Louis Riel

1. Louis Riel Homework pg. 77 #1-2

2. 1) How did the Métis attempt to establish identity in the West? • The Métis were the offspring of European men and Aboriginal women • No European women for 200 years, they did not have a role in the development of the early Métis nation • Being of a mixed breed Métis were not accepted by Europeans as equals, even though some Métis were educated in the East • The Métis therefore formed a culture based on their talents in the fur trade--- as interpreters and clerks (for those who were educated), labourers and hunters

3. Many followed traditional Aboriginal ways, others were quick to adopt European customs • Those whose fathers were French followed French ways, worked in the Catholic Church and worked for the North West Company • Those whose fathers were British followed British customs, worshipped in the Anglican Church, and worked for the Hudson Bay Company

4. 2) Research the life of Louis Riel? • Father was a fur trader who was a leader in the Red River Rebellion of 1869 against the Hudson’s Bay Company • Riel was in the right place at the right time to make a name for himself

5. 2a) What qualities did he have that made him a leader of the Métis people? • Riel was a visionary who saw great future for his people • Educated in Montreal, allowing him to give expression to his nationalism • Deeply religious, which was a quality admired by the Métis people

6. 2b) Describe efforts made to have Riel pardoned for his act of treason and executed? • Various Métis groups have petitioned the Canadian government during the last decade to have Riel pardoned, 100 years after his death • That pardon has yet to be granted but Riel predicted that the Métis people would rise again 100 years after he died • With the new surge in Métis nationalism his prediction has partially come true