Download Taking Sides: the push for change in government.

Changing the government in
British North America
Whose side are you on?
The elite’s representative government
VS.
A responsible government
Taking Sides: the Churches
• In the 1800s most people
went to church and tried
very hard to follow the
teaching of the church.
• There were two main
churches in BNA and
both had a big influence
on what people thought
and how they voted.
• Church leaders would
state their opinions and
encourage their followers
to have the same
opinions.
Taking Sides: the Churches
• There were two main
churches in BNA:
– The Church of England
– The Roman Catholic Church
• In most of the colonies,
both churches support the
government and did not
want change.
Taking Sides: the Churches
THE EXEPTION…..
• In Newfoundland, the Roman
Catholic Church supported
REFORM.
• They believed that Catholics
could only be treated fairly if
they could elect Catholic
politicians who had some real
power.
Michael Anthony Flemming a the bishop for the Roman
catholic Church in Newfoundland who worked hard for
the reform of the government.
Taking Sides: The Newspapers
•
•
•
In the 1800s, there were no
magazines, radio, television or
computers. Therefore the only way to
get news was to either hear it from
somebody or read the newspaper.
Newspapers were usually one sheet of
paper and were considered more
valuable than today. They were often
read and then passed on to different
people.
They would also be posted in public
areas where people could read them
out loud to each other and discuss the
issues.
Taking Sides: The Newspapers
• Every newspaper in the 1830s was either for or
against reform.
• Some of the most famous politicians of the time
owned newspapers so that they could tell
everyone about their opinions.
• They would write long editorial letters that would
strongly support their personal points of view
and these letters were not checked for accuracy
and sometimes were exaggerated or very
biased.