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Sir John A. Macdonald: & The Apocalyptic Year 1885
Sir John A. Macdonald had been in politics for four decades and prime minister of Canada for three terms, but he'd never seen anything like the apocalyptic year of 1885.
The issues cascaded threats to the sovereignty of Canada from London and Washington; armed resistance in the North-West; the spectre of starvation among Indigenous peoples; financial crises that endangered the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR); protests over Chinese immigration to British Columbia; nationalist dissent in Quebec; a smallpox epidemic that would claim over 5,000 victims in Montreal; and fierce opposition to Macdonald's drive to expand the right to vote. It was a year like no other in Canadian history.
In this fascinating and authoritative study of a skilled politician at the peak of his powers, political historian Patrice Dutil shows how Macdonald navigated persistent threats to public order, anchored the stability of his government, and ensured the future of his still fragile nation.
What emerges is a compelling portrait of a man who, notwithstanding his personal failings and the sins of his times, was the most enlightened and constructive public figure of early Canadian history.
The issues cascaded threats to the sovereignty of Canada from London and Washington; armed resistance in the North-West; the spectre of starvation among Indigenous peoples; financial crises that endangered the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR); protests over Chinese immigration to British Columbia; nationalist dissent in Quebec; a smallpox epidemic that would claim over 5,000 victims in Montreal; and fierce opposition to Macdonald's drive to expand the right to vote. It was a year like no other in Canadian history.
In this fascinating and authoritative study of a skilled politician at the peak of his powers, political historian Patrice Dutil shows how Macdonald navigated persistent threats to public order, anchored the stability of his government, and ensured the future of his still fragile nation.
What emerges is a compelling portrait of a man who, notwithstanding his personal failings and the sins of his times, was the most enlightened and constructive public figure of early Canadian history.
379 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 19, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
January 5, 2025
This book should be read by all Canadians. It is very readable and covers the year 1885 when Macdonald as prime minister dealt with multiple federal crisis. Sadly Macdonald has been denigrated, pilloried, and erased in the 21st century. His goals were the development of a country that would not be swallowed up by the United States. In this he was successful. As less and less history is taught in our schools history is looked at under a 21st century microscope with little regard for the nuances of the times.
November 2, 2025
THE GREATEST CANADIAN
I have just finished this fine book and am shaking my head in admiration and disgust. Admiration that Canada was lucky enough to have had Sir John A. Macdonald at the helm during its initial years and later years of national crisis, and disgust at what a few revisionist historians and scores of woke protestors with no understanding of history have done to this great man's reputation.
I moved back to Canada in 2002 after 13 years in the USA, just when the CBC was running a poll to choose "The Greatest Canadian". It was won by the worthy Tommy Douglas, but other worthies like Pierre Trudeau and David Suzuki were also in the running (and so was the embarrassment of Don Cherry). Macdonald was lower down. I just shook my head, for there was really only one choice. I had taught high school history for many years, and, later, for even more years, I was a professor teaching future history teachers how to teach history. As a result, it was absolutely clear to me that, like him or not, for Canada, the Greatest Canadian was and will always be Sir John A. Macdonald.
I am not going to list all the reasons here for that choice. Suffice to say that without Sir John A. there would be no Canada as we know it today. But, as this well-researched book points out, as Prime Minister during the tumultuous year of 1885, he pretty much saved Canada again. He had the values of his time and he needed to respond to political necessity, but overall, his portrayal here reveals a highly intelligent man who cared deeply about Canada and its people. And that means *all* its people, regardless of race or sex.
Even though he used some racist terms, such were rare during his twenty-some years in office and came out only during edgy debates. Patrice Dutil's research shows us that, yes, of course, he was in favour of cultural assimilation for the Indigenous peoples, for, in his mind, how else could they have survived? The bison were gone, and so was the open prairie. Today, as a multicultural society, we might encourage integration instead and allow everyone their heritage without forcing them onto reservations or kidnapping the children into church-led residential schools. Yes, he approved the institution of residential schools to that end, but his worst mistake was leaving it to the churches to run them unsupervised.
Macdonald was trying to save the people themselves, not their culture that had lost its economic base, by turning them into farmers and entrepreneurs. He is recorded as saying that any Indigenous person, Métis, or Chinese was as intelligent and as good as any white, but they must be taught to share the same cultural values. Today, forced assimilation seems cruel, but statistics show it actually helped the Native population to quickly grow when it had been declining previously.
Women were not given the vote during his time in office, but he is recorded as saying, again and again, that such a situation made no sense. He was in favour, but the times were not ready for it. He has been portrayed as being in favour of and supporting the colonialism of the British Empire, but the record shows he refused to send the requested military aid to any international colonialist enterprises.
One thing I told my future history-teaching students was to avoid *presentism*, the practice of judging the past by the values of the present. This is exactly what we have seen these past tragic years of ignorance. Statues of the great man have been torn down or locked away, and numerous schools or other institutions have changed their name for fear of being seen as racist themselves. This is both ridiculous and shameful, and it ignores historical realities.
