Father Joseph-Noël Ritchot (25 December 1825 – 16 March 1905), commonly known as Father Noël-Joseph Ritchot, was a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

noted for his role in negotiating with the

Government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

on behalf of the

Métis The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United States. They have a shared history and culture which derives ...

during the

Red River Resistance The Red River Rebellion (french: Rébellion de la rivière Rouge), also known as the Red River Resistance, Red River uprising, or First Riel Rebellion, was the sequence of events that led up to the 1869 establishment of a provisional government by ...

of 1869–1870.

Biography

Ritchot was born into a farming family in L'Assomption, In

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada (french: province du Bas-Canada) was a British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence (1791–1841). It covered the southern portion of the current Province of Quebec an ...

, in 1825. He studied and later taught at the College de L'Assomption before being ordained as a Catholic priest on 22 December 1855. In 1862 he volunteered to serve in

Rupert's Land Rupert's Land (french: Terre de Rupert), or Prince Rupert's Land (french: Terre du Prince Rupert, link=no), was a territory in British North America which comprised the Hudson Bay drainage basin; this was further extended from Rupert's Land t ...

under Bishop

Alexandre-Antonin Taché Alexandre-Antonin Taché, O.M.I., (23 July 1823 – 22 June 1894) was a Canadian Roman Catholic priest, missionary of the Oblate order, author, and the first Archbishop of Saint Boniface in Manitoba, Canada. Early life Alexandre-Antonin Tac ...

; he was assigned to a parish at

St Norbert St. Norbert (french: Saint-Norbert) is a bilingual (French and English) neighbourhood and the southernmost suburb of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. While outside the Perimeter Highway (the orbital road that surrounds most of Winnipeg), it is ...

. This parish was central to the Red River Rebellion, and Ritchot became involved as an advisor to the

leaders; his participation "gave legitimacy to the movement". After the establishment of a provisional government by the Métis, Ritchot was made one of the territory's three delegates to

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

, representing the concerns of the Métis to the

in seeking the admission of

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 ...

into the

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 ...

. After briefly being arrested on charges of being complicit in the death of

Thomas Scott Thomas Scott may refer to: Australia * Thomas Hobbes Scott (1783–1860), Anglican clergyman and first Archdeacon of New South Wales * Thomas Scott (Australian politician) (1865–1946), member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly * Thomas Sco ...

, Ritchot, who led the negotiations, "secured provincial status for the colony, along with the establishment of bilingual and bicultural institutions ..and1,400,000 acres of land set aside for the Métis", which led to enactment of the Manitoba Act.Goldsborough, Gordon (22 November 2013)
Memorable Manitobans: Joseph-Noel Ritchot (1825-1905)
Manitoba Historical Society, accessed December 10, 2022. Prime Minister

John A. Macdonald Sir John Alexander Macdonald (January 10 or 11, 1815 – June 6, 1891) was the first prime minister of Canada, serving from 1867 to 1873 and from 1878 to 1891. The dominant figure of Canadian Confederation, he had a political career that sp ...

referred to Ritchot as an "obdurate priest". Ritchot believed, as a sine qua non for talks to start, that he had also secured amnesty for those involved in the resistance, which was privately agreed to with Ottawa but Ontario pressure made it impossible to publicly announce an amnesty. Many Métis, unsatisfied with their treatment by the Canadians, left for territories further west. Ritchot bought riverside land from those departing to resell to French-Canadian immigrants, and also gave lands to allow the

Trappists The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance ( la, Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a ...

to settle in the new province. By 1897 he had become both vicar general and apostolic prothonotary. He died on 16 March 1905, at which point he was "dean of secular clergy in the St. Boniface diocese". The Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada dedicated a plaque to Ritchot in 1995.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ritchot, Joseph-Noel 1825 births 1905 deaths Canadian clergy Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada)