Gabriel Dumont

Assignment 1

Crisanto Jose Montilla Sencion (A0023289)

English for Academic Purposes Program, Cambrian College

ESL 1018: EAP for Writing II

Prof. Smiljka Tasic

October 08, 2021

Gabriel Dumont
 History is full of great characters, this essay will be based on one of the most famous

historical figures in Canada, and The Metis Nation is Gabriel Dumont, who led the North-West

Resistance in 1885. Gabriel Dumont Speaks quote: "I can see that you have made your decision,

but I wonder if you will become tired and discouraged. Me—I will never give up." (Goodreads,

1993). Each town's history is rooted in pillars, those who are willing to sacrifice for the sake of

the greater good. A tireless warrior, Gabriel Dumont never stopped fighting for his people and

never gave up. The Métis often look up to Gabriel Dumont as a hero and regard him as one of

the most influential individuals in the history of their people. While he was chief of the bison

hunt, Gabriel spent his life representing his people as a leader.

He was born in St Boniface in 1837. During Gabriel's birth, Isidore Dumont worked as a

farmer. When Gabriel was two years old, his family moved to the Fort Pitt region near

Lloydminster. Gabriel Dumont's education helped him develop his natural talent for the language

and made him a competent hunter and trapper. He became quite proficient with horses when he

was ten years old. He spent most of his childhood on Sarcee land, where he learned how to shoot

a bow with deadly accuracy. In 1851, at the young age of 13, Dumont was introduced to plains

warfare when he fought at the Battle of Grand Coteau, defending a Métis encampment against a

large Dakota war party. In 1862, accompanied by his father, he concluded a treaty between the

Métis and the Dakota. Gaudry, Adam. "Gabriel Dumont." The Canadian Encyclopedia,

September 09, 2019, Historica Canada.

https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/dumont-gabriel. At 14 years old, Gabriel

fought his first battle with his rival Metis, the Sioux. As a result of the Great Buffalo Hunt of
1851, the Battle of the Grand Coteau took place. Gabriel spent the next several years living as a

buffalo hunter.

In 1862, Dumont served as a mediator between the Métis and Dakota while his father

travelled between the two groups. In his later years, Dumont helped sign a treaty with the

Blackfoot, allowing Métis and their traditional enemies to remain at peace for a long time

(Gaudry, 2018). Metis government was formed in St. Laurent near Batoche in 1873. Metis in the

village has been democratically elected to their government as of December 10. As a result of

acclamation, Gabriel Dumont was elected president for one year. Also elected were eight

councillors. Dumont was re-elected president and leader of the council at St. Laurent in

December 1874. During the 1880s, Dumont's council sent petitions to the capital in Ottawa,

imploring the government to recognize the traditional land holdings (tenure) of the Métis. When

these petitions went unanswered by the prime minister and his cabinet, Dumont and the Métis

felt compelled to protect the land through a more direct method (wikipedia.org, 2021).

As early as 1885, Dumont and the Metis began one of the bloodiest struggles called The

North-West Rebellion, also called the Second Riel Rebellion, or Northwest Uprising was an

1885 violent insurrection between the Canadian government and the Métis and their indigenous

allies in regions of Canada that later became Saskatchewan and Alberta. In response to white

settlements and a decline in bison, the Métis and other peoples of west-central Canada became

insecure about their land rights and survival, triggering the North-West Rebellion (Encyclopedia

Britannica, 2016). On May 9, 1885, the defeat of the Métis and Riel's seized led to the

disintegration of the Provisional Government. Gabriel Dumont and other contributors escaped

through the border to the Montana Territory of the United States. After receiving news of the
general amnesty in July 1886, Gabriel did not return to Saskatchewan. He did not return until

1890. The land finally became his on January 2, 1902, almost ten years later. The Metis land

claims were not handled exclusively by the Canadian government; it was a typical case. The land

was eventually farmed by Alexis Dumont, who built Gabriel a small cabin. Hunting, fishing,

trapping and trading were all activities he did when he was a young man. Dumont enjoyed good

health and was active until his death. On Saturday, May 19, 1906, he went for his usual walk

along the roads and trails near Batoche. When he returned, he went to his bed and died. He was

buried in the cemetery at Batoche, near the homeland he had so gallantly defended in 1885

(Woodcock, 1976).

He is revered as one of Canada's most distinguished Metis defenders, and it would be

wrong to overlook his contributions to Canadian history as well. Even today, we honor him by

naming schools, buildings, and streets in his honor. I would like to finish this essay with one of

the greatest phrases. Gabriel Dumont Speaks once said that "The whole crowd interrupted and

told him, 'No, we won't let you go. You have worked hard for our rights, and you can't quit now.'

'Then,' said Riel, 'if I must, I will desert.' 'If you desert, we will desert with you." (Goodreads,

2021).
 Bibliography

Gabriel Dumont Quotes. (2021). Morefamousquote. Retrieved from

http://www.morefamousquotes.com/images/authors/20170909/gabriel-dumont-quotes.jpg

Gabriel Dumont Quotes. (2021). Goodreads. Retrieved from

https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/814742-i-can-see-that-you-have-made-your-decision-but

Macleod, Roderick C., "Gabriel Dumont" in Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online.

http://www.biographi.ca/EN/ShowBio.asp?BioId=40814&query=. Toronto: University of

Toronto Press, 2000.

Stanley, George F. "Gabriel Dumont's Account of the North West Rebellion, 1885." Canadian Historical
Review, V. 30, 1949, pp. 249-68.

woodcock, George. Gabriel Dumont, The Metis Chief and His Lost World. Edmonton, Alberta: Hurtig

Publishers, 1976.