B. Canada, 1800–1850: Conflict and Challenges · Canada, 1800–1850: Conflict and Challenges

The Rebellions of 1837–38

B3 B2About 50 minutes

Learning goals

I can explain the causes of the rebellions in Upper and Lower Canada.
I can describe key people and events, including Papineau, Mackenzie, Saint-Denis, Saint-Eustache and Montgomery's Tavern.
I can compare the perspectives of rebels, loyal colonists, the Church and Black militia volunteers.
I can explain the consequences of the rebellions.

Words to know

Family Compact
A small group of wealthy, mostly Anglican officials and businessmen who held power in Upper Canada.

Château Clique
A small group of mostly English-speaking officials and merchants who held power in Lower Canada.

Reformers
People who wanted changes to make government more fair and more answerable to the elected assembly.

Patriotes
Reformers in Lower Canada, led by Louis-Joseph Papineau, who defended Canadien rights and wanted the elected assembly to have real power.

Legislative Assembly
The elected part of a colony's government.

Executive Council
The governor's appointed advisers, who held real power in the colony.

rebellion
An armed uprising against a government.

Let's start with a question

Imagine your class elects a student council, but the principal's hand-picked friends can veto (block) anything it decides, and decide how the class money is spent. What would you do? Write a letter? Protest? Refuse to cooperate?

In 1837, some people in Upper and Lower Canada felt their colonies worked like that. A few decided to take up arms.

How the colonies were governed

Each colony had:

a governor sent from Britain;
an appointed Executive Council (advisers) and Legislative Council, usually chosen from wealthy friends of the government;
an elected Legislative Assembly, chosen by male property owners.

The assembly could pass laws, but the appointed councils could block them, and the governor and his advisers controlled much of the money. The people's elected representatives had little real power.

How each colony was governed before 1837. The elected Assembly could pass laws, but the appointed council could block them, which is why Reformers were frustrated.

Lower Canada: the Patriotes

Most people were French-speaking Canadiens, but power was held by the mostly English-speaking Château Clique.
Louis-Joseph Papineau, Speaker of the Assembly, led the Parti patriote. In 1834 the Assembly passed the 92 Resolutions, listing complaints and asking for an elected Legislative Council and control over money.
In March 1837, Britain answered with Russell's Ten Resolutions, rejecting the demands and letting the governor spend money without the Assembly's approval.
Bad harvests and hard times added to the anger. Large protest meetings were held.
November 23, 1837: Patriotes defeated British troops at Saint-Denis. November 25: British troops won at Saint-Charles. December 14: at Saint-Eustache, the rebels were defeated and the church where many sheltered was burned.
A second uprising in 1838 also failed. Twelve Patriotes were hanged and 58 were sent to prison colonies in Australia. Papineau escaped to the United States.
The Catholic Church, led by Bishop Jean-Jacques Lartigue, opposed the rebellion and told Catholics to obey the government.

Upper Canada: Mackenzie

Power was held by the Family Compact. Many settlers were angry that large areas of land, the clergy reserves, were set aside for the Protestant churches, mostly the Church of England, and that roads and schools were poor.
William Lyon Mackenzie, a fiery newspaper publisher (the Colonial Advocate) and the first mayor of Toronto (1834), led the most radical Reformers. Moderate Reformers such as Robert Baldwin wanted change without violence.
December 1837: Rebels gathered at Montgomery's Tavern on Yonge Street, north of Toronto. On December 7, loyal militia scattered them in a short battle. Another rising west of Toronto, led by Charles Duncombe, also collapsed.
Mackenzie escaped to the United States. Two rebels, Samuel Lount and Peter Matthews, were hanged in April 1838.
In 1838, groups based in the US (the Hunters' Lodges) raided Upper Canada, for example at the Battle of the Windmill near Prescott. They were defeated.

The main clashes of late 1837 happened within about three weeks. The rebels in both colonies were defeated quickly.

