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30,000 BCE
The arrival of the Amerindians to North America
The first occupants arrived many thousands of years before the Europeans. They came from Asia through the Bering Strait land bridge approximately 30 000 years after glaciations lowered the ocean's level. They gradually occupied the entire North American continent. -
Founding of Quebec
Samuel de Champlain founded Quebec. His goal was to facilitate the fur trade with the Amerindians. This region of the St. Lawrence River, where Quebec is located, was an advantage because it is very narrow which enabled control of the river traffic. -
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The French Regime
The Europeans arrived to a new territory. There, they found the Iroquois, Algonquians and the Inuits also known as the Amerindians. Their goals consisted of converting the Amerindians to their religion and culture and to colonize the territory which was named New France. New France was considered a colony of France until 1760 when the British arrived and took over the territory. -
Introduction of the Seigneurial system
This system was the same system used in France. The goal was to promote the settlement of settlers and to further advance the development of agriculture. Jean Talon would grant seigneuries to a seigneur who divided the land into portions for the censitaires who were peasants that would work on these lands. They were located on either side of the banks of the St. Lawrence River and were divided in the shape of rectangles. The different areas of land were perpendicular to the water ways. -
The Company of One-Hundred Associates
The Company of One-Hundred Associates was founded by Cardinal Richelieu. The fur trading companies were to colonize New France in exchange for the monopoly on the fur trade. Their obligations included the following: to establish 4000 settles in 15 years, pay the fees to sustain these settlers for 3 years and finally, grant artisans the right to open up shops in New France. The colonization program was a failure because by 1645, they were only able to settle 900 colonists in New France. -
Founding of Trois-Rivières
Laviolette is the founder of Trois-Rivières. It was founded for business purposes related to the fur trade. The advantage Trois-Rivières had over Quebec was that it was located closer to the Amerindians which made the fur trade easier. -
Founding of Ville-Marie (Montreal)
Ville-Marie was founded by Chomedey de Maisonneuve along with others who helped him establish this permanent settlement. These important people include: Jeanne Mance and Marguerite Bourgeois. The goal of this settlement was to convert the Amerindians to the Catholic faith. The location of Ville-Marie was prime as it was located in the heart of the Amerindian territory which made it the most important trading post later on. -
Royal Government under Louis XIV
King Louis XIV took back control of the colonial development from the fur trading companies after they failed to complete their mission. Based on the advice of his Finance Minister, Jean-Baptiste Colbert, King Louis XIV created the position of intendant who was in charge of the settlement and planning of the territory. He named Jean Talon as the first intendant who was obligated to execute various measures to ensure that the population increased and became diversified. -
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Immigration and birth policies under Jean Talon
Jean Talon placed immigration and birth policies in order to encourage population growth. He invited the engagés, the Fille du Roi and the soldiers to immigrate to New France. He gave gifts to large families and punishments to those who weren't married at a certain age to encourage young marriages and a high birth rate. In 1663, less than 3000 people lived in the St. Lawrence Valley. By 1673, the population of New France doubled to 6700 inhabitants which was the result of Jean Talon’s policies. -
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Seven years war
This war was between France and Great Britain. Wherever they fought, their colonies did as well. The seven years war originated in Europe then continued in North and South America, Africa and Asia. They fought all around the world because they wanted new territories. Each country wanted to colonize the most land possible and become the most powerful nation. The result - Great Britain won the seven years war so France had to hand over New France which then became a British colony in 1763. -
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The British Regime
The British Regime started in 1760 as a consequence of the Conquest of New France. The Thirteen British colonies had won this war against New France which resulted in the English taking over the territory. However, because the mother countries were still fighting in the seven years war, New France only became an official British colony in 1763, once the war ended. New France was now called the Province of Quebec. French laws, institutions and religion were now changed to British ones. -
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British Military Regime
Between 1760 and 1763, New France's territory was occupied by the English. This period was called the British military rule. It was an in between period waiting for the results of the seven years war. The people living in New France had to wait for France and Great Britain to be done the seven years war to decide what the future holds for the colony. Since the war wasn't over, New France was not officially a British colony yet, during the British military regime. -
The Treaty of Paris
The Treaty of Paris marked the end of the seven years war. It was signed by the French in February of 1763 where the French gave Great Britain all the territories in North America. The only exception were two small islands, St-Pierre and Miquelon that the French were able to keep for fishing purposes, for example. The signing of this Treaty also marked the end of the French Regime. -
The Royal Proclamation
