Why Didn't The French Canadians Join The American Revolution Essay

Why Didn't The French Canadians Join The American Revolution - Essay Example Choosing to support Americans could jeopardize the conditions of the Act and leave them at the hands of the Americans. The essay shall look at these issues in further detail in order to set their behavior against the background of the historical occurrences at that time. The essay will encompass a series of historical events that had led to French Canada's surprising reaction to the United States. First of all, a small history of French Canada will be examined with regard to their emigration and settlement in Quebec. Thereafter, there will be a need to look into the French Canadians, social and religious practices; these will be examined against the background of the general social and religious climate in America. The reason for doing this is to establish the reason behind their participation in the 1774 Quebec Act. (Candaiana.org, 2008)This will also provide an understanding about the possible differences that could have emanated between the French Canada and the rest of the American population. Afterwards, it will be imperative to look into details that occurred prior to the American Revolution and during the revolution when the French Canadians were requested to join in the struggle. All the communication that occurred between the latter group and the Americans will be examined in detail to reveal why the French Canadians took their stance as neutral parties.... The province was mostly French Catholic at that time. In fact, statistics show that the English speaking inhabitants were British officials or members of the military. (Canadian encyclopedia, 2008)The other small proportion of English speakers in Quebec was mostly located in Quebec's urban centers with the largest percentage of the latter adhering to the Protestant religious faith. In fact, census during the year 1764 indicated that in Quebec and Montreal only two hundred households represented Protestant groups. (Parker, 1983) It is also imperative to realize that the English speaking population was distinctly different from the French population owing to their economic practices. The French Canadians were mostly interested in agriculture while their English speaking counterparts were largely interested in trade. The English speakers adhered to the following professions Artisanship Inn keeping Commodity Trade Merchant trade As a result, Quebec City itself found that it had become an importer and exporter of commodities. Large percentage of the English traders had arrived in Quebec to provide supplies to British army representatives and officials however, they found that they could engage in fur trade in this area and consequently chose to develop that trade. It should also be noted that in the fateful year 1763, the British had made a proclamation about Quebec. They wanted to treat this area just like any other province within America. The colonizers wanted Quebec to operate under English laws and they also wanted them to have representative government. Despite the fact that a large percentage of the people in Quebec were