Canadian history · Drawing 14 of 43
A list of rights
1870
In 1870, Manitoba joined Canada as its fifth province. Led by Louis Riel, the Red River Métis had formed a government and negotiated a list of rights to protect their land and languages.
Look together
Why does it matter to be asked what you think?
An idea to try
Write a short list of rights for your home together, such as the right to be listened to or to speak your language. Each person suggests one idea, and everyone must agree.
For the adult reading along
A little more to discover
In 1869, Canada was about to take over the vast Rupert’s Land, which included Red River, without consulting the First Nations and Métis who lived there. At Red River, most people were Métis. When Canadian surveyors arrived, Louis Riel and others stopped them. The Red River Métis formed a provisional government, and a convention of 20 English-speaking and 20 French-speaking delegates drafted a List of Rights. It became the basis of the Manitoba Act: on July 15, 1870, Manitoba became the fifth province, with French and English protected and 1.4 million acres promised to Métis children.
The story has painful parts. In March 1870, the provisional government executed Thomas Scott, a settler who opposed it. Riel was denied the promised amnesty and went into exile. Canada went back on its land promises; by 1900, perhaps 75 per cent of the Red River Métis had left Manitoba. In 2013, the Supreme Court ruled that the land promise had not been kept honourably. Today, Manitoba honours Riel as its first premier. Ask your child: how would it feel if others decided about your home without asking?
Sources and illustration notes (3)
An imagined meeting: the delegates are not portraits of Louis Riel or any other real person, and no writing can be read on the papers.
These links lead to other websites. Explore them with an adult. References identify the institution and the related lesson; some linked pages are in French.
- Manitoba Métis Federation — Manitoba DayRupert’s Land sold to Canada without consulting its Indigenous inhabitants; provisional government of December 8, 1869; Convention of Forty (20 English-speaking and 20 French-speaking delegates) and List of Rights as the basis of the Manitoba Act; royal assent May 12 and proclamation July 15, 1870; 1.4 million acres under section 31; Thomas Scott executed March 4, 1870.
- Parks Canada — Riel House National Historic Site: Historic themesPurchase of Rupert’s Land without regard to its inhabitants; surveyors in fall 1869; Riel and 15 others stopped the surveying; provisional government; language and property rights guaranteed by the Manitoba Act; government went back on its land agreement; amnesty denied and exile; about 75 per cent of the Red River Métis gone by 1900.
- Manitoba Métis Federation — From Louis to Treaty2013 Supreme Court ruling that Canada failed to implement the Métis land grant of the Manitoba Act, 1870 in accordance with the honour of the Crown; Riel recognized as first Premier of Manitoba (2023); self-government treaty.
Page prepared on September 24, 2026. Illustrations simplify places and scenes; they are not historical documents.
This drawing is from the book Canada’s Great Moments to Colour
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