Canada/Dominion Day
The event we celebrate on July 1st each year, which officially became Canada Day in 1982, was originally known as Dominion Day.
Even some "official" sources get it wrong. For example, one City of Ottawa website describes Canada Day as “the anniversary of Confederation, when Canada became a country separate from the British Empire.” Yes, 1 July is indeed the anniversary of Confederation. But no, Canada did not become separate from the British Empire on that date. Canadian legislative autonomy did not come until the Statute of Westminster in 1931, when the imperial government in London gave up its right to legislate for Canada and other Dominions. Even then, Canadians remained British subjects, and regarded themselves as members of the British Empire. Canadian legal decisions could also still be appealed to the Judicial Committee of the House of Lords in London, and Canadian constitutional changes required the consent of the British Parliament.
Instead of representing the birth of a new independent country, Canada Day marks the anniversary of the union of three pre-existing British colonies in North America—the Province of Canada, which itself was the result of the fusion of Upper and Lower Canada in 1841, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick. The new entity, as embodied in the British North America Act (which became the new Canada’s Constitution), was called the Dominion of Canada. The proclamation of the new Dominion by Queen Victoria on 1 July 1867 was the culmination of years of negotiations to unite the colonies of British North America.
For more about the celebration of the first Canada day see:
The article below describes the celebration of Dominion Day at Burritts Rapids in 1870. Only 3 years after Confederation in 1867, the focus of the celebration suggests the concerns of the times.
The Fenians referred to in the Address were a secret society of Irish patriots dedicated to securing Ireland's independence from Britain. Some North American members of this movement were intent on taking Canada by force and exchanging it with Britain for Irish independence. From 1866 to 1871 the Fenians launched a series of small, armed incursions of Canada, each of which was put down by government forces — at the cost of dozens killed and wounded on both sides. Further reading: https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/.../fenian-raids/
