Canadian info dump:
Canada formed from the English colonies that chose not to break off from Britian during the colonial war, and the French colonies that Britian had conquored long ago.
After and during the colonial war, a large number of Loyalists from the southern colonies fled to Canada. This caused something of a population boom, especially in Ontario. I can trace my family tree back to at least one of these United Empire Loyalists.
Over the next century or so, Canada spread west, and there where one or two aborted rebellions against home-rule. Canada at the time was a collection of seperate colonies. Eventually, the Queen decided that Canada should have "responsible government", government that was more responsive to the people of Canada. This eventually evolved into the formation of the Dominion of Canada in 1887.
Along the way, Canadian and British troops repulsed an American invasion, and burned the White House, in the war of 1812. This was the last war between the Empire and the break away colonials that I am aware of. After this war, a large amount of fortifications where built up in Canada to make another war less likely: one beautiful example is Citadel Hill in Halifax. This war also was one of the main reasons why the Canadian capitol is in Ottawa: the twin fort-cities of Kingston and Montreal could defend it against American aggression. The Rideau canal was also built to provide a transportation link further from the boarder. As an important aside, Canada owed it's continued existance to the aid of aborignal troops, who proved a very valueable ally during this war.
The Dominion of Canada was still part of the British Empire, dispite having an elected parliament and many powers. All laws where signed by the Governor General. The GG was and still is appointed by the Queen, under the advice of the Prime Minister. The Queen, through her representative the Governer Genral, is the head of state of Canada: analagous to your President.
Today, traditionally the Queen selects whomever the Prime Minister says she will select. And the Governer General signs into law everything handed to her. However, there have been a few anomolous situations when the GG did not sign a law into effect.
The "government" are the ministers (including the Prime Minister) and commitees that run the country. The government is reponsible to the represenatives of the country: namely, parliament. This arrangement is barely mentioned in foundation documents, it continues to exist as a tradition stronger than law.
If the government loses the confidence of parliament, then the Governor General can either ask someone else (another party) go form the government, or she can choose to dissolve parliament. Simularly, when the PM calls an election, he walks over to the Governor General's house, and asks her to dissolve parliament: the GG is the one with the constitutional power, not the PM.
Time passed. Canada grew in size, various boarder disputes with the USA where decided, we got Victoria Island, you got Washington State.
Around 1900, Canada sent some of its first troops overseas, to the Boer war in South Africa. The Canadian troops fought as part of the British army.
Canada industrialized at a reasonable pace. Then came The War to End All Wars: otherwise known as WWI.
As part of the British Empire, we joined the war the moment Britian declaired war. By the end of the war, Canada was an independant signatory to the treaty. This right had a cost: Canada lost 55,000+ men during the first world war: to put this in context, Canada, a nation 10 times smaller than the USA, lost more troops during this conflict.
At the start of the war, the Canadian military consisted of just over 3,000 troops.
Quote:
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"it is our duty to let Great Britain know and to let the friends and foes of Great Britain know that there is in Canada but one mind and one heart and that all Canadians are behind the Mother Country."
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Sir Wilfrid Laurier, Prime Minister of Canada
The war was declaired on August 4th.
August 6th, a telegram was sent out seeking volunteers and troops from accross the country. Laurier promised 20,000 soldiers.
By the end of August, 30,000 soldiers where in training. By October, 83,000 soldiers, in the largest miltary convoy to cross the Altantic at once, took sail.
Encamped at Salisbury plain in England, AWOL was a problem: it wasn't the war, it was the mud that drove the soldiers to visit London. From what I know, when they heard the force was going to France, most returned.
The first major engagement didn't happen until April. At the battle of Ypres, the Germans used a new tactic in an attempt to break the allied defences: chlorine gas.
3 days later the Canadians where relieved. The force had almost ceased to exist, entire batallions where reduced to 100 men. But they held.
Enough about WWI. If you are interested, you can read about the
2nd Canadian force which replaced the dead.
