The Invasion of San Francisco
20.3 cms x 25.7 cms (8 ins x 10.12 ins)
Signed and dated april 9, 1867
made in 1867
Lot offered for sale by Heffel, Vancouver at the auction event "Fine Canadian Art Fall 2006 Live auction" held on Fri, Nov 24, 2006.
Lot 117
Lot 117
Estimate: CAD $60,000 - $80,000
Realised: CAD $34,500
Realised: CAD $34,500
Lot description - from the online catalogue*
Provenance:
Alexander William Armour, The Nassau Club, Princeton, New Jersey
Canadian Book Auctions, Toronto
Private Collection, Ottawa
Notes:
This letter from John A. Macdonald, shortly to become the first Prime Minister of the Dominion of Canada, to Henry Sumner Maine, an English legal theorist of some note, is chiefly of interest due to its last paragraph. Only days previous, the British Parliament had passed the British North America Act, a Bill that ratified Canadian Confederation and functioned as Canada's constitution until repatriation in 1982. Despite being the focus of Macdonald's considerable talents for nearly three years, the success of Confederation had been uncertain. His comments to Maine, whom Macdonald did not know well, are indicative of his high spirits at the Act's passage.
John A. Macdonald, soon to be the first Prime Minister of the Dominion of Canada, wrote this letter to Henry Sumner Maine, an English legal theorist of some note, only days after the British Parliament had passed the British North America Act, a Bill that ratified Canadian Confederation and functioned as Canada's constitution until repatriation in 1982. Despite being the focus of Macdonald's considerable talents for nearly three years, the success of Confederation had been uncertain. His comments to Maine, whom Macdonald did not know well, are indicative of his high spirits at the Act's passage.
As the text also indicates, in 1867 Macdonald was rather less than an admirer of the United States. After the Union victory in the American Civil War, relations between America and Britain were tense. War was not as certain as Macdonald suggests, but the victorious North was unhappy with British sympathy for the Confederacy and over damage done to Union shipping from vessels built in British ports. In fact, there were calls for the annexation of Canada as recompense and, of course, British North Americans were well aware of the American rhetoric of "Manifest Destiny." Further, in June 1866 Canada had been raided by the Fenian brotherhood; a society of Irish civil war veterans who believed that if they could capture Canada, they could force Great Britain to withdraw from Ireland. Although the Canadian militia repulsed the attacks, the American government was slow to repudiate the raiders and in April 1867, rumours of further raids (which did not immediately materialize) were rife in the colonies.
This was an era when the unification of Canada was essential to the country's future survival. The development of national initiatives such as the Canadian Pacific Railway and a strong confederation of the provinces would enable Canada to assert its sovereignty in relation to the United States. Macdonald's reference to the French Civil Code and its significance with regard to Quebec nationalism remains relevant.
Macdonald was a jocular soul and his remarks here about the invasion of California are tongue-in-cheek. In 1867, Maine was a legal advisor to the Indian government and could have authorized no such thing, something the Canadian politician would have known full well. Still, the letter displays Macdonald's sense of humour and conveys his sense of fraternity with Maine, a fellow British citizen who would have been sympathetic to the challenges the new nation faced from the American Republic.
We thank Jon Sufrin, PhD candidate and History Lecturer at York University, for contributing to the above essay.
This lot includes an 8 3/8 x 5 1/8 inch black and white photograph of Sir John A. Macdonald.
Alexander William Armour, The Nassau Club, Princeton, New Jersey
Canadian Book Auctions, Toronto
Private Collection, Ottawa
Notes:
This letter from John A. Macdonald, shortly to become the first Prime Minister of the Dominion of Canada, to Henry Sumner Maine, an English legal theorist of some note, is chiefly of interest due to its last paragraph. Only days previous, the British Parliament had passed the British North America Act, a Bill that ratified Canadian Confederation and functioned as Canada's constitution until repatriation in 1982. Despite being the focus of Macdonald's considerable talents for nearly three years, the success of Confederation had been uncertain. His comments to Maine, whom Macdonald did not know well, are indicative of his high spirits at the Act's passage.
John A. Macdonald, soon to be the first Prime Minister of the Dominion of Canada, wrote this letter to Henry Sumner Maine, an English legal theorist of some note, only days after the British Parliament had passed the British North America Act, a Bill that ratified Canadian Confederation and functioned as Canada's constitution until repatriation in 1982. Despite being the focus of Macdonald's considerable talents for nearly three years, the success of Confederation had been uncertain. His comments to Maine, whom Macdonald did not know well, are indicative of his high spirits at the Act's passage.
As the text also indicates, in 1867 Macdonald was rather less than an admirer of the United States. After the Union victory in the American Civil War, relations between America and Britain were tense. War was not as certain as Macdonald suggests, but the victorious North was unhappy with British sympathy for the Confederacy and over damage done to Union shipping from vessels built in British ports. In fact, there were calls for the annexation of Canada as recompense and, of course, British North Americans were well aware of the American rhetoric of "Manifest Destiny." Further, in June 1866 Canada had been raided by the Fenian brotherhood; a society of Irish civil war veterans who believed that if they could capture Canada, they could force Great Britain to withdraw from Ireland. Although the Canadian militia repulsed the attacks, the American government was slow to repudiate the raiders and in April 1867, rumours of further raids (which did not immediately materialize) were rife in the colonies.
This was an era when the unification of Canada was essential to the country's future survival. The development of national initiatives such as the Canadian Pacific Railway and a strong confederation of the provinces would enable Canada to assert its sovereignty in relation to the United States. Macdonald's reference to the French Civil Code and its significance with regard to Quebec nationalism remains relevant.
Macdonald was a jocular soul and his remarks here about the invasion of California are tongue-in-cheek. In 1867, Maine was a legal advisor to the Indian government and could have authorized no such thing, something the Canadian politician would have known full well. Still, the letter displays Macdonald's sense of humour and conveys his sense of fraternity with Maine, a fellow British citizen who would have been sympathetic to the challenges the new nation faced from the American Republic.
We thank Jon Sufrin, PhD candidate and History Lecturer at York University, for contributing to the above essay.
This lot includes an 8 3/8 x 5 1/8 inch black and white photograph of Sir John A. Macdonald.
Most realised prices include the Buyer's Premium of 18-25%, but not the HST/GST Tax.
(*) Text and/or Image might be subject matter of Copyright. Check with Heffel auction house for permission to use.
(*) Text and/or Image might be subject matter of Copyright. Check with Heffel auction house for permission to use.