Canadian history, Hudson’s Bay Co and furs

The C17th fur trade became a major commercial growth in Nth Am­erica, due to Eur­ope’s dem­and for beaver hats. Two French trad­ers pl­an­ned a trad­ing com­pany to reach the inland via Hudson Bay and to gain access to the int­er­ior fur resources. Af­ter not win­n­ing French sup­­port, they went to Prince Rupert in Britain in 1665 where Rup­ert sw­ay­ed cousin King Charles II, mer­ch­­ants and noble men to back the ve­n­ture. Two ships were sent mid 1668 and the royal charter for Rup­ert’s Land. Hudson’s Bay Co./HBC was pr­o­claimed May 1670. The Gov­ernor and Co. of Advent­ur­ers of England received ex­clusive trading rights in Hud­son Bay Terr­it­ory.

Original charter of the HBC, declared in 1670

HBC shareholders at Annual General Court Meeting elected a Governor and comm­ittee to organ­ise fur auctions, order trade goods, hire workers and arr­ange shipping. The London-based Governor set all the basic polic­ies implem­ented in Rup­ert’s Land, using annual reports, journals & accounts supplied by the Bay of­f­icials. 

Prince of Wales and Eddystone, Hudson's Bay Co. Ships

Canadian Encyclopaedia

After trapping beaver pelts when they reached their best quality (win­t­er), Indigenous Peoples trav­elled to the trading posts in sum­m­er. These traders were middlemen, bringing furs from inland communities and trad­ing furs for manufactured goods eg tools, guns, text­il­es, food.

In 1713 France agreed to England’s claim to Hudson Bay with Treaty of Utr­echt. For 60 years, the HBC erected posts largely at major rivers flowing into the bay. This hesit­ance to establish posts in Rupert’s Land all­owed comp­et­itors to out­do the HBC by travel­l­ing into the in­ter­ior to trade with Indigenous peoples. In return, ind­igenous trad­ers extracted greater ret­urns for their furs. 

 

Timber wolf fur sales, Fur Harvesters Auction in North Bay, Ont.

CBC

Until 1763 HBC struggled with the French for control of fur trades in south­ern Rupert’s Land, and naval battles erupted on Hud­son & James Bays. In the Treaty of Paris 1763, the Montreal overland trade network was taken by the British. By 1774 HBC trade had been undercut enough that the Governor designed an aggres­s­ive policy of inland expansion, be­ginning with building facilities on the Saskatch­ewan River.

Intensive competition with the North West Co. spil­l­ed beyond Rup­ert’s Land into the Pac­if­ic slope, combining economic conflict with occasional physical viol­ence. In 1821 the parties merged, and the British Parlia­ment extended the Co.’s monopolies to include the N.W Territories.

Bringing together the different business traditions of the North West Co. and HBC required changes in the new Co’s administrative structure. British North America was divided into trading depart­ments and dist­r­icts. District managers met annual­ly in depart­mental council meetings presided over by the Governor in North Am­erica, Sir George Simpson. Th­ese coun­cils passed reg­ul­ations governing local trade, det­er­mined work­ers’ deployment and established the log­is­tical requirements. The offic­ers also had a vested interest since they shared in the profits, accord­ing to the 1821-71 deed polls. But Sim­pson had considerable power, and the London Governor overruled local decisions. Post-merger, the HBC closed many unprof­itable trading posts, adv­ersely damaging Indigenous groups whose survival relied on fur.

After 1821, independent free Métis traders at the Red River Colony opp­osed the Co’s monopoly rights, which had been renewed in 1838. The issue ended in the famous 1849 Sayer Trial, where Métis man Pierre-Guillaume Sayer was tried and convict­ed of trading with Indigen­ous groups, violating the Co’s legal privileges. The court’s decision to free him effectively opened the trade of Rup­ert’s Land.

To standardise trade between posts, HBC introduced the Made Beav­er as the currency (1857). All furs were valued according to the equivalent of one prime male beaver skin. Hud­s­on's Bay Co. fur trade im­pacted on Indig­en­ous peoples, many of whom ab­andoned th­eir life-styles and economy, and relied on Europ­ean manuf­ac­t­ured goods for survival.

Although the Co.’s primary concern remained the fur trade, it increas­ingly provided government for settlers in Red River Valley and Vanc­ouver Island. Only in 1849 did Britain grant­ the Van­couver Island col­ony to the HBC, to be used as an agricultural sett­lement.

