Along the Pacific coast were the Haida, Tsimshian, Salish, Kwakiutl, Nuu-chah-nulth, Nisga'a and Gitxsan. On the plains were Blackfoot, Kainai, Sarcee and Northern Peigan. There are 63 First Nations in Manitoba, including 6 of the 20 biggest bands in Canada. Seventeen First Nations cannot be accessed via an all-weather road.
This represents approximately half of all First Nations people living on reservations in Manitoba. British administrators realized that the success of Britain's North American colonies depended on stable and peaceful relations with the First Nations. The Government of Canada recognizes that strong indigenous cultural traditions and customs, including languages, are fundamental to the reconstruction of indigenous nations. In addition to these three distinct social orders, the First Nations of the Pacific Coast had a well-defined aristocratic class that was considered superior by birth.
As the colonists demanded more and more property, they began to pressure the colonial administration for land held by the First Nations. The outbreak of the United States War of Independence and the subsequent recognition of the United States of America by Great Britain in 1783 had a dramatic impact on the relationship between the British Crown and its First Nations allies. The ocean's vast food resources, salmon, shellfish, octopus, herring, crabs, whales, and seaweed allowed the First Nations of the Pacific Coast to settle in permanent places. The Department of India worked to strengthen damaged alliances by trying to ensure fair agreements on land delivery and by protecting First Nations lands.
By entering the interior and trading directly with First Nations hunters, the Northwest Company disrupted the long-standing relationship between HBC and its Cree middlemen. In 1876, the government introduced another law that would have a profound and lasting impact on Canada's First Nations. This creates unique challenges in the region in relation to economic development and service delivery, as First Nations economies have historically depended on federal transfers. To help compensate its First Nations allies for the losses suffered during the war with the Americans, the British Crown set aside two plots of land as reserves for the Six Nations, one in the Bay of Quinte and the other along the Rio Grande.
A number of First Nations leaders emerged, many of whom drew attention to the fact that thousands of their inhabitants had fought for their country in both world wars. Spirituality is not often discussed as a matter of practice, but it forms the core of First Nations worldviews. On July 11 of that year, a conflict broke out that would capture national attention almost immediately, when the Quebec provincial police tried to dismantle a barricade that a group of Kanesatake mohawks had established outside Montreal in mid-March. These First Nations also used traps and traps, a type of rope that trapped the animal by the neck or leg.
