Treaties | The Canadian Encyclopedia

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  • Article

    Numbered Treaties (Plain-Language Summary)

    The Numbered Treaties are a series of 11 treaties. A treaty is an agreement between two or more nations. The Numbered Treaties were signed by the Canadian government and Indigenous people. All 11 treaties were signed between 1871 and 1921. The Numbered Treaties cover parts of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario. They also cover portions of Yukon and the Northwest Territories. The treaties provided the Canadian government with land. The government wanted land for industrial development and white settlement. In exchange, the government promised Indigenous people special rights and benefits. These treaty terms are controversial and contested. The Numbered Treaties have ongoing legal, social, and economic impacts on Indigenous communities. (See also Treaties with Indigenous Peoples in Canada.) (This is a plain-language summary of the Numbered Treaties. If you are interested in reading about this topic in more depth, please see our full-length entry, Numbered Treaties.)

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/4f1d71aa-8b25-417f-a88b-2a078f3b1768.jpg Numbered Treaties (Plain-Language Summary)

  • Article

    Oregon Treaty

    The Oregon Treaty was an agreement between Britain and the United States. It came into force on 15 June 1846. It formalized the border between the United States and British North America west of the Rocky Mountains. It extended the border along the 49th parallel to the Pacific Ocean and down “the middle” of the channel that separates Vancouver Island from the mainland. The treaty resolved an important dispute between the two nations. But the lack of precision regarding the waterways between the mainland and Vancouver Island led to a dispute over the San Juan Islands, which resulted in an 1859 diplomatic conflict known as the Pig War.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/new_article_images/OregonTreaty/Vancouver_Island-relief.png Oregon Treaty

  • Article

    Great Peace of Montreal, 1701

    On 4 August 1701, the French concluded a peace agreement with the Five Nations Haudenosaunee (Iroquois). This brought to an end almost a century of hostilities marked by atrocities on both sides. The Haudenosaunee were permitted to trade freely and to obtain goods from the French at a reduced cost. In exchange, they pledged to allow French settlement at Detroit and to remain neutral in the event of a war between England and France. The accord assured New France superiority in dealing with issues related to the region’s First Nations. It also gave the French the freedom to expand militarily over the next half century.

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    https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/images/tce_placeholder.jpg?v=e9dca980c9bdb3aa11e832e7ea94f5d9 Great Peace of Montreal, 1701

  • Article

    Penetanguishene Treaty (No. 5)

    The Penetanguishene Treaty of 1798 (also known as Treaty 5 in the Upper Canada treaties numbering system) was an early land agreement between First Nations and British authorities in Upper Canada (later Ontario). It was one of a series of Upper Canada Land Surrenders. The Penetanguishene Treaty encompasses land on Georgian Bay at the northern tip of the peninsula at present-day Penetanguishene, as well as an island in Penetanguishene harbour. The British wanted to establish a naval presence on Lake Huron before the Americans could and the purchase of land at Penetanguishene would allow this. The British also realized that they might have to evacuate their post at Michilimackinac some day and wanted an alternative location.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/PenetangTreaty5.jpg Penetanguishene Treaty (No. 5)

  • Article

    Robinson Treaties of 1850

    In September 1850, the Anishinaabeg (Ojibwe) of the Upper Great Lakes signed two separate but interconnected treaties: the Robinson-Superior Treaty (RST) and Robinson-Huron Treaty (RHT). These agreements provided the Province of Canada (Canada East and Canada West, the future Quebec and Ontario) access to the north shores of Lake Huron and Lake Superior for settlement and mineral extraction. In exchange, the Indigenous peoples in the region gained recognition of hunting and fishing rights, an annuity (annual payment), and a reservation from the surrender of specific lands for each signatory community. Interpretation of the Robinson treaties have had a legal and socioeconomic impact on Indigenous and settler communities, and they established precedents for the subsequent Numbered Treaties.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/new_article_images/RobinsonTreatiesof1850/Robinson_Treaties_Lands_Returned.jpg Robinson Treaties of 1850

  • Article

    Sombra Township Treaty (No.7)

    The Sombra Township Treaty of 1796 (also known as Treaty 7 in the Upper Canada treaties numbering system) was an early land agreement between First Nations and British authorities in Upper Canada (later Ontario). It was one of a series of Upper Canada Land Surrenders. The Sombra Township Treaty encompassed a tract of land 12 miles square (about 31 kilometres square) on the St. Clair River in the southwestern part of the colony. The British originally purchased it to offer it for settlement to their Indigenous allies who had fought with them during the American Revolution but who still lived in the new nation of the United States."

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/SombraTreaty.jpg Sombra Township Treaty (No.7)

  • Article

    St. Joseph's Island Treaty (No. 11)

    The St. Joseph’s Island Treaty of 1798 (also known as Treaty 11 in the Upper Canada numbering system) was an early land agreement between First Nations and British authorities in Upper Canada (later Ontario). It was one of a series of Upper Canada Land Surrenders. The St. Joseph’s Island Treaty encompassed all of St. Joseph’s Island, known as Payentanassin in Anishinaabemowin and today called St. Joseph Island. The 370 km2 island is situated at the northern end of Lake Huron, in the channel between Lakes Huron and Superior. The British needed a post in the area to protect their interests and maintain contact with Indigenous peoples of the region. The British also realized they would have to evacuate their post at Michilimackinac under the terms of Jay’s Treaty and needed an alternative location.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/StJosephIslandTreaty/StJosephIslandTreaty1.jpg St. Joseph's Island Treaty (No. 11)

  • Article

    Toronto Purchase (Treaty 13)

    The Toronto Purchase of 1805 (also known as Treaty 13) was negotiated in an attempt to clarify and confirm the terms of the Johnson-Butler Purchase of 1787-88. Ultimately, it failed to do this and additional negotiations were required. These later discussions resulted in the Williams Treaties of 1923 and a compensatory settlement between the Government of Canada and the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation in 2010. (See also Upper Canada Land Surrenders.)

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/TorontoPurchase.jpg Toronto Purchase (Treaty 13)

  • Article

    Treaties 1 and 2

    Treaties 1 and 2 were the first of 11 Numbered Treaties negotiated between 1871 and 1921. Treaty 1 was signed 3 August 1871 between Canada and the Anishinabek and Swampy Cree of southern Manitoba. Treaty 2 was signed 21 August 1871 between Canada and the Anishinaabe of southern Manitoba (see Eastern Woodlands Indigenous Peoples). From the perspective of Canadian officials, treaty making was a means to facilitate settlement of the West and the assimilation of Indigenous peoples into Euro-Canadian society (see Treaties with Indigenous Peoples in Canada). Indigenous peoples sought to protect their traditional lands and livelihoods while securing assistance in transitioning to a new way of life. Treaties 1 and 2 encapsulate these divergent aims, leaving a legacy of unresolved issues due to the different understandings of their Indigenous and Euro-Canadian participants.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/d1c2f761-fbf1-4630-915e-9196456f8635.jpg Treaties 1 and 2

  • Article

    Treaties with Indigenous Peoples in Canada (Plain-Language Summary)

    Indigenous treaties in Canada are agreements made between the Crown and Indigenous people (First Nations, Métis, and Inuit). These agreements concern land. Indigenous people agree to share their land in exchange for payments of one kind or another and promises. Before Confederation, Britain controlled the treaty making process. After Confederation, the federal government took control of the treaty making process.(This article is a plain-language summary of Treaties with Indigenous Peoples in Canada. If you are interested in reading about this topic in more depth, please see our full-length entry Treaties with Indigenous Peoples in Canada).

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/122dc04b-d0a1-4551-a912-1bee8991746b.jpg Treaties with Indigenous Peoples in Canada (Plain-Language Summary)

  • Article

    Treaty 10

    Treaty 10 is the 10th of the 11 Numbered Treaties. It was signed in 1906–07 by the Canadian government and Indigenous peoples in northern Saskatchewan and Alberta. Treaty 10 covers nearly 220,000 km2 of Saskatchewan and Alberta. The terms of Treaty 10 have had ongoing legal and socioeconomic impacts on Indigenous communities.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/22da8ac5-1905-4c28-ad2e-c9f55c67c7aa.jpg Treaty 10

  • Article

    Treaty 11

    Treaty 11 is the last of the Numbered Treaties signed on 22 August 1921 between First Nations and the Canadian government following Confederation, as Canada expanded its borders north and west. It covers more than 950,000 km2 of present-day Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut. The First Nations involved were predominately Dene, and include the Gwich’in, Tlicho (Dogrib) and Sahtu. As with other Numbered Treaties, the government did not want to enter into treaty until its interests would be served by doing so; accordingly, Treaty 11 was only created in 1921, after oil and gas prospects in the Mackenzie region sparked its interests. However, hasty negotiations combined with weak implementation of the terms — particularly with regard to reserves and land claims — have led to considerable disagreement between the parties on what was meant by the treaty and which promises have not been fulfilled. As a result, many of the signatories to Treaty 11 have also been involved in the modern treaties process ( see Indigenous Peoples: Treaties).

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/ec35153e-3722-48ad-b760-64812a063ffe.jpg Treaty 11

  • Article

    Treaty 3

    On 3 October 1873, some Saulteaux peoples (an Ojibwe people) and the Government of Canada signed Treaty 3, also known as the North-West Angle Treaty. This agreement provided the federal government access to Saulteaux lands in present-day northwestern Ontario and eastern  Manitoba in exchange for various goods and Indigenous rights to hunting, fishing and natural resources on reserve lands. The terms and text of Treaty 3 set precedents for the eight Numbered Treaties that followed. (See also Treaties with Indigenous Peoples in Canada.) 

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/0c20f035-b4ff-4e0a-baad-b18906648db9.jpg Treaty 3

  • Article

    Treaty 4

    Treaty 4 — also known as the Qu'Appelle Treaty — was signed on 15 September 1874 at Fort Qu’Appelle, Saskatchewan. In exchange for payments, provisions and rights to reserve lands, Treaty 4 ceded Indigenous territory to the federal government. The majority of Treaty 4 lands are in present-day southern Saskatchewan. Small portions are in western Manitoba and southern Alberta. (See Numbered Treaties.)

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/2bbbb770-33d9-4635-8dcf-bf1e5e84d4c1.jpg Treaty 4

  • Article

    Treaty 5

    Treaty 5 — also known as the Winnipeg Treaty — was signed in 1875–76 by the federal government, Ojibwe peoples and the Swampy Cree of Lake Winnipeg. Treaty 5 covers much of present-day central and northern Manitoba, as well as portions of Saskatchewan and Ontario. The terms of Treaty 5 have had ongoing legal and socioeconomic impacts on Indigenous communities.

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    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/4913942c-18ec-4c1c-be27-6d74ec04cfbe.jpg Treaty 5