This kindred people : Canadian-American relations and North American Anglo-Saxonism during the Anglo-American rapprochement, 1895-1903

At the end of the nineteenth century, English-Canadians and Americans faced each other across the border with old animosities. Many Canadians adhered to familiar ideas of Loyalism, imperialism and anti-Americanism to differentiate the Dominion from the republic. In the United States, on the other ha...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Kohn, Edward P (Edward Parliament), 1968-
Other Authors: Miller, Carman (advisor)
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: McGill University 2000
Subjects:
Online Access:http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=36625
Description
Summary:At the end of the nineteenth century, English-Canadians and Americans faced each other across the border with old animosities. Many Canadians adhered to familiar ideas of Loyalism, imperialism and anti-Americanism to differentiate the Dominion from the republic. In the United States, on the other hand, lingering notions of anglophobia and "Manifest Destiny" caused Americans to look upon the British colony to the north as a dangerous and unnatural entity. America's rise to world power status and the Anglo-American rapprochement, however, forced Americans and Canadians to adapt to the new international reality. Emphasizing their shared language, civilization, and forms of government, many English-speaking North Americans drew upon Anglo-Saxonism to find common ground. Indeed, Americans and Canadians often referred to each other as members of the same "family" sharing the same "blood," thus differentiating themselves from other races. As many of the events of the rapprochement had a North American context, Americans and English-Canadians often drew upon the common lexicon of Anglo-Saxon rhetoric to undermine the old rivalries and underscore their shared interests. Though the predominance of Anglo-Saxonism at the turn of the century proved short-lived, it left a legacy of Canadian-American goodwill, as both nations accepted their shared destiny on the continent and Canada as a key link in the North Atlantic Triangle.