"Macdonald, however, was not racist in the sense that he believed other races were inherently inferior to white; nor did he harbour a malignant intent to discriminate against or repress non-white people. What he did believe, however, was that other races were not as "advanced." ... By the standard of his times, he had a liberal attitude toward people of different colour and creeds." (p. 270)
I have just finished this fine book and am shaking my head in admiration and disgust. Admiration that Canada was lucky enough to have had Sir John A. Macdonald at the helm during its initial years and later years of national crisis, and disgust at what a few revisionist historians and scores of woke protestors with no understanding of history have done to this great man's reputation.
I moved back to Canada in 2002 after 13 years in the USA, just when the CBC was running a poll to choose "The Greatest Canadian". It was won by the worthy Tommy Douglas, but other worthies like Pierre Trudeau and David Suzuki were also in the running (and so was the embarrassment of Don Cherry). Macdonald was lower down. I just shook my head, for there was really only one choice. I had taught high school history for many years, and, later, for even more years, I was a professor teaching future history teachers how to teach history. As a result, it was absolutely clear to me that, like him or not, for Canada, the Greatest Canadian was and will always be Sir John A. Macdonald.
I am not going to list all the reasons here for that choice. Suffice to say that without Sir John A. there would be no Canada as we know it today. But, as this well-researched book points out, as Prime Minister during the tumultuous year of 1885, he pretty much saved Canada again. He had the values of his time and he needed to respond to political necessity, but overall, his portrayal here reveals a highly intelligent man who cared deeply about Canada and its people. And that means *all* its people, regardless of race or sex.
Even though he used some racist terms, such were rare during his twenty-some years in office and came out only during edgy debates. Patrice Dutil's research shows us that, yes, of course, he was in favour of cultural assimilation for the Indigenous peoples, for, in his mind, how else could they have survived? The bison were gone, and so was the open prairie. Today, as a multicultural society, we might encourage integration instead and allow everyone their heritage without forcing them onto reservations or kidnapping the children into church-led residential schools. Yes, he approved the institution of residential schools to that end, but his worst mistake was leaving it to the churches to run them unsupervised.
Macdonald was trying to save the people themselves, not their culture that had lost its economic base, by turning them into farmers and entrepreneurs. He is recorded as saying that any Indigenous person, Métis, or Chinese was as intelligent and as good as any white, but they must be taught to share the same cultural values. Today, forced assimilation seems cruel, but statistics show it actually helped the Native population to quickly grow when it had been declining previously.
Women were not given the vote during his time in office, but he is recorded as saying, again and again, that such a situation made no sense. He was in favour, but the times were not ready for it. He has been portrayed as being in favour of and supporting the colonialism of the British Empire, but the record shows he refused to send the requested military aid to any international colonialist enterprises.
One thing I told my future history-teaching students was to avoid *presentism*, the practice of judging the past by the values of the present. This is exactly what we have seen these past tragic years of ignorance. Statues of the great man have been torn down or locked away, and numerous schools or other institutions have changed their name for fear of being seen as racist themselves. This is both ridiculous and shameful, and it ignores historical realities.
"Macdonald, however, was not racist in the sense that he believed other races were inherently inferior to white; nor did he harbour a malignant intent to discriminate against or repress non-white people. What he did believe, however, was that other races were not as "advanced." ... By the standard of his times, he had a liberal attitude toward people of different colour and creeds." (p. 270)
March 27, 2025
Patrice Dutil wrote this as an exercise in microhistory, as in he is trying to describe a year in the life of John A Macdonald, Canada’s first prime minister. He is at the same time trying to prove that 1885 was an apocalyptic year for both Canada and the Prime Minister. Those two goals conflict. While it may be that 1885 was the most trying year in Canadian history between Confederation and World War One, and that some of the issues Macdonald had to deal with were potentially apocalyptic for Canada if he had not successfully over come them, not all of them were. At the same time, Dutil is more successful in salvaging the reputation of one of the few great men in Canadian history.
A good example of an important issue that was not apocalyptic was the debate regarding Canada’s place in the British Empire. Another important, non-apocalyptic issue was the extension of suffrage bill that Parliament passed in 1885. Here is something which was semi-apocalyptic and that I had no idea had happened: There was a smallpox epidemic in Montreal in 1885. Building to the more apocalyptic was the almost-bankruptcy of the Canadian Pacific Railway: had that not been built, I think that Canada would not have survived. Something else that would have been apocalyptic to Canada’s sovereignty had it succeeded was the second Riel Rebellion, which Macdonald squelched. The last truly apocalyptic scenario that Macdonald faced was starvation among the Prairie indigenous people due to the disappearance of the buffalo. They were fed.
