historical relations between the Metis nation and Canada

Historical Relations Between the Metis Nation & Canada The origin of the Metis Nation is rooted in the historical fabric of Canada. It was in the Canadian Northwest that they evolved into a new and distinct Aboriginal Nation. The mixed-blood offspring of French fur traders from the North West Company or Scottish and English fur traders from the Hudson's Bay Company and Cree, Ojibway or Saulteaux women formed an ever-increasing proportion of the fur trade population. …

…broke out. Initial Dutch contact with the Native Americans was nothing but detrimental to them. By 1640, epidemic diseases such as small pox, measles and typhus wiped out approximately ninety percent of Indian populations in the Hudson Valley. The fur trade and Dutch colonization lured the Indians from their native practices and customs to the entrapment of European luxurious commodities. Finally, white contact with the Indians lead to many years of harsh wars and unfair treaties.