The Protestant Protective Association was an

anti-Catholic Anti-Catholicism is hostility towards Catholics and opposition to the Catholic Church, its clergy, and its adherents. Scholars have identified four categories of anti-Catholicism: constitutional-national, theological, popular and socio-cul ...

group in the 1890s based in

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada, associated with the

Orange Order The Loyal Orange Institution, commonly known as the Orange Order, is an international Protestant fraternal order based in Northern Ireland and primarily associated with Ulster Protestants. It also has lodges in England, Grand Orange Lodge of ...

. Originally a spinoff of the American group the

American Protective Association The American Protective Association (APA) was an American anti-Catholic secret society established in 1887 by Protestants. The organization was the largest anti-Catholic movement in the United States during the later part of the 19th century, sho ...

, it became independent in 1892. The PPA denounced the role of Catholics and

French-Canadians French Canadians, referred to as Canadiens mainly before the nineteenth century, are an ethnic group descended from French colonists first arriving in France's colony of Canada in 1608. The vast majority of French Canadians live in the provi ...

in politics, and warned Protestants that Catholics were attempting to take over Ontario. It aimed to eliminate French language education in schools in Ontario and western Canada (particularly

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

), and to roll back or block Catholic school systems in those provinces.

Ontario

The party began to achieve success following the surprise victory of

Peter Duncan McCallum Peter Duncan McCallum (August 26, 1853 – October 5, 1917) was an Ontario farmer and political figure. He represented Lambton East in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as a Conservative- Protestant Protective Association member from 1893 ...

in the 1893 provincial by-election in Lambton East. By 1894, the mayors of

Brantford Brantford ( 2021 population: 104,688) is a city in Ontario, Canada, founded on the Grand River in Southwestern Ontario. It is surrounded by Brant County but is politically separate with a municipal government of its own that is fully indep ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

, Chatham, Kincardine, and

Petrolia, Ontario Petrolia is a town in southwestern Ontario, Canada. It is part of Lambton County and is surrounded by Enniskillen, Ontario, Enniskillen Township. It is billed as "Canada's Victorian Oil Town" and is often credited with starting the Petroleum in ...

were all elected as members of the PPA. In the 1894 provincial election, the party succeeded in winning nine seats in the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA; ) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by the Legislative Assembly are given royal as ...

. These members worked closely with the opposition Ontario Conservative Party. No PPA candidates ran in the 1898 Ontario election, or in any subsequent Ontario election. William Henry Reid of the Durham West riding was the only PPA MPP to return to the 1898 provincial legislature,; however, in 1898, he ran and was elected as a member of the Conservative Party.

Federal

The PPA ran several candidates in Ontario for the 1896 federal election as a protest against the Conservative Party's conflicted position on the

Manitoba Schools Question The Manitoba Schools Question () was a political crisis in the Canadian province of Manitoba that occurred late in the 19th century, attacking publicly-funded separate schools for Roman Catholics and Protestants. The crisis was precipitated by a ...

. The PPA failed to win any seats in the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada () is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of Ca ...

, but was instrumental in defeating Conservative candidates in four of the five ridings in which it nominated candidates.

References

* James T. Watt, "Anti-Catholicism in Ontario Politics: The Role of the Protestant Protective Association in the 1894 Election," ''Ontario History,'' Nov 1967, Vol. 59 Issue 2, pp 57–67

Ontario

Federal

References

See also