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The history of post-confederation Canada began on July 1, 1867, when the British North American colonies of Canada, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia were united to form a single Dominion within the British Empire. [1] Upon Confederation, the United Province of Canada was immediately split into the provinces of Ontario and Quebec. [2] The colonies of Prince Edward Island and British Columbia joined shortly after, and Canada acquired the vast expanse of the continent controlled by the Hudson's Bay Company, which was eventually divided into new territories and provinces. [3] Canada evolved into a fully sovereign state by 1982. [4]
Before being part of British North America, the constituents of Canada consisted of the former colonies of Canada and Acadia from within New France which had been ceded to Great Britain in 1763 as part of the Treaty of Paris. [5] French Canadian nationality was maintained as one of the "two founding nations" and legally through the Quebec Act which ensured the maintenance of the Canadian French language, Catholic religion, and French civil law within Canada, a fact which remains true today. [6]
Canada today has ten provinces and three territories; it only lost significant territory in the border dispute over Labrador with the Dominion of Newfoundland, which later joined Canada as the 10th province. [7]
Date | Event | Change |
---|---|---|
July 1, 1867 | The Dominion of Canada was formed by the United Kingdom from three provinces of British North America: [8] [lower-alpha 1]
The capital was established at Ottawa. Canada inherited territorial disputes with the United States over Machias Seal Island and North Rock, which remain disputed up to the present. [14] | Disputes: |
July 15, 1870 | The United Kingdom transferred most of its remaining land in North America to Canada, with the North-Western Territory and Rupert's Land becoming the North-West Territories. [lower-alpha 5] The British government made the transfer after Canada and the Hudson's Bay Company agreed to the terms, including a payment of £300,000 from Canada to the Company. [18] Due to a vague description and lack of quality surveying, part of the western border with the United States was unclear and disputed. [16] Canada disagreed with the United Kingdom over the extent of Labrador that remained with Newfoundland Colony, citing the historical use of the term "Coasts of Labrador." A rectangular area of the newly acquired region around the city of Winnipeg was made the province of Manitoba. [lower-alpha 6] [19] | Disputes: |
July 20, 1871 | The British colony of British Columbia joined Canada as the sixth province. [20] [lower-alpha 7] The province brought along its dispute with the United States over the San Juan Islands, [22] as well as its portion of the Alaska boundary dispute. [16] | Disputes: |
October 21, 1872 | The dispute with the United States over the San Juan Islands was resolved in favour of the United States claim. [22] | Disputes: |
July 1, 1873 | The British colony of Prince Edward Island joined Canada as the seventh province. [23] | |
June 26, 1874 | The borders of Ontario were provisionally expanded north and west. When the Province of Canada was formed, its borders were not entirely clear, and Ontario claimed to eventually reach all the way to the Rocky Mountains and Arctic Ocean. With Canada's acquisition of Rupert's Land, Ontario was interested in clearly defining its borders, especially since some of the new areas it was interested in were rapidly growing. After the federal government asked Ontario to pay for construction in the new disputed area, the province asked for an elaboration on its limits, and its boundary was moved north to 51° north, and west to a line running north from Hunter's Island. [24] | |
October 7, 1876 | The District of Keewatin was created from a central strip of the North-West Territories to provide government for the growing area north of Manitoba and west of Ontario; while the North-West Territories consisted of several districts, Keewatin had an elevated status and many sources note it distinct from the rest of the North-West Territories. [lower-alpha 8] [25] | |
September 1, 1880 | The United Kingdom transferred its Arctic Islands to Canada, where they were made part of the North-West Territories. [26] The archipelago was still being explored and new islands discovered, but the United Kingdom and Canada had claimed the whole archipelago, so new discoveries are not noted unless disputed. | |
December 23, 1881 | Manitoba was expanded, gaining land from the District of Keewatin and North-West Territories to the west, north, and east. [lower-alpha 9] Since the province's new eastern border was defined as the "western boundary of Ontario", the exact definition of which was still unclear, Ontario disputed a portion of the new region. [28] [27] | |
May 7, 1886 | The southwestern border of the District of Keewatin was adjusted to conform to the boundaries of the provisional districts of the North-West Territories. [lower-alpha 10] [29] | |
August 12, 1889 | The dispute between Manitoba and Ontario ended as Ontario's borders were finalized, extending the province west to the Lake of the Woods and north to the Albany River. [30] | |
October 2, 1895 | The District of Keewatin was expanded to the portion of the North-West Territories north of Ontario. [31] | |
December 18, 1897 | Southampton Island, Coats Island, Akimiski Island, and other islands were transferred from the North-West Territories to the District of Keewatin, and Boothia Peninsula and Melville Peninsula were transferred from the District of Keewatin to the North-West Territories. [32] | |
June 13, 1898 | Yukon Territory was created from the District of Yukon in the northwestern part of the North-West Territories to supply a more local government to the explosive growth in population due to the Klondike Gold Rush. [lower-alpha 11] [33] [34] Quebec was enlarged north. [35] [lower-alpha 12] | |
May 23, 1901 | The eastern border of Yukon Territory was slightly adjusted, thus exchanging some area with the North-West Territories, and also including some more islands. [36] | |
