The Fathers of Confederation are the 36 people who attended at least one of the Charlottetown Conference of 1864 (23 attendees), the

Quebec Conference of 1864 The Quebec Conference was held from October 10 to 24, 1864, to discuss a proposed Canadian confederation. It was in response to the shift in political ground when the United Kingdom and the United States had come very close to engaging in war w ...

(33 attendees), and the

London Conference of 1866 The London Conference was held in London, in the United Kingdom, in 1866. It was the third and final in a series of conferences that led to Canadian Confederation in 1867. Sixteen delegates from the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunsw ...

(16 attendees), preceding

Canadian Confederation Canadian Confederation (french: Confédération canadienne, link=no) was the process by which three British North American provinces, the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, were united into one federation called the Canada, Dom ...

. Only eleven people attended all three conferences.

Table of participation

The following table lists the participants in the Charlottetown, Quebec, and London Conferences and their attendance at each stage.

Group photographs

Other possible claimants to title

Four other individuals have been labelled as Fathers of Confederation.

Hewitt Bernard Hewitt Bernard, (1825 – 24 February 1893) was a Canadian lawyer, militia officer, editor, and civil servant. Life and career Bernard was born in Spanish Town, Jamaica. He was educated in Bath, England, and practiced law education in Ja ...

, who was the recording secretary at the Charlottetown Conference, is considered by some to be a Father of Confederation. The leaders most responsible for bringing three specific provinces into Confederation after 1867 are also referred to as Fathers of Confederation. * The

provisional government A provisional government, also called an interim government, an emergency government, or a transitional government, is an emergency governmental authority set up to manage a political transition generally in the cases of a newly formed state or f ...

established by

Louis Riel Louis Riel (; ; 22 October 1844 – 16 November 1885) was a Canadian politician, a founder of the province of Manitoba, and a political leader of the Métis people. He led two resistance movements against the Government of Canada and its first ...

ultimately negotiated the terms under which

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

entered the Canadian Confederation in 1870. * The leadership of

Amor De Cosmos Amor De Cosmos (born William Alexander Smith; August 20, 1825 – July 4, 1897) was a Canadian journalist, publisher and politician. He served as the second premier of British Columbia. Early life Amor De Cosmos was born William Alexander Smit ...

was instrumental both in bringing democracy to

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

and in bringing the province into Confederation in 1871. * The province of Newfoundland entered the Canadian Confederation in 1949 under the leadership of Joey Smallwood, who was then referred to as the "only living Father of Confederation".

References

External links

- Library and Archives Canada {{Authority control Canadian Confederation Pre-Confederation Canada Post-Confederation Canada (1867–1914)

Table of participation

Group photographs

Other possible claimants to title

See also

References

Further reading

External links