Summary
In 1811, Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk, began efforts to settle displaced Scottish farmers in the Red River Valley. Settlers soon attempted to restrict hunting and freighting by the Métis, many of whom worked as provisioners (mostly provisioners of pemmican) for the North West Company (NWC). The HBC and NWC were at the height of their competition during this time. In 1814, the governor of the Red River Colony issued the "Pemmican Proclamation", which prohibited the export of pemmican from the colony for the next year. A restriction on the hunting of buffalo on horseback was also imposed. The Métis, who lived along the Red River (now present-day Winnipeg) did not recognize the authority of the Red River Colony government, but the NWC, for which the Métis were loosely employed, accused the HBC of trying to monopolize the important foodstuff. Since the Métis relied heavily on the fur trade, the restrictions were also a threat to their livelihood and economic subsistence. The Red River Colony's Scottish immigration was sponsored by Thomas Douglas, the 5th Earl of Selkirk, who also happened to be the largest shareholder in the HBC. In 1816, a group of Métis, led by Cuthbert Grant, seized a supply of pemmican which has been stolen from them, and travelled to meet North West Company traders with the intention of selling them the pemmican. They encountered Robert Semple, then governor of the Red River Colony, along the Red River at a location known as Seven Oaks (present-day Winnipeg) to the English, and La Grenouillère to the Métis. Semple was accompanied by a group of settlers from the Red River Colony. A confrontation ensued, where the Métis were victorious, Robert Semple and 19 of his men were killed. One man belonging to the NWC-Métis side also perished. The Métis refer to the victory as "La Victoire de la Grenouillère". Most of the settlers living on the Red River Colony left the area in the following days. In retaliation, Selkirk (Thomas Douglas) captured the NWC's primary base at Fort William and reoccupied Fort Douglas (which had been taken by NWC members and Métis during the conflict). Law suits and countersuits ensued. Only Selkirk's death in 1820 cleared the way for an end to the rivalry. As for the Métis, they came to see Red River as a place of permanent settlement.
FAQs
Semple was accompanied by a group of settlers from the Red River Colony. A confrontation ensued, where the Métis were victorious, Robert Semple and 19 of his men were killed. One man belonging to the NWC-Métis side also perished. The Métis refer to the victory as "La Victoire de la Grenouillère".
What happened in Seven Oaks? ›
At Seven Oaks, near the HBC's Red River trading post, 25 Bay employees and settlers rode out to confront 61 Mtis and Indians. "In a few minutes all our people were either killed wounded," reported John Pritchard, one of the few settlers to survive the confrontation. About 21 Baymen and one Mtis were killed.
How many people died at the Battle of Seven Oaks? ›
The battle began after negotiations over the pemmican supply failed, resulting in the deaths of Semple and 20 of his men. Grant, having suffered only one casualty, went on to take Fort Douglas and to expel the settlers from the region.
What was the outcome of the military conflict Battle of Seven Oaks? ›
Battle of Seven Oaks
| Date | 19 June 1816 |
|---|
| Location | Seven Oaks (Winnipeg, Manitoba) |
| Result | Decisive Métis/North West Company victory |
Over time, the Seven Oaks Massacre became known as the Seven Oaks Battle. Today, the Canadian Encyclopedia calls it the Seven Oaks Incident. Other sources describe the event as a result of the accident interception of the Métis by the HBC men and blame the event on the intense rivalry between the HBC and the NWC.
Who was killed in the Battle of Seven Oaks? ›
The gunfire and hand-to-hand combat that resulted left Semple and 20 of the HBC party dead. On the Métis side, 16-year-old Joseph Letendre died, and Joseph Trottier was wounded. A watercolour depiction of the Battle of Seven Oaks, 19 June 1816, by C.W. Jefferys.
Why is it called Sevenoaks? ›
Seven trees, or their ancestors, had stood in the town for centuries and had given Sevenoaks its name since perhaps 800AD. The trees surrounded one side of what is today a cricket ground called the Vine: it was thus named because the Archbishop of Canterbury had a vineyard there.
When did Sevenoaks lose its trees? ›
Ask people about the Great Storm which ravaged the south of England in 1987 and most will remember "that" forecast by weatherman Michael Fish, or Sevenoaks losing six of the trees that gave the town its name.
What was the Battle of Seven Oaks for kids? ›
The Battle of Seven Oaks was a violent confrontation in the Pemmican War between the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) and the North West Company (NWC), rivals in the fur trade, that took place on 19 June 1816, the climax of a long dispute in western Canada.
Why was pemmican banned? ›
The Red River Colony imposed on that economic order and, when famine threatened the settlement in mid-winter 1814, Governor Miles Macdonnell (1767-1828) issued what became known as the Pemmican Proclamation. This law was meant to stop the export of pemmican to NWC forts in the West and retain it for the HBC settlers.
Their replacements, planted in a ceremony involving well-known people from television shows such as Blue Peter and locals such as Gloria Hunniford and Caron Keating, were vandalised, leaving the one mature tree standing. The trees have been replaced and eight Oak trees of varying ages line The Vine.
What was the bloodiest battle of all? ›
The Deadliest Battles in Human History
- Siege Of Leningrad (1941-1944) - Estimated 5.5 Million Casualties.
- Battle Of Stalingrad (1942-1943) - Estimated 2.5 Million Casualties.
- Siege Of Baghdad (1258) - Estimated 2 Million Casualties.
- Battle Of Berlin (1945) - 1,286,367 Casualties.
Mutual hostility culminated in the Battle of Seven Oaks, on June 19, 1816. Led by Cuthbert Grant, the Métis defeated a party of settlers, killing 21. This incident spurred a growing sense of nationhood among the Métis and contributed to the forced merger of the HBC and the NWC in 1821.
Who took command of the Confederate forces after the Battle of Fair Oaks? ›
The Battle of Seven Pines–Fair Oaks had ended. At 1:30 p.m., Davis arrived at Confederate headquarters and informed Smith that General Robert E. Lee would take command of the army.
