The North-West Resistance of 1885

Let's start with a question

If you had written polite letters to the government for years, asking for something you believed you were promised, and nothing happened, what would you do next?

In 1885, the Métis and some First Nations in what is now Saskatchewan faced that question. What happened next became one of the most debated events in Canadian history.

Causes: a pile of grievances

The Métis:

• After 1870, many Métis moved west from Red River to communities like Batoche and St. Laurent on the South Saskatchewan River. They farmed on river lots again.
• They asked Ottawa to recognize their land and survey it as river lots. They sent petitions for years, starting in the late 1870s. Ottawa was slow, and some surveys again ignored river lots.

First Nations:

• The bison had almost disappeared by the early 1880s. Plains nations faced hunger.
• Treaty promises of farming help were late or not enough. Government officials sometimes cut or withheld rations to pressure people to move onto reserves and to save money.
• Cree leaders like Big Bear and Poundmaker worked peacefully to unite Nations and press for better treaty terms and larger reserves close together.

Settlers: Some settlers near Prince Albert also had complaints, such as the railway's route and lack of representation.

In 1884, Gabriel Dumont and others travelled to Montana to invite Louis Riel back to lead the Métis petition. Riel sent a long petition to Ottawa in December 1884. The answer was a promise to set up a commission, which did not address the main demands.

The events of 1885

• March 1885: Riel and the Métis form a provisional government at Batoche.
• March 26, Duck Lake: Métis led by Gabriel Dumont defeat a force of North-West Mounted Police and volunteers.
• Late March and April: In separate events, some Cree warriors take supplies at Battleford, and at Frog Lake (April 2), warriors from Big Bear's band kill nine people, including the Indian agent. Big Bear tried to stop the killings.
• Ottawa sends thousands of troops west on the unfinished CPR, arriving within weeks.
• April 24, Fish Creek: Dumont's ambush slows General Frederick Middleton's troops.
• May 2, Cut Knife Hill: Colonel Otter's troops attack Poundmaker's camp and are pushed back. Poundmaker stops his warriors from chasing the retreating soldiers.
• May 9–12, Batoche: Middleton's larger, better-armed force defeats the Métis, who run short of ammunition. Riel surrenders on May 15. Dumont escapes to the United States.
• May–July: Poundmaker surrenders (May 26); Big Bear surrenders (July 2).

Trials and consequences

• Louis Riel was tried for high treason in Regina. His lawyers wanted him to plead insanity; Riel refused, defending his actions in a famous speech. The jury found him guilty but recommended mercy. The government refused to grant it. Riel was hanged on November 16, 1885.
• Poundmaker and Big Bear were convicted and each sentenced to three years in prison. Both were released early in poor health and died soon after. In 2019, the Government of Canada exonerated Poundmaker, recognizing that he had been a peacemaker.
• On November 27, 1885, eight Cree and Assiniboine men were hanged at Battleford, the largest mass hanging in Canadian history.

Longer-term consequences:

• The pass system and stricter control of reserves (see the Indian Act lesson).
• Many Métis lost land and left; some moved further north or west.
• Quebec was outraged by Riel's execution; many French Canadians saw it as an attack on French-speaking Catholics. Ontario largely supported it. The division deepened distrust between English and French Canada for decades.
• The CPR proved its military value and got the money to finish.