This document was originally adapted for the Postcolonial Literature and Culture Web with the kind permission of the Canadian Association for Commonwealth Literature and Language Studies (CACLALS). It derives from a project directed by Dr Leon Litvack as a requirement for the MA degree in Modern Literary Studies in the School of English, the Queen's University of Belfast.
| 1535 | Jacques Cartier is the first European to sail up the St. Lawrence river into the interior of Canada. |
| 1608 | Samuel de Champlain founds Quebec. |
| 1608-1763 | Creation of "New France"; exploration; fur trading; building of series of forts; British/French struggle for control. |
| 1763 | British conquest of New France. |
| 1775-6 | Canada refuses to join with the 13 states in rebellion. Subsequent invasion by the US fails. |
| 1783 | American independence leaves two British colonies in the north — Quebec and Nova Scotia. |
| 1791 | Creation of Upper (Ontario) and Lower (Quebec) Canada. |
| 1812-14 | British-American War of 1812; agreement on 49th parallel as Canadian border; rapid immigration from the former colonies and Europe. |
| 1850 | Beginning of "Indian Treaties" granting limited land rights and financial compensation for the European acquisition of territory. |
| 1867 | British North America Act creates united Canada, following US civil war, and amid fears of an American invasion. |
| 1871 | Canada reaches the Pacific after British Columbia joins the federation. |
| 1914-18 | World War I creates a desire for greater autonomy. |
| 1923-31 | Gradual ending of Imperial diplomatic unity and granting of autonomy to the Dominions of the Empire. |
| 1945 | End of World War II and beginning of economic boom. |
| 1960s | Rapid Asian and Third World immigration. |
| 1971 | Trudeau's government officially endorses the policy of multiculturalism. |
| 1995 | Referendum on French-speaking independence returns slight pro-federation majority; policy of First Nation's self-government officially endorsed. |
Created 26 July 2013