During the Fraser Gold Rush in 1858, the mainland colony of British Co­l­umbia was created out of New Caledonia. Governor James Douglas was requ­ir­ed by the British govern­ment to resign his HBC commission before bec­om­ing Governor of BC. Thus the Co. began to relinquish its colonial res­ponsibilities. It was then Canada’s growing expansionist movement saw the ann­exation and settlement of the NW as essential to Canada’s future.

Expansionists portrayed the HBC as delaying Canada’s growth; they cl­aim­ed that to protect its fur trade interests, the HBC had proclaimed that the NW was a barren waste­land, unsuited to agricultural set­tlement. But this belief was challenged by reports of the Palliser and Hind expedit­ions in 1857-60 which encouraged westward British settlement.

In 1863, International Financial Society bought control in HBC, signal­l­ing a shift in the Co: most new shareholders were less interested in the fur trade than in real estate and economic development in the West. Negotiations held with the Colonial Office and with the Can­adian government DID result in selling Rupert’s Land to Can­ada in 1870. In the agreement the Co retained title to the old trading lands.

Fur trader in Northwest Territories, in the 1890s

Wiki

See the post-1870 growth. By retain­ing large land­holdings on the prair­ies adjacent to its posts, many of which were loc­at­ed in growing ur­ban centres, the HBC became a most im­portant dev­el­opers in western Canada.

As Prairie economic development accelerated post-1870, the Co. expanded retail business with settlers. Initially most of this act­ivity occurred at its trading posts. Since it differed from the trade with Indigenous groups, separate sales shop accounts were kept. Then the HBC’s retail and whole­sale divisions emerged, with outlets separate from fur trade. In 1910 the Co was divided into 1]land, 2]fur & 3]retail. In 1913 HBC helped build new retail shops, recog­nising that this had a greater fut­ure potential than land and fur sales. The first of the 6 stores op­en­ed in Calg­ary and the last in Winnipeg in 1926. From 1965 the shop em­braced the short form of its name, The Bay, and its logo featured the B. And its historic coat of arms nodded to its rich role in Canadian history.

Hudson's Bay Montreal, department store chain acquired by HBC in 1960.

 In 1970, 300th year in HBC history, the Queen formally transferred it from U.K to Canada, with new headquarters in Winnipeg. The Co. now owns 239 dep­art­ment stores in Canada and U.S.

Thank you to Canadian Encyclopedia

 

Heysen art, new Museum, The Cedars

The original house, now called The Cedars in Hansdorf, was built in the late 1870s by Alfred Wheelwright, then he sold the property to a North Adelaide gent and onto other moneyed families. Lastly the house and its 36 acres were sold to artist Hans Heysen (1877-1968) in 1912. Hans, his wife and eight children lived in the house, the original studios of both Hans and daughter Nora Heysen. Hans’ studio was finished in 1913, designed by Adelaide architect Albert Conrad and was a unique example of C19th German Arts and Crafts influence 

   The Cedars house and gardens, Handorf

I have examined Hans and Nora’s art works a number of times in this blog eg bushland images and war paintings. But I have never seen their house or studios, and have never included any photos of the architecture and gardens in my posts. Clearly it is one of Adelaide’s best preserved historic homes. The famous chalet style studio has recently been identified as the Nation’s oldest surviving purpose-built artist’s studio while the homestead has a charm that speaks of a bygone era's style. The house and studios have carefully retained their original furniture, collections and artwork of the Heysen family. Many of the two artists’ works were displayed in the original home at the top of the garden. Now c200 original works are on display in changing exhibitions in the studios and the house.

Entrance Hall

Original furniture in the original dining room

  

Hans' studio

12 years in the making, Hahndorf’s anticipated $9 million Heysen Gallery at The Cedars opened in July 2026. We already know that the rolling Adelaide Hills landscape inspired some of Australia’s most iconic artworks, so the gallery featured its inaugural exhibition called Heysen: A Shared Legacy. The Gallery is clearly located on one of SA’s most significant heritage sites, sitting alongside the historic home and studios of landscape painter Sir Hans Heysen & daughter Nora. Note she was the first Australian woman to win the Archibald Prize and was Australia’s first credited female war artist. This will be the first time in Sth Australia that there a father and daughter team have been displayed in any gallery, said Chair of Heysen Heritage Foundation. And although it took years to make it a reality, the first idea for the gallery dated much further back. Hans discussed with his family the desire to have a gallery at The Cedars, describing his vision as a place of observation and education.

When Hans died in 1968, son David continued those plans with his grandson, Peter Heysen. Now 60 years later that vision has come to life, exactly where Hans himself originally saw it. Designed by Hahndorf-based Fore Design, the gallery is connected by walking paths connecting the two original art studios and the surrounding bushland.

He emigrated from Germany as a child, an erly European artist to capture the distinct light and character of the Australian outback. A committed conservationist ahead of his time, he spent much of his life fighting land clearing and quietly purchasing and protecting native trees, incl much of the land surrounding The Cedars. That legacy has shaped the Gallery’s design, which prioritises sustainability, natural light, timber tones and a low-impact footprint that sits within the environment, not competing with it. Go Hans!!

Heysen Gallery at The Cedars, opened 2026

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Inside the  exhibition, Heysen: A Shared Legacy brings together 120+ works by Hans and Nora, many of them rarely publicly displayed before or have been lent. A lot of these paintings may never have been seen before, including very rare ones. There’s a one that the famous ballerina Anna Pavlova wanted to buy, Zinnias and Autumn Fruit. Hans had already given it to his wife, so he said he would paint Pavlova another one. He DID paint another and sent it off to London, but Anna rejected it. The gallery has both those two paintings, plus the letter of rejection. 

Visitors are able to walk through the original house, studios and surrounding site, including guided artist walks that map the exact vantage points where Heysen painted some of his most recognisable works. It’s a rare Australian experience. So see Heysen Gallery in The Cedars, which itself has been a hidden gem for a long time. Thank you Helena Snelling.

 

Gertrude Bell's great Middle Eastern legacy

The female scholar behind Iraq's independence

The Librarians

Gertrude Bell (1868-1926) was the grand­daughter of British nobility and the daughter of an monied industrialist. Instead of seeking a life of cocktail part­ies, her brain actually required a high-class education. In 1884 Bell went to Queen’s College and Oxford Univ­ers­ity, gaining 1st Class Honours in Modern History. She spent the next 15 years in cons­tant travel including Persia, Egypt and Algiers.

A “cause” arrived in 1899 when she met arch­aeol­ogist David Hogar­th and his world of Middle East ant­iquity. Already fluent in Persian, Fr­en­ch and German, Bell also studied Arabic and Hebrew, and in 1900 she completed the first of her desert travels through Pal­est­ine, Leb­an­on and Syria. She then began learning desert rul­es and the soc­ial prac­t­­ices of nomadic Bed­ouin, building val­uable friendships among sheiks, warr­iors and Mesopot­amian merchants. From 1900-12 her focus was on developing her skills as an arch­aeol­ogist, map-maker and ethnographer in a tough part of the world. Her 1907 trips with Sir William Ramsay in Anatolia became the basis for her book, The Thousand and One Churches (1909). She was becoming a specialist in Byzantine religious architecture, writ­ing mono­gr­aphs as she went.

1911 was when met the young archaeologist T.E Lawrence (1888–1935) aka Lawrence of Arabia. They shared a passion for Arab­ic cul­ture and antiquit­ies, becoming powerful forces in the next dec­ade prom­oting Arabic independence from the Otto­mans and from Eur­ope.

After a long trip along the Euph­rates River, Bell discovered and surveyed an C8th Abbas­id fortress at Ukhaidir. She wrote the account in her 1909/10 journal, and an arch­itectural mono­gr­aph, The Palace and Mosque at Ukhaidir (1913).

In 1913 Bell travelled by camel through modern Saudi Arabia and Iraq, hoping to reach the famed White City of Hay­yil. She negotiat­ed her way thr­ough cont­ested territories, critical water short­ages, hostile tribes and the shift­ing sands. Then she went home with maps and knowledge of Arabia that were invaluable as Europe faced WW1.

With Turkey and Germany allied in WW1, the Middle East suddenly be­came an area of military importance remote from British intell­igen­ce. Who were the relevant powers there? Who did they support? So in 1915 Ger­trude Bell trav­el­led to Cairo, to work with Brit­ish Intell­ig­­­en­ce, com­pile inform­ation and form a strategy for org­anising Arab­ic res­is­tance to Turk­ish rule. However she did not participate in the Sykes-Picot Agree­ment in 1916 that eventually divided Turkish-held Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and Palestine.

                                     

Bell, Cox and Ibn Saud in Mesopotamia in 1916.

Feisal's two staunchest supporters re holding the new Mandate of Iraq together
Imperial War Museum

After the war, the Ottoman Empire was being dismantled and Bell sought to help the Arabs. She was asked to make her recommendations for Mesopotamia, as her 1920 report “Self-Determination in Mesopot­amia” made very clear. Bell was in the middle of the region’s politics, acting as mediator between the local Sunni, Shiite and Kurd leaders, the British government, and Winston Churchill.

Self-Determination in Mesopotamia was the paper that earned her a seat at the Paris Peace Conf­er­ences (1919-20), to honour the Al­l­ied promise of Arabic independence. She opp­osed French del­egates who were cr­eating their mandate in Syria. And she opposed the Brit­ish delegates who were creating a British mandate in Iraq and Palestine.
                                 

participants of the 1921 Cairo Conference. 
L to R: Winston Churchill, Gertrude Bell and TE Lawrence.

Under the Sphinx of Giza.

Winston Churchill, Secretary of State for the Colonies, called the 1921 Cairo Conference. While other British offic­ials argued for Iraq’s continued sub­servience to Brit­ain, Bell arg­ued hard for their indep­end­­­ence, and for the pro­m­ot­ion of a larg­er Arabic state from France. For a newly un­ified Iraqi state, Bell and Lawrence highly recommended Faisal bin Hussein, former command­er of the Arab forces that helped the Brit­ish in the war. And through his charis­matic leadership, a nation was forged! Bell became one of King Faisal’s most trusted advisors, beloved in Baghdad.

Yet Bell and her boss British high commissioner, Sir Percy Cox, laid down state policies in Iraq that were taken up by Sadd­am’s Arab Ba’ath socialist party. Iraq retained the Kurdish mount­ains as a buffer against Turkey and Russia, and promoted Sunni Mus­lims over the Shia majority. They expelled the Shia clergy to Iran, and depl­oyed air power as a form of political control. Why did the U.K care? Iraq enjoyed valuable oil resources AND acted as a buffer zone in the region to protect against Turkey, Iran and Syria.

Bell believed passionately in Arab independence and persuaded Lon­d­on that Iraq had enough able men at least to provide an administ­r­at­ive façade; and she contr­ib­uted importantly to the construction of the Iraqi state in 1921. But she had two difficulties. Firstly she always ov­er­estimated the popularity of Cox and herself. And secondly she underest­im­ated the force of religion in Iraqi affairs.

Bell and Sir Herbert Samuel, British High Commissioner in Palestine,
meets Jordanian pilot 1921. Highbrow.

Bell was never loved in London. And when Cox left Bag­h­dad in 1923, she lost her bureaucratic protector. Yet Bell still wanted help in preserving Baghdad’s heritage in a new Archaeological Museum and she was named as the Director of Antiquities by King Faisal. Later she helped draw up the borders of the new nation of Iraq.

She died in 1926 in Baghdad at 57, from ?lung can­cer. The citizens and British officials lined the streets to pay respect to this weal­thy British scholar who’d dedicated her life to Arab culture; the King of Iraq stood in a place of honour.

Bell’s greatest legacy was indeed the recovery and preservat­ion of an­cient artefacts and archaeological sites all over the Mid­dle East, as at the Gert­rude Bell Archive at Newcastle Uni. But in 1921, Churchill agreed that Mesopotamia should be a self-ruling state, and Bell was a central figure at the Cairo Conference. Her influence was essential to the establishment of modern-day Iraq.

Dutchies in orange, hot New Year Bondi

                                                 

  

   

Scheveningen beach Netherlands, Facebook

The Dutch connection to Bondi is deeply rooted, generally featuring Dutch-speakers, Dutch music and traditional foods eg pea soup, rookworst. This draws both locals & tourists to a special Sth Hemisphere New Year celebration. The first official Dutch New Year's Dive at Bondi Beach was on 1st Jan 2015. Dutch tourists were already influencing the Bondi Beach summer scene, largely due to a massive influx of working holiday backpackers and expats. They started linking specifically to Bondi by bringing a popular winter tradition to the Australian summer heat, a bonding event for the Dutch community being each New Year's Day Dive. While the traditional Dutch event involves jumping into freezing Netherlandish waters, while in Sydney's summer thousands of Dutch tourists and expats gather along our warm ocean waves.

4 PM New Year's Day

Visit Bondi Beach

New Year's Dive

Visit Bondi Beach

Beyond this event, Bondi is a hub for Dutch travellers. Back packers stay at local hostels eg Noah's Bondi Beach that hires Dutch-speakers. The beach's lively cafe culture & surf schools eg Let's Go Surfing, are popular with European travellers in Dec.

