Editing Canada (section)

==History==
===Aboriginal peoples===
[[Archaeology of the Americas|Archaeological]] and [[Genetic history of indigenous peoples of the Americas|genetic]] studies support a human presence in the northern [[Yukon]] from 26,500 years ago, and in southern [[Ontario]] from 9,500 years ago.<ref>{{cite web|year=2003 |url=http://www.ucl.ac.uk/tcga/tcgapdf/Bortolini-AJHG-03-YAmer.pdf |title=Y-Chromosome Evidence for Differing Ancient Demographic Histories in the Americas|format=PDF|publisher=University College London 73:524–539|doi=10.1086/377588|accessdate=2011-05-23}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite journal| last=Cinq-Mars| first=J| year=2001| title=On the significance of modified mammoth bones from eastern Beringia| journal=The World of Elephants&nbsp;– International Congress, Rome| url=http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.palanth.com/forum/upload_download/articles/cinqmars_elefanti_01.pdf|format=PDF| accessdate=2011-05-23}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite web| last=Wright|first=JV| publisher=Canadian Museum of Civilization| url=http://www.civilization.ca/cmc/exhibitions/archeo/hnpc/npvol04e.shtml| title=A History of the Native People of Canada: Early and Middle Archaic Complexes| date=September 27, 2009| accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>
[[Old Crow Flats]] and [[Bluefish Caves]] are two of the earliest archaeological sites of human ([[Paleo-Indians]]) habitation in Canada.<ref>{{cite web
 | last = Griebel
 | first = Ron
 | title = The Bluefish Caves
 | publisher = Minnesota State University
 | url = http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/archaeology/sites/northamerica/bluefishcaves.html
 | archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20080624012628/http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/archaeology/sites/northamerica/bluefishcaves.html
 | archivedate = 2008-06-24
 | accessdate =2011-05-23 }}
</ref><ref>
{{cite web
 | title=Beringia: humans were here
 | work=Montreal Gazette
 | date=May 17, 2008
 | url=http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/saturdayextra/story.html?id=2a31375e-e834-407d-b8db-2a0010ad4acf&p=2
 | accessdate=2009-09-18 }}
</ref><ref>{{cite web| last=Cinq-Mars| first=Jacques| title=Significance of the Bluefish Caves in Beringian Prehistory| publisher=Canadian Museum of Civilization| year=2001| page=2| url=http://www.civilization.ca/cmc/explore/resources-for-scholars/essays/archaeology/jacques-cinq-mars/significance-of-the-bluefish-caves-in-beringian-prehistory2| accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref> The characteristics of Canadian Aboriginal societies included permanent settlements,
agriculture, complex societal hierarchies, and trading networks.<ref>{{cite book|last=Hayes|first=Derek|title=Canada : an illustrated history.|year=2008|publisher=Douglas & Mcintyre|isbn=9781553652595|pages=7, 13}}</ref><ref>{{cite book
|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=quM1xyFyfhQC&pg=PA170|title=Indigenous difference and the Constitution of Canada
|first= Patrick
|last=Macklem
|year=2001
|publisher=University of Toronto Press
|page=170
|isbn=0802041957}}</ref> Some of these cultures had faded by the time of the first permanent European arrivals (c. late 15th–early 16th centuries), and have been discovered through archaeological investigations.<ref>{{cite book|author=Sonneborn, Liz|title=Chronology of American Indian History|date=January 2007|publisher=Infobase Publishing|isbn=9780816067701|pages=2–12}}</ref>

The [[Population history of indigenous peoples of the Americas|aboriginal population]] is estimated to have been between 200,000<ref name="dying"/> and two million in the late 15th century,<ref name=Steckel>{{cite book|last=Thornton|first=Russell|title=A population history of North America|editor=Haines, Michael R; Steckel, Richard Hall|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2000|pages=13, 380|chapter=Population history of Native North Americans|isbn=0521496667|quote=My 7+ million estimate for the area north of present-day Mexico includes...somewhat more than 2 million for present-day Canada, Alaska, and Greenland combined.}}</ref> with a figure of 500,000 accepted by Canada's Royal Commission on Aboriginal Health.<ref>{{cite book|title=Handbook of North American Indians: Indians in contemporary society|first= Garrick Alan |last=Bailey |year=2008|publisher= Government Printing Office|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=Z1IwUbZqjTUC&pg=PA285|page=285|isbn=0160803888}}
</ref> Repeated outbreaks of European [[infectious disease]]s such as [[influenza]], [[measles]], and [[smallpox]] (to which they had no natural immunity), combined with other effects of European contact, resulted in a forty to eighty percent aboriginal population decrease post-contact.<ref name="dying">{{cite book|last=Wilson|first=Donna M|coauthors= Northcott, Herbert C|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=p_pMVs53mzQC&pg=PA25|title=Dying and Death in Canada|publisher=University of Toronto Press|year=2008|isbn=9781551118734|pages=25–27}}</ref>
Aboriginal peoples in Canada include the First Nations,<ref>{{cite web
 | title = Gateway to Aboriginal Heritage: Culture
 | publisher = Canadian Museum of Civilization
 | date = May 12, 2006
 | url = http://www.civilization.ca/cmc/exhibitions/tresors/ethno/etb0170e.shtml
 | accessdate =2011-05-23}}
</ref>
[[Inuit]],<ref>{{cite web
 | title=ICC Charter
 | publisher=Inuit Circumpolar Council
 | year=2007
 | url=http://inuitcircumpolar.com/index.php?auto_slide=&ID=374&Lang=En&Parent_ID=&current_slide_num=
 | archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20080226023243/http://inuitcircumpolar.com/index.php?auto_slide=&ID=374&Lang=En&Parent_ID=&current_slide_num=
 | archivedate=2008-02-26
 | accessdate=2011-05-23 }}
</ref>
and [[Métis people (Canada)|Métis]].<ref>{{cite web
 | title = In the Kawaskimhon Aboriginal Moot Court Factum of the Federal Crown Canada
 | publisher =[[University of Manitoba]] Faculty of Law
 |year=2007
 |url= http://www.umanitoba.ca/law/newsite/kawaskimhon_factums/FINALWrittenSubmissionsofFederalCrown_windsor.pdf
 |archiveurl = http://www.webcitation.org/5lOHtrRJy
 |archivedate=2009-11-19
 |page=2
 | accessdate=2011-05-23}}
</ref>
The Métis are a [[mixed-blood]] people who originated in the mid-17th century when First Nation and Inuit married European settlers.<ref>{{cite web
 | title = What to Search: Topics
 | work = Ethno-Cultural and Aboriginal Groups
 | publisher = Library and Archives Canada
 | date = May 27, 2005
 | url = http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/genealogie/022-905.004-e.html
 | accessdate=2011-05-23 }}
</ref> The Inuit had more limited interaction with European settlers during the colonization period.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.heritage.nf.ca/aboriginal/innu_culture.html|work=Innu Culture|title=3. Innu-Inuit 'Warfare'|year=1999|author=Tanner, Adrian|publisher=Department of Anthropology, Memorial University of Newfoundland| accessdate=2011-05-23 }}</ref>

===European colonization===
[[File:Benjamin West 005.jpg|thumb|left|[[Benjamin West]]'s ''[[The Death of General Wolfe]]'' (1771) dramatizes [[James Wolfe|Wolfe]]'s death during the [[Battle of the Plains of Abraham]] at [[Quebec City|Quebec]] in 1759]]
[[European colonization of the Americas|European colonization]] began when [[Norsemen]] settled briefly at [[L'Anse aux Meadows]] in Newfoundland around 1000.<ref>
{{cite book
|title=The Norse Discovery of America
|first=Arthur Middleton
|last=Reeves
|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=HkoPUdPM3V8C&pg=PA7
|publisher=BiblioLife
|page=82
|year=2009
|isbn=9780559054006}}</ref>
No further European exploration occurred until 1497, when Italian seafarer [[John Cabot]] explored Canada's Atlantic coast for England.<ref>{{cite web|title=John Cabot's voyage of 1498|url=http://www.heritage.nf.ca/exploration/cabot1498.html |publisher=Memorial University of Newfoundland|year=2000|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>
Basque and Portuguese mariners established seasonal whaling and fishing outposts along the Atlantic coast.<ref name=hornsby/> In 1534 [[Jacques Cartier]] explored the Saint Lawrence River for France.<ref name=historian>{{cite book|title = A Short History of Canada|first = Desmond | last= Morton|authorlink = Desmond Morton (historian)
|publisher = McClelland & Stewart|year = 2001|edition = 6th|isbn = 0771065094|pages = 9–19, 33, 89–104}}</ref>

In 1583, Sir [[Humphrey Gilbert]] claimed [[St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador|St. John's, Newfoundland]] as the first North American [[Colonial empire of the Kingdom of England|English colony]] by royal prerogative of [[Elizabeth I of England|Queen Elizabeth I]].<ref name=DCgil>
{{cite web|title=Gilbert (Gylberte, Jilbert), Sir Humphrey|work=Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online|publisher=University of Toronto|date=May 2, 2005|url=http://www.biographi.ca/EN/ShowBio.asp?BioId=34374|accessdate=2011-09-10}}</ref> French explorer [[Samuel de Champlain]] arrived in 1603 and established the first permanent European settlements at [[Port Royal, Nova Scotia|Port Royal]] in 1605 and Quebec City in 1608. Among [[French colonization of the Americas|French colonists]] of New France, ''[[French Canadian|Canadiens]]'' extensively settled the Saint Lawrence River valley and [[Acadians]] settled the present-day [[Maritimes]], while [[Coureur des bois|fur traders]] and Catholic missionaries explored the Great Lakes, [[Hudson Bay]], and the [[Mississippi watershed]] to [[Louisiana (New France)|Louisiana]]. The [[Beaver Wars]] broke out over control of the [[North American fur trade]].<ref name=historian/>

The English established additional colonies in [[Cupids, Newfoundland and Labrador|Cupids]] and [[Ferryland, Newfoundland and Labrador|Ferryland]], [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]] beginning in 1610 and soon after founded the [[Thirteen Colonies]] to the south.<ref name=hornsby>{{cite book|last=Hornsby|first=Stephen J|title=British Atlantic, American frontier : spaces of power in early modern British America|year=2005|publisher=University Press of New England|isbn=9781584654278|pages=14, 18–19, 22–23}}</ref> A series of four [[French and Indian Wars]] erupted between 1689 and 1763.<ref name=historian/> Mainland [[Nova Scotia]] came under British rule with the [[Treaty of Utrecht]] (1713); the [[Treaty of Paris (1763)]] ceded Canada and most of New France to [[British Empire|Britain]] after the [[French and Indian War|Seven Years' War]].<ref>{{cite journal|last=Allaire|first=Gratien|title=From "Nouvelle-France" to "Francophonie canadienne": a historical survey|journal=International Journal of the Sociology of Language|date=May 2007|issue=185|pages=25–52|doi=10.1515/IJSL.2007.024}}</ref>

The [[Royal Proclamation of 1763]] carved the [[Province of Quebec (1763–1791)|Province of Quebec]] out of New France and annexed [[Cape Breton Island]] to Nova Scotia.<ref name="buckner"/> St. John's Island (now [[Prince Edward Island]]) became a separate colony in 1769.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Hicks|first=Bruce M|title=Use of Non-Traditional Evidence: A Case Study Using Heraldry to Examine Competing Theories for Canada's Confederation|journal=British Journal of Canadian Studies|date=March 2010|volume=23|issue=1|pages=87–117|doi=10.3828/bjcs.2010.5}}</ref> To avert conflict in Quebec, the British passed the [[Quebec Act]] of 1774, expanding Quebec's territory to the Great Lakes and [[Ohio River|Ohio Valley]]. It re-established the French language, Catholic faith, and French civil law there. This angered many residents of the Thirteen Colonies and helped to fuel the [[American Revolution]].<ref name="buckner"/>

The [[Treaty of Paris (1783)]] recognized American independence and ceded territories south of the Great Lakes to the United States. [[New Brunswick]] was split from Nova Scotia as part of a reorganization of Loyalist settlements in the Maritimes. To accommodate English-speaking Loyalists in Quebec, the [[Constitutional Act of 1791]] divided the province into French-speaking [[Lower Canada]] (later [[Quebec#Canadian Confederation|Quebec]]) and English-speaking [[Upper Canada]] (later [[Ontario#Canada West|Ontario]]), granting each its own elected legislative assembly.<ref>{{cite book|last=McNairn|first=Jeffrey L|title=The capacity to judge|publisher=University of Toronto Press|year=2000|page=24|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=T_A3pZQrHzIC&pg=PA24|isbn=0802043607}}</ref>

[[File:Fathers of Confederation LAC c001855.jpg|left|thumb|[[Robert Harris (painter)|Robert Harris]]'s [[Fathers of Confederation definition|''Fathers of Confederation'']],<ref>This is a photograph taken in 1885 of the now-destroyed 1884 painting.</ref> an amalgamation of the [[Charlottetown Conference|Charlottetown]] and [[Quebec Conference, 1864|Quebec conferences]]]]

[[The Canadas]] were the main front in the [[War of 1812]] between the United States and Britain. Following the war, large-scale immigration to Canada from Britain and [[Ireland]] began in 1815.<ref name=Steckel/> From 1825 to 1846, 626,628 European immigrants landed at Canadian ports.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://faculty.marianopolis.edu/c.belanger/QuebecHistory/encyclopedia/ImmigrationHistoryofCanada.htm|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20071216101207/http://faculty.marianopolis.edu/c.belanger/QuebecHistory/encyclopedia/ImmigrationHistoryofCanada.htm|archivedate=2007-12-16|title=Immigration History of Canada|year=2004|publisher=Marianopolis College|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>
Between one-quarter and one-third of all Europeans who immigrated to Canada before 1891 died of infectious diseases.<ref name="dying"/>

The desire for [[responsible government]] resulted in the aborted [[Rebellions of 1837]]. The [[Report on the Affairs of British North America|Durham Report]] subsequently recommended responsible government and the assimilation of French Canadians into English culture.<ref name="buckner"/> The [[Act of Union 1840]] merged The Canadas into a united [[Province of Canada]]. Responsible government was established for all British North American provinces by 1849.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Romney|first=Paul|date=Spring 1989|title=From Constitutionalism to Legalism: Trial by Jury, Responsible Government, and the Rule of Law in the Canadian Political Culture|journal=Law and History Review|publisher=University of Illinois Press|volume=7|issue=1|page=128}}</ref> The signing of the [[Oregon Treaty]] by Britain and the United States in 1846 ended the [[Oregon boundary dispute]], extending the border westward along the [[49th parallel north|49th parallel]]. This paved the way for British colonies on [[Colony of Vancouver Island|Vancouver Island (1849)]] and in [[Colony of British Columbia|British Columbia (1858)]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Evenden|first=Leonard J|coauthors=Turbeville, Daniel E|title=Geographical snapshots of North America|editor=Janelle, Donald G|publisher=Guilford Press|year=1992|page=52|chapter=The Pacific Coast Borderland and Frontier|isbn=0898620309}}</ref>

===Confederation and expansion===
[[File:Canada provinces evolution 2.gif|thumb|300px|alt=refer to caption|An animated map, exhibiting [[Territorial evolution of Canada|the growth and change of Canada's provinces and territories since Confederation]]]]

Following several constitutional conferences, the [[Constitution Act, 1867]] officially proclaimed Canadian Confederation on July 1, 1867, with four provinces: [[Ontario]], [[Quebec]], [[Nova Scotia]], and [[New Brunswick]].<ref>{{cite web| title = Territorial evolution| work = Atlas of Canada | publisher = Natural Resources Canada | url =http://atlas.nrcan.gc.ca/site/english/maps/reference/anniversary_maps/terr_evol | accessdate=2011-05-23}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite web| title = Canada: History| work = Country Profiles | publisher = Commonwealth Secretariat | url =http://www.thecommonwealth.org/YearbookInternal/145152/history/ | accessdate=2011-05-23}}
</ref><ref name=bothwell>
{{cite book|title = History of Canada Since 1867|first = Robert | last = Bothwell|publisher = Michigan State University Press
|year = 1996
|isbn = 0870133993
|pages=31, 207–310}}</ref>
Canada assumed control of [[Rupert's Land]] and the [[North-Western Territory]] to form the [[Northwest Territories]], where the Métis' grievances ignited the [[Red River Rebellion]] and the creation of the province of [[Manitoba]] in July 1870.<ref>{{cite book|last=Bumsted|first=JM|title=The Red River Rebellion|publisher=Watson & Dwyer|year=1996|isbn=0920486231}}</ref> British Columbia and Vancouver Island (which had [[United Colonies of Vancouver Island and British Columbia|united in 1866]]) and Prince Edward Island joined the Confederation in 1871 and 1873, respectively.<ref name=canatlas>{{cite web|url=http://www.canadiangeographic.ca/Atlas/themes.aspx?id=building&sub=building_basics_confederation&lang=En|title=Building a nation|work=Canadian Atlas|publisher=Canadian Geographic|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>
Prime Minister [[John A. Macdonald]] and his [[Conservative Party of Canada (historical)|Conservative]] government established a [[National Policy]] of [[tariff]]s to protect nascent Canadian manufacturing industries.<ref name=bothwell/>

