Canada First

Canada First was a nationalist movement in Canada. It was founded in 1868 in Toronto to in the state, founded a year ago to promote Canadian nationalism and these underpin intellectual.

The movement called for at the beginning of the independence of Canada against the United States and Great Britain. After these two countries, however, had in 1871 negotiated the Treaty of Washington and were able to settle some points of contention, Canadafirst sat now on political and economic autonomy within the British Empire, without the mother country to give up the bonds completely.

The biggest influence on domestic policy had Canadafirst 1869/70 during the Red River Rebellion. Their agitation was primarily responsible for ensuring that public opinion in Ontario directed against the Métis and their leader Louis Riel after the execution of Thomas Scott.

Canadafirst had racist tendencies. So they argued for an exclusively British immigration. An Anglo-Saxon Protestant " northern race" should reign over Canada and use the great economic potential of the country. French-Canadian Catholics and Native were considered obstacles to achieving this goal.

The movement was never able to gain a foothold outside the Protestant -dominated Ontario. She tried to transform itself into a political party. But as her most influential supporters Edward Blake, the Prime Minister of Ontario, was appointed in 1875 as Minister of Justice in the Liberal government of Alexander Mackenzie, Canada First fell rapidly collapsed and disintegrated.