Canadian Federalism Then and Now

• Author: Kathy L. Brock/Geoffrey Hale
• Pages: 13-24

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Canadian Federalism Then and Now

Introduction

In , British North American colonists came together to forge

a new nation that would emerge from, but be loyal to, the Brit-

ish Empire. Unlike the United States with its stirring Declaration

of Independence and Constitution that spoke of the “self-evident”

truths that “all men are created equal” and entitled to rights includ-

ing “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” the Canadian dec-

laration of nationhood was much more subdued to ref‌lect that its

people were engaged in an evolution, not a revolution. e founders

thus began their proclamation of union, the British North America

Act (later renamed the Constitution Act, 1867), with the more prosaic

description of its purpose:

An Act for the Union of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick,

and the Government thereof; and for Purposes connected therewith

Whereas the Provinces of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New

Brunswick have expressed their Desire to be federally united into

One Dominion under the Crown of the United Kingdom of Great

Britain and Ireland, with a Constitution similar in Principle to

that of the United Kingdom: