1840 жылғы Ұлыбританияның Солтүстік Америка Актісі: Канада Провинциясының құрылуы

British statute establishing the Province of Canada

The British North America Act, 1840 (3 & 4 Vict. c. 35), also known as the Act of Union 1840, was approved by Parliament in July 1840 and proclaimed February 10, 1841, in Montreal. It abolished the legislatures of Lower Canada and Upper Canada and established a new political entity, the Province of Canada to replace them.

After the War of 1812, the elected assembly of Lower Canada was dominated by French Canadians. A strong sense of nationalism sprung up among the francophones living in Lower Canada. The nationalists were led by Louis Joseph Papineau, who was a part of what would later be known as the Patriot Party. One of its biggest demands was to determine how the colony's revenue would be spent. It challenged the authority of the upper house of the legislature. As well, the party sought to take control of civil services such as the executive council, which advised the sitting governor general. All the demands were refuted by the Governor General, the Earl of Dalhousie, who was the governor general of British North America from 1820 to 1828. However, in 1828, he was replaced because of a negative report given by members of parliament comprising British reformers who sought to make peace with the Lower Canadian Assembly. The next governor general was Sir James Kempt, who lasted from 1828 to 1830. Kempt's time in office briefly eased tensions between the Patriot Party and the existing government. The next two governors general, Lord Aylmer (1830–1835) and Lord Gosford (1835 1838), also sought to reconcile the government with the ever growing demands of the people. The situation in Lower Canada continued to worsen, nevertheless. The French and the English living in Lower Canada became increasingly polarized from one another, as tensions continue to grow. The Patriot Party tried to reason with British rule, including by sending the Ninety Two Resolutions. The British Parliament ignored the resolutions for about three years and then all but dismissed them. Eventually, the Patriot Party organized and executed two rebellions, the first in November 1837 and the second in November 1838. French and English Patriots battled with British soldiers, French Canadian officers and English Montrealers. Both times, a lack of organization and numbers made the Patriots fall within a week of the rebellions' start.

The rebellion in Upper Canada in 1837 was less violent than its counterpart in Lower Canada had been. However, Upper Canadian rebels were equally serious in their demands. The main leader of the rebellion was William Lyon Mackenzie. Its demands included democratic reform and the end of the rule of privileged oligarchy. The rebellion in Upper Canada ran from December 5 to 8. The transfer of some of Britain's militia force to Lower Canada inspired rebels to try to seize the government and institute the constitution they had drafted, similar to that of the US Constitution. The rebels were dispersed by British arms and a group of government volunteers.

Because of the rebellions, the Crown and the British Parliament sent John George Lambton, Earl of Durham, back to Canada to report on what had caused the rebellions and outline suggestions on how to best fix the situation. The investigation is now commonly known as the Durham Report. Because of suggestions by Lord Durham in his report, the British Parliament united Upper and Lower Canada as the Province of Canada.

Lord Durham wanted to re instate peace throughout the colonies and recommended a political union. It was under his belief that peace could best be achieved by ensuring a loyal English majority in British North America, as well as by anglicizing French Canadians, and by granting responsible government. The union was also proposed to solve pressing financial issues in Upper Canada, which had become increasingly indebted under the previous regime dominated by the Family Compact. These debts stemmed mostly from poor investments in canals connecting Upper Canada to the Port of Montreal in Lower Canada via the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River. Due to Upper Canada's considerable debt and chronic budget shortfalls, it was hoped that its finances could be salvaged by merging it with the then solvent Lower Canada. Upper Canada, with its British and Protestant majority, was growing more rapidly than Lower Canada, with the French Canadian and Catholic majority. It was hoped that by merging the two colonies, the French Canadian cultural presence in North America would gradually disappear through assimilation. As such, the act also contained measures banning the French language from official use in the Canadian parliament. However, despite the amalgamation, the distinct legal systems of the two colonies were retained with Upper Canada becoming referred to as Canada West (with English common law) and Lower Canada as Canada East (with French civil law). In Upper Canada, there was opposition to unionization from the Family Compact, while in Lower Canada political and religious leaders reacted against Upper Canada's anti French measures. However, the francophone presence remained inferior to their demographic weight in the executive and legislative councils. The government of Lafontaine Baldwin succeeded in repealing the measure against the French language in the assembly, the courts, and the civil administration. With the double majority principle, both Canadas were "reseparated," and for a short while, both sides were managed independently. Joint premierships shared by an anglophone from Canada West and a francophone from Canada East became the convention, but continual legislative deadlock resulting from the conflicting aspirations of the two Canadas remained. Dissatisfaction resulting from the deadlock was one of the main factors for Canadian Confederation in 1867.