Respecting Consent

From the very first contacts between Europeans and Amerindians, the need to forge alliances and make treaties was evident. However, these agreements did not deal with land titles. When Champlain sealed the very first alliance with the Innu at Tadoussac in 1603, the French were granted permission to settle in Innu territory in return for military assistance. At no time did the Innu cede their rights to those lands. The first treaties under both the French and British regimes aimed to establish friendly, peaceful relations. A key concern in signing the treaties was the development of commercial ties, because the colony depended on it.

The British Conquest of the French colonies in North America marked a turning point. King George III issued a Royal Proclamation in 1763 for the administration of British territories in North America, triggering the shift from military and commercial alliances to major land treaties. The road to colonization had to be paved in an orderly and peaceful fashion.

The text of the Royal Proclamation explicitly stated that the consent of Indian nations was required in order to settle on their land. It even set out a procedure: