Our Home and (Native?) Land Part 3

The Seigneury of Sault St. Louis, also known as Kahnawake (Submitted by Kyle Delisle)

The seigneury of Sault St. Louis, also known as Kahnawake, is a historic grievance involving lands granted by the French king, Louis the XIV. It is located on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River, just south of Montreal, Quebec. The seigneury was established in 1716 by the French government as a land grant to the Mohawk people who had converted to Catholicism and were living in the area. The Mohawk people were given the right to govern themselves and maintain their traditional way of life, including their language and culture.

A “Seigneury” was a land distribution system that was used by the French Crown under which a Lord (or Seigneur) was granted lands by the King (crown) and, in turn conceded lands to settlers who worked the land and were obliged to pay the Lord a yearly for of rent or “rentes seigneuriales”. While most seigneuries provided the right of the Seigneur to concede land to the settlers, the Sault St Louis grant was unique in that it was “set aside for the exclusive use and occupation of the Iroquois of the Sault:” (Mohawks today). No non-Indian could settle there.

Despite the special conditions in less than 25 years the Jesuits would begin to concede those very lands to new settlers. Within decades over 2/3’s of the land originally granted to the Mohawks were either lost or “conceded”. Dwindling down the already paltry piece of land to under 13’000 acres today.

Historical Timeline of the Seigneury of Sault St. Louis

1500-1647 - The Kanien’kehaka or the '“People of Flint” (Mohawks today) control the lands ranging from north of the Island of Montreal to the Mohawk River Valley in the south.

1647 - The Jesuit missionaries are granted the Seigneury of La Prairie for the purpose of starting a Catholic mission in the area as a place of rest and “to attract the Indians”. Due to ongoing conflict between the Iroquois and the French settlement isn’t possible for another 20 years.

1666/1667 - After almost 60 years of conflict between the French and the Five Nations a treaty of peace is signed. Increasing numbers or Iroquoian people, along with Indigenous from other nations are moved to the northern part of the territory.

1680 - The Seigneury of St. Louis (SSSL) is granted by King Louis the XIV on May 29th, the second grant by Governor Frontenac is granted on October 31st.

1701 - The Great Peace of Montreal is signed in August. The treaty ends almost a century of warfare. M 1701 - The Great Peace of Montreal is signed in August. The treaty ended almost a century of warfare between the French and their Native Allies on one side and the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) on the other. Thirty-nine Aboriginal Nations sent representatives to Montreal. The treaty brought peace to a vast territory, opened up trade and diplomatic ties and allowed for the development of the French colony.

1703 - 762 - The Jesuits conceded Seigneury of Sault St. Louis (SSSL) lands to French settlers - deeds were issued.

1717 - The Jesuits asked the French Crown to unify the two deeds of the SSSL and that it be granted to them in perpetuity. In February 1718, the Regent's Council (French Crown) decreed that the SSL Lands were not to be granted in perpetuity to the Jesuits and united the two grants into one with the same conditions as the original grants in 1680.

1750 - In July, the Mohawks of Kahnawa:ke lodged a formal complaint against the Jesuits and the Marquis De La Jonquiere, then Governor of New France sent the matter to the French King. In 1754, the new Governor Duquesne came to Kahnawa:ke to give the Crown's response. He reaffirms that the lands were not to be conceded by the Jesuits, since they could not concede what they did not own

1760 - In August, the Treaty of Oswegatchie was signed at Kahnawa:ke between the British and the Indian Nations in the vicinity of Montreal, including Kahnawa:ke. Historically, the treaty refers to Seven Nations, sometimes referred to as nine nations (communities), who promised to remain neutral through the end of the war between France and Britain. One Treaty promise made to the Seven Nations was that they were to be protected in their lands.

1760 - At the conclusion of the Seven Years' War between the French and the British, Article 40 of the Capitulation at Montreal signed in September, stated that the "Indian allies of His Most Christian Majesty (King of France) shall be maintained in the lands they inhabit.”

1762 - On March 22, 1762, the Mohawks of Kahnawa:ke brought the matter of the Jesuits illegally conceding their lands to a military tribunal. General Gage, Governor of Montreal, heard the case. In his judgment, Gage dispossessed the Jesuits and put the Mohawks of Kahnawáke in full possession of the Seigneury ordered that deeds be reissued to non-natives in possession of lands before 1760; appointed a Receiver of Rents and ordered that the boundaries between the Seigneuries of La Prairie and Sault St. Louis be surveyed.

Gage said...

"we order that the said Indians of the Sault be put in possession of and do enjoy peaceably for themselves, their heirs and other Indians who would like to join them, the whole land and revenue which the said concession can produce.”

1763 - The Royal Proclamation signed October 7, 1763, states the lands of Indian Nations are reserved for the Indians; colonial governors are forbidden to make grants of Indian lands; the Crown's consent is required prior to purchasing lands; settlers are ordered to vacate.

1807 and 1830 - The Chiefs of Kahnawa:ke made representations to the British Crown to seek redress for the Seigneury lands.

1854 - A Seigneurial Act is passed abolishing the seigneurial system in Quebec. The Act is applied to the conceded SSSL lands. The Act eroded Mohawk interest in the land and size of the Seigneury

1867 - The British North America Act is passed on July1,1867. Section 91(24) gives the Parliament of Canada exclusive jurisdiction to make laws concerning Indians and lands reserved for Indians

1876 - The Indian Act is passed April 12, 1876.

1890 - On March 10, 1890, Mr. Doyon, Member of Parliament, brought the matter of an indemnity for the Iroquois of Caughnawaga before the House of Commons. Mr. Doyon asserted that the Iroquois had been dispossessed of their lands. He addressed the issue of legitimate title to the seigneury, loss of lands and lost revenues suffered by the Iroquois.

1935 - Seigneurial Rent Abolition Act is applied to conceded SSSL lands.

1948 - The Band Council of Caughnawaga passed two Resolutions stating that the matter of the Seigneury "rent" collection be dealt with.

1955 - The Band Council votes against the acceptance of $3,000.00 from the Seaway Project for payment of arrears and actual rent for a portion of the SSSL lands. Despite the negative vote, the Federal Government passed an Order-in-Council on June 2, 1955 approving the payment.

1974 - Minister of the Department of Indian Affairs, the Honourable Jean Chretien replies to a letter from Chief Ron Kirby concerning the Seigneury "the Department concluded that the amount of revenue involved (rents) would not justify the cost of recreating records and collecting dues.” The Band Council disagreed with the Department's conclusion and continued to pursue the claim.

1988 - The Mohawk Council of Kahnawa:ke (MCK) issues a notice to the surrounding municipalities of Kahnawáke's ownership of SSSL Lands. Indian Affairs responds to Mayors of the municipalities that there was no claim filed by Kahnawáke

A Fair and Just Settlement?

In 1994, a joint process between the Federal Government and the Mohawk Council of Kahnawa:ke (MCK) was established to clarify and resolve the historic land dispute. On June 16, 2003, the Government sent a letter of offer to negotiate the SSSL to the MCK. On June 24, 2003, the MCK accepted the offer to negotiate. Since that time, Canada and Kahnawáke have met and will decide, at a later date, when to begin the negotiation process. In 2018 the Canadian Government indicated that it was willing to negotiate settlement of the SSSL, but as of this writing (June 2023) no resolution has been reached.

Canadian soldier Patrick Cloutier and protester Brad Larocque come face-to-face at Kanesatake near Oka.

Darren Grimes

Our Home and (Native?) Land - Part 4

Mining, Hydroelectric Dams, and the Mishkeegogamang