Canadian History Study Guide for the Citizenship Test
Canada's first peoples are the Indigenous peoples: First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. They lived across the land for thousands of years before Europeans arrived. Aboriginal and treaty rights are recognized in the Constitution, and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples is an important part of Canada today.
European exploration and settlement came next. Jacques Cartier claimed the land for France in 1534, and Samuel de Champlain built a fortress at Quebec City in 1608, founding what became New France. The British gained control in 1759, and the two founding peoples, French and English, shaped the country from there. On July 1, 1867, the British North America Act united the first provinces into the Dominion of Canada, with Sir John A. Macdonald as the first Prime Minister. Canadians later served with distinction in the First and Second World Wars, including the famous victory at Vimy Ridge in 1917.
Key facts to remember
- Indigenous peoples (First Nations, Inuit, and Métis) were the first inhabitants of Canada.
- Jacques Cartier claimed the land for France in 1534, and Quebec City was founded in 1608.
- Canada became a country through Confederation on July 1, 1867.
- Sir John A. Macdonald was Canada's first Prime Minister.
- Canadian troops captured Vimy Ridge in the First World War in 1917.
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175 questions from this topic, with answers and explanations.
True/False. Insulin, used to treat diabetes, was discovered by Canadians Sir Frederick Banting and Charles Best.
Answer: True
True. Banting and Best discovered insulin, which has saved millions of lives worldwide.
Fill in the blank. In 1534, ______ sailed up the St. Lawrence River and claimed the land for France.
Answer: Jacques Cartier
Discover Canada credits Jacques Cartier with making three voyages beginning in 1534 and claiming the land for France.
Who are the Acadians?
Answer: The descendants of French colonists who began settling in what are now the Maritime provinces in 1604.
Acadians are descendants of French colonists who settled the Maritimes starting in 1604.
Fill in the blank. The highest military honour a Canadian can receive is the ______.
Answer: Victoria Cross.
The Victoria Cross is the highest military honour a Canadian can receive.
Fill in the blank. In 1970, Canada helped found ______, an international association of French-speaking countries.
Answer: La Francophonie
In 1970, Canada helped found La Francophonie, an international association of French-speaking countries.
What is the name of the distinct dialect traditionally spoken by the Métis?
Answer: Michif
The Métis come from mixed French- and English-speaking backgrounds and speak their own dialect, Michif.
Fill in the blank. The famous painting 'The Jack Pine' was created by the Canadian artist ______.
Answer: Tom Thomson
'The Jack Pine' is a famous painting by Tom Thomson.
Fill in the blank. Joseph-Armand Bombardier invented the ______.
Answer: snowmobile
Joseph-Armand Bombardier invented the snowmobile, a lightweight winter vehicle.
Who was the first leader of a responsible government in the Canadas in 1849?
Answer: Sir Louis-Hippolyte La Fontaine.
Discover Canada names Sir Louis-Hippolyte La Fontaine as the first head of a responsible government in the Canadas in 1849.
True/False. In the War of 1812, the United States successfully conquered Canada.
Answer: False
False. The American attempt to conquer Canada failed, helping ensure Canada would remain independent.
Fill in the blank. The company Research In Motion (RIM) became known for inventing the ______.
Answer: BlackBerry
Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie of Research In Motion (RIM) were known for the BlackBerry.
Fill in the blank. In 1985, ______ wheeled around the world to raise money for spinal cord research.
Answer: Rick Hansen
In 1985, Rick Hansen circled the globe in a wheelchair to raise funds for spinal cord research.
Fill in the blank. The remains of the Viking settlement ______, in Newfoundland, are a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Answer: L'Anse aux Meadows
Vikings from Iceland reached Labrador and Newfoundland about 1,000 years ago; their settlement at L'Anse aux Meadows is a World Heritage site.
From where does the name “Canada” come from?
Answer: From "Kanata", the Huron-Iroquois word for village.
Discover Canada states the name Canada comes from 'Kanata', the Huron-Iroquois word for village.
In which two years did Quebec hold referendums on sovereignty, both of which were defeated?
Answer: 1980 and 1995
The Quebec sovereignty movement was defeated in referendums in 1980 and again in 1995.
Which future prime minister won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1957 for helping create the first United Nations peacekeeping force?
Answer: Lester B. Pearson
The guide credits Lester B. Pearson with winning the Nobel Peace Prize for proposing the UN peacekeeping force during the Suez Crisis.
Who refused to surrender Quebec to the English in 1690, replying 'from the mouths of my cannons'?
Answer: Count Frontenac
Count Frontenac refused to surrender Quebec to the English in 1690, saying 'My only reply will be from the mouths of my cannons!'
True/False. The Vikings were the first Europeans to reach Canada, about 1,000 years ago.
Answer: True
True. Vikings from Iceland reached Labrador and Newfoundland about 1,000 years ago; their settlement L'Anse aux Meadows is a World Heritage site.
Where did French explorers Pierre de Monts and Samuel de Champlain establish the first European settlement north of Florida in 1604?
Answer: Port-Royal, in Acadia (present-day Nova Scotia)
In 1604 the first European settlement north of Florida was established, first on St. Croix Island and then at Port-Royal in Acadia.
What is the significance of the discovery of insulin by Sir Frederick Banting and Charles Best?
Answer: Insulin has saved 16 million lives worldwide.
Discover Canada states Banting and Best's discovery of insulin has saved 16 million lives worldwide.
What percentage of Aboriginal people are First Nations?
Answer: 65%.
Discover Canada / official study materials state about 65% of Aboriginal people are First Nations (over three-fifths).
Who are the Aboriginal peoples of Canada?
Answer: The first people to live in Canada
Discover Canada describes Aboriginal peoples as the original inhabitants, the first people to live in Canada.
Approximately how many Canadians served in the First World War?
Answer: More than 600,000.
Discover Canada states more than 600,000 Canadians served in the First World War.
True/False. The Underground Railroad was a network that helped enslaved people escape to freedom in Canada.
Answer: True
True. Thousands of enslaved people escaped the United States to Canada via the Underground Railroad.
Fill in the blank. The last province to join Canada was ______.
Answer: Newfoundland.
Newfoundland (and Labrador) was the last province to join Canada, in 1949.
True/False. "In Flanders fields the poppies blow" is the first line of a poem often recited on Remembrance Day.
Answer: True
True. 'In Flanders Fields,' written by Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae in 1915, begins with this line and is often recited on Remembrance Day.
According to Discover Canada, about what percentage of Aboriginal Canadians are Inuit?
Answer: 4%
The guide states about 65% of Aboriginal people are First Nations, 30% are Métis and 4% are Inuit.
Which province was split into two at Confederation?
Answer: The Province of Canada
At Confederation the Province of Canada was divided into Ontario and Quebec per Discover Canada.
What was Canada’s role in the Korean War (1950-53)?
Answer: It sent more than 26,000 troops as part of a United Nations force to defend South Korea.
More than 26,000 Canadians served in the Korean War (1950-53) as part of a UN force defending South Korea; 516 died.
True/False. Confederation in 1867 created a single, national level of government for all of Canada.
Answer: False
False. Confederation created two levels of government: federal and provincial.
Which British commander captured Detroit during the War of 1812 but was killed defending against the American attack at Queenston Heights?
Answer: Sir Isaac Brock
Major-General Sir Isaac Brock captured Detroit but was killed at the Battle of Queenston Heights, near Niagara Falls.
Which was the first colony in the British Empire to attain full responsible government, in 1847-48?
Answer: Nova Scotia
Discover Canada notes Nova Scotia was the first British North American colony to attain full responsible government, in 1847-48.
Fill in the blank. Canadians who have both Aboriginal and European ancestors are called ______.
Answer: Métis
The Métis are a distinct people of mixed Aboriginal and European ancestry, the majority of whom live in the Prairie provinces.
Fill in the blank. ______ commanded the Canadian Corps in the First World War and is often called Canada's greatest soldier.
Answer: Sir Arthur Currie
General Sir Arthur Currie commanded the Canadian Corps in the last hundred days of the First World War and is regarded as Canada's greatest soldier.
Fill in the blank. The telephone was invented by ______, who was living in Brantford, Ontario.
Answer: Alexander Graham Bell
Discover Canada credits Alexander Graham Bell, who lived in Canada, with inventing the telephone.
According to Discover Canada, from where are the ancestors of Canada's Aboriginal peoples believed to have migrated?
Answer: Asia
Discover Canada states the ancestors of Aboriginal peoples migrated from Asia many thousands of years ago.
True/False. On D-Day, June 6, 1944, Canadian and Allied soldiers captured Juno Beach from the German army.
Answer: True
True. On D-Day, 15,000 Canadian troops stormed and captured Juno Beach from the German army during the invasion of Normandy.
Fill in the blank. In 1813, Lt.-Col. Charles de Salaberry and mostly French-Canadian soldiers turned back an American invasion at ______.
Answer: Châteauguay
In 1813, Lieutenant-Colonel Charles de Salaberry and about 460 soldiers, mostly French Canadiens, turned back 4,000 American invaders at Châteauguay.
What did the Canadian Pacific Railway symbolize?
Answer: Unity.
Discover Canada describes the completed Canadian Pacific Railway as a powerful symbol of national unity.
Who was the first Canadian woman to practise medicine in Canada and a founder of the women's suffrage movement?
Answer: Dr. Emily Stowe
Dr. Emily Stowe was the first Canadian woman to practise medicine in Canada and founded the country's women's suffrage movement.
Fill in the blank. Confederation took place in the year ______.
Answer: 1867.
Confederation occurred in 1867 per Discover Canada.
True/False. The Canadian Pacific Railway was completed in 1885 with the driving of the last spike.
Answer: True
True. The CPR was completed on November 7, 1885, when Donald Smith drove the last spike.
True/False. More than 40,000 Loyalists fled the American Revolution to settle in Nova Scotia and Quebec.
Answer: True
True. More than 40,000 United Empire Loyalists came to Canada during and after the American Revolution.
Who are the founding peoples of Canada?
Answer: Aboriginal, French and British.
Discover Canada names the Aboriginal, French, and British peoples as the three founding peoples of Canada.
True/False. Women in Quebec gained the right to vote in provincial elections in 1940.
Answer: True
True. Due to the work of Thérèse Casgrain and others, Quebec granted women the provincial vote in 1940.
True/False. The Huron-Wendat and the Iroquois of the Great Lakes region were farming and hunting peoples.
Answer: True
True. The Huron-Wendat of the Great Lakes region, like the Iroquois, were farmers and hunters.
True/False. More than 600,000 Canadians served in the First World War, and about 60,000 were killed.
Answer: True
True. More than 600,000 Canadians served in the First World War; 60,000 were killed and 170,000 wounded.
Who was Sir Sam Steele?
Answer: A great frontier hero, Mounted Policeman and soldier.
Discover Canada describes Sir Sam Steele as a great frontier hero, Mounted Policeman and soldier.
What was the Women's Suffrage Movement?
Answer: The effort by women to achieve the right to vote.
Discover Canada describes the women's suffrage movement as the effort to achieve the right to vote for women.
What does Confederation mean?
Answer: Joining of provinces to make a new country.
Confederation refers to the joining of provinces/colonies to form the new country of Canada.
Which Act granted, for the first time in Canada, legislative assemblies elected by the people?
Answer: The Constitutional Act of 1791.
The Constitutional Act of 1791 first granted legislative assemblies elected by the people.
What does the word “Inuit” mean?
Answer: The people in Inuktitut
Discover Canada states Inuit means the people in the Inuktitut language.
True/False. The Quebec Act of 1774 restored French civil law and allowed religious freedom for Catholics.
Answer: True
True. The Quebec Act restored French civil law (keeping British criminal law) and allowed Catholics religious freedom and public office.
Fill in the blank. Canada's first Prime Minister was ______.
Answer: Sir John A. Macdonald.
Static historical fact: Sir John A. Macdonald was Canada's first Prime Minister (1867).
True/False. Denys Arcand, Norman Jewison and Atom Egoyan are all celebrated Canadian filmmakers.
Answer: True
True. The guide names Denys Arcand, Norman Jewison and Atom Egoyan among Canada's noteworthy filmmakers.
Fill in the blank. In 1944–45 the Canadian Army liberated ______, helping force the German surrender.
Answer: the Netherlands
The Canadian Army liberated the Netherlands in 1944–45 and helped force the German surrender of May 8, 1945.
True/False. At the end of the Second World War, Canada had one of the largest navies in the world.
Answer: True
True. By the end of the Second World War, Canada had the third-largest navy in the world.
True/False. Jacques Cartier gave Canada its name from the Iroquoian word 'kanata,' meaning 'village.'
Answer: True
True. Cartier heard the word 'kanata' (village) from captured guides, and the name Canada appeared on maps by the 1550s.
True/False. The Battle of the Plains of Abraham in 1759 marked the end of France's empire in America.
Answer: True
True. The British defeated the French at the Plains of Abraham in 1759, ending France's empire in America.
Who led an armed uprising and seized Fort Garry?
Answer: Louis Riel
Louis Riel led the Métis uprising and seized Fort Garry per Discover Canada.
Fill in the blank. In 1497, ______ was the first European to explore and map Canada's Atlantic coast for England.
Answer: John Cabot.
Discover Canada credits John Cabot, an Italian immigrant to England, as the first to draw a map of Canada’s East Coast, in 1497.
Fill in the blank. After losing a leg to cancer, ______ ran the 'Marathon of Hope' to raise money for cancer research.
Answer: Terry Fox
Discover Canada highlights Terry Fox, who ran his Marathon of Hope in 1980 to raise funds and awareness for cancer research.
Fill in the blank. In a failed 1942 raid on the coast of France, Canadian forces suffered heavy losses at ______.
Answer: Dieppe
Canadians suffered heavy losses in the unsuccessful 1942 raid on Nazi-controlled Dieppe, on the coast of France.
True/False. The Métis are the largest of Canada's three Aboriginal groups.
Answer: False
False. About 65% of Aboriginal people are First Nations, 30% Métis and 4% Inuit, so First Nations are the largest group.
Which Father of Confederation suggested the title 'Dominion of Canada,' inspired by a passage in the Bible?
Answer: Sir Leonard Tilley
Sir Leonard Tilley of New Brunswick suggested 'Dominion of Canada,' inspired by Psalm 72 ('dominion from sea to sea').
Fill in the blank. The last spike completing the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1885 was driven by ______.
Answer: Donald Smith (Lord Strathcona)
On November 7, 1885, Donald Smith (Lord Strathcona), a director of the CPR, drove the last spike.
What was the "Underground Railroad"?