To open the West, the government sponsored construction of three transcontinental railways (including the [[Canadian Pacific Railway]]), opened the prairies to settlement with the [[Dominion Lands Act]], and established the [[Royal Canadian Mounted Police|North-West Mounted Police]] to assert its authority over this territory.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/sir-john-a-macdonald/023013-5000-e.html|title=Sir John A. Macdonald|year=2008|publisher=Library and Archives Canada|accessdate=2011-05-23}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite web|url=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/publications/archivist-magazine/015002-2230-e.html|title=The Canadian West: An Archival Odyssey through the Records of the Department of the Interior|last=Cook|first=Terry|year=2000|work=The Archivist|publisher=Library and Archives Canada|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>
In 1898, after the [[Klondike Gold Rush]] in the Northwest Territories, the Canadian government created the Yukon Territory. Under [[Liberal Party of Canada|Liberal]] Prime Minister [[Wilfrid Laurier]], continental European immigrants settled the prairies, and [[Alberta]] and [[Saskatchewan]] became provinces in 1905.<ref name="canatlas" />

===Early 20th century===
[[File:Canadian tank and soldiers Vimy 1917.jpg|thumb|left|alt=Group of armed soldiers march past a wrecked tank and a body|Canadian soldiers at the [[Battle of Vimy Ridge]] in 1917]]
Because Britain still maintained control of Canada's foreign affairs under the Confederation Act, its declaration of war in 1914 automatically brought Canada into [[World War I]]. Volunteers sent to the Western Front later became part of the [[Canadian Corps]]. The Corps played a substantial role in the [[Battle of Vimy Ridge]] and other major battles of the war.<ref name="morton-milhist">{{cite book|last=Morton|first=Desmond|title=A military history of Canada|publisher=McClelland & Stewart|year=1999|edition=4th|pages=130–158, 173, 203–233, 258|isbn=0771065140}}</ref> Out of approximately 625,000 who served, about 60,000 were killed and another 173,000 were wounded.<ref>{{cite book|last=Haglund|first=David G|coauthors= MacFarlane, S Neil|title=Security, strategy and the global economics of defence production|publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press|year=1999|page=12|isbn=0889118752}}</ref> The [[Conscription Crisis of 1917]] erupted when conservative Prime Minister [[Robert Borden]] brought in compulsory military service over the objection of French-speaking Quebecers. In 1919, Canada joined the [[League of Nations]] independently of Britain and,<ref name="morton-milhist"/> the [[Statute of Westminster 1931]] affirmed Canada's independence.<ref name=hail/>

The [[Great Depression]] brought economic hardship throughout Canada. In response, the [[Co-operative Commonwealth Federation]] (CCF) in Alberta and Saskatchewan enacted many measures of a [[welfare state]] (as pioneered by [[Tommy Douglas]]) into the 1940s and 1950s.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Mulvale|first=James P|title=Basic Income and the Canadian Welfare State: Exploring the Realms of Possibility|journal=Basic Income Studies|date=July 11, 2008|volume=3|issue=1|doi=10.2202/1932-0183.1084}}</ref> Canada [[Military history of Canada during World War II|declared war on Germany]] independently during [[World War II]] under Liberal Prime Minister [[William Lyon Mackenzie King]], three days after Britain. The first Canadian Army units arrived in Britain in December 1939.<ref name="morton-milhist"/>

