Situated in the very heart of the Great White North, Manitoba boasts a history marked by tension, resilience, and change. History is composed of political rebellions, conflicts among competing communities, and a long-standing pursuit of identity and autonomy. However, folded within those struggles are also moments of gallantry, steps of peaceful negotiation, and permanent transformations. This change became the catalyst for the chain reaction that started after the formation of the Canadian Confederation in 1867. Indigenous lands, once organised under traditional governance and way of life, became the focus of political negotiation, resistance, and redefinition. The earlier clashes and accords gradually fashioned into what is present-day Manitoba, a province of multiplicities and dynamism.
The First Nations were attracted to Manitoba for its arable land, fertile soils, and many landscapes long before the Europeans arrived in Manitoba. The alluvial floodplains of the Red River and Assiniboine River, which join at Winnipeg, carried the ultimate designation as farmlands for the very early settlers. Later, it became the epicenter of many political uprisings and turmoil.
After ending the last Ice Age, around 10,000 years ago, several First Nations occupied the Manitoba area. Hydrographic parties of English traders sailing into the Hudson Bay in the early 17th Century gave the first European glimpse of the lands later called Manitoba. Forming the Hudson's Bay Company, the British explorers seized large areas in Manitoba, which came to be called Rupert's Land, in the name of Prince Rupert.
By the 18th century, the significance of the land was realised by the explorers. Along the Red River Valley, French and Scottish merchants established trade points, exchanging goods with the local Indigenous tribes. Great Britain took control of the French areas in 1763, and over the next 100 years, the trading posts and settlements evolved into cities and towns. The French merchants, recognising the trading potential of the region, built posts to exchange goods such as tools, textiles, and natural resources with the indigenous tribes. This economic relationship gradually evolved as French and Scottish traders integrated with the locals, laying the foundation for the Métis people.
The Métis people, descendants of the French fur traders and indigenous tribes, emerged around the beginning of the 18th century. As an autonomous people, they had their own governance and social traditions and held the fertile Red River Valley lands. Though they were neither European nor fully local, but a combination of both traditions. The Red River Valley was key to their identity, and it was where they hunted, farmed, traded and established their tight-knit communities.
The British Canadian administration was keen on expanding territory, specifically to include the lands held by the Métis people. Tensions reached a boiling point when Rupert's Land was transferred to the Dominion of Canada in 1869 without consultation with the local people, and this led to the Red River Resistance.
Louis Riel, the leader of the Métis people, opposed the transfer of their territory and established a provisional government to enter negotiations for entering the Confederation. While the expansion did not outwardly present a threat to the Métis people or local tribes, there were fears that they would lose their sovereignty.
Riel's solution to the political crisis was to create a set of terms and request the Canadian government to establish Manitoba as a Province.
The result of the Red River Rebellion was a political victory for the Métis, but it was not achieved easily. The pro-Canadian party attempted to overthrow Riel's provisional government and recruited supporters to force Riel out by violence. They were discovered, and the recruited members were arrested and put on trial. Ambroise Dydime Lepine and Major Charles Boulton were pardoned. But Irish protestant Thomas Scott, who showed contempt towards the Métis people and Riel, was not. He was executed by firing squad on March 4, 1870.
The Manitoba Act was passed just a few months later, making Manitoba part of the constitution of Canada and the 5th province of Canada. The execution of Thomas Scott was far from forgotten, though. It created outrage in Pro British part of Canada, especially in Ontario. It created a divide between English Protestants and French Catholics, shaping the political atmosphere and the relationship between the federal government and the province of Manitoba.
Part of the reason for the outrage was the manner in which Thomas Scott was executed. Contemporary reports suggest that he wasn't killed outright by the firing squad but fatally wounded and then thrown into an open coffin to die of his injuries. Numerous accounts were supporting this, but Riel had fired the editor of the papers reporting them. The result severely damaged Riel's reputation.
In 1885, Riel was summoned to Saskatchewan to assist Métis leaders in their fight for rights against the Canadian government. But the rebellion soon ended in tragedy as it escalated into armed hostilities. Riel was defeated in battle at Batoche in 1885 and shortly thereafter executed. Riel's untimely death and sudden execution turned Louis Riel into a martyr for the cause, further splintering communities in Manitoba.
