| The British North America Act |
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 courtesy of NAC |
In December of 1866, delegates
from the three provinces attended a conference in London, England
to discuss the proposed plans for confederation. This conference,
chaired by Sir John A. Macdonald and attended by some of the
leading Fathers of Confederation, was to lay the groundwork
for a nation. On March 29, 1867, Queen Victoria gave her royal approval
to the British North America Act (BNA), which was brought into effect
on July 1, of that year. The Province of Canada, which was divided
at the time of confederation into the provinces of Ontario and Quebec,
Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, were united creating the Dominion of
Canada. The new dominion was to be governed by a parliamentary system similar to that of the United Kingdom. Canada was to have a federal political system with a central government located in Ottawa and provincial governments located in the four original provinces. Sections 91 and 92 of the Act laid out the responsibilities for the federal and provincial governments respectively. Under Section 91, the federal government was responsible for defense, banking, postal service, and criminal law. The provincial governments in turn, under Section 92, were responsible for municipal institutions, hospitals, property and civil rights, and under Section 93, education. Under the terms of the BNA, Canadians were to remain subjects of the British Crown. Although Canada was granted its 'independence,' it still lacked control of its own foreign policy and immigration, and was unable to take command of its own armed forces except through British Officers. Furthermore, the BNA did not contain its own amendment formula. As a result, all amendments to our constitution were the responsibility of the Imperial Parliament in London at the request of Canada. It was only in 1982, when we patriated our constitution, that Canada was able to make amendments to its own constitution. Note: The British North America Act was renamed the Constitution Act, 1867 in 1982.
Courtesy Historic Sites and Monuments
Board of Canada
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