
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1783 |
Northwest Company was formed
to compete with the Hudson's Bay Company |
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1784 |
New Brunswick and
Cape Breton colonies separated from Nova Scotia after
influx of Loyalists from the United States |
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1788 |
Captain John Meares established a
Northwest Company fur trading post on the Pacific Coast
(later British Columbia); the Spanish seized the area in 1779
based on original discovery in 1775, but yielded their claims
a year later |
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1791.12.26 |
Constitutional Act divided
Quebec at the Ottawa River into Upper Canada (Ontario),
and Lower Canada (Quebec) |
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1794.11.19 |
Jay's Treaty stipulated that Britain
would evacuate western forts in the United States by 1 June
1796, and that the U.S. and Britain would guarantee free commercial
access to the Mississippi River and both sides of the border |
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1798 |
Ile St. Jean renamed Prince Edward
Island for Edward, Duke of Kent |
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1811 |
Red River Colony established
in Winnipeg Basin (also known as Selkirk Grant or Assinoboia) |
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1812.06.18 |
War
of 1812: taking advantage of British embroilment in the
war against Napoleon, the United States declared war and
invaded Canada; the war was a stalemate |
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1814.12.24 |
Treaty of Ghent ended War
of 1812 establishing status quo ante bellum and returning
all captured territory |
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1820 |
Cape Breton
Island returned to Nova Scotia jurisdiction |
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1821 |
Hudson Bay Company
and North West Company merged |
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1836 |
Hudson Bay Company
assumed control of Red River Colony |
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1837-38 |
rebellions
in Upper and Lower Canada |
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1839 |
Aroostook
War over the international boundary between Maine and New Brunswick |
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1841.02.10 |
Act of Union reunited Upper
and Lower Canada as Province of Canada under
one governor and legislature |
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1842.08.09 |
Ashburton-Webster Treaty settled
British North America-United States boundaries disputes which
had remained in doubt after the Treat of Ghent, especially the
New Brunswick-Maine boundary |
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1846.06.15 |
Oregon Treaty defined United States-British
North America boundary west of the Rocky Mountains |
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1848 |
Province of
Canada granted responsible government (control of domestic
affairs) |
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1849 |
Vancouver Island
Colony established on Pacific Coast |
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1851 |
responsible government
granted to Prince Edward Island |
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1854 |
responsible government
granted to New Brunswick |
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1855 |
responsible government granted
to Newfoundland (representative government had been established
in 1832) |
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1858 |
after the Fraser River gold rush
of 1856, Vancouver Island Colony annexed New Caledonia on the
mainland from the Hudson Bay Company to form the British
Columbia Crown Colony |
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1866 |
Fenian
Raids from the United States had the effect of hastening
popular acceptance of Confederation: |
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1867.03.29 |
British North America Act confederated
Province of Canada, New Brunswick and Nova
Scotia as the Dominion
of Canada with a parliamentary system modelled on
the British, and the Province of Canada divided into two new
provinces of Ontario and Quebec (former Upper
and Lower Canada) |
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1869.11.19 |
Canada purchased Rupert's Land
(which became the Northwest Territories) from Hudson
Bay Company (royal assent 23 June 1870), less some 2.8 million
hectares of farmland in the prairies and certain land around
trading posts which remained HBC territory |
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1870.07.15 |
Manitoba admitted as the
fifth province of the Dominion of Canada, absorbing the former
Red River Colony |
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1871.05.16 |
British
Columbia Colony admitted to Dominion of Canada as sixth
province |
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1873.06.26 |
Prince
Edward Island Colony joined Dominion of Canada as seventh
province |
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1880.07.31 |
United Kingdom transferred all
adjacent territories (Arctic islands north of mainland Northwest
Territories) except Newfoundland to Canada |
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1882 |
Alberta (named for Princess
Louise Caroline Alberta), Saskatchewan and Athabaska
established as separate districts of Northwest Territories |
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1898 |
Yukon Territory separated
from Northwest Territories after Klondike gold rush |
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1905.09.01 |
Alberta and Saskatchewan
(the latter formed by union of Saskatchewan and Athabaska Districts)
joined Dominion of Canada as eighth and ninth provinces |
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1908 |
Newfoundland became a Dominion |
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1914.08.04 |
First
World War: British declaration of war on Germany automatically
involved Canada and the rest of the Empire; the Canadian war
effort won Canada a greater degree of autonomy from Britain
and a modest role in the peace process, but resulting Franco-English
tensions in Canada produced a country reluctant to take on international
responsibilities |
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1927.03.01 |
after 25-year dispute between Quebec
and Newfoundland, Labrador boundary established |
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1931.12.11 |
after pressure at the 1926 and
1930 Imperial Conferences, the Statute of Westminster
gave Canada, Newfoundland (and the other Dominions
-- Australia, New
Zealand, Union of South
Africa, Eire) full and
complete autonomy within the British Commonwealth, including
control of foreign and domestic affairs and representation in
the League of Nations; the constitutional status of the British
Crown in the Dominions remained unresolved, and by Canadian
consent the amendment or repeal of the British North America
Acts (1867-1930) remained the preserve of the British Parliament
until 1982 |
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1934.02.16 |
due to economic collapse
Newfoundland reverted to status of
Crown Colony after 80 years of self-government |
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1939.09.10 |
Second
World War: Canada declared war on Germany ten days after
Britain |
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1949.03.31 |
Newfoundland (with Labrador)
became tenth province of Canada |
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1982.04.17 |
Constitution Act "patriated"
Canada's organic law, retaining Elizabeth
II as "Queen of Canada" |
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1999 |
Nunavut Territory separated
from eastern part of Northwest Territories |
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