From: audetf@Software.Mitel.COM (Francois Audet)
Newsgroups: can.general,can.politics,soc.culture.canada
Subject: Re: Lower and upper Canadas
Date: 9 Sep 92 13:25:01 GMT
Organization: Mitel. Kanata (Ontario). Canada.

In article nadeau@bnr.ca (Rheal Nadeau) writes:
]While much is made of the battle of the Plains of Abraham in Canadian
]history, this was a mere skirmish in the war between Napoleonic France
]and England.  (The colonies, at that time, were considered minor
]possessions.)  This war was resolved, of course, at Waterloo.  (It had
]to be resolved again later, of course; that's the way history works.)

What? No, no, no. Quebec fell in 1760 (or 59, I don't remember), and a
year latter it was Montreal's turn. The british occupation started (at
least in Quebec City) and a lot of french citizens were forced to move
"dans les terres", away from Quebec City. Quebec was really conquered.

]One of the conditions of capitulation, for Napoleon, involved his
]ceding to England one of France's colonies:  Canada, or St. Pierre &
]Miquelon.  Napoleon chose to keep the islands over Canada, which was
]considered to be nothing more than "quelques arpents de neige"
](Voltaire).

This is 55 years latter (and after a Revolution). I don't know were
you took your data but it doesn't make any sense. Napoleon sold
Lousiana to the US, but not Canada. Maybee France finally officialize
the fact that they had lost Nouvelle-France, but it was long gone.

]The idea that Quebec was invaded supposes that Quebec existed as an
]independent entity - it didn't.  

Of course it did. It was even for a time an almost feudal systems with
Lords and everything. Who do you think the "Intendant" was? 

This type of rewriting of history anoys me (actually, any type of
rewriting of history anoys me).

]Quebec fell into English possession
]not at the Plains of Abraham, but on the battlefields and negociation
]tables of Europe.  (And, if I remember my history correctly, the
]British victory at the Plains of Abraham was short-lived, since they
]were later defeated in another battle with the French, leaving France
]still in control of Nouvelle-France.)
	
It is true that the Battle of the Plaine d'Abraham was not as decisive
as it first appeared to be. 

]Heck, if Napoleon hadn't over-extended himself in Europe, and had been
]able to hang on to the French colonies in North America (from Quebec to
]New Orleans, including much of Ontario and the prairies), we'd have a
]very different world today - who is to say which language, if any,
]would now dominate here:  English, French, or Spanish?  But then, if
]Napoleon hadn't tried to invade Russia, Tolstoy wouldn't have been able
]to write "War and Peace"; he'd have had to stick to a less ambitious
]work, "and Peace".  :-)

Nouvelle-France was lost long before the Revolution (under Louis XIV I
think): Napoleaon wasn't even born yet.

Shouldn't this belong in can.history?
-- 
                                                       Francois Audet
                                                           '
        Telephone: (613) 592-2121 x1754     Facsimile: (613) 592-4784
                          Internet: Francois.Audet@software.Mitel.COM