The Trial of Louis Riel

Rebecca H.

This factsheet highlights the ongoing history of Louis Riel's trial for treason following the Red River resistance and Battle of Batoche. The factsheet notes historic and contemporary legal arguments for why Louis Riel's actions were not treasonous and speaks to current day debates on the best way to honour Riel's legacy.

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References

Bellegarde, B. (November 16, 2017). "132 Years After his Execution, Many Métis Reject Exonerating Louis Riel." CBC News. https://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/metis-reject-exoneration-louis-riel-1.4404330
Groarke, P. (2013). "The Trial and Execution of Louis Riel: Defending my Country of the North-West." Canadian Journal of Native Studies 33 (2), pp. 1-28. http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.library.uvic.ca/scholarly-journals/trial-execution-louis-riel-defending-my-country/docview/1541674319/se-2?accountid=14846
Stanley, G. F.G., & Gaudry, A. (2013). "Louis Riel." The Canadian Encyclopedia. https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/louis-riel

Source Authors

Adam Gaudry, Brad Bellegarde, George F.G. Stanley, Paul Groarke

Events

Red River Resistance,

Keywords

Canada's Colonial History, Challenge Assumptions, Colonial settlement, Colonial Violence, Consent and Consultation, Deconstructing Popular Ideas, History of Resistance, Hudson's Bay Company, Indigenous Diplomacy, Indigenous Resistance, Indigenous Sovereignty, Interrupting Colonial Narratives, Land and Power, Land Defence, Land Dispossession, Legal History, Metis, Métis History, Nation Building Narrative, Reclaiming History, Self-Determination, Settler-Indigenous Relations, State Sanctioned Violence

Key Figures

Jean Teillet, John A. MacDonald, Louis Riel, Métis

Locations

British North America, Canada, Manitoba, Métis Homelands, North America, Red River, Saskatchewan

Themes

Activism, History