But it was not just the ethnic divide between the French-indigenous people (who were mostly Catholic) and the pro-English protestants. There were also struggles between the Federal government of Canada and the local Provincial Government of Manitoba.
Between 1890 and 1894, a series of provincial laws were passed that made English the official language taught in schools. This went against the Manitoba Act of 1870, which stated English and French should both be the official languages of the newly created province. The government moved to enforce these acts and cut funding for Catholic schools, primarily those with a French language focus. It was not only aimed at setting English as the official language of the province. The government attempted to establish a unified school system featuring secular schools rather than Catholic ones and increase the influence of English Protestantism in Manitoba.
The French Catholic minority took the issue to the federal level, with Prime Minister Mackenzie Bowell attempting to bring back the funding. However, the crisis ended in 1896 when Liberal leader Wilfrid Laurier made a compromise, allowing for limited religious instruction in public schools.
A key transportation hub, Winnipeg, the capital of Manitoba, was situated along the Canadian Pacific Railway and served as a pivotal economic and trading centre in Canada. The location, along the railway and in fertile lands, made it an ideal destination for workers in Canada. Winnipeg blossomed as a result, and by 1911, it was the third most populous city in Canada. But this was all to change after the First World War. Canada entered the War alongside the UK and sent over half a million troops to serve in the Canadian Expeditionary Force.
The Allies won the war, but it came at a cost, a cost that was especially felt in Canada. Winnipeg and other cities were in no shape to accommodate the large influx of returning soldiers. Labour conditions diminished, recession hit, and it led to one of the biggest strikes in Canadian history.
In May of 1919, over 30,000 workers quit their jobs in what became the Winnipeg General Strike. It lasted for 6 weeks, during which there were many arrests, violence and rioting. The strike culminated on June 21, also known as Bloody Saturday, when two people were killed. The strikes sent ripples all across Canada and were the driving force behind reshaping the Canadian labour landscape. The event led to the formation of political movements, such as the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation, and gave greater recognition to labour rights and unions.
In 1950, the Red River overflowed, creating a devastating flood that forced over 100,000 people to evacuate. It also did tremendous damage to Winnipeg's infrastructure and the surrounding communities. It didn't just extend to the suburban or rural neighborhoods of Winnipeg.
Entire neighbourhoods were submerged, schools and businesses shut down, and transportation came to a halt. The scale of the disaster was unprecedented in Canadian history at the time. It also left thousands homeless and billions of dollars in property damage.
This natural disaster brought the provincial and federal governments, who worked tirelessly to restore the people who lost their homes and livelihoods. The two institutions supported the local Manitobans and built flood control safety measures.
Premier Duff Roblin initiated the Red River Floodway. A progressive conservative, many opposed Roblin, and as a result, they named the Floodway Duff's Ditch to insult the Premier. The massive project, which took 18 years to complete, is one of the most outstanding engineering achievements in Canada. It is estimated to have saved over $40 billion in flood damages that would have happened since then.
The struggle for the rights of Indigenous people began in Manitoba with the passage of the Manitoba Act. From the 1960s onward, land rights and the protection of culture, language, and identity would become paramount among them. And so, grassroots movements such as the Manitoba Indian Brotherhood arose to fight for the rights and self-governance of their people. Assemblies like that of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs would unite the First Nations tribes and negotiate for political representation on their behalf with provincial and federal governments.
These are still very much alive and bringing reforms nowadays. The landmark Daniels vs Canada ruling of 2016 held that the federal government has an obligation towards Métis and non-status Indians. Restoring and initiating land claims and modern treaties, Indigenous communities were granted a certain degree of autonomy. Of course, it cannot compensate for the years of injustice or halt the historical revisionism that was enforced in the 19th and 20th centuries. Still, gradually, the Indigenous peoples are carving spaces, voices, and authority for themselves. It is a long and hard road, but there are more than enough spokespersons and supporters who carry the movement into the future.
Manitoba's story is one of deep-seated resistance, hard-fought rights, and unshakeable resilience. When the Métis stood in mighty determination during the Red River Resistance or in the strength of numbers that united during the Winnipeg General Strike, the province has never been an easy one to have withstanding crises. It cannot just be a history of fights for Manitoba- no, its communities took time to come together, fight for fairness, and try to put in place systems, either politically or through the construction of basic infrastructures such as the Red River Floodway, which would then act as a shield for the people.