Canadian troops played important roles in the failed 1942 [[Dieppe Raid]], the [[Allied invasion of Italy]], the [[Normandy landings]], the [[Operation Overlord|Battle of Normandy]], and the [[Battle of the Scheldt]] in 1944.<ref name="morton-milhist"/> Canada provided asylum for the monarchy of the [[Netherlands]] while that country was occupied, and is credited by the country for leadership and major contributions to its liberation from [[Nazi Germany]].<ref name="netherlands">{{cite book|last=Goddard|first=Lance|title=Canada and the Liberation of the Netherlands|publisher=Dundurn Press Ltd|year=2005|pages=225–232|isbn=1550025473}}</ref> The Canadian economy boomed as industry manufactured military [[materiel]]<!--This is not a misspelling: follow the link to find out the difference between material and materiel--> for Canada, Britain, China, and the [[Soviet Union]].<ref name="morton-milhist"/> Despite another [[Conscription Crisis of 1944|Conscription Crisis]] in Quebec, Canada finished the war with a large army and strong economy.<ref>{{cite book|last=Bothwell|first=Robert|title=Alliance and illusion : Canada and the world, 1945–1984|year=2007|publisher=UBC Press|isbn=9780774813686|pages=11, 31}}</ref>

===Modern times===
[[File:Alexander-NFLD.jpg|thumb|At [[Rideau Hall]], [[Governor General of Canada|Governor General]] [[Harold Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis|the Viscount Alexander of Tunis]] (centre) receives the bill finalizing the union of [[Newfoundland and Labrador|Newfoundland]] and Canada, March 31, 1949.]]

[[Dominion of Newfoundland|Newfoundland]] (now [[Newfoundland and Labrador]]) joined Canada in 1949.<ref>{{cite web|author=Summers, WF |title=Newfoundland and Labrador |work= Canadian Encyclopedia |publisher=Historica-Dominion|url= http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=a1ARTA0005714#SEC925203|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>
Canada's post-war economic growth, combined with the policies of successive Liberal governments, led to the emergence of a new [[Canadian identity]], marked by the adoption of the current [[Flag of Canada|Maple Leaf Flag]] in 1965,<ref>{{cite book|last=Mackey|first=Eva|title=The house of difference: cultural politics and national identity in Canada|publisher=University of Toronto Press|year=2002|isbn=0802084818|page=57}}</ref> the implementation of [[official bilingualism]] ([[English language|English]] and [[French language|French]]) in 1969,<ref>{{cite journal|last=Landry|first=Rodrigue|coauthors=Forgues, Éric|title=Official language minorities in Canada: an introduction|journal=International Journal of the Sociology of Language|date=May 2007|issue=185|pages=1–9|doi=10.1515/IJSL.2007.022}}</ref> and [[Multiculturalism#Origins in Canada|official multiculturalism]] in 1971.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Esses|first=Victoria M|coauthors= Gardner, RC|date=July 1996|title=Multiculturalism in Canada: Context and current status|journal=Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science|volume=28|issue=3|pages=145–152}}</ref>
There was also the founding of [[Social democracy|socially democratic]] programmes, such as [[Medicare (Canada)|Medicare]], the [[Canada Pension Plan]], and [[Student loans in Canada|Canada Student Loans]], though provincial governments, particularly Quebec and Alberta, opposed many of these as incursions into their jurisdictions.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.escwa.un.org/information/publications/edit/upload/sd-01-09.pdf|archiveurl=http://www.webcitation.org/5nDiozOLF|archivedate=2010-02-01|title=Social Policies in Canada: A Model for Development|last=Sarrouh|first=Elissar|date=January 22, 2002|work=Social Policy Series, No. 1|publisher=United Nations|pages=14–16, 22–37|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>
Finally, another series of constitutional conferences resulted in the 1982 [[patriation]] of Canada's constitution from the United Kingdom, concurrent with the creation of the [[Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms|Charter of Rights and Freedoms]].<ref name=bickerton>{{cite book| editor=Bickerton, James; Gagnon, Alain| title=Canadian Politics| publisher=Broadview Press| edition=4th| isbn=1551115956| year=2004|pages=250–254, 344–347}}</ref> In 1999, [[Nunavut]] became Canada's third territory after a series of negotiations with the federal government.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Légaré|first=André|year=2008|title=Canada's Experiment with Aboriginal Self-Determination in Nunavut: From Vision to Illusion |journal=International Journal on Minority and Group Rights|volume=15|issue=2–3|pages=335–367|doi=10.1163/157181108X332659}}</ref>

