Central Canada's Patrick Riel: Metis Soldiers, English Canadian Settler Mythmaking, and the First World War

Abstract

This thesis examines myths surrounding First World War soldier Patrick Riel and argues that white Canadian settlers have created a variety of stories about Patrick Riel’s supposedly Métis identity. Settler-propagated stories about Patrick Riel started after his untimely death in January 1916. In a few short weeks, news of his death had made headlines across Canada. Several war promoters, including the famous Max Aitken (also known as Lord Beaverbrook) and such lesser-known figures as Walter Gordon and Reverend R. G. McBeth propagated myths about Patrick Riel. By 1917, they had turned Patrick Riel into a heroic Métis sharpshooter and a nephew of Louis Riel. The problem is that Patrick Riel was not a member of the Métis Nation. He was also not Louis Riel’s “nephew” or “grandson,” as some have claimed. Through an examination of this soldier and subsequent events, we can learn how settler war promoters and writers have constructed a Métis identity for Patrick Riel. We can also see why English Canadians invented connections between Patrick Riel and Louis Riel. Investigations of these stories allow insights into how colonialism operates and how English Canadian settlers have sought to co-op Métis heroes into settler culture and history.