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The Confederation Act of 1867 Essay

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The Confederation act of 1867 without question has had a major influence on the status of contemporary Canada. It has helped shape Canada into one of the worlds most politically and economically powerful countries; a country that is strong, independent, and united. There was a series of events which led to the confederation of Canada, some which are more significant than others. However, I believe that despite the significance of events such as the British encouragement of uniting its North American colonies, the central and key reason for confederation was the fear of potential American (Yankee) inhabitance (whether by persuasion or invasion) of the divided and vast British North American colonies, and the way that the “Fathers of …show more content…

John A. Macdonald, the prime minister of Canada at the time, had seen first hand the effect of divided colonies and the devastating impact that it could have on a nation. However, there was a serious and impending threat against the colonies of Canada from the northern United States, not only because of the British support of the southern states during the war, but also because of three specific events: The St. Albans Raid, the Trent Crisis, and the Alabama Affair. The St. Albans raid involved a group of confederate agents who robbed over two hundred thousand dollars (a significant amount of money in the 1800’s) from three banks in St. Albans, Vermont. These raiders fled to Canada, and although they were caught and the money was returned, they were not persecuted because they could not be trialed in Canada when the crime had been committed in the United States. President Lincoln prevented the northerners from pursuing the raiders into Canada to murder them, as this could have potentially resulted in a war, which would in turn benefit the southern states. The Trent affair once again raised tensions, when two Confederate diplomats were arrested in Boston while transferring a mail packet Trent to England. This greatly angered London, as they sent many troops as reinforcements to protect their colonies, eventually the diplomats were released and tensions eased once

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