Answer: An anti-slavery network that helped thousands of slaves escape the United States and settle in Canada
Discover Canada describes the Underground Railroad as an anti-slavery network that brought escaped slaves to Canada.
What did the House of Commons recognize about the Québécois in 2006?
Answer: That they form a nation within a united Canada
In 2006 the House of Commons recognized that the Québécois form a nation within a united Canada.
Who is General Sir Arthur Currie?
Answer: Canada's greatest soldier in the First World War.
Sir Arthur Currie is described as Canada's greatest soldier of the First World War in Discover Canada.
Which of the following statements about residential schools is NOT true?
Answer: The schools were welcomed by the Aboriginal people.
This is the false statement; Discover Canada describes residential schools as harmful and later formally apologized for, not welcomed.
The Klondike Gold Rush of the late 1890s led to the creation of which territory?
Answer: The Yukon.
The Gold Rush of the 1890s brought thousands to the Klondike region and led to the creation of the Yukon Territory in 1898.
Who was Sir Louis-Hippolyte La Fontaine?
Answer: A champion of democracy and French language rights and the first leader of a responsible government in the Canadas.
Discover Canada describes La Fontaine as a champion of democracy and French-language rights and the first head of a responsible government in the Canadas.
What was the significance of June 6, 1944 invasion of Normandy?
Answer: Canadians made a significant contribution to the defeat of Nazism and Fascism in Europe during the Second World War.
The D-Day landing at Normandy on June 6, 1944 marked a significant Canadian contribution to defeating Nazism in WWII.
At the end of the Second World War, Canada had one of the world's largest navies. Where did it rank?
Answer: Third-largest in the world
By the end of the Second World War Canada had the third-largest navy in the world.
Who had played an important part in building the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR)?
Answer: Chinese railroad workers.
Chinese labourers played a major role in building the Canadian Pacific Railway.
Fill in the blank. First Nations and Inuit cultures are rooted in religious beliefs about their relationship to ______, the natural environment and each other.
Answer: the Creator
Discover Canada states that diverse, vibrant First Nations cultures were rooted in religious beliefs about their relationship to the Creator, the natural environment and each other.
Which international military alliance did Canada help found in 1949?
Answer: NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)
The guide notes Canada was a founding member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1949.
Fill in the blank. April 9, the anniversary of the Battle of Vimy Ridge, is celebrated as ______.
Answer: Vimy Day
April 9 is celebrated as Vimy Day, marking the Canadian Corps' capture of Vimy Ridge in 1917.
True/False. Sir Wilfrid Laurier was Canada's first Prime Minister.
Answer: False
False. Sir John A. Macdonald was the first Prime Minister; Laurier was the first French-Canadian PM.
Who led Quebec into Confederation?
Answer: Sir George-Étienne Cartier
Sir George-Étienne Cartier led Quebec into Confederation per Discover Canada.
Who are the Métis?
Answer: A distinct people of mixed Aboriginal and European ancestry.
Discover Canada defines the Métis as a distinct people of mixed Aboriginal and European ancestry; option describing 'mixed Inuit/First Nations ancestry' is incorrect.
Fill in the blank. The poem 'In Flanders Fields' was written by ______.
Answer: Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae.
Discover Canada notes that Canadian medical officer Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae composed “In Flanders Fields” in 1915; it is often recited on Remembrance Day.
Fill in the blank. The province known as the 'Birthplace of Confederation' is ______.
Answer: Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island, site of the 1864 Charlottetown Conference, is the birthplace of Confederation.
What did the Fathers of Confederation do?
Answer: They worked together to establish a new country, the Dominion of Canada
The Fathers of Confederation worked together to establish the Dominion of Canada in 1867.
Fill in the blank. In 1917, thanks to the leadership of Dr. Emily Stowe and other suffragists, the federal government gave women the ______.
Answer: right to vote
The women's suffrage movement, founded by Dr. Emily Stowe, led to women gaining the right to vote in federal elections beginning in 1917.
Fill in the blank. Quebec City was founded in 1608 by ______, known as the 'Father of New France.'
Answer: Samuel de Champlain
The guide states Samuel de Champlain built a fortress at what is now Quebec City in 1608 and is called the Father of New France.
Why is the battle of Vimy Ridge important?
Answer: Canadian Corps secured its reputation for valour and bravery.
At Vimy Ridge (1917) the Canadian Corps captured the ridge and secured its reputation for bravery, a defining national moment.
Where was the first representative assembly in Canada elected, in 1758?
Answer: Halifax, Nova Scotia
The first representative assembly was elected in Halifax, Nova Scotia, in 1758.
True/False. Upper Canada was the first province in the British Empire to move to abolish slavery.
Answer: True
True. In 1793, Upper Canada, led by Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe, became the first province in the Empire to move toward abolishing slavery.
What is the "head tax"?
Answer: Race-based entry fee charged for Chinese entering Canada.
The head tax was a fee that Chinese immigrants had to pay to enter Canada per Discover Canada.
