Threat of American Invasion

Manifest Destiny

During and after the American Civil War, many Americans believed it was their manifest destiny, or obvious right, to take over all of North America.

When the Civil War had ended, the very large and well-trained American army had no battles to fight. Should it choose to, it could easily dominate the colonies in British North America where its borders were not well defended.

Geographically, British North America was very large, and its system of defence was inadequate for its size. This made the colonies and territories an easy target if the Americans decided to push north across the border. Many American settlers were already claiming lands south of the Great Lakes that were populated by First Nations. The Americans displaced these nations in pursuit of more land and resources.

The people living in British North America were worried about an American invasion. They felt that if the colonies joined together in confederation they would have a better chance of defending themselves and keeping their land.

The Fenian Raids

In 1858, a group of Irishmen who lived in America formed a brotherhood, called the Fenians. They wanted Ireland to be free from Britain's control. The Fenians plotted an armed invasion of British North America. They believed that the British colonies were vulnerable to attack and planned to take them hostage until Britain granted independence to Ireland.

In 1866, the Fenians made several attempts to raid British North America. The Fenian raids helped promote a desire for a union among the BNA colonies.