At the same time, Quebec underwent profound social and economic changes through the [[Quiet Revolution]] of the 1960s, giving birth to a modern [[Quebec nationalism|nationalist]] movement. The radical [[Front de libération du Québec]] (FLQ) ignited the [[October Crisis]] in 1970.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Munroe|first=HD|title=The October Crisis Revisited: Counterterrorism as Strategic Choice, Political Result, and Organizational Practice|journal=Terrorism and Political Violence|year=2009|volume=21|issue=2|pages=288–305|doi=10.1080/09546550902765623}}</ref> The [[Quebec sovereignty movement|sovereignist]] [[Parti Québécois]] was elected in 1976 and organized an unsuccessful [[referendum]] on sovereignty-association in 1980. Attempts to accommodate Quebec nationalism constitutionally through the [[Meech Lake Accord]] failed in 1990.<ref name=sorens>{{cite journal|last=Sorens|first=J|title=Globalization, secessionism, and autonomy|journal=Electoral Studies|date=December 2004|volume=23|issue=4|pages=727–752|doi=10.1016/j.electstud.2003.10.003}}</ref> This led to the formation of the [[Bloc Québécois]] in Quebec and invigoration of the [[Reform Party of Canada]] in the [[Western Canada|West]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/a-brief-history-of-the-bloc-qubcois/article1672831/|title=A brief history of the Bloc Québécois |newspaper= The Globe and Mail|first=Daniel |last=Leblanc|date=August 13, 2010 |accessdate=2010-11-25}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite book|title=The new politics of the Right: neo-Populist parties and movements in ...|first1=Hans-Georg |last1=Betz|first2= Stefan|last2= Immerfall|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=H9cGkDJgW7wC&pg=PA173|page=173|publisher=St. Martinʼs Press|year=1998|isbn=0312211341}}</ref>
A [[Quebec referendum, 1995|second referendum]] followed in 1995, in which sovereignty was rejected by a slimmer margin of just 50.6 to 49.4 percent. In 1997, the [[Supreme Court of Canada|Supreme Court]] ruled that [[Reference re Secession of Quebec|unilateral secession]] by a province would be unconstitutional, and the [[Clarity Act]] was passed by parliament, outlining the terms of a negotiated departure from Confederation.<ref name=sorens/>

In addition to the issues of Quebec sovereignty, a number of crises shook Canadian society in the late 1980s and early 1990s. These included the explosion of [[Air India Flight 182]] in 1985, the largest mass murder in Canadian history;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.majorcomm.ca/en/termsofreference/|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20080622063429/http://www.majorcomm.ca/en/termsofreference/|archivedate=2008-06-22|title=Commission of Inquiry into the Investigation of the Bombing of Air India Flight 182|publisher=Government of Canada |accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref> the [[École Polytechnique massacre]] in 1989, a university shooting targeting female students;<ref>{{cite web|last= Sourour|first=Teresa K|url=http://www.diarmani.com/Montreal_Coroners_Report.pdf|year=1991 |format=PDF|title=Report of Coroner's Investigation|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref> and the [[Oka Crisis]] in 1990,<ref>{{cite news|title=The Oka Crisis|url=http://archives.cbc.ca/politics/civil_unrest/topics/99/|format=Digital Archives |publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC)|year=2000|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref> the first of a number of violent confrontations between the government and Aboriginal groups.<ref>{{cite book|last=Roach|first=Kent|title=September 11: consequences for Canada|publisher=McGill-Queen's University Press|year=2003|pages=15, 59–61, 194|isbn=077352584X}}</ref> Canada also joined the [[Gulf War]] in 1990 as part of a US-led coalition force, and was active in several peacekeeping missions in the late 1990s.<ref>{{cite web
|title=Canada and Multilateral Operations in Support of Peace and Stability
|url=http://www.forces.gc.ca/site/news-nouvelles/news-nouvelles-eng.asp?cat=00&id=914
|publisher=National Defence and the Canadian Forces
|year=2010
|accessdate=2011-05-23}}</ref>
It sent troops to Afghanistan in 2001, but declined to send forces to Iraq when the US invaded in 2003.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Jockel|first=Joseph T|coauthors=Sokolsky, Joel B|year=2008|title=Canada and the war in Afghanistan: NATO's odd man out steps forward|journal=Journal of Transatlantic Studies|volume=6|issue=1|pages=100–115|doi=10.1080/14794010801917212}}</ref>