Republic of Manitobah | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1867–1868 | |||||||||
| Status | Unrecognized state | ||||||||
| Government | Republic | ||||||||
| History | |||||||||
• Established | 1867 | ||||||||
• Disestablished | 1868 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Today part of | Manitoba, Canada | ||||||||
The Republic of Manitobah was a short-lived, unrecognized state founded in June 1867 by Thomas Spence at the town of Portage la Prairie in what is now the Canadian province of Manitoba.
In the mid-19th century, the future province of Manitoba was still part of Rupert's Land, a territory owned by the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC).
By 1858, the population of the Portage community had developed to the point where the necessity of municipal corporation became evident. As Portage la Prairie had no government, laws or taxation at the time, Spence and a group of local settlers formed a provisional government in January 1868, [1] first calling it the Republic of Caledonia before changing the name later to the Republic of Manitobah, after a local lake. [2] The following month, Spence and his group wrote to the British Colonial Office asking for the republic to be recognized as a political entity, but there was no reply. [1] [2] [3]
The republic never had clearly defined borders, and could not persuade local HBC traders to pay their taxes. By late spring 1868, the republic had been informed by the Colonial Office in London that its government had no power. The republic's problems were compounded by a botched libel trial over accusations of the misappropriation of tax funds. [4] The Republic of Manitobah collapsed before it had a chance to blossom.
Thomas Spence served in the council for Louis Riel’s provisional government, whose actions led to the formation of the Province of Manitoba within Canada on July 15, 1870.
Thomas Spence was the first person to use the word Manitoba in reference to both the lake and surrounding territory; so, while the government dissolved, the name Manitoba remains to this day. [1]
The story of the Republic of Manitobah was made into a humorous animated short, called Spence's Republic, by the National Film Board of Canada in 1978, as a part of the Canada Vignettes series. [5] [6]
Louis Riel was a Canadian politician, a founder of the province of Manitoba, and a political leader of the Métis people. He led two resistance movements against the Government of Canada and its first prime minister John A. Macdonald. Riel sought to defend Métis rights and identity as the Northwest Territories came progressively under the Canadian sphere of influence.
The Red River Rebellion, also known as the Red River Resistance, Red River uprising, or First Riel Rebellion, was the sequence of events that led up to the 1869 establishment of a provisional government by Métis leader Louis Riel and his followers at the Red River Colony, in the early stages of establishing today's Canadian province of Manitoba. It had earlier been a territory called Rupert's Land and been under control of the Hudson's Bay Company before it was sold.
St-Boniface is a city ward and neighbourhood in Winnipeg. Along with being the centre of the Franco-Manitoban community, it ranks as the largest francophone community in Western Canada.
Portage la Prairie is a small city in the Central Plains Region of Manitoba, Canada. As of 2016, the population was 13,304 and the land area of the city was 24.68 square kilometres (9.53 sq mi).
The Manitoba Act, 1870 is an act of the Parliament of Canada, and part of the Constitution of Canada, that provided for the admission of Manitoba as the fifth province of Canada.
Sir John Christian Schultz was a Manitoba politician and businessman. He was a member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1871 to 1882, a Senator from 1882 to 1888, and the fifth Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba from 1888 to 1895.
The Wolseley expedition was a military force authorized by Canadian Prime Minister John A. Macdonald to confront Louis Riel and the Métis in 1870, during the Red River Rebellion, at the Red River Colony in what is now the province of Manitoba. The expedition was also intended to counter American expansionist sentiments in northern border states. Leaving Toronto in May, the expedition arrived, after a three-month journey in arduous conditions, at Fort Garry on August 24. This extinguished Riel's provisional government and eradicated the threat of the American expansion into western Canada.
Omand's Creek is a stream that runs throughout Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Its surroundings vary, from prairie to box stores. It additionally runs through Omand Park and Bluestem Nature Park in the Wolseley area, into the Assiniboine River.
Wesley College was a college that existed in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, from 1888 to 1938. In 1924, Wesley College became part of the United Church of Canada. It was one of the University of Winnipeg's founding colleges.
The Forks is a historic site, meeting place, and green space in downtown Winnipeg located at the confluence of the Red River and the Assiniboine River.
The West End is a mostly residential area of Downtown Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It includes the neighbourhoods of Armstrong's Point, Colony, Daniel McIntyre, Minto, Sargent Park, Spence, St. Matthews, West Broadway, and Wolseley.
St. Norbert is a bilingual neighbourhood and the southernmost suburb of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. While outside the Perimeter Highway, it is still part of the city. As of the 2016 Census, the population of St. Norbert is 5,850.
The history of Manitoba covers the period from the arrival of Paleo-Indians thousands of years ago to the present day. When European fur traders first travelled to the area present-day Manitoba, they developed trade networks with several First Nations. European fur traders in the area during the late-17th century, with the French under Pierre Gaultier de Varennes, sieur de La Vérendrye set up several trading post forts. In 1670, Britain declared sovereignty over the watershed of Hudson's Bay, known as Rupert's Land; with the Hudson's Bay Company granted a commercial monopoly over the territory.
The Long Plain First Nation is an Ojibway and Dakota First Nations band government located Manitoba, Canada.
Pascal Breland was a famous 19th-century pre-confederation Canadian Métis farmer and politician. He was a well-known Metis trader and was popularly nicknamed "le Roi des traiteurs". He held several appointed political positions as well as elected offices, with his work and influence playing a key role in shaping the identity of Western Canadian provinces as they exist today.
Census Division No. 9 is a census division located within the Central Plains Region of the Province of Manitoba, Canada. Unlike in some other provinces, census divisions do not reflect the organization of local government in Manitoba. These areas exist solely for the purposes of statistical analysis and presentation; they have no government of their own.
Woodlands is a rural municipality (RM) in the province of Manitoba in Western Canada. It lies in the southern part of the Interlake and is named for the community of Woodlands, which itself is named for the wooded lands of the area.
Alexander Christie was a Scottish fur trader and chief factor of the Red River Colony from 1833 to 1839 and from 1844 to 1848. Christie was instrumental in leading trading ceremonies on behalf of the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) while he served in a role known as chief factor. When he retired, he received a half share in the company's profits for two years beyond the normal retirement period.
Elzéar Goulet was a Métis leader in the Red River Colony, which later became the province of Manitoba, Canada. He was a supporter of Louis Riel's provisional government and was murdered by Canadian troops under the command of Col. Garnet Wolseley, after the suppression of the Red River Resistance.
Maxime Lépine was a Métis businessman and political figure from Canada. Lépine joined Louis Riel's provisional government in Red River in 1869. A founding member of the Union Saint-Alexandre, Lépine sought to bring together Métis of French-Canadian and Catholic origins. Later, Lépine represented St. Francois Xavier East in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1874 to 1878.
