Timeline
This timeline unpacks each of the treaties signed in the series of Peace and Friendship Treaties, with each date corresponding with a treaty or cluster of treaties.
Before the arrival of Europeans, the Indigenous peoples of Turtle Island (the land mass that is often now referred to as North America) were already engaged in the long-established political practice of treaty making.
1726: Signed by the British and the Wabanaki Confederacy (composed of the Mi’kmaq, Wolastoqey, and Peskotomuhkoti Nations, as well as other groups residing in the region between the Penobscot and Kennebec rivers), this treaty brought an end to war against British expansion. It is composed of two documents, each stating the promises either side made to the other.
1749: This treaty reaffirmed the 1726 agreement following the British-French conflict from 1744-1748. It was signed by the British, Wolastoqiyik, and one Mi’kmaq community. A majority of the Mi’kmaq Nation did not participate as they were angered by the establishment of Halifax on their territory that June.
1752: The Mi'kmaq and the British battled over Halifax from 1749-1751. When the conflict ended, this treaty was signed between Governor Hopson and Jean-Baptise Cope. The treaty signed in 1752 reaffirmed the 1726 agreement in addition to formally establishing a commercial relationship between the signatories. It remains unclear whether Cope represented all of the Mi'kmaq Nation, or only those of Sipekne’katik (anglicized as Shubenacadie).
1760: An agreement signed by the British, Wolastoqiyik, and Peskotomuhkati in the wake of the French defeat in the 7 Years War, wherein the Wolastoqiyik, Peskotomuhkati, and Mi'kmaq fought alongside the French. This treaty reaffirmed that of 1726 while also establishing commercial relationships between the signatories.
1760-1761: The treaty of 1760 formed the basis for subsequent treaties signed between the British and individual Mi'kmaq communities, though these did not re-affirm earlier treaties.
1778: Signed by the British, Wolastoqiyik delegates, and Mi'kmaq from Richibouctou, Miramichi, and Chignecto, wherein the latter parties agreed not to assist American rebels.
1779: Signed by the British and Mi'kmaq from Cape Tormentine-Bay des Chaleurs, this treaty was an agreement not to assist American rebels and reaffirmation of 1760-1761 treaties.
From the 1780s onward, an influx of American refugees began arriving in treaty territories and refused to honour the promises made by their new nation.