Time passed, the depression hit. In WWII, Canada did not declair war with Britian, but waited precidely one month. Canada was a nation in its own right.
1 million troops mobalized and 72,000 Canadian dead later, the war ended.
Canada decided to demilitarize.
In 1949, Newfoundland, the last province, voted to join Canada. Newfoundland seperatists still dispute the result of the referendum.
During each war, there was a Conscription crisis. The province of Quebec was against conscription, viewing the wars as a problem of the British Empire. In each war, Conscription was finally introduced: in WWII, only 12,000 conscripted soldiers where sent overseas before the war ended.
Over the next 50 years, Canada continued to industrialize. A number of important things happen:
The Quiet revolution in Quebec, in which french Canada asks for a special status within Confederation.
The socialized Health Care system, which started in Saskachewan (a prarie province), eventually becomes national.
The FLQ crisis, in which the PM of Canada invokes the war measures act to catch Quebec seperatist terrorists.
Quote:
Reporter: "How far are you willing to go?"
Trudeau: "Just watch me."
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The bill of rights, an act of parliament giving power to the courts to overturn acts of parliament.
The repatriation of the Constitution in 1982. With the permission of the British privy council, Canada bootstraps itself into a nation in it's own right. Quebec never agrees on the text of the Constitutional document, resulting in 10+ years of Constitutional wrangling before it is given up for a dead cause.
The abolishment of the death penalty.
Western alienation at the Progressive Conservative party of Canada, resulting in the cannibalization of the founding political party.
The collapse of the Atlantic Fishery: the maritime provinces are still in a depression from this.
The Avro Arrow, a cutting edge fighter aircraft project. Abandoned to free up budget space for some nuclear missile silos at the request of the USA.
The tri-party system: Canada has 3 traditional parties, the Conservatives, the Liberals and the New Democratic party. Historically, the Liberals have had power the most, and are the centrist party. The NDP, our left-wing party, have never formed a national government, but have formed provincial governments.
The rise of the Parti Quebecois and Bloc Quebecois. The Parti Quebecois is a seperatist provincial party. The Bloc Quebecois is a seperatist national party. The Bloc initially formed from PC party members who defected, part of the great PC-party implosion, and has since moved left politically.
Demographically, Canada is heavy in the middle and in the south. 1/3 the nation lives in Ontario, 1/4 in Quebec. The next most populous provinces are BC and Alberta (far west), which together form 1/4 of Canada's population. The remaining 1/6th of Canada's population is in the other 6 provinces and 3 territories.
The vast majority of Canada's population lives quite close to the Americna border. Canada's north is mostly unpopulated (more people live on PEI than live in all 3 northern territories).
Canada's population is 31 million, about the same as California (10% less), or about 1/10th the population of the entire USA, or 1/2 the population of the UK.
Canada accepts more immigrants per capita than any other nation on the Earth. This really started after WWII, when Canada imported large numbers of European refugees. 1 in 4 people in Ontario where born outside Canada, 18% of Canadians are foreign-born, and 43% of Toronto's population is foreign-born. <
http://www.statcan.ca/english/Pgdb/demo46b.htm>
(for you UKers, Toronto has ~5% more foreign-born people than London)
In comparison, 1/9 (11%) Americans are foreign-born, and 1/12 (8%) people in the UK are foreign-born.
Canada is still a nation of immigrants.
The Canadian dollar was once higher than the American dollar, but a long term slow decline has been the rule. Right now, it is about 75 c US per Canadian dollar (or 40 pence). The purchasing power of the Canadian dollar is currently slightly higher than the American dollar, and quite higher than the UK pound, after exchange rates.
Ethnically, Canada is slightly whiter than the USA. Canada has fewer black people, and more asians and natives, per capita.
Canada's settlement was far more peaceful towards the native tribes. There are exceptions.
Recently, the Canadian economy has been growing slightly faster than the US economy.
Any questions/corrections? =)