Canada’s Timeline – Important Historical Dates

Explore the key moments that shaped Canada's journey as a nation. This timeline highlights significant historical events that have influenced Canadian identity, politics, and culture over the years.

• 2012

  Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her Diamond Jubilee (60 years as Queen of Canada).

• 2006

  The House of Commons recognized that the Quebecois form a nation within a United Canada.

• 2002

  Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her Golden Jubilee (50 years as Queen of Canada).

• 1988

  - Canada enacted free trade with the United States.
  - The Government of Canada formally apologized and compensated Japanese Canadians for wartime relocation.

• 1985

  Rick Hansen completed his journey in a wheelchair to raise funds for spinal cord research.

• 1982

  - The Constitution of Canada was amended to entrench the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
  - Queen Elizabeth II proclaimed the amended Constitution in Ottawa.

• 1980

  - The first Quebec sovereignty referendum was held and defeated.

  - Terry Fox began his "Marathon of Hope" to raise funds for cancer research.

  - "O Canada" was proclaimed as the national anthem.

• 1970s

  The term First Nations began to be used.

• 1969

  Parliament passed the Official Languages Act, establishing French and English as Canada's official languages.

• 1967

  Canada started its own honours system with the Order of Canada.

• 1965

  - The Canada and Quebec Pension Plans were established.
  - The new Canadian flag, as we know it today, was raised for the first time.

• 1960

  Aboriginal people were granted the right to vote in federal elections.

• 1960s

  Quebec experienced an era of rapid change known as the Quiet Revolution.

• 1952

  Queen Elizabeth II became Queen of Canada.

• 1951

  For the first time, a majority of Canadians were able to afford adequate food, shelter, and clothing.

• 1948

  - Quebec adopted its own flag featuring the "fleur-de-lys".
  - Japanese Canadians gained the right to vote in federal and provincial elections.

• 1947

  Oil was discovered in Alberta, marking the beginning of Canada's modern energy industry.

• 1945

  World War II ended.

• 1944

  In the Second World War, the Canadians captured Juno Beach on June 6, as part of the Allied invasion of Normandy on D-Day.

• 1940

  - Women in Quebec were granted the right to vote.
  - The federal government introduced unemployment insurance (now called "employment insurance").

• 1934

  Bank of Canada was established to stabilize the financial system.

• 1929

  Stock market crashed which lead to the Great Depression or the “Dirty Thirties.”

• 1927

  - The Peace Tower was completed in memory of the First World War.
  - Old Age security was devised.

• 1921

  - Agnes Macphail became the first female Member of Parliament in Canada.
  - Red and white were officially designated as Canada’s national colors.

• 1920

  Group of Seven was founded, known for its distinctive style of painting Canadian landscapes.

• 1918

  Most Canadian women aged 21 and over gained the right to vote in federal elections.

• 1917

  - The Canadian Corps captured Vimy Ridge, securing the Canadians’ reputation for valor as the “shock troops of the British Empire.”
  - Federal voting rights granted to some women related to servicemen.

• 1916

  Manitoba became the first province to grant voting rights to women.

• 1891

  James Naismith, a Canadian, invented the game of basketball.

• 1890s

  The Yukon Gold Rush, also known as the Klondike Gold Rush (1896–1899), was a historic migration of prospectors to the Yukon region after gold was discovered in Bonanza Creek, sparking a frenzy that shaped the region's economy and culture.

• 1885

  Canadian Pacific Railway was completed, marked by the driving of the "last spike" by Lord Strathcona.

• 1880

  "O Canada" was first sung in Québec City.

• 1873

  - Prince Edward Island joined Canada.
  - The North West Mounted Police (NWMP) was founded to maintain order in the West.

• 1869

  Canada took over the northwest region from the Hudson’s Bay Company, which led to the Red River Rebellion, led by Louis Riel.

• 1867

  - Dominion of Canada was officially formed, including Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick.
  - The British North America Act established Canada's foundational principles, including "Peace, Order, and Good Government."
  - Confederation established Canada as a constitutional monarchy under the Crown.
  - The British North America Act (now the Constitution Act, 1867) defined the responsibilities of federal and provincial governments.

• 1864

  The phrase "Dominion of Canada" was proposed by Sir Leonard Tilley.

• 1860s

  The Parliament buildings were completed.

• 1857

  Queen Victoria chose Ottawa as the capital of Canada.

• 1854

  Lieutenant Alexander Roberts Dunn became the first person to ever receive the Victoria Cross.

• 1849

  Sir Louis-Hippolyte La Fontaine became the first leader of a responsible government in Canada.

• 1847-1848

  Nova Scotia became the first British North American colony to attain responsible government.

• 1840

  Upper and Lower Canada were united as the Province of Canada.

• 1833

  Slaverywas abolished throughout the British Empire.

• 1832

  The Montreal Stock Exchange opened.

• 1815

  Napolean Bonaparte was overthrown by the Duke of Wellington.

• 1814

  The War of 1812 ended with the failure of the American invasion of Canada.

• 1812

  The United States launched an invasion in June to conquer Canada. Major-General Sir Isaac Brock captured Detroit, and Laura Secord warned of an American attack.

• 1805

  Napoleon Bonaparte’s fleet was defeated in the Battle of Trafalgar.

• 1800s-1980s

  Many Aboriginal children were placed in residential schools to assimilate them into mainstream Canadian culture.

• 1800s

  Ice Hockey was invented in Canada.

• 1793

  Upper Canada (later Ontario) became the first province in the British Empire to move toward abolition of slavery under Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe.

• 1792

  Some Black Loyalists from Nova Scotia established Freetown in Sierra Leone, West Africa.

• 1791

  – The Constitutional Act was passed which divided the Province of Quebec into Upper Canada (later Ontario) and Lower Canada (Later Quebec).
  – The name “Canada” became official.

• 1780s

  Black Loyalists, including escaped slaves and freed men and women of African origin, fled to Canada from America.

• 1776

  – The thirteen British colonies to the south of Quebec declared independence and formed the United States.
  – Joseph Brant lead thousands of loyalist Mohawk Indians into Canada.

• 1774

  The Quebec Act was passed, providing religious freedom for Catholics and allowing French civil law.

• 1763

  The Royal Proclamation by King George III guaranteed Aboriginal territorial rights.

• 1759

  The British defeated the French at the Battle of the Plains of Abraham in Québec City.

• 1758

  First representative assembly in British North America was elected in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

• 1755-1763

  Over two-thirds of the Acadians were deported during the war between Britain and France, an event known as the "Great Upheaval."

• 1701

  Peace was made between the French and the Iroquois.

• 1700s

  Canada adopted Maple Leaf as a symbol of state.

• 1670

  King Charles II of England granted Hudson’s Bay Company exclusive trading rights over the Hudson Bay watershed.

• 1610

  English settlement began.

• 1608

  Samuel de Champlain built a fortress in present-day Québec City.

• 1604

  - French colonists, the Acadians, began settling in what are now the Maritime provinces.
  - First European settlement north of Florida was established by Pierre de Monts and Samuel de Champlain on St. Croix Island and then at Port-Royal.

• 1534-1542

  Jacques Cartier made three voyages across the Atlantic, claiming the land for King Francis I of France.

• 1550s

  Canada's name began appearing on the map.

• 1497

  John Cabot mapped Canada’s Atlantic shore, setting foot on Newfoundland or Cape Breton Island and claiming the land for England.

• 1215

  The signing of the Magna Carta (the Great Charter of Freedoms) in England, establishing an 800-year-old tradition of ordered liberty for Canadians.