Editing Lower Canada (section)

=== Political Tensions ===
The tensions between Anglophone aristocrats and the French-Canadian middle class culminated in the formation of the [[Parti canadien]],<ref name=":0" /> the first Canadian political party.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Parti canadien |url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/parti-canadien |access-date=2025-03-09 |website=www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca |language=en}}</ref> The party advocated for the independence of the legislature from the Lieutenant-Governor and fought plans to unify [[Upper Canada]] and Lower Canada.<ref name=":0" />

In 1810, the [[James Henry Craig|Governor James Henry Craig]] had editors of the Parti canadien's newspaper arrested to suppress them before dissolving the legislature. [[Louis-Joseph Papineau]], leader of the party, decided then to focus on more limited results and to stray away from being views as an extremist party. He gained the support of Irish Catholics in Lower Canada which also gave him the support of the clergy.<ref name=":0" />

In 1827, after pressure from militant groups, Papineau became more radical and began to turn towards the idea of independence. Taking from the ideas of the American government, all positions that held power then became elected positions. This nationalism gave the Parti canadien support amongst French-Canadians but almost completely lost them the support of Anglophones in Lower Canada.<ref name=":0" />

The clergy in Lower Canada were also very unhappy with the political situation at the time and wanted their old privileges restored. They wanted the ability to educate in Lower Canada and were briefly granted that ability in 1824, with the passage of [[Parish Schools Act]]. In 1829, the Parti canadien established assembly schools, which removed the [[Catholic Church]] from education, creating another political divide.