140 years later: Artifacts from the North-West Resistance

The first cannon fired by the North-West Field Forces at Batoche, Saskatchewan. 1885. James Peters, Library and Archives Canada, based on e011156617_s1; C-03464.

Among the armed conflicts that have involved the Canadian government, the 1885 North-West Resistance may not be the most well-known, but preserved artifacts from across the prairies serve as a reminder of the fatal conflict.

The North-West Resistance was fought between the Canadian government and the Métis along with First Nations, triggered by concerns over land rights, starvation and other grievances stemming from westward expansion.

“This was a huge mistake,” said Will Goodon, Manitoba Métis Federation Minister of Housing and Identity Protection, “when [Canada] went to war against its own citizens.”

Between March and June of 1885, concerns escalated into armed resistance centred across modern-day Saskatchewan and part of Alberta—then the North-West Territories.

Leading up to the conflict

Before the conflict, petitions and letters were sent to Ottawa addressing these grievances in hopes of a resolution.

“These people were Canadian citizens by now, and they looked to their country to protect them. And if their country is not going to protect them, who will? And so, the outlook was more and more bleak,” said Goodon.

The Métis eventually brought Louis Riel—founder of the province of Manitoba and central figure in the 1869-70 Red River Resistance—back to the Canadian prairies in 1884.

Riel would later state at his trial that upon his return to the Northwest, he viewed the Métis as “deprived of their public liberties,” getting further malnourished by the day and that they were “deprived of responsible government.”

On March 19, 1885, the Provisional Government of Saskatchewan was established with Riel as leader and Gabriel Dumont as adjutant general.

Crossfire began one week later between the Métis and the North-West Mounted Police near Duck Lake, approximately 80 kilometres northeast of Saskatoon, Sask.

Over 5,000 troops sent by the federal government

Prime Minister John A. MacDonald would respond publicly that week in the House of Commons, saying that troops would be called upon and dispatched by the Canadian Pacific Railway.

More than 5,000 troops are documented to have served on the federal government’s side during the conflict from across the country.

Battalions were also raised in Winnipeg, including the 92nd Winnipeg Light Infantry, the 90th Winnipeg Rifles, and the Winnipeg Field Battery of Artillery.

Several battles ensued over the following months, including the Battle of Fish Creek, the Battle of Cut Knife, the Frog Lake Massacre, and the Battle of Batoche, which ultimately led to the collapse of the provisional government.

One hundred and forty years later, the Royal Canadian Artillery (RCA) Museum in Shilo, Man., still holds a gun that was used at the time by Canadian government forces.

The nine-pounder rifled muzzle loading (RML) gun was one of four used by ‘A’ Battery at the Battle of Fish Creek and the Battle of Batoche, according to Andrew Oakden, RCA Museum director.

On loan from the RCMP, the RML gun has a range of approximately three kilometres and lacks a recoil mechanism—requiring repositioning after each shot.

“They were outmatched at the end, just on the sheer modernity of the weaponry,” said Goodon, adding that a Gatling gun from the U.S. was also used on the government’s side.

“Near the end, the Métis had no bullets. They were melting down cutlery, putting rocks in their muskets.”

Meanwhile, in Saskatchewan, the Gabriel Dumont Institute has a rusted 12-gauge double-barreled shotgun, pistol fragments, and a knife fragment among their collection of Métis artifacts, which were recovered from the battlefields.

The institute also has a nine-pound projectile which may have come from the RML gun now at the RCA Museum. The cannon projectile was retrieved from a battlefield at Batoche in 1968, prior to Parks Canada acquiring the land for the present-day historic site.

Over 100 people died during the conflict, according to the Canadian War Museum.

“We lost a lot of young people who were just fighting for their homes, fighting for their families,” said Goodon.

One of the medical equipment kits that was used by an assistant surgeon with the 92nd Winnipeg Light Infantry is on display at the Fort Battleford National Historic Site.

The Métis forces were eventually defeated by government troops, with Riel being arrested and put on trial for high treason. He was found guilty by a jury and hanged in Regina, Sask., on Nov. 16, 1885.

“We all know that we have one of the best countries in the world, but it has made mistakes in the past,” said Goodon.