Which Shawnee chief led First Nations warriors who helped defend Canada during the War of 1812?
Answer: Tecumseh
Canadian volunteers and First Nations, including the Shawnee led by Chief Tecumseh, supported British soldiers in the War of 1812.
True/False. Jacques Cartier founded Quebec City in 1608.
Answer: False
False. Samuel de Champlain founded Quebec City in 1608; Cartier explored the St. Lawrence in the 1530s.
Fill in the blank. Sir Sandford Fleming invented the worldwide system of ______.
Answer: standard time zones
Sir Sandford Fleming invented the worldwide system of standard time zones.
True/False. The Canadian Corps, not the Americans, captured Vimy Ridge in April 1917.
Answer: True
True. The Canadian Corps captured Vimy Ridge in April 1917, a defining moment for Canada.
What did the Statute of Westminster (1931) grant Canada?
Answer: The legal freedom to make its own laws and control its own foreign affairs.
The Statute of Westminster, 1931, gave Canada legal autonomy over its domestic and foreign affairs, though the constitution remained in Britain until 1982.
True/False. Canada entered the Second World War in 1939, after Nazi Germany invaded Poland.
Answer: True
True. The Second World War began in 1939 when Hitler's Germany invaded Poland, and Canada joined its allies in the fight.
In the 1929 “Persons Case,” what did the courts decide?
Answer: That women were legally “persons” who could be appointed to the Senate.
In 1929 the “Famous Five,” led by Emily Murphy, won the Persons Case, so women were recognized as “persons” eligible for appointment to the Senate.
Which of the following is NOT one of Canada's three founding peoples?
Answer: The Loyalists
Canada's three founding peoples are Aboriginal, French and British. The Loyalists were later settlers who fled the American Revolution, not one of the founding peoples.
True/False. The Group of Seven were a famous group of Canadian musicians.
Answer: False
False. The Group of Seven were famous Canadian painters known for wilderness landscapes.
True/False. In 1941, Canadians took part in the unsuccessful defence of Hong Kong against Imperial Japan.
Answer: True
True. Canadians suffered losses defending Hong Kong from Japanese attack in 1941.
During the Second World War, what happened to many Canadians of Japanese origin (for which Canada apologized and compensated victims in 1988)?
Answer: They were forcibly relocated and their property sold without compensation
Japanese Canadians were forcibly relocated and their property sold without compensation; the government apologized and compensated victims in 1988.
What did the British North America Act do?
Answer: It united the provinces into the Dominion of Canada and divided powers between the federal and provincial governments.
The British North America Act (now the Constitution Act, 1867) united the founding provinces into the Dominion of Canada and set out the division of powers between the federal and provincial governments.
In 1793, Upper Canada (led by Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe) became the first province in the British Empire to do what?
Answer: Move to abolish slavery
Under John Graves Simcoe, Upper Canada became the first province in the British Empire to move toward abolishing slavery, in 1793.
Who were the United Empire Loyalists?
Answer: Settlers who came to Canada from the United States during the American Revolution.
United Empire Loyalists were settlers loyal to the Crown who fled the U.S. during the American Revolution.
Fill in the blank. The first province to grant women the right to vote was ______.
Answer: Manitoba
In 1916 Manitoba became the first province to grant women the right to vote.
Fill in the blank. English-speaking and French-speaking Christian civilizations ______.
Answer: are two of the three founding peoples of Canada
Canada's three founding peoples are Aboriginal, French and British. The English- and French-speaking Christian civilizations brought by settlers make up two of these three founding peoples.
Which Canadian-designed invention is a robotic arm used in space exploration?
Answer: The Canadarm
The Canadarm is a Canadian-designed and -built robotic arm used in space.
True/False. Canada gained full legal autonomy over its own affairs through the Statute of Westminster in 1931.
Answer: True
True. The Statute of Westminster (1931) granted Canada and other Dominions full legal freedom to make their own laws.
In the 1960s, Quebec experienced an era of rapid change. What is this called?
Answer: The Quiet Revolution.
Discover Canada names the era of rapid change in 1960s Quebec the 'Quiet Revolution'.
Who were the Voyagers?
Answer: Montreal-based traders who travelled by canoe
Discover Canada describes the voyageurs as Montreal-based fur traders who travelled by canoe.
What are the three main groups of Aboriginal peoples?
Answer: First Nations, Métis and Inuit.
The three groups of Aboriginal peoples are First Nations, Métis and Inuit per Discover Canada.
True/False. Alberta and Saskatchewan both became provinces of Canada in 1905.
Answer: True
True. Alberta and Saskatchewan both entered Confederation as provinces in 1905.
True/False. Emily Carr was a Canadian painter known for depicting the forests and Aboriginal art of the West Coast.
Answer: True
True. Emily Carr painted the forests and Aboriginal artifacts of the West Coast.
Before Europeans arrived, which Aboriginal people were nomadic, following the bison (buffalo) herds?
Answer: The Sioux
The Sioux were nomadic, following the bison (buffalo) herds, while other peoples farmed, hunted or fished.
