The Rebellion of 1837

The Rebellion of 1837 was a battle between the habitants of Upper and Lower Canada and the Canadian government. More importantly it was a battle for righteousness between the French and the English. The habitants believed the problem with the government was the structure in Canada. All of Canada's power was derived from the Governor, the Executive Council and Legislative Council. British government appointed the two councils. The other chamber of legislature was the Legislative Assembly. The assembly was elected by the people and mostly composed of French Canadians. The crisis that triggered the rebellion first arose in Lower Canada. The population of Lower Canada was mostly French Canadians. They made up the Legislative Assembly, but their power in government was futile.

A strong voice in the Legislative Assembly was a Patriot, Louis Joseph Papineau. The Patriots were a party created to express the nationalist and democratic thoughts of French Canadians. Papineau made efforts to strengthen the Assembly and consequently creating equality for the French. In Upper Canada the colonial system wasn't as big of deal as it was in Lower Canada, mainly because the English populated Upper Canada more then in Lower Canada. In Upper Canada, many were to have thought that there was corruption in the government. This was mainly due to the fact that decisions were being made by what is known as The Family Compact. The Family Compact was made up of the social and economic elite. William Lyon Mackenzie, a former mayor of York (Toronto), didn't like the way the government was working and decided to instigate an armed rebellion to support the Patriots. There are only few in this world that would sacrifice lives to make a point of what they believe in. Is this really what it had to come down to, bloodshed between the government and Canada's people?

Joseph Louis Papineau was elected into the Lower Canada Legislative Assembly in 1809. Making efforts to lessen the strength of the council, Papineau composed a list called "The Ninety Two Resolutions." One of the demands on the list read that the assembly chooses the executive council. This would give the French equal representation in the government. Few years later the British government came up with ten resolutions, adopting policies the Patriots contested. They refused the demands for the assembly to choose the executive council. Papineau and the Patriots organized a French- Canadian revolt against the government in Lower Canada. Was there no other way to settle this matter?

In Mackenzie's early years he started a newspaper called "The Colonial Advocate." The newspaper was designed to speak for the people. His only goal was to spark change in Upper Canada. His writings were always witty and controversial but that is what made them exciting. In his very first issue he fearlessly stated: "Far be it from us to desire to bring into disrepute the government of this country; yet we will not fail to point out their errors. Ridicule shall not be spared: it may effect our purpose when grave argument would fail." Through his speech, we get an immediate feeling that Mackenzie was a man of bravery. Years after starting his newspaper, Mackenzie was elected to the legislative assembly of Upper Canada. He was later expelled for attacking the government in his paper. In 1834, he was elected the first mayor of York (Toronto). In 1836, Mackenzie started another newspaper called "The Constitution." He continued to write bitter yet sincere articles about he Canadian government. He wrote this once in an article, warning Canadian habitants of the consequences of a poor government:

To yourselves, therefore, Farmers, in the hour of your trial, you must look for aid. The eyes of the whole of the Colonies, and of America, are fixed on you. You are the only true nobility that this country can boast of. Through you only, by your Representatives, can the real state of things become known in the British senate. If ye choose the wisest, and the honestest, the most esteemed of your body; men who have been long known as tried patriots, in whose souls the voice of freedom is not yet extinct; who hold no offices under, or receive any gifts from the Crown; and who as fathers, as husbands, as members of society, are kind and brotherly minded; men of cultivated minds and discreet demeanor, fearing God and hating covetousness. If to such as these ye trust your liberties, there is yet hope for your country, that such representatives will assert your rights, recover your due influence, and be a means to consolidate your freedom. But if ye will, as heretofore, choose collectors and king's advocates, ambassadors, parasites and sycophants, to manage your affairs, you will dearly rue it; you and the generation that shall hereafter. Look at SpainÐ'--Look at GreeceÐ'--Look at Revolutionary FranceÐ'--behold the sad effects of misgovernment and beware!Ð'--The errors were in the princes in the end, but sprang from an effeminacy in the people in the beginning.

Mackenzie discovered that writing about the situation of Canada's government was not alone going to make an impact. In early 1837 he decided to form a small group of common Canadian inhabitants, armed with muskets, pitchfork and anything else that could kill to rebel against the Canadian government. Did lives have to be lost for this matter to come to a conclusion?

Sir Francis Bond Head, Lieutenant