THE NORTHWEST

UPRISING PART 1
Page 180-184 of Horizons
I. Background:
A. In light of what had
occurred in Red River, past
land negotiations etc &
with the influx of new
settlers to the region due to
the railway, the Metis were
concerned that their rights
were going to be ignored
B. The write petitions
(requests) to the
government for their rights
to be legally recognized
Figure 5-13 An advertisement for
lands in the North West
II. The Metis Petitions
A. Regarding land:
1. Wanted title to it
2. Wanted it organized into
long-lot system
B. Wanted assistance on
how to farm
C. These concerns were
shared by everyone by
the late 1800s
1. First Nations people &
new European settlers
were having difficulty in
the new lands and
sought assistance from
the government
III. The Governments Agenda
A. Profits
1. The Northwest Territory was vast and largely
unsettled land still available
2. The government wanted to sell it and make a
profit
3. Instead of focusing on responding to the
petitions, they were focused on generating
revenue for the government by selling off the
land to whoever would buy it
B. The CPR (Canadian Pacific Railway)
1. Building a railway became expensive
2. To pay for it the Canadian government cut the
budget of the Indian Affairs Department
a. Recall that this department is focused on the
education, training, and health care of status
people.
b. The First Nations people and the Metis now
have even more limited means of survival
IV. Louis Riel Returns
A. The Metis call on Louis Riel for help with their
present situation (Spring, 1884)
1. Gabriel Dumont specifically chose Riel for his
resume
a. Experience in dealing with the Prime Minister John
A. MacDonald
b. Not afraid of fighting for what he believes in (Red
River Rebellions)
c. Had an affection for the region of Manitoba
d. Education
2. (Autumn, 1884) Riel then collaborates with
William Henry Jackson (a representative of local
Farmers) to create, The Metis Bill of Rights
a. Similar to the Metis List of Rights from 1870
b. They sent it to Ottawa in December 1884
c. The government acknowledges the document as
received
d. The Metis view this as a victory, but was it?
V. Trouble Builds in the Northwest
A. John A. MacDonald needs to justify the need
for the CPR
1. Some say he allowed Riel to return so that Riel
could be seen as a trouble maker in the region
2. Then MacDonald would need to quickly
transfer the NWMP or military troops
3. over to the region with the railway
4. People would see the railway as a necessity
B. Factor Lawrence Clarke also likes the idea of
Riel coming back so that
1. He became a wealthy land speculator
2. And if Riel was successful in getting land for the
FN or Metis, Factor Clarke would lose his land
to the Metis
3. Clarke acts as an informant to the government,
and reports false acts by the Metis to increase
tension between them
Assignments:
Read the photocopied hand out, The North-West
Resistance 1885
Do the worksheet entitled, Viewpoints in the
Canadian West Early 1880s
Read Page 180-184 of your Horizons textbook