1775: Quebecois?

[Zkribbler]

The American Revolution occurred just a dozen or so years after the French lost Quebec to the British in the 7 Years War (aka French and Indian War). The French there had to be chaffing under British rule.

Why didn't the Quebecois join the Americans in rebelling from Britain? The Americans even attacked Quebec in 1775, but there was no general uprising in support. Why were the Quebecois so passive?

[KrazyHorse]

Because the British had just guaranteed French Canadians freedom of religion, something they were quite uncertain of receiving from the Americans.

[KrazyHorse]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quebec_Act

Or do they not bother teaching you this in your history classes...

[Zkribbler]

Originally posted by KrazyHorse

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quebec_Act

Or do they not bother teaching you this in your history classes...

Are you kiddiing?! They didn't even teach us how to pronounce Qwabeck.

[Zkribbler]

Wow. Of course I've heard of the Intolerable Acts but I've never heard that the Quebec Act was one of them. Thanks, Krazy!

[Wycoff]

Originally posted by Zkribbler
Wow. Of course I've heard of the Intolerable Acts but I've never heard that the Quebec Act was one of them.

You should have paid better attention in U.S. History

[Ninot]

Quebec

Without Quebec, You'd still be a colony!

[lord of the mark]

note that a few quebecers DID support the Patriot invasion. However as the Quebec Act referenced above reconciled the Catholics, and the patriot cause, ideologically, was an alliance of dissenting Protestants, low church Anglicans, and enlightenment intellectuals against Tory Anglicanism (and by implication Catholicism) such support as the Patriots got was largely from enlightenment philosophe types, who were not exactly abundant on the ground in Quebec at the time. The Habitants followed their clerical leadership, which was happy with the Quebec Act and looked askance at the Patriot cause.

[Zkribbler]

Originally posted by Wycoff
You should have paid better attention in U.S. History

U.S. schools only teach us about other countries that we've successfully invaded. Canada isn't on the list.

[Wycoff]

Originally posted by Zkribbler
U.S. schools only teach us about other countries that we've successfully invaded. Canada isn't on the list.

I went to a public high school in the Appalachians. Even my poor rural school saw fit to teach us about the Intolerable Acts, British treatment of Quebec, and the American Revolution. Your school must have been extra crappy

[Fake Boris]

French Canadians didn't have a strong national sentiment in 1775. They saw the Anglo-American conflict mainly as an affair that was none of their business.

BTW, when the French sent an expeditionary corpse to help the colonists, they had to formally agree not to retake Canada.

[Zkribbler]

Originally posted by Oncle Boris
BTW, when the French sent an expeditionary corp to help the colonists, they had to formally agree not to retake Canada.

Why?? France and Britain were already at war. France had even prepared to invade England (but abandoned that plan when their army called in sick.) What could the British due in retaliation. Stop the importation of Freedom fries?

[Fake Boris]

No, it's the Americans that didn't want a metropolitan power retaking control over a former colony.

[Zkribbler]

Originally posted by Ninot
Quebec

Without Quebec, You'd still be a colony!

Explain, please. When we attacked Quebec on Dec. 31, 1775, we got our tookuses kicked. How did this help us?

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by Zkribbler


Explain, please. When we attacked Quebec on Dec. 31, 1775, we got our tookuses kicked. How did this help us?

the implication seems to be that absent the Quebec Act, thered have been no revolution. That seems to me to be an exageration of the importance of the Quebec Act.