The Red River Colony (or Selkirk Settlement) was a colonization project set up by Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk in 1811 on 300,000 km² of land granted to him by the Hudson's Bay Company under what is referred to as the Selkirk Concession. The colony was never very successful, but changes during the development of Canada in the 1800s led to the colony forming the basis of what is today Manitoba. Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk Thomas Douglas (June 20, 1771 - April 8, 1820) was the 5th Earl of Selkirk, born at Saint Marys Isle, Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland. ... For the US Federal Agent designation, see Special agent. ... Hudsons Bay Company (HBC; Compagnie de la Baie dHudson in French) is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and is one of the oldest in the world. ... The Selkirk Concession was a land grant issued by the Hudson Bay Company to Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk in 1811. ... Motto: Gloriosus et Liber (Latin: Glorious and free) Capital Winnipeg Largest city Winnipeg Official languages English French (de facto) Government Lieutenant-Governor John Harvard Premier Gary Doer (NDP) Federal representation in Canadian Parliament House seats 14 Senate seats 6 Confederation July 15, 1870 (5th) Area  Ranked 8th Total 647,797...

Selkirk had become interested in the concept of settling the area after reading Alexander Mackenzie's 1801 book on his adventures in exploring what is today the west of Canada. At the time, social upheaval in Scotland due to the introduction of sheep farming and the ensuing brutal Highland and Lowland Clearances had left a number of Scots destitute. Selkirk was interested in giving them a chance at a better life in a new colony he called Assiniboia. Image File history File links Red-river-basin. ... Alexander MacKenzie painted by Thomas Lawrence (c. ... This article is about the country. ... The Highland Clearances (Scottish Gaelic: Fuadaich nan Gàidheal, the expulsion of the Gael) is a name given to the forced displacement of the population of the Scottish Highlands from their ancient ways of warrior clan subsistence farming, leading to mass emigration. ... The Lowland Clearances (Scottish Gaelic: Fuadaich nan Galltachd) in Scotland were one of the results of the British Agricultural Revolution, which changed the traditional system of agriculture which had existed in Lowland Scotland for hundreds of years. ... Assiniboia refers to a number of different locations and administrative jurisdictions in Canada. ...

He then purchased a controlling interest in the Hudson's Bay Company and set up the land grant. His idea (apparently) was to gain firm control of the area in order to take control of the West from the company's bitter rivals, the Montreal-based North West Company. With a colony in place the Métis trappers supplying the North West's fur traders, the Nor'Westers, would be displaced, cutting them off from areas further west. Nickname: Motto: Concordia Salus (well-being through harmony) Coordinates: , Country Province Region Montréal Founded 1642 Established 1832 Government  - Mayor Gérald Tremblay Area [1][2][3]  - City 365. ... For the grocery chain, see The North West Company The North West Company a fur trading business headquartered in the city of Montreal in British North America from 1779 to 1821. ... The Métis (pronounced MAY tee, IPA: , in French or , in Michif ), also historically known as Bois Brule, mixed-bloods, Countryborn (or Anglo-Métis), are one of three recognized Aboriginal peoples in Canada. ...

The land grant included the portions of Rupert's Land or the watershed of Hudson Bay bounded to the north-east by the Rainy River, Lake of the Woods, Winnipeg River and Lake Winnipeg, to the north between Lake Winnipeg and Lake Winnipegosis by a line of 52°30'N latitude, to the north west by the 52°N parallel between Lake Winnipegosis and the Assiniboine River, and to the west by a line from the intersection of the Assiniboine River and the 52°N parallel running south to southern boundary of Rupert's Land. This covered portions of present day southern Manitoba, north-eastern North Dakota, north-western Minnesota, in addition to small parts of eastern Saskatchewan, north-western Ontario, and north-eastern South Dakota ^{[1] [2]}. This article is about the trading territory. ... Hudson Bay, Canada. ... Rainy River can refer to: The Rainy River in Michigan in the United States The Rainy River that forms part of the United States-Canada border between Minnesota and Ontario The Rainy River in New Zealand This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that... Lake of the Woods from space, May 1998 Lake of the Woods. ... The Winnipeg River is a Canadian river which flows from Lake of the Woods in the province of Ontario to Lake Winnipeg in the province of Manitoba and eventually empties into Hudson Bay via the Nelson River. ... Winnipeg Beach, Manitoba, on Lake Winnipeg Lake Winnipeg (52°30′N 97°47′W) is a very large (24,400 km²) lake in central North America, in the province of Manitoba, Canada, about 55 km north of the city of Winnipeg. ... Winnipeg Beach, Manitoba, on Lake Winnipeg Lake Winnipeg (52°30′N 97°47′W) is a very large (24,400 km²) lake in central North America, in the province of Manitoba, Canada, about 55 km north of the city of Winnipeg. ... Lake Winnipegosis () is a large (5,370 km²) lake in central North America, in Manitoba, Canada, some 300 km northwest of Winnipeg. ... Lake Winnipegosis () is a large (5,370 km²) lake in central North America, in Manitoba, Canada, some 300 km northwest of Winnipeg. ... Junction of the Assiniboine and Red rivers in downtown Winnipeg. ... Junction of the Assiniboine and Red rivers in downtown Winnipeg. ... This article is about the trading territory. ... Motto: Gloriosus et Liber (Latin: Glorious and free) Capital Winnipeg Largest city Winnipeg Official languages English French (de facto) Government Lieutenant-Governor John Harvard Premier Gary Doer (NDP) Federal representation in Canadian Parliament House seats 14 Senate seats 6 Confederation July 15, 1870 (5th) Area  Ranked 8th Total 647,797... Official language(s) English Capital Bismarck Largest city Fargo Area  Ranked 19th  - Total 70,762 sq mi (183,272 km²)  - Width 210 miles (340 km)  - Length 340 miles (545 km)  - % water 2. ... Capital Saint Paul Largest city Minneapolis Area  Ranked 12th  - Total 87,014 sq mi (225,365 km²)  - Width 250 miles (400 km)  - Length 400 miles (645 km)  - % water 8. ... This article is about the Canadian province. ... Motto: Ut Incepit Fidelis Sic Permanet (Latin: Loyal she began, loyal she remains) Capital Toronto Largest city Toronto Official languages English (de facto) Government - Lieutenant-Governor David C. Onley - Premier Dalton McGuinty (Liberal) Federal representation in Canadian Parliament - House seats 106 - Senate seats 24 Confederation July 1, 1867 (1st) Area... Official language(s) English Capital Pierre Largest city Sioux Falls Area  Ranked 17th  - Total 77,116[1] sq mi (199,905 km²)  - Width 210 miles (340 km)  - Length 380 miles (610 km)  - % water 1. ...

He sent out a small group of Scots in 1811 to the area, but they were forced to pause for the winter in York Factory. When they finally arrived in 1812 they built a fort, Fort Douglas, but by the time it was done the growing season was over and they hastily set about hunting buffalo for food. Ruperts Land, showing the location of York Factory York Factory was a historic settlement and longtime headquarters of the Hudsons Bay Company in North America, located on the southwestern shore of Hudson Bay in present-day northeastern Manitoba, Canada. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... Binomial name (Linnaeus, 1758) Subspecies B. b. ...

When farming started the next spring, the results were less than expected and Selkirk had to ban anyone from taking food out of the colony. It is not clear if this was simply a way to ensure food for the colony, or a business move intended to cut off the Nor'Westers. Either way, the move touched off the Pemmican War. The Nor'Westers, who relied on pemmican supplied to them by local Métis, were so upset that they destroyed Fort Douglas and burned down all the buildings around it. The fort was later rebuilt and things settled down for a time.^[3] Pemmican is a concentrated food consisting of dried pulverized meat, dried berries, and rendered fat. ...

Selkirk heard of the problems and sent out a new governor, Robert Semple, to take over. When he read a proclamation ordering the fighting to stop, the Battle of Seven Oaks broke out, Fort Douglas was destroyed for a second time, and the settlers were forced off their land. Selkirk then sent in a force of about 100 soldiers from the British Regiment de Meuron to enforce the peace and eventually become settlers themselves, while also capturing the North West outpost at Fort William, Ontario. This attempt worked, and peace was maintained. However it also left Selkirk almost bankrupt, and was one of the reasons the two companies were forced to merge in 1821, thus ending the problems for good. Robert Semple, born 26 February 1777 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, was Governor of the Hudsons Bay Company from 1815 until his death June 19, 1816 at the Battle of Seven Oaks. ... The Battle of Seven Oaks (known to the Métis as la Victoire de la Grenouillière, or the Victory of Frog Plain) took place on June 19th 1816 during the long dispute between the Hudsons Bay Company and the North West Company, rival fur-trading companies in western... Raised in Switzerland in 1781, the Regiment de Meuron originally served the Dutch East India Company in Ceylon and Capetown. ... Fort William was a city in Northern Ontario, located on the Kaministiquia River, at its entrance to Lake Superior. ...

The colony was never particularly successful agriculturally, but the lure of free land added new settlers every year. However the Hudson's Bay Company lost interest in paying for the settlement by the 1850s, and by the 1860s the Métis outnumbered the Scots. This led to a second period of unrest in 1869 and 1870 called the Red River Rebellion which led to the creation of Manitoba.^[4] The Métis provisional government The Red River Rebellion or Red River Resistance are the names given to the events surrounding the actions of a provisional government established by Métis leader Louis Riel in 1869 at the Red River Settlement in what is now the Canadian province of Manitoba. ...

Notes

See also

• Métis people (Canada)
• Red River Academy
• Red River Rebellion
• Red River Trails
• Louis Riel
• Joseph James Hargrave

The Métis (pronounced MAY tee, IPA: , in French or , in Michif ), also historically known as Bois Brule, mixed-bloods, Countryborn (or Anglo-Métis), are one of three recognized Aboriginal peoples in Canada. ... The Red River Academy (later St. ... The Métis provisional government The Red River Rebellion or Red River Resistance are the names given to the events surrounding the actions of a provisional government established by Métis leader Louis Riel in 1869 at the Red River Settlement in what is now the Canadian province of Manitoba. ... The Red River Trails were a network of ox trails connecting the Red River Colony (Selkirk Settlement) in the Canadian province of Manitoba, with the head of navigation of the Mississippi River at St. ... For the opera, see Louis Riel (opera). ... Joseph James Hargrave (1841-1894) was a Hudsons Bay Company (HBC) trader, author, and journalist. ...

External links

• The Journal of the Bishop of Montreal, during a Visit to the Church Missionary Society's North-West America Mission, by George Jehoshaphat Mountain, an early account of religious life in the Red River Colony.