Who was the first woman elected to the House of Commons (in 1921)?
Answer: Agnes Macphail.
Agnes Macphail became the first woman Member of Parliament in 1921, the first federal election in which most women could vote.
Aboriginal and treaty rights were first guaranteed by which document?
Answer: The Royal Proclamation of 1763.
Discover Canada states that Aboriginal territorial rights were first guaranteed through the Royal Proclamation of 1763 by King George III, establishing the basis for treaties.
In what year did Aboriginal peoples receive the unconditional right to vote in federal elections?
Answer: 1960
Aboriginal peoples were granted the right to vote in federal elections in 1960.
True/False. The War of 1812 was fought between Canada and France.
Answer: False
False. In the War of 1812 the United States invaded, and Britain, Canadian volunteers and First Nations defended Canada.
What happened at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham?
Answer: The British defeated the French marking the end of France's empire in America
At the Plains of Abraham (1759) the British defeated the French, ending France's empire in America.
Which of the following sentences best describes the War of 1812?
Answer: The USA invaded Canada and was defeated, which ensured that Canada would remain independent of the United States.
In the War of 1812 the U.S. invasion was repelled, ensuring Canada would remain independent of the United States.
Who made a dangerous journey on foot in 1813 to warn of an American attack, contributing to victory at the Battle of Beaver Dams?
Answer: Laura Secord
Laura Secord walked 30 km to warn Lt. James FitzGibbon of a planned American attack, helping secure victory at Beaver Dams in 1813.
True/False. Louis Riel led the Métis and is regarded by many as the father of Manitoba.
Answer: True
True. Riel led the Red River resistance; Manitoba was created and he is seen as its father and a defender of Métis rights.
True/False. Dr. John A. Hopps invented the first cardiac pacemaker.
Answer: True
True. Dr. John A. Hopps invented the first cardiac pacemaker, used today to save lives of people with heart disorders.
Fill in the blank. The father of Manitoba and defender of Métis rights was ______.
Answer: Louis Riel
Discover Canada describes Louis Riel as the founder/father of Manitoba.
Fill in the blank. The first French-Canadian prime minister since Confederation was ______.
Answer: Sir Wilfrid Laurier
The guide notes Sir Wilfrid Laurier was the first French-Canadian prime minister since Confederation and encouraged immigration to the West.
True/False. Major-General Sir Isaac Brock captured Detroit during the War of 1812.
Answer: True
True. Sir Isaac Brock captured Detroit but was later killed defending against an American attack at Queenston Heights.
The Group of Seven, founded in 1920, were famous Canadian painters known for depicting what?
Answer: Rugged wilderness landscapes
The Group of Seven, founded in 1920, developed a style of painting to capture rugged wilderness landscapes.
During the Cold War, Canada joined the United States in which joint air-defence command?
Answer: NORAD (North American Aerospace Defence Command)
Canada joined the United States in the North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD) during the Cold War.
What did the Quebec Act of 1774 do?
Answer: It accommodated the French by restoring French civil law and allowing religious freedom for Catholics.
The Quebec Act of 1774 allowed religious freedom for Catholics and restored French civil law, accommodating the French-speaking population.
During the Second World War, the Royal Canadian Navy played its greatest role in which battle?
Answer: The Battle of the Atlantic
The Royal Canadian Navy's finest hour was the Battle of the Atlantic, protecting merchant-ship convoys from German submarines.
True/False. In the 1929 Persons Case, women were recognized as persons eligible to be appointed to the Senate.
Answer: True
True. The Persons Case established that women are 'persons' eligible for appointment to the Senate.
True/False. In the First World War, Canadian soldiers earned a reputation as the “shock troops of the British Empire.”
Answer: True
True. The Canadian Corps captured Vimy Ridge in April 1917, securing the Canadians' reputation for valour as the “shock troops of the British Empire.”
After the First World War, the British Empire evolved into a free association of states known as what?
Answer: The British Commonwealth of Nations.
The British Empire evolved into a free association of states known as the British Commonwealth of Nations. Canada remains a leading member of the Commonwealth today.
The first representative assembly was elected in Halifax, Nova Scotia, in 1758. Which colony followed in 1773?
Answer: Prince Edward Island.
Prince Edward Island's representative assembly followed Halifax's in 1773, and New Brunswick's in 1785.
What did the Constitutional Act of 1791 do?
Answer: Divided the Province of Quebec into Upper Canada and Lower Canada.
The Constitutional Act of 1791 divided the Province of Quebec into Upper Canada (later Ontario), mainly Loyalist, Protestant and English-speaking, and Lower Canada (later Quebec), heavily Catholic and French-speaking.
What happened to Upper and Lower Canada in 1840?
Answer: They were united as the Province of Canada.
In 1840, Upper and Lower Canada were united as the Province of Canada. At Confederation in 1867, the old Province of Canada was split into two new provinces, Ontario and Quebec.
