Home rule -- Ireland; Ireland -- Politics and government
Meanwhile, in February, 1834, a year before the publication of the
"Seventh Report of Grievances" in Upper Canada, and three months before
O'Connell's celebrated motion in the House of Commons for the Repeal of
the Union between England and Ireland, the Assembly of Lower Canada, at
Papineau's instance, passed the equally celebrated "Ninety-two
Resolutions." Bombastic and diffuse, like parts of O'Connell's speech,
this historic document nevertheless was as true in all really essential
respects as Mackenzie's manifesto and as O'Connell's tremendous
indictment of the system of Government in Ireland. All three men,
O'Connell with far the most justification, demanded the same thing, good
government for their respective countries under a responsible Parliament
and Ministry. They all occasionally used wild language, O'Connell the
least wild. O'Connell, who nine years later deliberately quenched a
popular revolt he could have headed, failed in his aim as completely as
Tone, Emmett, and Smith O'Brien, who pressed their efforts to the point
of violence. Mackenzie and Papineau, who took to arms, succeeded in
their aim.
The crisis in Lower Canada was precipitated, and, indeed, provoked, by a
challenge thrown out in March, 1837, from the British House of Commons,
where, at Lord John Russell's instance, the Ten Resolutions were agreed
to, which amounted in effect to a denial of all the colonial claims and
a declaration of war upon those who made them. Papineau had to eat his
words or make them good, and he chose the latter course. His
insurrection was arranged in concert with that of the Upper Province,
broke out simultaneously in the winter of 1837, and was extinguished
with little difficulty. The men who made it suffered. Canada and the
Empire profited. Both Papineau and Mackenzie, following the precedent of
Wolfe Tone with France, endeavoured with little success to engage
American sympathy and the aid of her army, though Canada had as little
desire for American rule as Ireland had for French rule.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account