Question

Write a paragraph about the idea of land and the conflict between First Nations and Europeans after the Treaties of 1713.

Answer 1

The impact of treaty making in Canada has been wide-ranging and long standing. The treaties the Crown has signed with Aboriginal peoples since the 18th century have permitted the evolution of Canada as we know it. In fact, much of Canada's land mass is covered by treaties. This treaty-making process, which has evolved over more than 300 years between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in Canada, has its origins in the early diplomatic relationship developed between European settlers and Aboriginal people. As the two parties made economic and military alliances, Canada began to take form. These diplomatic proceedings were the first steps in a long process that has led to today's comprehensive claims agreements between the Crown and Aboriginal groups.Events in Europe often had major impact in the New World. The 1713 Treaty of Utrecht ceded the mainland of the Maritimes, or Acadia, to Great Britain, leaving Île Royal (Cape Breton Island) and Île St-Jean (Prince Edward Island) as the sole French possessions in the area. As Great Britain began to organize and exert its authority over its colony of Nova Scotia, it had to contend not only with the remaining French colonists, but also with France's Aboriginal allies in the region. Fearing Aboriginal people's alliance with the French, the colonial authority negotiated a series of treaties with the Mi'kmaq and Maliseet peoples. Through these treaties made between 1725 to 1779, peace and friendship would be assured between the colony and the Aboriginal population. The Mi'kmaq and Maliseet could benefit from better trade conditions, and the assurance that their religious practices would be undisturbed. On the whole, these treaties were simple agreements with promises of peaceful relations. There were no land cessions whatsoever in the agreements and with the exception of the 1752 and 1760-61 treaties where a specific trade clause was included, these treaties only served to re-establish normal relations between the parties after military conflicts.