Manitoba Act, 1870

The Manitoba Act, 1870 (French: Loi de 1870 sur le Manitoba) is one of the enactments which make up the Constitution of Canada. It created the province of Manitoba and admitted it as the fifth province of Canada. The act also created the legislature and government of Manitoba, set out land rights for the Métis people, defined language rights, and dealt with denominational schools.

Receiving royal assent on May 12, 1870, the act also continued in force An Act for the Temporary Government of Rupert's Land and the North-Western Territories when united with Canada upon the absorption of the British territories of Rupert's Land and the North-Western Territory into Canada on July 15, 1870.

Hoping to decrease tension, the act marked the legal resolution of the fight for self-determination between the federal government and the people (particularly the Métis) of the Red River Colony, which began in 1870 with Canada's purchase of Rupert's Land.

Many negotiations and uprisings came with this act, some of which are still not settled today. One area of contention was that the Métis people were not familiar with the enforcement of laws, and the concept of deeds and money - this resulted in many Métis people being cheated out of the land that was supposed to be theirs. While the act included protections for the region's Métis, these protections were not fully realized and resulted in many Métis leaving the province for the North-West Territories.