The Thirty Years’ War (1618 to 1648) was one of the longest conflicts in European history; the primary cause of war was the actions of Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand II in forcing the Protestants into Catholicism. Prince Frederick, a Calvinist, sided with the Protestants and became King of Bohemia and lived in Hiradcany Castle in the Rhine.
Frederick’s wife was Princess Elizabeth, the older sister of King Charles I of England, Scotland and Ireland. They had a son Prince Rupert. The family was forced into exile; following Frederick’s death (1632), Elizabeth sent Rupert to England (in 1635). He later became the first head of Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) in what is now Canada.
In 1670, King Charles II of England granted a royal charter to create the Hudson’s Bay Company, under the governorship of the king’s cousin Prince Rupert of the Rhine. According to the Charter, the HBC received rights to:
“The sole Trade and Commerce of all those Seas, Streights, Bays, Rivers, Lakes, Creeks, and Sounds, in whatsoever Latitude they shall be, that lie within the entrance of the Streights commonly called Hudson’s Streights …”
“together with all the Lands, Countries and Territories, upon the Coasts and Confines of the Seas, Streights, Bays, Lakes, Rivers, Creeks and Sounds, aforesaid, which are not now actually possessed by any of our Subjects, or by the Subjects of any other Christian Prince or State …”
“and that the said Land be from henceforth reckoned and reputed as one of our Plantations or Colonies in America, called Rupert’s Land.”
The Royal Charter of 1670 granted “the Governor and Company of Adventurers of England trading into Hudson Bay” exclusive trading rights over the entire Hudson Bay drainage system.
This territory was vast, and the Crown had little knowledge of the land or the people calling it home. According to the Royal Charter, the land was “unoccupied”, or not “actually possessed by any of our Subjects, or by the Subjects of any other Christian Prince or State.”
Rupert’s Land (aka Prince Rupert’s Land) was a vast territory of northern wilderness. It represented a third of what is now Canada. At the time, King Charles II had no idea that this encompassed about 1.5-million square miles.
In terms of modern geo-political boundaries, Rupert’s Land covered northern Quebec, northern Ontario, much of the three prairie provinces, and most of southern Nunavut. It also included parts of Montana, Minnesota, and North and South Dakota.
For HBC, Rupert’s Land provided an entry point into the fur trade, and although the Charter outlined a clear purpose for the land and its resources, its boundaries were ambiguously defined.
Expanding HBC’s geographical network and understanding of the land relied on Indigenous local knowledge and alliances. Exploring and mapping the region was motivated by economic and political goals, especially as HBC was confronted by other commercial enterprises challenging its claim to exclusive trading rights within the territory. (HBC Heritage)
The royal charter did not apply to any parts of Rupert’s Land “actually possessed” by “any other Christian Prince or State,” but made no mention of the many First Nations who actually held sovereignty within the territory.
At the time, the Hudson’s Bay Company’s actual claim to the land was limited to small sites for trading posts and safe passage between those posts. (University of Winnipeg)
From 1670 (to 1870), it was the exclusive commercial domain of the Hudson’s Bay Company and the primary trapping grounds of the fur trade.
The maritime fur trade focused on acquiring furs of beavers, sea otters, seals and other animals from the Pacific Northwest Coast and Alaska. The furs were mostly sold in China in exchange for tea, silks, porcelain and other Chinese goods, which were then sold in Europe and the US.
Needing supplies in their journey, the traders soon realized they could economically barter for provisions in Hawai‘i; for instance any type of iron, a common nail, chisel or knife, could fetch far more fresh fruit meat and water than a large sum of money would in other ports.
A triangular trade network emerged linking the Pacific Northwest coast, China and the Hawaiian Islands to Britain and the United States (especially New England).
Then, on July 1, 1867, a federation of colonies in British North America – New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Quebec and Ontario – joined together to become the Dominion of Canada. Under the British North America Act, 1867, the Queen remained head of state, represented nationally in Canada by the Governor General and in each province by a Lieutenant Governor.
The British North America Act provided the constitutional framework for Canada’s current federal system by defining broad areas of federal and provincial jurisdiction. Such national matters as defense, postal service, criminal law, and banks are under federal authority. Education, health, and natural resources are primarily among the provinces’ responsibilities.
On March 30, 1867, just one day after the British North America Act received Royal Assent in London, the United States purchased Alaska from Russia. With the American purchase of Alaska (Americans had just paid Russia $7.2 million for Alaska), Canadians were looking for other properties to expand the Republic and eyed the territory.
Canada’s Prime Minister, Sir John A MacDonald, was anxious to gain control of Rupert’s Land. He wanted it to be annexed to the new Dominion of Canada to prevent its annexation by the US.
In his mind, if he was successful, he could expand the Dominion both North and West. Canada saw Rupert’s Land as the natural extension of its new nation which included Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario and Quebec.
George Brown, editor of The Globe and a Father of Confederation, described it as “the vast and fertile territory which is our birthright – and which no power on earth can prevent us occupying.”
The prophecy in the country’s motto, “He shall have Dominion from sea to sea” (Psalm 72:8), would be fulfilled. He would also strengthen Canada’s presence in North America next to the United States. (Christian Roots Canada)
The once powerful Hudson’s Bay Company controlled the area. But the British fur trade giant had been in decline for years and it was preparing to sell Rupert’s Land.
On March 20, 1869, the Hudson’s Bay Company, under pressure from Great Britain, sold Rupert’s Land to the Government of Canada for $1.5 million. The sale involved roughly a quarter of the continent; it is the largest real estate transaction (by land area) in the country’s history.
The purchase of Rupert’s Land transformed Canada geographically. It changed from a modest country in the northeast of the continent into an expansive one that reached across North America. Rupert’s Land was eventually divided among Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and the Northwest Territories.
Today, Prince Rupert’s name remains a part of Canadian geography. He is the namesake of the city of Prince Rupert, British Columbia, the Prince Rupert neighborhood in northwest Edmonton and Quebec’s Rupert River, which drains into Rupert Bay on James Bay. (Information here is from Canadian Encyclopedia, Canada’s History, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Hudson’s Bay Company and Legislative Assembly of BC.))
