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1500
The Europeans fisheries
-John Cabot discovered Newfoundland in 1497
Bretons and Basques fished cod near Labrador and Newfoundland
-This happened in the 16th century
-Catholics weren’t allowed to eat meat for almost 100 days (abstinence days)
-Fishermen weren’t able to transport fresh fish back to Europe because it was too far
-They had to dry and salt the fish
-The Basque whale-hunters went to Newfoundland to render the animals’ fat to make oil
-They met up with Amerindians and made trades -
1500
Trades between the Amerindians'
-Iroquois gave farming surplus
-Algonquians gave their hunting surplus
-The trades happened on the Algonquian bands’ summer camps
-They were great merchants
-They were middlemen for the trades
-These trades happened in the Great Lakes region, the Outaouais, the St. Maurice Valley and the James Bay -
Period: 1500 to
Economy and development
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Fur trades
-The Amerindians traded fur and animal pelts (moose, otter, fox, bear)
-The European traded metal objects
-The Amerindians and Europeans had different values
-The profit generated by sales of pelt is superior to the profit generated by fishing
-The King named him “ship owner” in the St. Lawrence Valley
-He made a trading post in Tadoussac in 1600 which was deserted in 1601
-They became outnumbered by the Amerindians
-They couldn't establish in the territory and develop it (alliances) -
The economy of fur
-1600-1663: King of France granted a monopoly in the fur trade to merchant companies (French formed alliances with Aboriginals)
-1663: King cancelled the monopoly because there were too many difficulties during the fur trades
-1670: the French trade network went westward and south of the Great Lakes (the French built forts -- trading posts)
-1690: too many colonists were involved in the fur trades, which threatened the seigneuries and the cost of the pelts fell
-This caused a crisis -
The Company of One Hundred Associates
-Cardinal Richelieu founded this company in 1627
-It was financed by 100 French shareholders (Samuel de Champlain and others)
-The company rebuilt the Québec training post
-The finances never recovered from the attack though
-1628: a large convoy of men and merchandise was attacked by the British
-1629: they seized Québec -
The Compagnie des Habitants
-It got created by merchants
-It got created in New France
-This company took back the monopoly from The Company of One Hundred Associates from 1645-1663
-It encountered difficulties due to lack of experience -
The French West India Company
-It was founded by Jean-Baptiste Colbert, who was a minister for Louis XIV (1664)
-This company took over the trade monopoly and beaver pelt exports
-There was now poor management and strong competition from the Dutch companies
-The company dissolved in 1674
-After that point on, no other company had a monopoly on fur trade and fur exports -
Hudson's Bay Company
-Pierre-Esprit Radisson and Médard Chouart Des Groseilliers explored Hudson Bay
-They tried to establish fur trades
-In 1670, they founded "Hudson's Bay Company" because the French didn't support them
-They built trading posts throughout the whole region
-They engaged trades with the Cree nation
-France and Great Britain had a big rivalry (fur trades)
-Their rivalry ended with a series of land and sea battles -
The beaver crisis
-The beaver economy was in crisis
-Fur was passé
-The demand for beaver pelts decreased
-Fur trading was too intense and too stressful
-The pelts started piling up in warehouses in France
-The King demanded them to slowdown the fur trades
-After 1715, the trades increased again because the previously stored furs were ruined by rodents and insects -
The expansion of the territory
-In order to find fur, many people started exploring the North American continent
-Adventurers travelled on the waterways
-They later on explored the Great Lakes, the Prairies (until the Rocky Mountains), Hudson Bay, the Ohio Valley and the Mississippi River (until Louisiana)
-The British fought with the French over many new discovered regions
-They each built forts to protect its commerce against their opponents -
Agriculture during the French Regime
-Most people were involved in agriculture
-It was a subsistence activity
-Most people ate wheat, which explains why wheat was the main crop
-The population slowly increased
-The cultivated territory expanded as well, while the population increased
-Children, especially from larger families spent their time clearing new lands in lots that the lord gave them -
Currency
-New France used the currency of France (the pound divided into 20 sold and 240 deniers)
-Sometimes, there was no cash for them to exchange, so they exchanged animal pelts and wheat
-Jacques de Meulles issued the card currency which consisted of playing cards
-The intendant would usually put a value which could be exchanged for cash when the ships arrived from France
-1760: the Conquest
-Canadians couldn't get their paper money reimbursed by France
-Canadians received 1/4 of its value -
Obstacles to diversification
-New industries suffered many problems
-They had higher production costs, a lack in capitals, a weakness of local markets and rare specialized labour
-This made it more expensive to buy certain things, such as ships in New France compared to France
-Most of the metals for ships had to be imported from France -
Change of Empire + Economic Impact
-After the Conquest: Great Britain merchants + the 13 colonies settled in Québec and Montréal (colonial economy + fur trade)
-1783: treaty of Paris
-Great Britain gave up areas south of the Great Lakes to the United States
-Montréal marchants created the Northwest Company to compete with the Hudson's Bay Company (west of the Great Lakes)
-Montréal was the capital of the fur trades
-1821: the two companies merged -
Decline in the fur economy
-After the Conquest: Scottish, English and American merchants settled inMontréal for the fur trades
-They had better financial means than the French Canadians
-They hired French Canadian voyageurs who were very knowledgeable about the territory and the Amerindians
-They increased they fur supply in the Great Lakes region and in the Ohio and higher Mississippi Valleys -
Capitals
-The means of production were concentrated in the hands of a small number of companies
-These companies were so powerful that no one could compete
-These capitalist owners formed the industrial bourgeoisie
-Companies borrowed money from banks to build infrastructures
-End of 19th century: the banks merged
-American investments grew while Great Britain declined
-This helped the economic and industrial growth
-They depended on the States
-The States also helped Canada with its exports -
Transportation infrastructure
-There was a great need to build transportation infrastructures at the beginning of the 19th century
