Many of us (including myself) are immigrants and we all love the fact that July 1st is a legal holiday in Canada, appropriately named Canada Day but as immigrants do we really know the history of Canada Day (unarguably Canada’s most important holiday)?
Here is my brief history of Canada.
Before July 1, 1867, Canada was 3 separate British Colonies (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and the Province of Canada). On July 1, 1867, the British crown combined the three colonies to form the Kingdom of Canada. The Kingdom of Canada was made a self governed state but still a protectorate of the British Empire which had some considerable sway over the politics of the country. It actually wasn’t until 1982 that Canada obtained complete sovereign Independence from Great Britain. It’s history as a long standing member of the Commonwealth is still felt in the style of government, culture and even linguistics but Canada is never the less an independent and sovereign state and we celebrate that sovereignty on July 1st. Happy Birthday Canada!