Who was the English reformer sent to report on the rebellions of 1837-38?
Answer: Lord Durham.
Lord Durham, an English reformer sent to report on the rebellions, recommended that Upper and Lower Canada be merged and given responsible government.
Fill in the blank. In 1848-49 the governor of United Canada, ______, introduced responsible government.
Answer: Lord Elgin.
In 1848-49 the governor of United Canada, Lord Elgin, with encouragement from London, introduced responsible government. Reformers like Robert Baldwin and Joseph Howe, in parallel with La Fontaine, had worked toward it.
What did the British Parliament do in 1833?
Answer: Abolished slavery throughout the British Empire.
In 1807 the British Parliament prohibited the buying and selling of slaves, and in 1833 it abolished slavery throughout the Empire. Upper Canada, under Lieutenant Governor Simcoe, had already moved toward abolition in 1793.
True/False. In 1813, American forces burned Government House and the Parliament Buildings in York, now Toronto.
Answer: True
True. In 1813 the Americans burned Government House and the Parliament Buildings in York (now Toronto) during the War of 1812.
Who led an expedition from Nova Scotia in 1814 that burned down the White House?
Answer: Major-General Robert Ross.
In retaliation for the burning of York, Major-General Robert Ross led an expedition from Nova Scotia in 1814 that burned down the White House and other public buildings in Washington, D.C. Ross died in battle soon afterwards and was buried in Halifax.
British Columbia joined Confederation in 1871 after Ottawa promised what?
Answer: To build a railway to the West Coast.
British Columbia joined Canada in 1871 after Ottawa promised to build a railway to the West Coast. Donald Smith (Lord Strathcona) drove the last spike of the Canadian Pacific Railway on November 7, 1885.
Which province joined Confederation in 1873?
Answer: Prince Edward Island.
Prince Edward Island joined in 1873. Manitoba and the Northwest Territories had joined in 1870, British Columbia in 1871, and the Arctic Islands were transferred to the Northwest Territories in 1880.
True/False. Until 1982, July 1 was celebrated as Dominion Day.
Answer: True
True. July 1 was celebrated as Dominion Day to commemorate the day Canada became a self-governing Dominion. Today it is known as Canada Day.
Over 7,000 Canadians volunteered to fight in which war between 1899 and 1902?
Answer: The South African War (Boer War).
Over 7,000 Canadians volunteered to fight in the South African War (1899-1902), popularly known as the Boer War, and over 260 died. In 1900 Canadians took part in the battles of Paardeberg and Lillefontein.
When Germany attacked Belgium and France in 1914 and Britain declared war, what did Ottawa form?
Answer: The Canadian Expeditionary Force.
Ottawa formed the Canadian Expeditionary Force (later the Canadian Corps). More than 600,000 Canadians served in the war, most of them volunteers, out of a total population of eight million.
Which 1918 battle did the Germans call "the black day of the German Army"?
Answer: The Battle of Amiens.
The victorious Battle of Amiens on August 8, 1918, which the Germans called "the black day of the German Army," opened the last hundred days of the war, with Canadian and Australian troops as the spearhead.
How did the First World War end?
Answer: With the Armistice on November 11, 1918.
The First World War ended in the Armistice on November 11, 1918. Canadians remember the sacrifices of veterans each year on that date, Remembrance Day.
True/False. In 1918, most Canadian female citizens aged 21 and over were granted the right to vote in federal elections.
Answer: True
True. In 1917 the federal vote went first to nurses at the front and to women related to men in active wartime service; in 1918, most Canadian female citizens aged 21 and over gained the right to vote in federal elections.
Thanks to the work of ______ and others, women in Quebec won the right to vote in 1940.
Answer: Therese Casgrain.
Due to the work of Therese Casgrain and others, Quebec granted women the vote in 1940. Dr. Emily Stowe founded the women's suffrage movement in Canada, and Agnes Macphail became the first woman MP in 1921.
About how many Canadians and Newfoundlanders served in the Second World War?
Answer: More than one million.
More than one million Canadians and Newfoundlanders served in the Second World War, out of a population of 11.5 million.
True/False. The Royal Canadian Air Force took part in the Battle of Britain.
Answer: True
True. The RCAF took part in the Battle of Britain and provided a high proportion of Commonwealth aircrew in bombers and fighter planes over Europe.
True/False. Canadian forces took part in the liberation of Italy in 1943-44.
Answer: True
True. Canadian forces took part in the liberation of Italy in 1943-44, and on D-Day, June 6, 1944, 15,000 Canadian troops stormed and captured Juno Beach.
In 1948, which group of Canadians gained the right to vote in federal elections?
Answer: Japanese Canadians.
Most Canadians of Asian descent had in the past been denied the vote in federal and provincial elections. In 1948 the last of these, the Japanese Canadians, gained the right to vote. Aboriginal people were granted the vote in 1960.
What began Canada's modern energy industry?
Answer: The discovery of oil in Alberta in 1947.
The discovery of oil in Alberta in 1947 began Canada's modern energy industry.
