Most high school students in Canada learn about Governor Guy Carleton and the Quebec Act. It is good for all of us, however, to reflect on what this man did and the lasting impact he made on our country.
After the final British victory over the French and the Treaty of Paris in 1763, it was up to Carleton, a military general and now the governor of the colony, to convince the citizens of New France to accept British rule.
Carleton was clearly the right man for the job. At a time when Catholics were forbidden to hold any government position and the French and English were frequently at war, Carleton observed the new colony with an open mind. He found a system in place that worked well, a feudal form of government less structured than that operating in France, and a church that helped to cement the social structure. He also found a number of leaders, such as Bishop Francois Laval, who were good, honest people and had the well-being of the people as their first priority. He therefore allowed the Canadiens to keep their language and religion, as well as their legal system and way of life.
Carleton showed his integrity a few years later when the Quebec Act was drafted. Though it promised to keep things as they were regarding the social structures, it contained a secret clause to suppress the Catholic Church. When this information was leaked to Church leaders in Quebec they immediately contacted Carleton who then made sure that this would not happen. In other words, Carleton stood up to his own government to honour his commitment to Catholic leaders. At a time when religion played a major role in the lives of people, this was significant.
Later in his career, Carleton again demonstrated that he was a man of integrity who was willing to stand up for people who were oppressed. During the American Revolution, the British government promised freedom to all slaves who would fight for the king. When the war ended and Loyalists were leaving America, Carleton had the task of assuring that all those who had earned the right were listed in The Book of Negroes and were allowed to board ships. It may be argued that the British were being hypocritical because at the time slavery was still legal in their Empire, including in Canada, that Loyalist slave owners were able to keep their slaves when they left America, and that the British were only doing this to anger the Americans. To the thousands of people who were freed, however, Carleton was a man of his word who changed their lives for the better. Many of those who were freed settled in Canada, primarily in Nova Scotia.
When studying history, it is important to acknowledge the influence of people of integrity, people who saw beyond the common prejudices of the time and did what they knew was right. These people of conscience helped to shape Canada and to make it what it is today, and they continue to provide a model for us to follow.