Macdonald turned 70 in 1885, and his nickname was “Old Tomorrow” because he was, for his time, a very progressive man. He would not send Canadian troops to help colonize Africa for the British. He proposed suffrage for women, Asians and Indigenous people (Black people in Canada could already vote). When the Riel Rebellion broke out, Macdonald’s first impulse was to negotiate. He only sent in the army when people started being taken hostage and murdered. Riel got a fair trial although Poundmaker did not. Welfare and unemployment insurance were unknown at the time, yet his sense of noblesse oblige led him to get food to all the Indians on reservations he could. Those not on reservations were more difficult to supply. Dutil estimates that about 50 people starved to death on the Prairies in 1885; on the other hand, more than 5,000 died in the Montreal smallpox epidemic. Though the story is not of 1885, the establishment of residential schools for indigenous students was thought to be very progressive in its day too.
I agree with most of Dutil’s opinions, but his execution is so-so. His prose does not detract from the narrative but neither does it propel it forward. You have to want to reach the end of the book. On the other hand, there is a liberal use of quotes in Macdonald's voice, mostly from his House of Commons speeches, and the book is better for it.
The book is topical. At that time, too, Canada had to confront a hostile United States whose leadership thought they would be able to take over the country. Macdonald made sure they did not. There was anti-immigrant rhetoric and so Macdonald reluctantly put a $50 dollar head tax on immigrants from China. And during the smallpox epidemic, there were antivaxxers and demonstrations and the mayor of Montreal made smallpox vaccinations compulsory. My final point is that the cancellation of the greatest Father of Confederation enrages many sane people and might be one of the reasons they vote for the Conservatives on April 28. I don’t know if this book will persuade the Macdonald haters but they should read it anyway.
A good example of an important issue that was not apocalyptic was the debate regarding Canada’s place in the British Empire. Another important, non-apocalyptic issue was the extension of suffrage bill that Parliament passed in 1885. Here is something which was semi-apocalyptic and that I had no idea had happened: There was a smallpox epidemic in Montreal in 1885. Building to the more apocalyptic was the almost-bankruptcy of the Canadian Pacific Railway: had that not been built, I think that Canada would not have survived. Something else that would have been apocalyptic to Canada’s sovereignty had it succeeded was the second Riel Rebellion, which Macdonald squelched. The last truly apocalyptic scenario that Macdonald faced was starvation among the Prairie indigenous people due to the disappearance of the buffalo. They were fed.
Macdonald turned 70 in 1885, and his nickname was “Old Tomorrow” because he was, for his time, a very progressive man. He would not send Canadian troops to help colonize Africa for the British. He proposed suffrage for women, Asians and Indigenous people (Black people in Canada could already vote). When the Riel Rebellion broke out, Macdonald’s first impulse was to negotiate. He only sent in the army when people started being taken hostage and murdered. Riel got a fair trial although Poundmaker did not. Welfare and unemployment insurance were unknown at the time, yet his sense of noblesse oblige led him to get food to all the Indians on reservations he could. Those not on reservations were more difficult to supply. Dutil estimates that about 50 people starved to death on the Prairies in 1885; on the other hand, more than 5,000 died in the Montreal smallpox epidemic. Though the story is not of 1885, the establishment of residential schools for indigenous students was thought to be very progressive in its day too.
I agree with most of Dutil’s opinions, but his execution is so-so. His prose does not detract from the narrative but neither does it propel it forward. You have to want to reach the end of the book. On the other hand, there is a liberal use of quotes in Macdonald's voice, mostly from his House of Commons speeches, and the book is better for it.
The book is topical. At that time, too, Canada had to confront a hostile United States whose leadership thought they would be able to take over the country. Macdonald made sure they did not. There was anti-immigrant rhetoric and so Macdonald reluctantly put a $50 dollar head tax on immigrants from China. And during the smallpox epidemic, there were antivaxxers and demonstrations and the mayor of Montreal made smallpox vaccinations compulsory. My final point is that the cancellation of the greatest Father of Confederation enrages many sane people and might be one of the reasons they vote for the Conservatives on April 28. I don’t know if this book will persuade the Macdonald haters but they should read it anyway.
April 8, 2025
An inciteful analysis of a year when several serious threats to the new country were skillfully managed by our first Prime Minister. The author is a proponent of viewing historical events and decisions in their original context and not through the warped lens of the present time.
July 5, 2025
A question for GoodReads: Why are the Kindle edition and the trade paperback edition listed as different books, when they are simply only different editions of the same book?
And why isn't the hardcover edition listed? That's the one I read...
And why isn't the hardcover edition listed? That's the one I read...
January 8, 2025
A great read and summary of Macdonald's challenges in 1885.
Want to read
May 21, 2025Fascinating book. I'm actually reading a hardcover edition. Read to end of Chapter 8 before having to return the book to library. Book is in demand at both my libraries, so it will be a while before I can get back to reading this book.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews