What was the London Conference of 1866 to 1867?

The London Conference of 1866 to 1867 was the third and final Confederation conference, held December 4, 1866 to February 1867 at the Westminster Palace Hotel in London, England. Delegates from the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick drafted the British North America Act in close consultation with British government officials, particularly the Colonial Secretary Henry Howard Molyneux Herbert, 4th Earl of Carnarvon. The Act received royal assent on March 29, 1867 and came into force on July 1, 1867 (Dominion Day, later Canada Day).

Sixteen colonial delegates attended. The Province of Canada was represented by John A. Macdonald, George-Étienne Cartier, Alexander Galt, William Howland, William McDougall, and Hector-Louis Langevin. Nova Scotia was represented by Charles Tupper, William A. Henry, Jonathan McCully, Adams Archibald, and John W. Ritchie. New Brunswick was represented by Samuel Leonard Tilley, John Hamilton Gray, Peter Mitchell, R.D. Wilmot, Charles Fisher, and J.M. Johnson. Prince Edward Island declined to send delegates (its legislature having rejected Confederation), and Newfoundland also declined.

The Conference's main task was translating the 72 Resolutions of 1864 into draft legislation. The British government had several technical and policy concerns. Carnarvon and his officials insisted on changes to the federal-provincial division of powers, the structure of the Senate, and the wording of various provisions. Macdonald and Galt did most of the colonial drafting. The draft underwent multiple revisions during December 1866 and January 1867. The final text became the British North America Act of 1867 (now called the Constitution Act, 1867). Section 3 of the Act named the new federation Canada; section 5 listed Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick as the founding provinces.

The London Conference also handled diplomatic and legal details. The new Dominion needed a legal name; 'Kingdom of Canada' was rejected because the British government feared offending the United States, and 'Dominion of Canada' was adopted (reportedly proposed by Samuel Leonard Tilley from Psalm 72:8). Section 9 reserved executive authority to the Crown. The Act provided for the future addition of further provinces and territories. The Conference concluded in early February 1867 with the Bill being introduced into the British House of Lords on February 12. After passing through Parliament with little debate, the Act received royal assent on March 29, 1867 from Queen Victoria. Confederation took effect on July 1, 1867. The London Conference is sometimes called the 'British Imprimatur' on Canadian Confederation.