The Stony Monday Riot took place in

Bytown Bytown is the former name of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It was founded on September 26, 1826, incorporated as a town on January 1, 1850, and superseded by the incorporation of the City of Ottawa on January 1, 1855. The founding was marked by a s ...

(now

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 c ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

on Monday September 17, 1849. In 1849 the peregrinating Canadian Parliament was located at Montreal. The Rebellion Losses Bill passed in the House of Assembly by 47 to 18; there was a majority not only amongst the British members of

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 ...

but also in

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a Province, part of The Canadas, British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North Americ ...

.Ottawa Past and Present - 1927 by A. H. D. Ross, M.A., M.F.
In spite of all protests,

Lord Elgin Earl of Elgin is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, created in 1633 for Thomas Bruce, 3rd Lord Kinloss. He was later created Baron Bruce, of Whorlton in the County of York, in the Peerage of England on 30 July 1641. The Earl of Elgin is the h ...

, then

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

had signed the bill, compensating Lower Canadians for losses suffered during the Rebellions of 1837-38 in April 1849. The bill was unpopular with Loyalists, known as

Tories A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. The ...

because it compensated those who had participated in the rebellion unless they had been convicted of

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

. In the riots that ensued in Montreal, then the capital of Canada, Lord Elgin was assaulted and the Parliament Buildings were burned. Lord Elgin let it be known that he was considering relocating the nation's capital and scheduled a visit to Bytown. Tory supporters, including the mayor

Robert Hervey Robert Hervey (August 10, 1820 – December 16, 1903) was the third mayor of Bytown in 1849.Dave Mullington "Chain of Office: Biographic Sketches of Ottawa's Mayors (1847–1948)" (Renfrew, Ontario: General Store Publishing House, 2005) He was a C ...

, opposed organizing a reception for Lord Elgin. At a meeting to plan for the visit organized by Reformists in the North Ward Market, now the Byward Market area, the two opposing sides clashed, first with sticks and stones, but later with firearms. 30 people were wounded and one man, David Borthwick, was shot and died. Two days later, the two political factions, armed with cannons, muskets and pistols faced off on the

Sappers Bridge The Plaza Bridge in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, is an automotive and pedestrian bridge that crosses the Rideau Canal just south of the Ottawa locks. It joins Wellington Street and Elgin Street in the Downtown core to the west with Rideau Street ...

over the

Rideau Canal The Rideau Canal, also known unofficially as the Rideau Waterway, connects Canada's capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, to Lake Ontario and the Saint Lawrence River at Kingston. It is 202 kilometres long. The name ''Rideau'', French for "curtain", ...

, but the military arrived in time to defuse the situation. Lord Elgin delayed his visit until July 1853 and received a warm reception. Bytown, renamed

in 1855, became the capital of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

in 1867.

References

External links

Byward-Market.com
{{Ottawa 1849 in Canada 1849 crimes in North America 1849 riots September 1849 events Conflicts in Canada Riots and civil disorder in Canada History of Ottawa Political violence in Canada Toryism Liberalism in Canada 1840s crimes in Canada

See also

References

External links