British Businessmen and Canadian Confederation : Constitution Making in an Era of Anglo-Globalization

Without pressure from a small but influential group of London financiers, Confederation would not have occurred in 1867, if at all. These financiers supported the unification of the British North American colonies because they believed it would rescue their under-performing investments and keep British North America within the British Empire. Andrew Smith discusses the role of British investors in Canadian Confederation, covering the period from the construction of the Grand Trunk Railroad in the 1850s to Canada's purchase of Rupert's Land in 1869-70. He describes how some investors lobbied the British government for the policies that made Confederation possible, working closely with the Fathers of Confederation, many of whom were participants in the same trans-Atlantic crony-capitalist system. British factory owners with classical liberal beliefs, however, disliked Confederation because they believed it would delay the political independence of the North American colonies, something they saw as beneficial. "Andrew Smith discusses the role of British investors in Canadian Confederation, covering the period from the construction of the Grand Trunk Railroad in the 1850s to Canada's purchase of Rupert's Land in 1869-70. While British factory owners with classical liberal beliefs disliked Confederation, believing it would delay the political independence of the North American colonies, other investors lobbied the British government for the policies that made Confederation possible. These financiers worked closely with the Fathers of Confederation, many of whom were participants in the trans-Atlantic crony-capitalist system." --Résumé de l'éditeur Contents Acknowledgments 1 Introduction: Canada’s Heritage in the City 2 An Empire That Did Little for Manchester but Much for the City of London 3 From Bad to Worse: 1860–1862 4 The British North American Association and Its Campaign 5 Attempted Economic Decolonization: The Short Premiership of John Sandfield Macdonald 6 Reconciling Britishness and Federalism: British Reactions to the Quebec Resolutions 7 The British Parliamentary Debates on Confederation 8 Gentlemanly Capitalism after the British North America Act Notes on Sources Notes Index A B C D E F G H I J K L M N P Q R S T U V W