October 20, 1903 | The Alaska boundary dispute was resolved, generally in favour of the United States claim. [16] | Disputes: |
September 1, 1905 | The provinces of Alberta (act) and Saskatchewan (act) were created from the North-West Territories. The provinces consisted of the area between British Columbia, Manitoba, the 60th parallel north, and the United States, with Alberta west of the 4th meridian of the Dominion Land Survey and Saskatchewan east of it. The status of the District of Keewatin was lowered back to the other districts of the North-West Territories. [37] [38] [39] [40] [41] | |
1906 | The North-West Territories were renamed the Northwest Territories. [42] [43] | |
September 26, 1907 | The Newfoundland Colony became a dominion of the United Kingdom, inheriting the Labrador boundary dispute. | Disputes: |
April 11, 1908 | A boundary treaty redefined the maritime border with the United States. [44] Among other changes, this "de-enclaved" Horseshoe Reef in Lake Erie by making the water around it contiguous with the water on the American side of the border. [45] [46] | no change to map |
August 20, 1910 | A boundary treaty with the United States addressed a slight uncertainty in the maritime border in Passamaquoddy Bay between New Brunswick and the United States. [47] [48] The border was adjusted to run east of Pope's Folly Island, which previously lay on the border line, and had been the subject of some debate for many years. [49] [50] | |
May 15, 1912 | Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec (act) were all expanded northward into land from the Northwest Territories. [42] Quebec was expanded north to fill the mainland, Manitoba extended north to the 60th parallel north, and the new border between Manitoba and Ontario ran northeast from the previous northeastern corner of Manitoba. [51] [52] | |
June 1, 1925 | The maritime boundaries of the Northwest Territories were extended to the North Pole. [42] | no change to map |
July 17, 1925 | The border with the United States was adjusted in several places. [53] [54] The only change to a land border redefined how the border between the Lake of the Woods and the Rocky Mountains should be considered; previously, the border followed the curve of the parallel between each border monument, while the treaty changed this to straight lines between each monument. Through this, the United States netted a gain of between 30 and 35 acres (0.12–0.14 km2) of land. There was also a change to the border in the Lake of the Woods; due to inaccurate surveying, the previous border intersected itself several times in the lake, creating enclaves of United States water surrounded by Canadian water. The treaty changed the border to use the southernmost intersection as the northwestern point of the Lake of the Woods. Finally, the maritime border in the Bay of Fundy was adjusted, netting Canada roughly 9 acres (0.036 km2) of water. | too small to map |
March 11, 1927 | The Judicial Committee of the British Privy Council decided the Labrador boundary dispute with the Dominion of Newfoundland in favour of Newfoundland. [55] [lower-alpha 13] Quebec has occasionally indicated it does not recognize this border, but has not actively disputed the matter. [55] | Disputes: |
November 11, 1930 | Norway ceded its long-dormant claim to the Sverdrup Islands to Canada, in exchange for British recognition of Norway's sovereignty over Jan Mayen. | Disputes: |
December 11, 1931 | The Statute of Westminster 1931 confirmed Canada's sovereignty from the United Kingdom on legislative and foreign issues. | no change to map |
March 31, 1949 | The Dominion of Newfoundland joined as the tenth province, Newfoundland. [56] [57] | |
March 13, 1974 | The maritime border with Denmark was defined, notably "skipping" Hans Island which lies directly between Ellesmere Island and Greenland, and which was technically on neither side of the border. [58] | no change to map |
March 1, 1977 | The United States claimed maritime borders west of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, within the Dixon Entrance, and in the Beaufort Sea that conflicted with claims of Canada. [59] | |
April 17, 1982 | The Constitution Act, 1982, via the Canada Act 1982, made Canada completely independent of the United Kingdom, removing the requirement to involve the British parliament in amending the Canadian constitution. | |
October 12, 1984 | The International Court of Justice decided the maritime border with the United States in the Gulf of Maine. [60] No land changed hands, and the scope of the case did not include the sovereignty of Machias Seal Island. [59] | |
April 1, 1999 | The territory of Nunavut was created from roughly the eastern half of the Northwest Territories. [lower-alpha 14] [61] | |
December 6, 2001 | The province of Newfoundland was renamed Newfoundland and Labrador. [62] | |
April 1, 2003 | Yukon Territory was renamed Yukon, though it remained a territory. [63] | |
December 19, 2023 | The border with Denmark was defined so that it passes through Hans Island rather than skipping over it. [64] The agreement was announced on June 14, 2022, and the Danish parliament passed it on December 19, 2023. [65] |
Canada has a vast geography that occupies much of the continent of North America, sharing a land border with the contiguous United States to the south and the U.S. state of Alaska to the northwest. Canada stretches from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west; to the north lies the Arctic Ocean. Greenland is to the northeast with a shared border on Hans Island. To the southeast Canada shares a maritime boundary with France's overseas collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, the last vestige of New France. By total area, Canada is the second-largest country in the world, after Russia. By land area alone, however, Canada ranks fourth, the difference being due to it having the world's largest proportion of fresh water lakes. Of Canada's thirteen provinces and territories, only two are landlocked while the other eleven all directly border one of three oceans.
