History/Historical Figures | The Canadian Encyclopedia

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  • Article

    Patriation of the Constitution

    In 1982, Canada “patriated” its Constitution. It transferred the country’s highest law, the British North America Act (which was renamed the Constitution Act, 1867), from the authority of the British Parliament to Canada’s federal and provincial legislatures. The Constitution was also updated with a new amending formula and a Charter of Rights and Freedoms. These changes occurred after a fierce, 18-month political and legal struggle that dominated headlines and the agendas of every government in the country.

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    https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/images/tce_placeholder.jpg?v=e9dca980c9bdb3aa11e832e7ea94f5d9 Patriation of the Constitution
  • Article

    Patrick James Whelan

    Patrick James Whelan, convicted murderer, tailor (born c. 1840 near Dublin, Ireland; died 11 February 1869 in Ottawa, ON). Whelan was arrested for the April 1868 assassination of Member of Parliament and Father of Confederation Thomas D’Arcy McGee. He was convicted in September 1868 and sentenced to death. The authorities suspected that Whelan carried out a Fenian conspiracy to murder McGee and promptly arrested him within 24 hours of the murder; however, it was never fully proved that Whelan was acting as a Fenian sympathizer. Whelan maintained his innocence throughout his trial and until he was hanged publicly in Ottawa in early 1869. There is room for reasonable doubt as to whether Whelan did in fact murder McGee or was simply part of a group of people who did. McGee was the only federal politician to be assassinated, and Whelan one of the last people to be hanged publicly in Canada.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/a5d0c40e-d494-415c-b5da-bfbd93c55c5c.jpg Patrick James Whelan
  • Article

    Patriotes

      The Patriotes was the name given after 1826 to the Parti canadien and to the popular movement that contributed to the Rebellions of 1837-38 in Lower Canada.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/24c5665d-60e0-424c-86f4-96cf5b7d75c1.jpg Patriotes
  • Article

    Paul de Chomedey, Sieur de Maisonneuve

    Paul de Chomedey, Sieur de Maisonneuve, French governor, military officer (born 13 February 1612 in Neuville-sur-Vanne, France; died 9 September 1676 in Paris). Along with Jeanne Mance, he is considered the co-founder of Ville-Marie, the French colonial outpost that grew to become Montreal. Maisonneuve was also the first Governor of Montreal.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/Maisonneuve_Place_darmes.jpg Paul de Chomedey, Sieur de Maisonneuve
  • Article

    Paul Mascarene

    Paul Mascarene, born Jean-Paul, military officer, colonial administrator (b in Languedoc, France 1684/85; d at Boston, Mass 22 Jan 1760). A Huguenot émigré, Mascarene served throughout New England and Atlantic Canada 1710-40 as a military engineer and fluent negotiator with the Acadians and Indians.

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    https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/images/tce_placeholder.jpg?v=e9dca980c9bdb3aa11e832e7ea94f5d9 Paul Mascarene
  • Article

    Pauline Johnson (Tekahionwake)

    Emily Pauline Johnson (a.k.a. Tekahionwake, “double wampum”) poet, writer, artist, performer (born 10 March 1861 on the Six Nations Reserve, Canada West; died 7 March 1913 in Vancouver, BC). Pauline Johnson was one of North America’s most notable entertainers of the late 19th century. A mixed-race woman of Mohawk and European descent, she was a gifted writer and poised orator. She toured extensively, captivating audiences with her flair for the dramatic arts. Johnson made important contributions to Indigenous and Canadian oral and written culture. She is listed as a Person of National Historic Significance and her childhood home is a National Historic Site and museum. A monument in Vancouver’s Stanley Park commemorates her work and legacy. In 2016, she was one of 12 Canadian women in consideration to appear on a banknote. (See Women on Canadian Banknotes.)

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/4c5ce9f8-0ef1-4a75-aa7a-f2f892483bde.jpg Pauline Johnson (Tekahionwake)
  • Excerpt

    People on the Margins of the Halifax Explosion

    In the early 20th Century, most North End residents of Halifax perceived themselves as being collectively disadvantaged, compared to wealthier South End residents. However, within the North End certain groups — notably racial minorities, the elderly, non-British immigrants, members of the military, and unmarried women with children — stood out as being particularly vulnerable. They were among the hardest-hit in the aftermath of the Halifax Explosion of 1917.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/aa48ac21-9af9-44b9-b9de-8e6234022abd.jpg People on the Margins of the Halifax Explosion
  • Article

    Peter Easton

    Peter Easton, privateer, pirate (born c. 1570 in England; died c. 1620). Easton visited Newfoundland in 1602, a year before becoming a pirate. He returned to Newfoundland in 1612 and built a fort at Harbour Grace. Easton plundered Basque, Spanish, English, French and Portuguese ships on the Newfoundland coast, in Puerto Rico and at the Azores islands. When pardoned by the English King James I, Easton purchased a castle in Savoy where he lived a life of leisure.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/PeterEaston/CROPTrinityPeterEaston_dreamstime_resize_120577719.jpg Peter Easton
  • Article

    Peter Fidler

    Peter Fidler, fur trader, mapmaker, explorer (b at Bolsover, Eng 16 Aug 1769; d at Fort Dauphin [Man] 17 Dec 1822).

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    https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/images/tce_placeholder.jpg?v=e9dca980c9bdb3aa11e832e7ea94f5d9 Peter Fidler
  • Article

    Peter Matthews

    Peter Matthews, farmer, rebel (b in Marysburgh or Sidney Twp, Qué [later UC] 1789 or 1790; d at Toronto 12 Apr 1838). The son of Loyalists, Matthews was a prosperous farmer and leading figure in Pickering Township.

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    https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/images/tce_placeholder.jpg?v=e9dca980c9bdb3aa11e832e7ea94f5d9 Peter Matthews
  • Article

    Peter Pond

    Peter Pond, fur trader (b at Milford, Conn 18 Jan 1739/40; d there 1807).

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/PeterPondFurTradeMap.jpg Peter Pond
  • Article

    Peter Tomkins

    Peter Tomkins Jr., Métis leader, political organizer, blacksmith (born 1 January 1899 in Poundmaker Reserve, SK; died June 1970 in High Prairie, AB). In the 1930s, he worked with Jim Brady and Malcolm Norris to build the Métis Association of Alberta (founded 1932, now the Métis Nation of Alberta) and the Indian Association of Alberta (1939). From health care to his work with the Métis settlements, Tomkins promoted improved living conditions for the Métis of Alberta and Saskatchewan. His diplomacy, lobbying and negotiating skills helped get the first Métis-specific legislation passed in Canada in 1938.

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    https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/images/tce_placeholder.jpg?v=e9dca980c9bdb3aa11e832e7ea94f5d9 Peter Tomkins
  • Article

    Peter Vasilevich Verigin

    Peter Vasilevich Verigin, Doukhobor leader (born 1859 in Slavianka, Russia; died October 1924 near Grand Forks, British Columbia). Exiled in Russia, Verigin immigrated to Canada in 1902. There, he became a powerful and controversial Doukhobor leader in Western Canada. Verigin died when the train in which he was travelling exploded, leading some to believe he was assassinated.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/PeterVeregin.jpg Peter Vasilevich Verigin
  • Article

    Peter Warren Dease

    Peter Warren Dease, fur trader, arctic explorer (b at Mackinac I, Mich 1 Jan 1788; d at Montréal 17 Jan 1863). From age 13 he was engaged in the FUR TRADE, first with the XY Co, then the NORTH WEST CO and finally the HUDSON'S BAY CO.

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    https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/images/tce_placeholder.jpg?v=e9dca980c9bdb3aa11e832e7ea94f5d9 Peter Warren Dease
  • Article

    Population Settlement of New France

    Throughout the history of New France, soldiers and hired labourers (“engagés”) who crossed the Atlantic were the primary settlers in Canada. Those young servicemen and artisans, as well as the immigrant women who wished to get married, mainly hailed from the coastal and urban regions of France. Most of the colonists arrived before 1670 during the migratory flow which varied in times of war and prosperity. Afterwards, the population grew through Canadian births. On average, Canadian families had seven or eight children in the 17th century, and four to six children in the 18th century. As a result, the population of New France was 70,000 strong by the end of the French regime.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/d698c031-e790-4c17-906a-5b880e71e24d.jpg Population Settlement of New France