other · North America and Oceania

Provisional Government of Saskatchewan

1885 CE – 1885 CE · capital Batoche

The government declared by Louis Riel at Batoche in 1885, whose defeat ended the North-West Resistance and led to Riel's execution.

Origins

Métis families who had moved west from Red River to the South Saskatchewan River after 1870 feared losing their river lots to surveys, while Cree nations faced hunger after the buffalo vanished. In 1884 they invited Louis Riel back from Montana. When Ottawa failed to respond to petitions, Riel proclaimed a provisional government at Batoche in March 1885.

Rule and society

Its council was called the Exovedate, a name Riel coined meaning 'from the flock', and it mixed politics with Riel's religious ideas. Gabriel Dumont led its military. Métis fighters defeated the North-West Mounted Police at Duck Lake on 26 March, while Cree warriors from Big Bear's and Poundmaker's bands fought separately at Frog Lake, Battleford and Cut Knife.

Decline and legacy

General Frederick Middleton's North-West Field Force won at Batoche in May 1885. Riel surrendered and was hanged in Regina that November, and eight Cree and Assiniboine men were hanged at Battleford. The execution deeply divided English and French Canada.

Connections (1)

  • Provisional Government of Saskatchewan was conquered by Canada1885 CE

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Provisional Government of Saskatchewan. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/provisional-government-of-saskatchewan
MLA
“Provisional Government of Saskatchewan.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/provisional-government-of-saskatchewan. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Provisional Government of Saskatchewan.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/provisional-government-of-saskatchewan.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Provisional Government of Saskatchewan’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/provisional-government-of-saskatchewan (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