The Red River Rebellion or "Red River Resistance" are the names given to the events surrounding the actions of a provisional government established by Métis leader Louis Riel in 1869 at the Red River Settlement in what is now the Canadian province of Manitoba. The Rebellion was the first crisis the new government faced following Canadian Confederation in 1867.
The Rebellion was the first crisis the new government faced following Canadian Confederation in 1867. The Canadian government bought Rupert's Land from the Hudson's Bay Company in 1869 and appointed an English-speaking governor, William McDougall, who was opposed by the French-speaking inhabitants of the settlement. McDougall sent out surveyors before the land was officially transferred to Canada and had them arrange the land according to the square township system used in Ontario.
The Métis, led by Riel, prevented McDougall from entering the territory. After McDougall declared that the Hudson's Bay Company was no longer in control of the territory and that Canada had asked for the transfer of sovereignty to be postponed, the Métis created a provisional government. Riel undertook to negotiate directly with the Canadian government to establish Assiniboia as a province.
The Canadian government bought Rupert's Land from the Hudson's Bay Company in 1869 and appointed an English-speaking governor, William McDougall, who was opposed by the French-speaking inhabitants of the settlement. McDougall sent out surveyors before the land was officially transferred to Canada and had them arrange the land according to the square township system used in Ontario. The Métis, led by Riel, prevented McDougall from entering the territory. After McDougall declared that the Hudson's Bay Company was no longer in control of the territory and that Canada had asked for the transfer of sovereignty to be postponed, the Métis created a provisional government. Riel undertook to negotiate directly with the Canadian government to establish Assiniboia as a province.
In anticipation of the transfer, the minister of public works, William McDougall, who along with George-Étienne Cartier had been instrumental in securing Rupert's Land for Canada, ordered a survey party to the Red River Settlement. This was undertaken despite warnings to the John A. Macdonald government from Roman Catholic Bishop Taché, the Anglican bishop of Rupert's land Robert Machray, and the HBC governor of Assiniboia William Mactavish, that any such survey would precipitate unrest. In the event, the survey party, headed by Colonel John Stoughton Dennis arrived at Fort Garry on August 20, 1869. This aroused significant anxiety among the Métis, as many did not possess clear title to their land, which was in any case laid out according to the Seigneurial system with long, narrow lots fronting the river, rather than the square lots preferred by the English. The survey was an obvious harbinger of a coming wave of Canadian migration, and was correctly perceived as a threat to the Métis way of life — they feared they could lose their farms, and that their language and Roman Catholic religion would face increasing marginalisation and discrimination. The fears of the Métis were exacerbated when the Canadian government appointed the notoriously anti-French McDougall as the lieutenant governor-designate on 28 September 1869, in anticipation of a formal transfer to take effect on December 1. It was at this time that the educated Riel began to emerge as a leader, beginning with his denunciation of the survey in a speech delivered in late August from the steps of the Saint-Boniface Cathedral. On October 11, 1869, the work of the survey was disrupted by a group of Métis including Riel.
At this time, the Hudson's Bay Company's Council of Assiniboia still asserted authority over the area, and on October 25, Riel was summoned before them to explain the actions of the Committee. Riel declared that any attempt by McDougall to enter would be blocked unless the Canadians had first negotiated terms with the Métis and with the general population of the settlement. On November 2, Métis under the command of Ambroise-Dydime Lépine turned back McDougall's party near the American border, forcing them to retreat to Pembina, North Dakota. The number of Riel's followers had grown rapidly, and on that same day a group of up to 400 Métis led by Riel seized Fort Garry without bloodshed. The Métis National Committee had little choice but to declare a provisional government, and did so on December 8. Having finally received notification of the delay in transfer, McDougall and Dennis departed for Ontario on 18 December, and Major Boulton fled to Portage la Prairie.
Against this backdrop of religious, nationalistic, and racial tension, there existed significant political uncertainty. Largely to forestall American expansionism, the British and Canadian governments had been for some time negotiating the transfer of Rupert's Land from the Hudson's Bay Company to Canada. This resulted in the Rupert's Land Act of 1868 authorizing the transfer, and the subsequent purchase by Canada in 1869. However, the terms under which political authority would be transferred remained unresolved. In 1870, the Manitoba Act was passed, allowing the Red River settlement to enter Confederation as the province of Manitoba. The Act also incorporated some of Riel's demands, such as separate French schools for Métis children and protection of Catholicism. The Manitoba Act was an Act of the Parliament of Canada, and was given Royal Assent on May 12, 1870. Taking effect on July 15, it created the Province of Manitoba. The Manitoba Act is still part of the Constitution of Canada.
After the agreement was settled, Canada sent a military expedition, now known as the Wolseley Expedition (or Red River Expedition), consisting of Canadian Militia and British regular soldiers led by Colonel Garnet Wolseley to Manitoba to enforce federal authority. As the expedition headed west, outrage grew in Ontario over Scott's execution, and many Ontarians demanded that Wolseley's expedition be used to arrest Riel and suppress what they considered to be rebellion. The Wolseley Expedition was a troop movement authorized by Sir John A. Macdonald to confront Louis Riel and the Métis in 1870 in the Red River Colony, Manitoba. Under the leadership of Colonel Garnet Wolseley, the expedition set out from Toronto, Ontario in an attempt to interdict Riel. They travelled to Georgian Bay, from which they travelled by boat across Lake Huron and Lake Superior to arrive at Fort William. From here they carried small boats to Lake Shebandewon. Travelling further westwards, they passed through Fort Frances and finally arrived at Fort Garry. Although Riel fled before the expedition reached Fort Garry, the arrival of the expedition marked the end of the Rebellion.
Since Canada had no authority over that territory, the provisional government at Red River was legitimate and had to be recognized. Its actions were not "rebellious" in the strict sense of the word; it was called a rebellion only after sentiment grew in Ontario against the execution of Thomas Scott. In 1875, Riel was formally exiled from Canada for five years, but under pressure from Québec the government of Sir John A. Macdonald took no more vigorous action. Riel was elected to the Canadian parliament three times while in exile, but never took his seat. He returned to Canada in 1885 to lead the North-West Rebellion or North-West Resistance. The modern-day Parliament of Canada, however, did not come into existence until 1867. In that year, the British Parliament passed the British North America Act 1867, uniting the Province of Canada (which was separated into Québec and Ontario), Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick into a single federation, called the Dominion of Canada.