'Le Conseil spécial est mort, Vive le Conseil spécial !': The Special Councils of Lower Canada, 1838-1841

The author examines the period 1838 to 1841 when a Special Council acted as the legislature of Lower Canada. More specifically, the author examines the Special Council's social, political and economic impact on the colony and its inhabitants. The author argues that the Special Council proved to be very important to Lower Canada, but more specifically, to the colony's English-speaking merchants and Tories. After years of frustration for this group, the era of the Special Council represented what could be called a "catching up" period regarding their social, commercial and economic interests in the colony. During the three-year period of the Special Council the colony experienced an impressive amount of business advancement in the fields of banking, roads, civil offices, canals, postal services and land registry systems. He argues that the era of the Special Council was revolutionary as it produced several ordinances that changed the colony's social, economic and political culture. However, during this period, Lower Canadians lost all political rights and the decisions taken by the Special Council were made by non-elected councillors. The author examines how both English-speaking and French-speaking Lower Canadians viewed the Special Council.

PhD dissertation

University of Ottawa

Ottawa, ON

2011

vii-368p.

en