"The Impact of the British Conquest on New France" Topic

"The Anglo-French war between 1754 and 1763, known as the Seven Years' War, ended with the British conquest on New France. By the terms of the Treaty of Paris in 1763, all French North America east of the Mississippi was ceded to Britain. This conquest resulted in the reinforcement of Roman Catholic Church and old feudal system of the Quebec society in the late 18th century and emergence of a Quebec identity.

From 1760 to 1774, when colonial affairs were almost completely neglected in George III ' s bitter struggle with the Whig majority, British military officers took the whole responsibility of administering the new colony. Indeed, the feudal structure of Quebec society appealed to the military mind. The new military governments continued old administrative structure of Quebec. In fact, most of seigneurs, gentlemen, bourgeois, wealthy merchants, lawyers and other professionals remained in Quebec after the Conquest. The clergy remained at their posts and the prestige as the the leaders of people was reinforced. The old administrative districts continued; the Superior Council of the old regime was revived; the laws of the country were taken over and applied as they had existed under the French. Finally, the military governors combined the roles of both governor and intendant in old days.

During this period, few British American moved to Quebec (there were perhaps 500 migrants in all), and those who did were attracted primarily by the prospect of taking control of the fur trade. Their bourgeois mentality and their repeated demands for the ' rights ' tended to alienate the landed-gentry-based British officers who sympathized with the conditions of the French Canadian elite and ignored the demands of those newly arrived Protestants for a general assembly and the application of English laws.."
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Amicalement
Armand

In effect, the British bought off the Quebecois elite, and the RC Church collaborated with the British, and later anglos, to keep average Quebecois powerless, poorly educated and a source of cheap compliant labor.

It is why Quebec society went through the "Quiet Revolution" of the 1970s- early 70s. See link

Thanks!.

Amicalement
Armand