User:Mr Serjeant Buzfuz/Canadian seat-of-government dispute
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The Canadian seat of government dispute was a long-running political issue in the Province of Canada, from 1841 to 1866. During that time, the seat of government moved six times, to five different cities: Kingston, Montreal, Toronto (twice), Quebec (twice), and finally Ottawa. Significant political debates occurred, as the issue triggered strong regional rivalries. Numerous votes in the Legislative Assembly failed to establish a fixed seat of government.
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Canadian seat of government dispute | |
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Event | Political issue in the Province of Canada |
Cause | Lengthy dispute over the location of the seat of government |
Dates | 1841–1866 |
Locations of the seat of government |
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Outcome | Ottawa becomes seat of government, 1866 |
In 1857, the government of John A. Macdonald and George-Étienne Cartier, possibly following a suggestion from Governor General Sir Edmund Walker Head, proposed that the matter be referred to Queen Victoria to decide. The Legislative Assembly passed a resolution calling on the Queen to make the decision. Late in 1857, Victoria decided in favour of Ottawa.
Even with the Queen's decision, the proposal for Ottawa did not gain immediate support. In 1858, the Macdonald-Cartier ministry resigned after losing a confidence vote on the proposed move to Ottawa. They were able to return to office after a few days, in the Double Shuffle, but the issue remained divisive. The next year, there was another motion in the Assembly to establish Ottawa as the seat of government, which passed only on the agreement that the Parliament would move again to Quebec during the construction of the parliament buildings in Ottawa.
In 1860, construction began in Ottawa. Significant cost overruns temporarily halted construction, but by 1865 the buildings were complete. In 1866, the Parliament of the Province of Canada met in the new buildings for its final session. On July 1, 1867, the British North America Act, 1867 (now the Constitution Act, 1867), came into force, the final step of Canadian Confederation. Ottawa became the seat of government of the new federal government. Toronto became the seat of government for the new province of Ontario, and Quebec City for the new province of Quebec.