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Quebec Act 1774 Facts & Worksheets

The Quebec Act 1774 was formally called the British North America (Quebec) Act 1774.

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The Quebec Act 1774 was formally called the British North America (Quebec) Act 1774. The Quebec Act 1774 was an act of the British Parliament setting procedures of governance for the Province of Quebec and council.

See the fact file below for more information on the Quebec Act 1774 or alternatively, you can download our 22-page Quebec Act 1774 worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

INTRODUCTION

  • The Quebec Act received royal assent on June 22, 1774 and was put into effect on May 1, 1775.
  • The Quebec Act dismissed the Royal Proclamation of 1763, which had aimed to assimilate the French-Canadian population under English rule.
  • Hence, the act was legislated to win the loyalty of the French-speaking majority of the Province of Quebec.
  • Based on the recommendations of Governors James Murray and Guy Carleton, the act ensured freedom of worship and revived French property rights. However, the act had terrible outcomes for Britain’s North American empire.
  • Considered one of the five “Intolerable Acts” by the Thirteen American Colonies, the Quebec Act was one of the immediate causes of the American Revolutionary War (1775–83).
  • It was succeeded by the Constitutional Act in 1791.

BACKGROUND CONTEXT

  • After the Seven Years’ War (1756–1763), triumphant Great Britain and defeated France formalized the peace with the 1763 Treaty of Paris.
  • Under the terms of the treaty, the Kingdom of France surrendered New France to Britain, choosing instead to keep the islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique for their valuable sugar production.
  • Canada (New France) was considered less valuable, as its only important commercial product was beaver pelts at the time. The area along the St. Lawrence River, named Canada by the French, was renamed Quebec by the British, after its capital city.
  • The non-military administration of the territories acquired by the British in the war was defined in the Royal Proclamation of 1763. Under the terms of the peace treaty, Canadians who chose not to flee converted to become British subjects.
  • In order for them to work in public offices, they were obliged to swear an oath to the king that contained specific provisions refusing the Catholic faith.
  • Since many of the predominantly Roman Catholic Canadians were unwilling to take such an oath, this completely blocked large numbers of Canadians from engaging in the local governments.
  • With unrest arising in the colonies to the south, which would one day become the American Revolution, the British were bothered that the Canadians might also support the growing rebellion. For the time being, Canadians formed the vast majority of the settler population of the province of Quebec (more than 99%) and there was little settlement from Great Britain.
  • To ensure the loyalty of roughly 90,000 French Canadians to the British crown first Governor James Murray along with later Governor Guy Carleton promoted the need for change.
  • There was also a necessity to compromise between the conflicting demands of the Canadian subjects and those of newly landed British subjects.
  • The efforts made by the colonial governors ultimately resulted in the enactment of the Quebec Act 1774.

EFFECTS ON THE PROVINCE OF QUEBEC

  • Territory: The act defined the boundaries of the province. Being greatly enlarged, the Province of Quebec was no longer limited to the St. Lawrence River valley. The borders were expanded to include the land that is now southern Ontario, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, and parts of Minnesota. This increased the size of the province triple the territory of the French province of Canada.
  • Religion: The act granted the public office holders to practice the Roman Catholic faith, by replacing the oath sworn by officials from one to Elizabeth I and her heirs with one to George III and had no reference to the Protestant faith. This allowed, for the first time, Canadians to legally engage in the affairs of the provincial government without formally denying their faith. It also restored the collection of tithes, which had been suspended under the previous administrative rules, and allowed Jesuit priests to go back to the province.
  • Structure of government: The Quebec Act defined the provincial government’s structure. The governor was to be appointed by the Crown, and he was to govern with the aid of a legislative council; an elected legislative assembly received no provisions.
  • Law: While the case of Campbell v. Hall effectively maintained French law despite the provisions in the Royal Proclamation of 1763, the act provided for its ouster in favor of English law in matters of public law, criminal law, and freedom of testation.
  • Land use: The seigneurial system was restored as a means of dividing land and controlling its use. The seigneurial system was the system by which the French had administered the province; the British had instituted a township system of land management in 1763.

PARTICIPATION OF THE CANADIENS

  • The British colonial government’s internal communications at Quebec imply a relative failure of the purpose of the Quebec Act.
  • The Quebec Act set a pattern for British absolute rule in North America – exactly what Americans feared most. The colonists promptly noticed intensified British rule in Canada and deeply feared that it would spread to the American colonies.
  • American colonists enjoyed effective independence throughout much of the 18th century despite being governed by British royal governors. The governors issued orders, but the colonists oftentimes neglected these proclamations and did as they pleased.
  • The colonists were not completely convinced with British governance in the American colonies, but they were largely free and prosperous so they did not complain.
  • American colonists took a pragmatic approach to their relationship with Britain as demonstrated by their response to the Townshend Acts. First implemented in 1767, the Townshend Acts were a set of duties (taxes) imposed on certain British imports coming into America – like paper, paint, lead, glass, and tea.
  • The tariff’s burden fell on American colonists. Opposition to the Townshend Acts took the form of boycotting British goods including public remonstrations, such as the protests that led to the Boston Massacre.
  • Due to the strong American opposition, Britain revoked almost all of the acts in 1770—except for the Tea Act. After repealing the majority of the Townshend Acts, the colonists widely accepted British rule and were satisfied as British subjects.

EFFECTS ON THE THIRTEEN COLONIES

  • The Coercive Acts, also known as the Intolerable Acts, were a series of British laws passed at the beginning of 1774, a month before the Quebec Act passed. Intolerable Acts aimed to assure control of the increasingly rebellious American colonies.
  • The Coercive Acts consisted of four separate pieces of legislation: Closing ports of Boston in punishment for the Boston Tea Party, allowing the British soldiers’ to quarter in private American homes, exempting British officials from having to stand trial in America, and limiting the powers of colonial assemblies while increasing the royal appointees’ powers.
  • All of these greatly increased British power in the colonies.
  • The Quebec Act angered people in the thirteen colonies and was termed one of the “Intolerable Acts” by the patriots.
  • The main significance of the Quebec Act in the thirteen colonies was that it angered the patriots, and dismayed the loyalists who supported the Crown, and contributed to accelerating the confrontation that became the American Revolution (Miller 1943).
  • The First Continental Congress petitioned Parliament to repeal the Intolerable Acts, which Parliament refused to do. Rather, in February 1775 Parliament passed the Conciliatory Resolution in an effort to curry favor with the angry colonists.
  • In Quebec, the 1774 act was effectively replaced by the Constitutional Act of 1791, which partitioned Quebec into two new provinces, Upper and Lower Canada.

Quebec Act 1774 Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about the Quebec Act 1774 across 22 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Quebec Act 1774 worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about the Quebec Act 1774 which was formally called the British North America (Quebec) Act 1774. The Quebec Act 1774 was an act of the British Parliament setting procedures of governance for the Province of Quebec and council.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Quebec Act 1774 Facts
  • The Act’s Summary
  • Quebec Facts
  • New France
  • Seven Years’ War
  • Creation of the Quebec Act
  • The Effects Within
  • Canadians’ Reaction
  • Quebec Timeline
  • Intolerable Acts
  • American Revolution

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Link will appear as Quebec Act 1774 Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, November 26, 2020

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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