Manitoba

Manitoba is one of Canada's provinces. It is the fifth Canadian province (created by the government in 1870). Its population as of April 1, 2005 (Statistics Canada) was 1,176,132 (Manitobans). It is the easternmost of the three Prairie Provinces.

History

Manitoba was settled by members of the Ojibwa and Assiniboine tribes. The first European to reach present-day Manitoba was Sir Thomas Button, who visited the Nelson River in 1612. Pierre Gaultier de Varennes, Sieur de la Vérendrye, visited the Red River Valley in the 1730s as part of opening the area for French exploration and exploitation. An important French-Canadian population (Franco-Manitobains) still lives in Manitoba, especially in the Saint-Boniface district of Winnipeg.

Related Topics:
Ojibwa - Assiniboine - Thomas Button - Nelson River - 1612 - Pierre Gaultier de Varennes - 1730s - French-Canadian - Saint-Boniface

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The territory was won by Britain in 1763 as part of the French and Indian War, and became part of Rupert's Land, the immense monopoly territory of the Hudson's Bay Company.

Related Topics:
1763 - French and Indian War - Rupert's Land - Hudson's Bay Company

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The founding of the first agricultural community in 1811 by Lord Selkirk, near modern Winnipeg, resulted in conflict between the white colonists and the Métis who lived near there. Twenty colonists, including the governor, were killed by the Métis in the Battle of Seven Oaks in 1816.

Related Topics:
1811 - Lord Selkirk - Métis - Battle of Seven Oaks - 1816

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When Rupert's Land was ceded to Canada in 1869 and incorporated into the Northwest Territories, a lack of attention to Métis concerns led their leader Louis Riel to establish a provisional government, The Red River Rebellion. Negotiations between this government and the Canadian government resulted in the creation of the province of Manitoba and its entry into Confederation in 1870.

Related Topics:
1869 - Northwest Territories - Louis Riel - The Red River Rebellion - 1870

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Originally the province was only 1/18 of its current size and square in shape - it was known as the "postage stamp province." It grew progressively, absorbing land from the Northwest Territories until it attained its current size by reaching 60°N in 1912.

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