Regulation 17 () was a regulation of the

Government of Ontario The Government of Ontario () is the body responsible for the administration of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. The term ''Government of Ontario'' refers specifically to the executive—political Minister ...

, Canada, designed to limit instruction in French-language Catholic separate schools. The regulation was written by the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

and was issued in July 1912 by the Progressive Conservative government of

premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...

Sir James P. Whitney.Barber, Marilyn.
Ontario Schools Question
, in ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'', retrieved November 20, 2008 It forbade teaching French beyond grade two in all separate schools. In 1913, the Jesuits opened Collège Sacré-Coeur in Sudbury. It was bilingual up until 1914, at which time the Government of Ontario granted it a Charter and made no mention of language or religion. The College did not come under authority of the Department of Education for its programs or any subsidies. In 1916, the College became a free institution that was exclusively French. Regulation 17 was amended in 1913, and it is that version that was applied throughout Ontario.SLMC.
Regulation 17: Circular of Instruction No. 17 for Ontario Separate Schools for the School Year 1912–1913
, in ''Site for Language Management in Canada'', retrieved November 20, 2008 As a result, French Canadians distanced themselves from the subsequent

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

effort, as its young men refused to enlist. The regulation was later repealed in 1927.

Reaction

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 ...

reacted with outrage. Quebec journalist

Henri Bourassa Joseph-Napoléon-Henri Bourassa (; September 1, 1868 – August 31, 1952) was a French Canadian political leader and publisher. In 1899, Bourassa was outspoken against the Government of the United Kingdom, British government's request for Cana ...

in November 1914 denounced the "Prussians of Ontario." With the World War raging, this was a stinging insult. The policy was strongly opposed by

Franco-Ontarian Franco-Ontarians ( or if female, sometimes known as ''Ontarois'' and ''Ontaroises'') are Francophone Canadians that reside in the province of Ontario. Most are French Canadians from Ontario. In 2021, according to the Government of Ontario, ther ...

s, particularly in the national capital of

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

where the École Guigues was at the centre of the Battle of the Hatpins. The newspaper ''

Le Droit ''Le Droit'' is a Canadian French-language digital weekly newspaper, published in Gatineau, Quebec. Initially established and owned by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, the paper was published by Martin Cauchon and his company, Capital ...

'', which is still published today as the province's only francophone daily newspaper, was established by the

Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate The Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) is a missionary religious congregation in the Catholic Church. It was founded on January 25, 1816, by Eugène de Mazenod, a French priest later recognized as a Catholic saint. The congregation wa ...

in 1913 to oppose the ban. Faced with separate school boards' resistance and defiance of the new regulation, the Ministry of Education issued Regulation 18 in August 1913 to coerce the school boards' employees into compliance. Ontario's Catholics were led by the Irish Bishop Fallon, who united with the Protestants in opposing French schools. In 1915, the provincial government of Sir William Hearst replaced Ottawa's elected separate school board with a government-appointed commission. After years of litigation from ACFÉO, however, the directive was never fully implemented.

Repeal and legacy

The regulation was eventually repealed in 1927 by the government of Howard Ferguson following the recommendations of the Merchant-Scott-Côté report. Ferguson was an opponent of bilingualism, but repealed the law because he needed to form a political alliance with Quebec premier Louis-Alexandre Taschereau against the

federal government A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a political union, union of partially federated state, self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a #Federal governments, federal government (federalism) ...

. The Conservative government reluctantly recognized bilingual schools, but the directive worsened relations between Ontario and Quebec for many years and is still keenly remembered by the French-speaking minority of Ontario. Despite the repeal of Regulation 17, however, French-language schools in Ontario were not officially recognized under the provincial ''Education Act'' until 1969, with the first French-language high schools in the province officially opening in late 1969 and 1970. Students were allowed to be taught in French, while still under the English school board system. Francophones were finally allowed to have their own school boards by the province under ''Act 121'' and ''Act 122'', which allowed them to elect trustees to these public (non-denominational) school boards; Catholic French-language school boards would follow a few years after. The Ontario Heritage Trust erected a plaque for L’École Guigues and Regulation 17 in front of the former school building, 159 Murray Street, Ottawa. "L’École Guigues became the centre of minority-rights agitation in Ontario when in 1912 the provincial government issued a directive, commonly called Regulation 17, restricting French-language education. Mounting protests forced the government to moderate its policy and in 1927 bilingual schools were officially recognized." Ontario Heritage Trust plaque
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References

{{Canadian identity 1912 in Ontario French-language education in Ontario Political history of Ontario Linguistic discrimination Medium of instruction 1912 in Canadian law 1912 in education Language policy in Canada Majority–minority relations Cultural assimilation Post-Confederation Canada (1867–1914) Franco-Ontarian history

Reaction

Repeal and legacy

Further reading

References