Labrador is a geographic and cultural region within the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is the primarily continental portion of the province and constitutes 71% of the province's area but is home to only 6% of its population. It is separated from the island of Newfoundland by the Strait of Belle Isle. It is the largest and northernmost geographical region in the four Atlantic provinces.
Canada has ten provinces and three territories that are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North America—New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and the Province of Canada —united to form a federation, becoming a fully independent country over the next century. Over its history, Canada's international borders have changed several times as it has added territories and provinces, making it the world's second-largest country by area.
British North America comprised the colonial territories of the British Empire in North America from 1783 onwards. English colonisation of North America began in the 16th century in Newfoundland, then further south at Roanoke and Jamestown, Virginia, and more substantially with the founding of the Thirteen Colonies along the Atlantic coast of North America.
The 49th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 49° north of Earth's equator. It crosses Europe, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, North America, and the Atlantic Ocean.
The following is an alphabetical list of topics related to Canada.
Events from the year 1903 in Canada.
The Canada–United States border is the longest international border in the world. The boundary is 8,891 km (5,525 mi) long. The land border has two sections: Canada's border with the contiguous United States to its south, and with the U.S. state of Alaska to its west. The bi-national International Boundary Commission deals with matters relating to marking and maintaining the boundary, and the International Joint Commission deals with issues concerning boundary waters. The agencies responsible for facilitating legal passage through the international boundary are the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
The Quebec Boundaries Extension Act, 1912 was passed by the Parliament of Canada on April 1, 1912. It expanded the territory of the Province of Quebec, extending the northern boundary to its present location. The act transferred to the province all of the Northwest Territories' former District of Ungava except offshore islands. This is a vast area bounded by the Eastmain River, the Labrador coast, and Hudson and Ungava Bays. It was first claimed by England in 1670 as Rupert's Land by royal decree, becoming part of Canada after Confederation. The indigenous people of the region are Cree, Montagnais, Naskapi, and Inuit.
The District of Ungava was a regional administrative district of Canada's Northwest Territories from 1895 to 1920, although it effectively ceased operation in 1912. It covered the northern portion of what is today Quebec, the interior of Labrador, and the offshore islands to the west and north of Quebec, which are now part of Nunavut.
Canada is divided into six time zones. Most areas of the country's provinces and territories operate on standard time from the first Sunday in November to the second Sunday in March and daylight saving time the rest of the year.
Transportation in North America is performed through a varied transportation system, whose quality ranges from being on par with a high-quality European motorway to an unpaved gravelled back road that can extend hundreds of miles. There is also an extensive transcontinental freight rail network, but passenger railway ridership is lower than in Europe and Asia.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Canada:
The 1763 Treaty of Paris ended the major war known by Americans as the French and Indian War and by Canadians as the Seven Years' War / Guerre de Sept Ans, or by French-Canadians, La Guerre de la Conquête. It was signed by Great Britain, France and Spain, with Portugal in agreement. Preferring to keep Guadeloupe, France gave up Canada and all of its claims to territory east of the Mississippi River to Britain. With France out of North America this dramatically changed the European political scene on the continent.
A number of states and polities formerly claimed colonies and territories in Canada prior to the evolution of the current provinces and territories under the federal system. North America prior to colonization was occupied by a variety of indigenous groups consisting of band societies typical of the sparsely populated North, to loose confederacies made up of numerous hunting bands from a variety of ethnic groups, to more structured confederacies of sedentary farming villages, to stratified hereditary structures centred on a fishing economy. The colonization of Canada by Europeans began in the 10th century, when Norsemen explored and, ultimately unsuccessfully, attempted to settle areas of the northeastern fringes of North America. Early permanent European settlements in what is now Canada included the late 16th and 17th century French colonies of Acadia and Canada, the English colonies of Newfoundland (island) and Rupert's Land, the Scottish colonies of Nova Scotia and Port Royal.
In Canada, daylight saving time (DST) is observed in nine of the country's ten provinces and two of its three territories—though with exceptions in parts of several provinces and Nunavut.
The border between the province of Newfoundland and Labrador and the province of Quebec is the longest interprovincial border in Canada. It stretches for more than 3,500 kilometres (2,200 mi) on land, and, according to both provincial governments, also contains a maritime part. Starting from the north, the border follows the Laurentian Divide on the Labrador Peninsula for the majority of the border's length, then follows the divide between the Côte-Nord-Gaspé and Newfoundland-Labrador drainage basins as far as Brûlé Lake, after which it goes along the Romaine River downstream to the 52nd parallel, which it follows east to its southeastern terminus at Blanc-Sablon.
The Territory of Ashuanipi was a formerly disputed area and territory of Quebec that was claimed by Quebec and the Dominion of Newfoundland from 1899 and 1927.
The District of Franklin (situated inside of the grey border on the map herewith) comprising Melville and Boothia Peninsulas, ...