Which social program was introduced by the federal government in 1940?
Answer: Unemployment insurance.
Unemployment insurance (now called employment insurance) was introduced by the federal government in 1940. Old Age Security was devised as early as 1927, and the Canada and Quebec Pension Plans in 1965.
Fill in the blank. Old Age Security was devised as early as ______, and the Canada and Quebec Pension Plans in 1965.
Answer: 1927.
Old Age Security was devised as early as 1927, and the Canada and Quebec Pension Plans in 1965.
What did Parliament establish in 1963?
Answer: The Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism.
In 1963 Parliament established the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism. This led to the Official Languages Act (1969), which guarantees French and English services in the federal government across Canada.
In 2006, the Government of Canada apologized for which discriminatory policy?
Answer: The Chinese head tax.
The Government of Canada apologized in 2006 for the head tax, a race-based entry fee charged to Chinese migrants after the CPR was built.
In what year did Ottawa formally apologize to the former students of residential schools?
Answer: 2008.
From the 1800s until the 1980s, the federal government placed many Aboriginal children in residential schools to educate and assimilate them. In 2008, Ottawa formally apologized to the former students.
Between 1755 and 1763, more than two-thirds of the Acadians were deported from their homeland. What is this ordeal known as?
Answer: The "Great Upheaval."
During the war between Britain and France, more than two-thirds of the Acadians were deported from their homeland. Despite this ordeal, known as the "Great Upheaval," the Acadians survived and their culture endures.
True/False. The French and the Iroquois made peace in 1701.
Answer: True
True. After a long period of conflict, the French and the Iroquois made peace in 1701.
Which outstanding leaders built a French empire that reached from Hudson Bay to the Gulf of Mexico?
Answer: Jean Talon, Bishop Laval and Count Frontenac.
Outstanding leaders like Jean Talon, Bishop Laval and Count Frontenac built a French empire in North America that reached from Hudson Bay to the Gulf of Mexico.
Which Governor defeated an American military invasion of Quebec in 1775?
Answer: Sir Guy Carleton (Lord Dorchester).
Sir Guy Carleton (Lord Dorchester), as Governor of Quebec, defended the rights of the Canadiens, defeated an American military invasion of Quebec in 1775, and supervised the Loyalist migration to Nova Scotia and Quebec in 1782-83.
Who led thousands of Loyalist Mohawk Indians into Canada?
Answer: Joseph Brant.
Joseph Brant led thousands of Loyalist Mohawk Indians into Canada around the time of the American Revolution, when Loyalists fled to Nova Scotia and Quebec.
True/False. About 3,000 black Loyalists came to Canada, and in 1792 some moved on to found Freetown, Sierra Leone.
Answer: True
True. About 3,000 black Loyalists, freedmen and slaves, came north seeking a better life. In 1792, some black Nova Scotians moved on to establish Freetown, Sierra Leone, in West Africa.
Since the 1970s, most immigrants to Canada have come from where?
Answer: Asian countries.
Over the past 200 years millions of newcomers have helped build Canada; since the 1970s, most immigrants have come from Asian countries.
About what share of Canada's Aboriginal population are Metis?
Answer: 30%.
About 65% of Aboriginal people are First Nations, while 30% are Metis and 4% Inuit, per Discover Canada.
In 1956, Canada welcomed about 37,000 refugees escaping Soviet tyranny in which country?
Answer: Hungary.
Canada welcomed about 37,000 people who escaped Soviet tyranny in Hungary in 1956, and starting in 1975 about 50,000 Vietnamese "boat people" sought refuge in Canada.
Fill in the blank. ______ was the Metis' greatest military leader.
Answer: Gabriel Dumont.
Gabriel Dumont was the Metis' greatest military leader. Louis Riel is seen by many as a defender of Metis rights and the father of Manitoba.
Fill in the blank. Matthew Evans and Henry Woodward invented the first electric ______ and sold the patent to Thomas Edison.
Answer: Light bulb.
Matthew Evans and Henry Woodward invented the first electric light bulb and sold the patent to Thomas Edison, who, more famously, commercialized the light bulb.
Reginald Fessenden contributed to the invention of what?
Answer: Radio.
Reginald Fessenden contributed to the invention of radio, sending the first wireless voice message in the world.
Dr. Wilder Penfield was a pioneering Canadian ______.
Answer: Brain surgeon.
Dr. Wilder Penfield was a pioneering brain surgeon at McGill University in Montreal.
Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie are known for which wireless communications company?
Answer: Research In Motion (RIM).
Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie of Research In Motion (RIM) are known worldwide for the BlackBerry, a wireless communications invention.
Gerhard Herzberg, John Polanyi and Sidney Altman are among Canada's ______.
Answer: Nobel Prize-winning scientists.
Canada's Nobel Prize-winning scientists include Gerhard Herzberg, a refugee from Nazi Germany, John Polanyi, Sidney Altman, Richard E. Taylor, Michael Smith and Bertram Brockhouse.
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