The Royal Proclamation is the first constitution of the Province of Quebec. The territory of the Province of Quebec was reduced to the St. Lawrence Valley. The content of this constitution includes the following; english criminal and civil laws were to apply; British immigration was encouraged; the lands were no longer divided into seigneuries but into Townships. Once this proclamation was put in place, French administrators returned to France and were replaced by British administrators. -
The Quebec Act
The purpose of this act was to ensure the loyalty of the Canadians towards Great Britain incase the Thirteen colonies were to rebel and fight against them. Great Britain grew the territory of the Province of Quebec by almost three times. The following advantages were given to the Canadians: French civil laws returned; seigneurial rights were restored; they received complete religious freedom which also meant they can now take on public posts. Finally, collection of the tithe was brought back. -
The Treaty of Versailles
The Treaty of Versailles ended the American British war over the independence of the Thirteen Colonies. Great Britain recognized the United States as an independent country and signed the Treaty of Versailles. With the signing of this Treaty, the size of the Province of Quebec was reduced because all the territories south of the Great Lakes were given to the United States. -
Loyalist immigration
During the War of Independence, not all American colonists supported the revolutionaries. Those who didn't, about 1/3 of the colonists, remained loyal to the King. A total of 6000 Loyalists came to the Province of Quebec. Most Loyalists were farmers who settled in Gaspésie and Sorel. Many of them cleared land south of the St. Lawrence River close to the American border and subdivided these lands into townships. As a result, they established the Eastern Townships. -
The Constitutional Act
Once the Loyalists arrived in the Province of Quebec, they made several claims to have more rights. They wanted to live by english laws because it was a British colony. The government found a solution. The Province of Quebec was divided into Upper and Lower Canada. Each section would have its own religion, laws and land division in order to make all the population happy, both french and english. The Anglophones will settle in Upper Canada while the Francophones will settle in Lower Canada. -
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Cholera epidemics
In the 1830's, British immigrants brought with them a deadly disease called cholera. Since no treatment existed, it caused the deaths of more than 3000 people in Quebec city. From 1832, immigrants arriving in Canada were put on quarantine on Grosse-île, located near Quebec. The government chose to create an island for the sick people to prevent the rest of society from getting sick. Nonetheless, other epidemics appeared. -
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Emigration of French Canadians to the West and to the United States
In the 18th and 19th centuries, French Canadians made up the majority of Quebec’s population due to a very high birth rate. However, from 1830, an agricultural crisis occurred and the birth rate slowed due to the exodus of the French Canadians to the West and to the United States. From 1870 to 1930, approximately 700 000 French Canadians emigrated; they formed the Franco-Americans. They attempted to preserve their language and culture but overtime they were assimilated to the American culture. -
Great Famine in Ireland
Approximately 90 000 people, mainly Irish, landed on Grosse-île escaping the Potato Famine. The Potato Famine was a period of time when there was a bad harvest of potatoes and the Irish were forced to abandon their lands due to malnutrition. This was a problem as they ate many potatoes. They were crowded onto unsanitary ships. There, they caught a disease that they couldn't fight off called typhoid. This disease killed 8000 people, the majority of them were Irish. -
The National Policy of John A. Macdonald
Prime minister, John A. Macdonald, created the National Policy to contain the economic crisis of 1873 and create a domestic market. He wanted to connect Canada and populate the country as well. His objectives were to support Canadian industries by increasing custom duties, increase trade between the Dominion's various regions and settle the land west of Ontario through immigration. According to this policy, more than 1.5 million immigrants will come to settle in Canada. -
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The consequences of World War I on immigration
After the First World War, immigration experienced a sudden decline. During this time, immigration policies were racist and discriminatory. Immigrants originating from enemy countries were considered to be a threat to the country's internal security and were refused. Those already living in Canada, whose country of origin were at war with the Allied Powers had their rights restricted. -
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Baby Boom
After the Second World War, the return of the troops and economic prosperity lead to the growth of the population as marriages and the birth rate increased. More than 2 million babies were born over the course of 15 years. This period was known as the Baby Boom. -
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Population increase following World War II
After World War II, the Prime Minister of Canada, William Lyon Mackenzie King reopened the doors to immigration to ensure the country’s economic growth since immigrants worked, produced and consumed goods and services. Economic growth led to the improvement of living conditions, the implementation of Medicare and better food quality control. Also, a baby boom occurred just after World War II due to post-war prosperity and more than 30 000 immigrants arrived in the Province. -
Quebec's Ministry of Immigration
The federal government put an end to discrimination based on ethnic origin. Instead, immigrants were chosen based on their education and training for the job market. Immigrants started to arrive from all the continents. Quebec played a role in selecting immigrants to ensure the survival of the French language. Quebec assessed selected immigrants and refugees based on integration criteria. Immigrants were also selected based on their ability to adapt to a francophone society.