Group	Perspective on the rebellions
Patriotes (Lower Canada)	Fighting for the rights of the elected Assembly and of Canadiens against an unfair, mostly English-speaking elite
Radical Reformers (Upper Canada)	Fighting against the Family Compact for fairer, more democratic government
Moderate Reformers (like Baldwin)	Wanted the same reforms but by peaceful, legal means
Family Compact and Château Clique	Rebels were traitors threatening order, property and the British connection
Catholic Church in Lower Canada	Opposed rebellion; urged obedience to authority
Many Black residents of Upper Canada	Volunteered to defend the government; feared rebels' ties to the United States, where slavery was legal

The rebellions looked very different from different places.

Worked example

Modelled example: Were the rebels heroes or traitors?

How would you answer this question like a historian?

Step 1: Reframe the question. "Heroes or traitors" asks for a judgment. A historian first asks: from whose perspective, and based on what values?
Step 2: Consider the rebels' view. They believed the government was unfair and undemocratic, and peaceful requests (like the 92 Resolutions) had been refused.
Step 3: Consider the government's view. Rebellion was illegal and violent; people were killed; the rebels threatened the British connection.
Step 4: Consider consequences. The rebellions failed militarily, but they led to the Durham Report and, within about ten years, responsible government, much of what Reformers wanted.
Step 5: Judge carefully. Many historians today see the rebels as people with real grievances whose methods failed, but whose cause later succeeded peacefully.

There is no single right label. A strong answer explains the perspectives, uses evidence, and recognizes the consequences. In 1838 they were punished as traitors; today, many Quebecers honour the Patriotes on the Journée nationale des patriotes in May.

Hands-on activity

Hold a town meeting, 1837

You need: 3 or more people (family or friends), paper and a pencil.

Each person draws a role: a Patriote farmer, a Family Compact official, a moderate Reformer, a Black militia volunteer, a Catholic priest.
Each person writes two arguments their character would make about whether to take up arms in 1837. Use facts from the lesson.
Hold a 10-minute "meeting". Each person speaks for one minute, then the group discusses.
Vote: rebellion, peaceful reform, or no change? Then step out of character and talk about which arguments were strongest and why.

Look for: arguments based on evidence (e.g. "The Ten Resolutions let the governor spend our money without our vote").

Your turn

Why did the elected assemblies have little real power?

What were the 92 Resolutions?

What did Russell's Ten Resolutions (1837) do?

Name one battle the Patriotes won and one they lost.

Who led the rebellion in Upper Canada, and where did rebels gather?

What was the Family Compact?

Why did the Catholic Church oppose the rebellion?

More practice: warm-up

Who led the Patriotes?

What newspaper did Mackenzie publish?

In what month and year did the rebellions begin?

What were clergy reserves?

Name a moderate Reformer in Upper Canada.

More practice: on your own

Compare the causes of the rebellions in the two colonies. Give one shared cause and one different cause.

Why did many Black residents of Upper Canada support the government?

Why might a moderate Reformer refuse to join Mackenzie even though they agreed with his complaints?

What punishments did rebels face?

Why were the rebellions a turning point even though they failed?

Challenge

"The rebellions failed, but the rebels won." Explain this statement.

Rank these causes of the Lower Canada rebellion from most to least important and justify your top choice: Russell's Ten Resolutions; the Château Clique's power; bad harvests; language and culture.

How might a Patriote's grandchild in 1900 and a Family Compact official's grandchild in 1900 tell the story of 1837 differently?

Check your understanding

Quiz

Who held power in Upper Canada before 1837?

What did Russell's Ten Resolutions do?

Where did the Patriotes win a battle in 1837?

Who led the rebels in Upper Canada?

Why did many Black residents volunteer to defend Upper Canada?

What was a major consequence of the rebellions?

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Students describe the Rebellions of 1837–38 (B3) and compare perspectives of different groups (B2), including Canadien, Reformer, loyal and Black communities.

Talking about violence: People were killed in battle, and rebels were executed. Mention this factually without graphic detail. Emphasize the choices people faced between peaceful and violent change.

How to help: Run the town meeting activity. Ask your child, "When is it right to protest, and how?" Connect to how people protest peacefully today.

Common difficulties: Thinking the rebels wanted independence only (most wanted fair, elected government; some, but not all, wanted a republic); mixing up Papineau (Lower Canada) and Mackenzie (Upper Canada).