-The Great Lakes region (Upper Canada) experienced difficulties shipping its farming surpluses to Lower Canada because of the rapids between Lake Ontario and Montréal
-1825: the built the Erie Canal in the United States
-The Canadian government started financially supporting private initiatives to build these transportation infrastructures -
Economic impact of industrialization (1st phase)
-The 1st phase (1860-1896) depended on coal
-The 1st period was characterized by the mechanization of labour and the growth of the manufacturing industry
-A railway was built and canals were created
-1880: industrial ares appeared along the Lachine Canal
-Workers were given low wages and worked in difficult conditions
-The business class kept on growing
-1890: workers fought for their rights to improve working conditions
-This was the beginning of unionization
-Labour unions were created -
Transformation of agriculture
-Great Britain could no longer produce enough food to meet its needs
-It started buying food from Canada, especially wheat
-Upper Canada produced wheat
-Lower Canada cultivated oats, potatoes, barley and hemp
-There was a growth of animal husbandry and dairy production
-Milk, butter and cheese industries developed closer to the cities and to the railroads
-Agriculture also developed in the regions of Saguenay Lac St. Jean and the Mauricie -
Expansion of timber economy
-1806: Great Britain could no longer import from northern Europe because of Napoleon's Continental Blockade
-British merchants invested in the Lower Canada logging industry and opened the first banks in Montréal and Québec
-1810: timber exports from Lower Canada exceeded fur exports
-1820-1850: lots of constructions (canals, locks, railways and roads)
-Many trades with the United States happened and the amount of domestic trades continuously increased -
Work Relations
-Industrialization created the working class
-Workers formed unions because of horrible working conditions
-1872: the federal government authorized unionization
-1885: the government refused to legislate because of the economic growth
-1885: Government of Québec adopted the Provincial Manufacturing Law which limited the # of hours workers worked and imposed a minimum age for workers
-20th century: they started training workers which made education an essential condition of employment -
Economic liberalism from protectionism
-1815: United Kingdom introduced protectionist policies
(favouring the purchase of raw materials for the factories)
-1846: British adopted free trade
-Canada found a new economic partner: the United States
-1854: Canada and the United States signed a free trade agreement, the Reciprocity Treaty
-1865: the Reciprocity Treaty ended
-1867: the dominion of Canada was created with the United Canadas, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia -
The creation of canals
-Waterways were unnavigable
-They decided to create canals facilitated the the circulation of steamboats
-The first canal was the Lachine Canal in Montréal (1821-1825) on the St. Lawrence River
-This area later on became a major industrial zone
-Then, there was the Rideau Canal between Ottawa and Kingston (1826-1832) connecting the Ottawa River to Lake Ontario
-Finally, there was the Chambly Canal on the Richelieu River at St. Jean (1833-1843) -
The merge of the companies
-Montréal merchants joined and formed the Northwest Company which redirected the fur trade to the northwest and competed against the Hudson's Bay Company
-The goal of all this was to expand the territory
-It eventually reached the Arctic Ocean, the Rocky Mountains and the Pacific Ocean
-All these companies started competing
-There was lots of rivalry
-1821: the two companies merged
-The fur trade was based in Hudson Bay and no longer Montréal -
The railroad
-It met the same needs as canal construction
-The first railroad route was created in 1836 connecting the South Shore of Montréal to St. Jean of Richelieu (short distance)
-In the coming years many bigger railroads were created
-1848: a railroad connecting Montréal to Portland, Maine which allowed Montréal to access the sea all year long
-1851: "Great Trunk Railroad" which connected Sarnia, Ontario to Montréal and Rivière-du-Loup -
Economic development
-Until the 19th century: Canada's economy relied on timber, agriculture and fishing industries
-Most products were produced in Great Britain or in the United States, which meant there were fewer processing industries
-1850: industrialization expanded rapidly
-Early 20th century: a second phase began -
National Policies
-Canada's first Prime Policy was put into place
-The national policies were
-- encouraging immigration, especially in Western Canada to stimulate growth
--Improve railway transportation to assure better circulation of goods and people
--Impose custom tariffs of 25% to 30% on the importation of manufactured goods in order to protect Canadian industries from competition and to finance the construction of railway lines -
Economic impact of industrialization (2nd phase)
-Hydroelectricity was one of the main discoveries during the second phase of industrialization
-Hydroelectricity helped heavy industries (metalworks and pulp and paper mills) and many electrical consumers (light bulbs and radios) increase
-Americans played a big role during the second phase of industrialization, by investing in multiple capitals after World War 1 -
The primary sector
-Agriculture didn't always meet people's needs
-1930's: mechanization of farm
-After World War 2: the countryside was electrified and got electric power and electric appliances (refrigerators)
-Mechanical milk extraction devices also appeared
-Agriculture became diversified
-Farmers became specialized in dairy production or even animal husbandry
-The # of farmers decreased while production increased
-Natural resources were developed
-Many mines were opened -
The secondary sector
-Light industries producing leather, shoes, clothing, tobacco and food were discovered
-1900's: other industries which were export-oriented also got discovered; the pulp and paper and other wood-processed products (newsprints); ore processing (aluminum); transportation material (for railroads)
-The textile and the clothing industries suffered from strong competition from other countries such as India, China and Mexico -
The tertiary sector
-Jobs in the fields of administration and finance were numerous
-A new class of work was created: the office work
-Consumption increased, retail activities multiplied and retail chain stores opened competing against small merchants
-This created many social services, health and education jobs
-Tourism and leisure developed
-These were all concerned in the urban sector
-Many of these jobs required fewer qualifications and were not well-paid
-Women were generally salespeople or cashiers
