·born at Red River Settlement [Man] 22 Oct 1844 - died at Regina 16 Nov 1885.
·Riel was educated at St Boniface and studied for the priesthood at the Collège de Montréal.
·1865 he studied law with Rodolphe Laflamme
·The Red River and the North-West was to be transferred from the Hudsons Bay Company(HBC) to the Canadian government.
·1869, the federal government, anticipating the transfer appointed William McDougall as lieutenant-governor of the new territory.
·John A. Macdonald sent survey crews to Red River even though the land was not yet part of Canada.
·The Métis were fearful of what would happen because of the transfer.
·They were also wary of the aggressive Anglo-Protestant immigrants from Ontario.
·There had been a grasshopper plague in 1867-8 and they were suffering
·They organized a "National Committee" of which Riel was secretary.
·Riel's education and his father's history marked him out as an obvious leader.
·The committee halted the surveys and prevented McDougall from entering Red River.
·On Nov 2 the Metis seized Fort Garry (HBC trading post) and the HBC officials offering no resistance.
·The committee invited the people of Red River, both English and French speaking, to send delegates to Fort Garry.
·Riel created a "List of Rights" for the people of Red River
·A Canadian armed resistance tried to take Fort Garry but failed and surrendered to the Metis.
·They were imprisoned in Ft Garry and Riel issued a "Declaration of the People of Rupert's Land and the Northwest"
·On Dec 23 Riel became head of the "provisional government" of Red River.
·The Canadian government sent special commissioners "of goodwill" to Red River including Donald A. Smith, chief representative of the HBC in Canada.
·The provisional government included 20 French and 20 English members.
·New government created a "List of Rights" and endorsed Riel's provisional government.
·The Canadian prisoners taken in Dec were released and plans were made to send 3 delegates to Ottawa to negotiate the entry of Red River into Confederation.
·Meanwhile a force of Canadians including surveyor Thomas Scott gathered hoping to enlist support in the Scottish parishes of Red River.
·The appearance of this armed force alarmed the Métis who promptly rounded them up and imprisoned them in Ft Garry.
·The Métis convened a court-martial at which Thomas Scott was sentenced to death.
·Scott was executed by firing squad on 4 Mar 1870.
·Bishop A.A. Taché of St Boniface in Montreal reached Red River 4 days after Scott's death.
·He brought a copy of the Canadian federal proclamation of amnesty which he believed included any actions by the Metis up to that date.
·Taché persuaded Riel's council to free all prisoners and send the delegates to Ottawa.
·In spite of opposition from the Orange Lodges of Ontario, of which Thomas Scott had been a member, the Canadian government and Riel's delegates came to an agreement.
·This lead to the Manitoba Act passed 12 May 1870, and the transfer was set for July 15.
·Also, the federal government agreed to give 1 400 000 acres (566 580 ha) to the Métis and to make bilingual services for the new province.
·Other than verbal assurances, there was no specific mention of the amnesty, however.
·The federal government sent a military force to Red River in the summer of 1870.
·The Red River Expedition was supposed to be "a mission of peace" however Riel had good reason to fear its arrival.
·Riel fled to the US.
·Later he returned quietly to his home at St-Vital
·When Manitoba was threatened with a Fenian raid from the US in the autumn of 1871, Riel offered a force of Métis cavalry.
·In Ontario Riel was widely denounced as Thomas Scott's "murderer" and a reward of $5000 was offered for his arrest.
·In Québec he was regarded as a hero, a defender of the Roman Catholic faith and French culture in Manitoba.
·Because he didn’t want a political confrontation between Ontario and Quebec, Sir John A. Macdonald tried to persuade Riel to remain in voluntary exile in the US, even providing him with funds.
·Instead Riel entered federal politics.
·Riel was successful in a by-election in 1873 and in the general election of 1874.
·Riel went to Ottawa and signed the register but was expelled from the House of Parliament.
·Although re-elected, Riel did not attempt to take his seat again.
·In Feb 1875 the federal government finally adopted a motion granting amnesty to Riel conditional on 5 years' banishment from "Her Majesty's dominions."
·Shortly after, Riel suffered a nervous breakdown and was admitted to hospital at Longue Pointe (Montréal) as "Louis R. David,"
·Later he was transferred to the mental asylum at Beauport, Qué, as "Louis La Rochelle."
·Riel was always introspective by nature and strongly religious.
·Riel became obsessed with the idea that he had a religious mission - to establish a new North American Catholicism with Bishop Bourget of Montréal as Pope of the New World.
·Riel was released in Jan 1878 and he went to the US, eventually settling in Montana, married and began teaching.
· June 1884 Riel was asked by a group of Canadian Métis to help them obtain their legal rights in the Saskatchewan valley.
·July 1884 Riel and his family reached Batoche, the main centre of Métis settlement in Saskatchewan.
·He conducted a peaceful agitation, speaking throughout the district and preparing a petition.
·Sent to Ottawa in Dec, Riel's petition was acknowledged and the federal government promised to appoint a commission to investigate and report on western problems.
·1885, Riel encountered opposition in Saskatchewan because of his unorthodox religious views, old memories of Thomas Scott's execution.
·Riel had made personal claims against the federal government (which he estimated at $35 000).
·Some suggested these claims suggested self-interest as the motive behind his political activity.
·Riel became frustrated and began to contemplate direct action.
·March 19 Riel seized the parish church at Batoche, armed his men, formed a provisional government and demanded the surrender of Fort Carlton.
·By 1885 the North-West Mounted Police had been established and a railway to the West almost completed.
·This meant the Canadian government was able to supply troops and munitions quickly. This was very different than during the Red River Rebellion.
·During the fighting Riel led the Metis along with his military commander Gabriel Dumont to win a number of battles despite smaller numbers and inferior weapons.
·The Metis were joined by the Plains people led by Big Bear and Crowfoot.
·Riel was convinced that God was directing him and saw himself as the "Prophet of the New World."
·Riel himself rarely fought, instead would raise his arms in prayer as the fighting went on around him.
·After 2 months of fighting Riel surrendered – this was called the North-West Rebellion.
·On 6 July 1885, a formal charge of treason was laid against Riel and on 20 July his trial began at Regina.
·His counsel proposed to defend him on the grounds of insanity.
·Riel denied his insanity.
·His cousin, Charles Nolin gave damning testimony.
·The jury found him guilty however they recommended a light sentence.
·3 examining physicians found Riel excitable, but only one considered him insane.
·The federal government decided in favour of hanging.
·Riel was executed at Regina 16 Nov 1885.
·His body was sent to St Boniface and interred in the cemetery in front of the cathedral.
·Politically and philosophically, Riel's execution has had a lasting effect on Canadian history.
·In the West, the immediate result was to depress the lot of the Métis. In central Canada, French Canadian Nationalism was strengthened and came to power in Québec in 1886.
·In the longer term Québec voters moved from their traditional support of the Conservative Party to the Liberal Party.
·Even after a century, Riel and his fate excite political debate, particularly in Québec and Manitoba.
·Riel's execution has remained a contentious issue even today and demands have been made for a retroactive pardon.
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ReplyDeleteKane O'Brien