There is also an easily accessible cliff-top walk from Bondi to Bronte Beach, taking c35 minutes each way. During the whale-watching season from May-Nov, this cliff-top walk offers a super view of the humpback whales as they head north to Hervey Bay.

The Dutch tourist Bondi summer timeline revolves around the New Year's Day Dive. While the Dutch winter tradition began in 1960, Australian-based tour groups adapted it for Sydney's sum-mer. Dutchies flock to Bondi Beach for its surf culture & back packer life style. The major highlight is the annual New Year's Dive when hundreds of Dutch expats dressed in orange gather on clean sands to swap freezing Dutch waters for Australian warmth. They run into the ocean to celebrate the New Year.

The influx of Dutch travellers and working holidayers is a major part of Bondi's summer identity. If people are looking to connect with the Dutch community: Nederlanders in Sydney Facebook Group are great hubs for Dutch back packers to find shared beach flats, buy used cars and plan gatherings. In Jan, the New Year's Dive allows participants to align their plunge with the morning dive in the Netherlands.

Aside from the New Year's swim, nearby Eastern Suburbs are often frequented by European back packers, with Dutch travellers comprising an important portion of the summer surf and hostel culture. After absorbing the Bondi sun, take the famous Bondi-Coogee Coastal Walk, a 6km beautiful route that passes secluded beaches and coastal cliffs. Dutch tourists love this walk because of the swimming-snorkelling, although note Coogee does not have surf like Bondi has. Dutchmen also socialise in Coogee Bay Hotel

Then after a Covid-initiated break of 2 years on 1st Jan 2023 Bondi Beach Australia turned orange again, also this year organised by Dutch Travel. 500+ dancing hats were ready for the big splash in Sydney in 2023. A large orange group of travellers, expats, backpackers and emigrated Dutch people formed an orange family on Bondi Beach. With feet in the warm sand, arms around each other, Unox hats on & flags in hand, the orange army was ready. In Bondi Beach’s centre, a huge path was cleared where an honorary hedge of Bondi Rescue workers and surprised beachgoers formed. The dancing, singing and jumping orange army moved through it bouncing into the water. The main sponsor is UNOX, the Dutch brand used for meat products. 

Midnight fireworks over Sydney Harbour Bridge

Dutch tourists love the event

Blueprint Traveller

Dutch tourists have a long history at Sydney's Bondi Beach, largely driven by the influx of young European travellers seeking working holidays and sunny getaways in Australia's summer. Today the beach is multicultural with a strong international presence where Dutch can frequently be heard.  the Netherlands, New Year’s Dive is the yearly traditional running into the freezing winter waters to celebrate New Year. The plunge began in Zandvoort and Scheveningen in 1960 eg in Scheveningen c10,000 people joined in yearly under severe conditions. After, participants enjoyed Dutch winter food. This freezing winter tradition was adapted into a summer festival by Dutchiestravel & the local community. Meanwhile the event started spreading by Duchies globally.

Australia is known for pristine beaches, many of them found in and around Sydney. The Bureau of Stats puts Sydney’s population at 5 mill, so 60+% of the NSW population lives in and around the state capital city. Much of the moneyed Sydney population hugs the lovely coast-line.

Bondi Beach is one of the finest beaches in the world, located c10ks from the Sydney CBD and easily accessed by public transport. Bondi Beach is surrounded by parklands, barbeques, picnic areas, children’s playgrounds, showers, toilets, multiple restaurants and cafes, and a paid parking area. Since then hordes have gathered on the sand in orange gear to plunge in the warmish waters. Dutch backpackers, expats and tour operators eg Dutchies Travel flip the freezing winter tradition upside down, launching the New Year's Dive at Bondi Beach. The event attracts endless participants who dress in orange and don Santa hats with Dutch flags. The traditional plunge time was 4 PM when participants gathered on the sand and make a festive run into the Pacific Ocean.

After WW2 160,000+ Dutch nationals migrated to Australia from the late 1940s on. Driven by war devastation and post-war economic crises at home, Dutch citizens were lured by Australian assisted passage and promises of housing & jobs. See Dutch interests in Dutch Australia Cultural Centre. 

If you cannot get Comments to work, send your comments to me on helenw@bigpond.net.au and I will print them and answer them in the post. Apologies, all.