Peace and Friendship Treaties (1725-1779)

The process of dealing with Aboriginal title and rights through formal agreement began shortly after contact was established between Europeans and Aboriginal peoples of North America. These first agreements, the Peace and Friendship treaties, were concluded during a period of continual warfare between England and France. They were intended to secure the neutrality or assistance of the Aboriginal nations in exchange for a commitment not to impede them in their traditional pursuits.

Several of these treaties of peace and friendship were concluded by the British Crown and various Maritime Indian tribes up until the end of the eighteenth century. These treaties are not individually mapped because they did not involve the transfer of land title, or compensation for rights taken away.

Upper Canada Treaties (1764-1836)

As the colonial powers became more established, treaties became the instruments used by the Crown to clear lands of aboriginal title, so that settlement or resource development could precede. The turning point in this evolution was the Royal Proclamation of 1763, which established a process to be followed in the acquisition by the Crown of clear title to Indian lands.

Following the Proclamation, the Crown concluded a number of land-cession agreements with the Aboriginals of present-day southern Ontario so that land would be available for the settlement of the United Empire Loyalists, and for the Crown's military allies, the Iroquois. These treaties are called the Upper Canada Treaties, wherein title was conveyed to the Crown in exchange for lump-sum payments, and after 1818 annuities.

Province of Canada Treaties (1850-1862)

The three major Province of Canada Treaties are the two Robinson Treaties and the Manitoulin Island Treaty. The two Robinson Treaties were negotiated by ex-fur trader William Benjamin Robinson (1797-1873). Chief Peau de Chat and other Lake Superior chiefs signed the Robinson-Superior Treaty, September 7, 1850, followed two days later when Chief Shinguacouse and other leaders from the Lake Huron region, signed the Robinson-Huron Treaty, September 9, 1850.

The Manitoulin Island Treaty was negotiated by William McDougall and the Aboriginal leaders on the island. Initally, the island had been set aside for Aboriginals in 1836 (see the map). However, by 1860 only 1 000 people of the expected 5 000 had settled on the island, so the original treaty was re-negotiated and 600 000 acres of the original land was surrendered October 6, 1862.

These three Province of Canada Treaties represent for the first time wherein provisions were made for reserves and the freedom to hunt and fish on unoccupied Crown land.

Vancouver Island Treaties (1850-1854)

The fourteen Vancouver Island Treaties are sometimes referred to as the Douglas Treaties, after James Douglas the chief factor of Fort Victoria (Hudson's Bay Fort), who negotiated the purchase of approximately 358 square miles of land on Vancouver Island. The Aboriginals in return were paid in blankets and promised the rights to hunt on unsettled lands and to carry on fisheries "as formerly".

There were no more treaties on Vancouver Island after 1854 due to lack of funds from the Crown and due to the slowness of European settlement on Vancouver Island during this period.

Numbered Treaties (1867-1923)

In 1867, the British North American Act (now the Constitution Act, 1867) gave jurisdiction over the "Indians and Land reserved for Indians" to the Government of Canada. In the years following Confederation, the federal government undertook a process of clearing aboriginal title to facilitate the construction of a railroad to the west coast, and the expansion and consolidation of Canada through settlement.

In the resulting "numbered treaties", the Indians surrendered all title to the lands covered, and in return, received tracts of land for reserves. In addition to the provision of reserve lands, benefits, common to many of the western treaties, included annuities, gratuities, schools, hunting and fishing rights, gifts of agricultural implements and cattle, annual cash payments for ammunition and twine, and clothing, flags, and medals.

These "numbered treaties" encompassed most of the provinces of Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and the Mackenzie District of the Northwest Territories. Treaty No. 8 covered the northeast corner of British Columbia, while the two treaties signed in 1923 covered the area south and east of Georgian Bay.

Williams Treaties (1923)

The Williams Treaties (1923) are the last of the historical Indian treaties in Canada. They were signed between the Government of Canada and seven Chippewa and Mississauga First Nations of Southern Ontario. The Williams Treaties are named after the Federal government's chief negotiator, Angus Williams.

Since the Williams Treaties, modern comprehensive land claim agreements have followed the pattern established by previous treaty-making, although these agreements are much more complex than treaties. Beginning in 1982, existing Aboriginal and treaty rights have been recognized and affirmed by subsection 35(1) of the Constitution Act, 1982. As a result of the constitutional amendments of June 1984, "treaty rights" include rights that now exist by way of land claims agreements or may be so acquired.