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508 BCE
Democracy in Ancient Greece/ Athenian Democracy
Greek Democracy created at Athens was direct, rather than representative. All adult male citizen over the age of 20 must take part. The officials of the democracy were in part elected by the Assembly and in large part chosen by lottery. Greek law has influenced Canadian law in multiple ways, including introducing Democracy, and the Canadian justice system borrowed extensively from Greek law, and examples include the presence of a Jury during trial -
31 BCE
The Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was known for their military, political, and social institutions, the ancient Romans conquered vast amounts of land in Europe and northern Africa, built roads and aqueducts, and spread Latin, their language, far and wide. Roman law influences Canadian law through pluralism. Canadian legal methods involve civil and common law, whereby common law applies in public law matters through administrative or criminal law. -
1215
The Magna Carta
It was the first document in English law to state the monarch was not above the law and it became the basis for freedom, democracy and rule of law in the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth, including Canada. Magna Carta's preoccupation with limited monarchy under the rule of law, and with setting out certain basic rights and freedoms in a written character, have been instrumental to the evolution of Canada's justice system and fundamental to our country's legal framework. -
1350
Iroquois Confederacy
The Haudenosaunee Confederacy, also known as the Iroquois league, Confederation of five (later six) Indian tribes across upper New York that in 17th-18th century played a strategic role in the struggle between the French and British for supremacy in North America. The Haudenosaunee allied themselves with the British against the French and against the American War of Independence. After American Independence, a number of Haudenosaunee were among the loyalists who came to Canada. -
Period: 1350 to
Iroquois Confederacy
The Haudenosaunee Confederacy, also known as the Iroquois league, Confederation of five (later six) Indian tribes across upper New York that in 17th-18th century played a strategic role in the struggle between the French and British for supremacy in North America. The Haudenosaunee allied themselves with the British against the French and against the American War of Independence. After American Independence, a number of Haudenosaunee were among the loyalists who came to Canada. -
Thomas Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes was an English philosopher. Hobbes is best known for his 1651 book Leviathan, in which he expounds an influential formulation of social contract Theory. His enduring contribution was as a political philosopher who justified wide ranging government powers on the basis of the self interested consent of citizens -
Period: to
Thomas Hobbes
Thomas Hobbes was an English philosopher. Hobbes is best known for his 1651 book Leviathan, in which he expounds an influential formulation of social contract Theory. His enduring contribution was as a political philosopher who justified wide ranging government powers on the basis of the self interested consent of citizens -
Divine Right of Kings
The Divine Right of Kings is a concept that has long been used as justification for monarchical absolutism. It posits that a king is divinely appointed by God and is accountable to God alone, giving him absolute, or near absolute power over his people. The current Canadian government has a thing for monarchy. In fact the Conservatives seem to like it better than democracy -
Period: to
The Divine Right of Kings
The Divine Right of Kings is a concept that has long been used as justification for monarchical absolutism. It posits that a king is divinely appointed by God and is accountable to God alone, giving him absolute, or near absolute power over his people. The current Canadian government has a thing for monarchy. In fact the Conservatives seem to like it better than democracy -
John Locke
John Locke was an English philosopher and physician, widely regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers and commonly known as the "father of liberalism" John Locke's political theory directly influenced the U.S Declaration of independence in its assertion of natural individual rights and its grounding of political authority in the consent of the governed -
Period: to
John Locke
John Locke was an English philosopher and physician, widely regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers and commonly known as the "father of liberalism" John Locke's political theory directly influenced the U.S Declaration of independence in its assertion of natural individual rights and its grounding of political authority in the consent of the governed -
The American Revolution
The American Revolution was the insurrection fought between 1775 and 1783 through which 13 of Great Britain's North American colonies threw off British rule to establish the sovereign United States of America, founded with the Declaration of Independence in 1776 The American Revolution's effect on Canada was relatively minor during the course of the conflict. The real impact came at the war's end when some forty thousand loyalists arrived in the country and forever transformed it. -
Period: to
The American Revolution
The American Revolution was the insurrection fought between 1775 and 1783 through which 13 of Great Britain's North American colonies threw off British rule to establish the sovereign United States of America, founded with the Declaration of Independence in 1776 The American Revolution's effect on Canada was relatively minor during the course of the conflict. The real impact came at the war's end when some forty thousand loyalists arrived in the country and forever transformed it. -
The French Revolution
The French Revolution was a time of social and political upheaval in France and its colonies that began in 1789 and ended in 1799. Inspired by liberal and radical ideas, its overthrow of the Monarchy influenced the decline of absolute Monarchies in other parts of Europe. The solidification of British rule over Canada and the creation of Upper and Lower Canada are generally considered to be the most significant impacts of the French Revolution in Canada -
Period: to
The French Revolution
The French Revolution was a time of social and political upheaval in France and its colonies that began in 1789 and ended in 1799. Inspired by liberal and radical ideas, its overthrow of the Monarchy influenced the decline of absolute Monarchies in other parts of Europe. The solidification of British rule over Canada and the creation of Upper and Lower Canada are generally considered to be the most significant impacts of the French Revolution in Canada -
British Parliament
The Act of Union 1800 created the United Kingdom by merging the previous Kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland. The Constitution act, 1867 authorized Parliament to establish a general court of appeal for Canada, as well as any additional courts to better administer the laws of Canada. It was under this authority that the Federal Courts, the Tax Court, and the Supreme Court of Canada were established -
The Great Depression
The stock market crashed because companies produced too many goods and the prices of the goods went down. There was little demand and too much supply. Soon after the crash, many businesses went bankrupt, and tens of thousands of Canadians lost their jobs. This made the economy worse. Widespread losses of jobs and savings ultimately transformed the country by triggering the birth of social welfare, a variety of populist political movements, and a more activist role for government in the economy. -
Period: to
The Great Depression
The stock market crashed because companies produced too many goods and the prices of the goods went down. There was little demand and too much supply. Soon after the crash, many businesses went bankrupt, and tens of thousands of Canadians lost their jobs. This made the economy worse. Widespread losses of jobs and savings ultimately transformed the country by triggering the birth of social welfare, a variety of populist political movements, and a more activist role for government in the economy. -
The 1960s
The 1960s was one of the most tumultuous and divisive decades in world history. The era was marked by the civil rights movement, the Vietnam War and antiwar protests, countercultural movements, political assassinations and the emerging "generation gap." The budget more than doubled. The rapid and dramatic development of government institutions and the vastly increased role of the state in the province's economic, social, and cultural life unleashed forces that would have major consequences