"Responsible" Government
In 1840, Upper and Lower colonial occupied territories of Canada got together to form the Province of Canada.
British installed administrators such as Sir Louis-Hippolyte La Fontaine and Robert Baldwin, in parallel to Joseph Howe in Nova Scotia, worked with British governors toward creating a "responsible" government.
The first British North American colony to act as full government was Nova Scotia in 1847-48.
In 1848-49 the governor of United Canada, Lord Elgin, with imperial British support from London, introduced "responsible" government.
This is the system that Canada has today: it means that if the government loses a confidence vote in the assembly, or parliament, it must resign.
La Fontaine, a French language advocate, became the first leader of a responsible government in the Canadas.
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