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Batoche, which lies between
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and
Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...
in the
Canadian province Canada has ten provinces and three territories that are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Constitution of Canada, Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North Amer ...
of
Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...
, was the site of the historic
Battle of Batoche A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...
during the
North-West Rebellion The North-West Rebellion (), was an armed rebellion of Métis under Louis Riel and an associated uprising of Cree and Assiniboine mostly in the District of Saskatchewan, against the Government of Canada, Canadian government. Important events i ...
of 1885. The battle resulted in the defeat of
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 in Canada, Métis people. He led two resistance movements against the Government of ...
and his
Métis The Métis ( , , , ) are a mixed-race Indigenous people whose historical homelands include Canada's three Prairie Provinces extending into parts of Ontario, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories and the northwest United States. They ha ...
forces by Major General Frederick Middleton and his Northwest Field Force. Batoche was then a small village of some 500 residents. The site has since become depopulated and now has few residents. The 1885 church building and a few other historic buildings have been preserved, and the site is a National Historic Site.


History

The Métis settlement of Batoche (named after Xavier Letendre ''dit'' Batoche) was established in 1872. By 1885 it numbered 500 people. The Métis of the area settled on river lots, and the community contained several stores as well as the Roman Catholic Church of St. Antoine de Padoue at the time of the Rebellion. Batoche was the de facto capital of Riel's
Provisional Government of Saskatchewan The Provisional Government of Saskatchewan was an independent state declared during the North-West Rebellion of 1885 in the District of Saskatchewan of the North-West Territories. The name was given by Louis Riel. Although Riel initially hop ...
. Batoche is a Southbranch Settlement. It is situated mainly along the east bank of the
South Saskatchewan River The South Saskatchewan River is a major river in the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan. The river begins at the confluence of the Bow River, Bow and Oldman Rivers in southern Alberta and ends at the Saskatchewan River Forks in ce ...
between St. Laurent and Fish Creek. This area is part of the
aspen parkland Aspen parkland refers to a very large area of ecotone, transitional biome between prairie and boreal forest in two sections, namely the Peace River Country of northwestern Alberta crossing the border into British Columbia, and a much larger area ...
biome. This community consisted mostly of
Francophone The Francophonie or Francophone world is the whole body of people and organisations around the world who use the French language regularly for private or public purposes. The term was coined by Onésime Reclus in 1880 and became important a ...
s and Roman Catholics.


Batoche National Historic Site

Batoche was declared a National Historic Site in 1923. The visitor centre features a multimedia presentation about the history of the community and its inhabitants. There are several restored buildings with costumed interpreters who depict the lifestyles of the Métis of Batoche between 1860 and 1900. The sites include a
North-West Mounted Police The North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) was a Canadian paramilitary police force, established in 1873, to maintain order in the new Canadian North-West Territories (NWT) following the 1870 transfer of Rupert's Land and North-Western Territory to ...
encampment, a church and
rectory A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of a given religion, serving as both a home and a base for the occupant's ministry. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, p ...
complex, and a farm home. The sites are set at different locations around the community. The complex is open from mid-May through mid-September.


In popular culture

* In 1989, Ralph D. Witten's short story "Batoche" was read on
CBC Radio CBC Radio is the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which (regardless of language) are outlined below ...
by Wendell Smith


See also

*
List of communities in Saskatchewan Communities in the province of Saskatchewan, Canada, include Incorporation (municipal government), incorporated municipalities, Unincorporated area#Canada, unincorporated communities and First Nations in Canada, First Nations communities. Types ...
* Bell of Batoche * Gabriel Dumont


References


Further reading

* Barnholden, Michael. (2009). ''Circumstances Alter Photographs: Captain James Peters' Reports from the War of 1885.'' Vancouver, BC: Talonbooks. . * Dumont, Gabriel. ''Gabriel Dumont Speaks''. Talonbooks, 2009. . * Payment, Diane p. (2009). ''The Free People - Li Gens Libres'' University of Calgary Press. .


External links


Batoche National Historic Site of Canada
{{Authority control Capitals of former nations History museums in Saskatchewan Living museums in Canada Métis in Saskatchewan Museums in Saskatchewan National Historic Sites in Saskatchewan Populated places on the South Saskatchewan River St. Louis No. 431, Saskatchewan Unincorporated communities in Saskatchewan