Fort Battleford Fort Battleford was the sixth North - West Mounted Police fort to be established in the Northwest Territories of Canada , and played a central role in the events of the North - West Rebellion / Resistance of 1885 . It was there that Poundmaker was arrested , and that six Cree and two Stoney men were hanged for their participation in the Frog Lake Massacre and other killings . Fort Battleford is located at the centre of the junction of the North Saskatchewan and the Battle rivers . This site offered access to fresh water , as it was many years before an on - site well was made available ; it also offered an alternative means of transportation to the Red River Cart . As the site was also on a plateau , the fort was easily defensible , and offered clear lines of sight for the surrounding area and to Government Ridge - thus providing warning against possible attacks . The fort sheltered around five hundred people , and they helped to fortify Battleford . The fact that Battleford was then the newly designated [ [ Capital capital of the Northwest Territories also played a substantial role in the decision to locate the fort there . The government ' s belief was that the presence of the NWMP would act as a civilizing influence on the First Nations people in the area , and help them to transition from their nomadic lifestyle to a more stationary one , modelled on [ [ European ethnic groups | European ] ] societies . They also hoped that the force would assist settlers in their homesteading efforts , and that their presence in the area would encourage the people of the area to respect the laws and rules of the government . The difficulties that had plagued Native American - Government relations in the [ [ United States ] ] , along with the high [ [ Aboriginal peoples in Canada | Aboriginal ] ] population in the Battleford area , further prompted the federal government to establish a strong NWMP presence . Both the Canadian government and the First Nations people were quite aware of what had transpired south of the " [ [ Medicine Line ] ] " and sought to follow a different path . The original Canadian Pacific Railway route was also to pass through Battleford , along the Qu ' Appelle route , but this was overruled in favour of a more southerly route - which resulted , later , in the moving of the capital of the Northwest Territories from Battleford to Regina , then known as Pile O ' Bones ( and also the reason why Regina is the only provincial capital not built on a major waterway ) . Legacy . In the spring of 2008 , Tourism , Parks , Culture and Sport Minister Christine Tell proclaimed in Duck lake , that " the 125th commemoration , in 2010 , of the 1885 Northwest Resistance is an excellent opportunity to tell the story of the prairie Métis and First Nations peoples ' struggle with Government forces and how it has shaped Canada today . " Fort Otter was constructed at [ [ Battleford ] ] ' s government house located at the capital of the [ [ Territorial evolution of Canada | North - West Territories ] ] ( 1876 and 1883 ) . The largest Canadian mass hanging occurred here when eight first nation men executed in the aftermath of the [ [ Frog Lake Massacre ] ] . The Fort was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1923 , known as Fort Battleford National Historic Site , to commemorate its role as military base of operations for Cut Knife Hill , Fort Pitt , as a refuge for 500 area settlers and its role in the Siege of Battleford . External links . [ [ Category : Military history of Saskatchewan ] ] [ [ Category : Military history of the Northwest Territories ] ] [ [ Category : Forts in Canada | Battleford ] ] [ [ Category : North - West Mounted Police forts | Battleford ] ] [ [ Category : Parks in Saskatchewan ] ] [ [ Category : National Historic Sites in Saskatchewan ] ] [ [ Category : Museums in Saskatchewan ] ] [ [ Category : Law enforcement museums and memorials in Canada ] ] [ [ Category : History museums in Canada ] ] [ [ Category : Forts or trading posts on the National Historic Sites of Canada register ] ]