Glen
Moderator
British Southern America had been rent assunder by civil war in the 1830s. By 1840, half of the BSA had achieved responsible government, whilst the other half languished under direct military rule and the whim of Parliament. While from afar, the regions of British Southern America may have seemed homogenous blocks of Loyalist and Rebel, the truth on the ground was far from as simple. This was quickly discovered when the 3rd Baron Dorchester, direct descendant of Sir Guy Carlton, was sent by Parliament to investigate the causes of the Southern Civil War (aka the Slaver Uprising) and the prevention of future calamities. Baron Dorchester found on his journey to the British provinces that many loyalists who had bled for King and Country now found themselves more disenfranchised than ever before. After touring the region, Dorchester returned to England where he presented his report (thereafter referred to as the Dorchester Report). In it, he noted that while slavery and lust for gold had been the impetus for the revolt, the greatest threat to the future of the provinces was unrest over representation, which could in future turn even Loyalist families to intrigue, and threatened to embroil the United States of America if another conflict came to pass. His recommendations harkened back to his grandfather's call for a unification of British Southern America under the supervision of a Governor-General, but added to that the necessity for responsible government in a union of provinces that would slake the thirst of Southerners for representation yet act as a deterrent should the Americans to the north ever turn avaricious eyes towards British lands. He noted the precedent already being set in Texas, Carleton, and Indiana, and recommended that these provinces, united with those who had rebelled, would provide the best guarantee of stability for the future. He also presented to Parliament a petition by many prominant Loyalists, calling for such representative government.
Baron Dorchester Presents United Empire Loyalist Petition to Parliament:
Baron Dorchester Presents United Empire Loyalist Petition to Parliament: