Happy 'throwing off colonial overlords' day, USA!

[Balpin]

The 13 colonies/states differed very much in many ways. The formation of a union could never have been achieved without a good deal of compromise.

 

Virginia and the Carolinas were mainly tobacco and cotton growing colonies with large plantations owned by gentlemen of society who apart from owning slaves otherwise lived very much the kind of lifestyle their land owning cousins lived in England. Most. if not all were of pure British stock

 

The northern states on the other hand were far more industrialized with sizeable cities, Boston, New York and Philadelphia full of immigrants from Ireland, Scotland, Germany as well as the Old Yankee descendents of earlier settlers of Protestant English and Scots-Irish stock

 

Therefore, two very different kinds of people. two very different outlooks and views. The farmers who farmed their lands in New York and Pennsylvania were a whole different breed than their countreparts in Virginia and the Carolinas.

 

A marriage of convenience had to be arranged between the aristocratic society of the south and the industialized society of the north. Had the north not turned a blind, (if somewhat disproving eye) to the practice of slavery in the south then the union of the colonies/new States could never have taken place which would of course have left a collection of disparate states, weak and extremely vulnerable to invasion by British troops from Canada at any time.

 

As for your assumption that it was only a revolution of "aristos" that's just rubbish. The Revolutionary armies were made up of men from all backgrounds

and there was never an establishment of any kind of upper class dynasty afterwards. A man did as well as he could and gained his wealth from hard work and effort and not by hereditary means

 

The losers of course were the slaves but the European mind looked on them as uncivilized lesser beings who were "possessions" just like pet dogs or cats or chickens or cattle.

 

Thanks mate, a good potted history, I shall keep that.

[Harleyman]

Quite happy to retain Lizzie as out head of state. Very happy not to be part of a united North America and very pleased that this country was rescued from French rule.

 

I suppose most Canadiians share your views and why not. I think Canada is a fine country the way it is. It also shares the longest undefended border in the world with it's neighbour to the south. Americans cross to Canada to buy their meds and Canadians cross to the US to buy their gas. The border between the two countries sometimes runs down a town's main street I have Canadian friends in BC and they are friendly welcoming people.

 

I suppose the urge to separate from the rest of Canada has now largely died down in Quebec. The hard reality of economics probably brought an end to it. Good on that !

[Harleyman]

Thanks mate, a good potted history, I shall keep that.

 

You wont go far wrong with a short history lesson from old Harley

[Balpin]

You wont go far wrong with a short history lesson from old Harley

 

Aye, its probably a load of tripe as usual.

[Harleyman]

Aye, its probably a load of tripe as usual.

 

Then not unusually different from the rest on this forum

[Balpin]

I suppose most Canadiians share your views and why not. I think Canada is a fine country the way it is. It also shares the longest undefended border in the world with it's neighbour to the south. Americans cross to Canada to buy their meds and Canadians cross to the US to buy their gas. The border between the two countries sometimes runs down a town's main street I have Canadian friends in BC and they are friendly welcoming people.

 

I suppose the urge to separate from the rest of Canada has now largely died down in Quebec. The hard reality of economics probably brought an end to it. Good on that !

 

It must be great to be in that border area, around Quebec.

Does it still have a little bit of the provence about it?

Or is it all MacDonalds?

What is the carry on between USA and Canada btw?

The only place I have been is Vancouver

[Harleyman]

It must be great to be in that border area, around Quebec.

Does it still have a little bit of the provence about it?

Or is it all MacDonalds?

What is the carry on between USA and Canada btw?

The only place I have been is Vancouver

 

I was only in Canada for a year because the work I did was outdoors and in the winters construction workers were laid off.

I lived during that time 1965-66 in Montreal. It's about 80 percent French speaking and I loved the place being a young single bloke. There was a great night life, the French-Canadian girls were quite an eyeful -I thought anyway- and there were plenty of them

 

The city had the best and most varied types of restaurants I had ever seen before in my life and I was able to afford a good sized apartment with separate kitchen, bedroom and bathroom. The same type in London would have busted my budget completely.

 

Many people over in the west side of the city were bi-lingual but if you went down the east side most didnt speak any English.

 

The French-Canadians called the English speakers "Tete Carres" - Square Heads. The English speakers called the French speakers "Pepsies"

 

 

There was a Quebec Nationalist movement thriving at the time called the FLQ. (Front de Liberation de Quebec) which advocated separation and independence from Canada. I always got the impression that Quebecers (French speakers) were not on the whole enthusiastic Canadians. On many buildings and on parades it was always the blue Quebec flag with the Fleur de Lise that was shown, very rarely the Canadian red and white Maple Leaf flag

 

I made a return visit a few years back. Still very much the same charming sort of place but the main drag (Ste Catherine street) had gone downhill. Boarded up stores here and there, druggies squatting on the sidewalks holding cardboard signs with the usual dog beside them and crappy little topless joints. My favourite watering hole The **** N' Bull pub was still there though and still thriving after all those years

 

I bought my first Harley there. Used to take a spin across the border into Vermont and sunbathe on the beach of Lake Champlaine and drink weak Budweisers. That beach and the big lake was nearest thing to the seaside you'd get in that neck of the woods.

 

I got two proposals of marriage in the one year I was there. It shook me up enough to start yearning for the open road again Those girls had no shame whatsoever. Husband hungry the lot of them

 

I dont know anything about a "carry on" between the US or Canada BTW

 

We did take the Stanley Cup away from them during the last Ice hockey championship games:hihi: