Warfare

In the aftermath of the North West/Riel Resistance the Rebellion Losses Commission was established to provide compensation to those who had suffered losses as a result of the armed conflict. The general opinion of the commission’s members was that “having contributed to their own losses, the Métis were not eligible for any compensation.” Many Metis were angered that those who implicated Metis individuals in the resistance were provided with compensation for their losses - this demonstrates the government's efforts to consolidate power by implementing various means of rewarding or punishing its allies and enemies.

From a concealed position the Metis—led by Gabriel Dumont—attacked Middleton’s force. The ambush turned into a firefight as many of Dumont’s men were pinned down by opposing fire; however, Middleton’s men inflicted minimal damage due to the concealed Metis position. Combat ended with Middleton ordering a withdrawal of his troops. The Battle of Fish Creek can be viewed as a tactical and numerical victory for the Metis. Middleton’s force received fifty injuries and ten deaths, while the Metis escaped with six fatalities. The casualties inflicted on Middleton's army are even more considerable given that the Metis had a much smaller force. After Fish Creek, Middleton changed his tactics, becoming more cautious. Additionally, after having observe the participation of First Nations individuals during the battle, he began to believe rumors of a Metis-Indian alliance.

Duck Lake's location played an important role in the Resistance, as it was the home of Hillyard Mitchell’s store - a mercantile that provided food and arms to both the Metis and the NWMP. On May 24, the Metis voted to move their army to Duck Lake. The Battle of Duck Lake was the first skirmish of the North-West/Riel Resistance. The Canadian Government responded to this event by mobilizing a force to combat the Metis. At four o’clock in the morning on March 26, a party of police and volunteers were getting ready to leave Fort Carlton to seize the supplies at Mitchell’s store. A force of police and volunteers met the Metis led by Gabriel Dumont in Duck Lake. The battle began with Joe McKay shooting Gabriel's brother Isidore as Isidore prepared to fire. McKay’s shot was followed by NWMP Superintendent Leif Crozier giving his men the order to open fire. Casualties were high in a short period of fighting. As a result, the volunteers and police began to retreat. The battle lasted about 30 minutes. In total nine volunteers, three police and five rebels perished in the battle. Gabriel Dumont was also badly wounded.

The XY Company was a Canadian fur trade enterprise that was formed in Montreal in 1797 by a group of men that were disenchanted with Simon McTavish’s leadership of the NorthWest Company. They were in direct and sometimes rabid competition with the NorthWest Company who labeled their packs NW; hence the new group called themselves by the two letters that come after W. Following a breakdown in the North West Company's negotiations to renew their charter, some NWC dissidents formed their own company. Alexander Mackenzie, the NWC's hero explorer, agreed to stay with the NWC for three years before joining the XY company. The economic competition during this time was accompanied by personal vendettas. Rivalry's were intense, and the use of liquor in the trade rose sharply, becoming a chief instrument of the rival companies in dealing with the Indigenous and Metis traders. Following the death of McTavish on July 6, 1804, the XY company and the NWC negotiated a coalition, creating a newly powerful and monopolistic North West Company.

When Chief Beardy traveled to Prince Albert to attain rations for the hungry population of his band, he was refused. Middleton justified this decision based on the ‘involvement’ of Beardy's reserve in the North-West Resistance. Only a few individuals from the reserve participated and Beardy himself had remained outside of the conflict at the time. In response, Beardy returned his Treaty 6 medal, saying that he would receive it back from Middleton when Middleton believed his innocence. After Beardy returned his medal Middleton threatened to destroy Beardy's settlement and his people.

After defeats at Fish Creek and Cut Knife General Frederick Middleton asked Indian Commissioner Edgar Dewdney to "issue proclamation warning breeds and Indians to return to their Reserves and that all found away will be treated as rebels." Middleton hoped to fight just the Batoche Metis and avoid inciting an Indian war. Dewdney who had been seeking for a justification to pass ordinances to bring about greater control over the western Aboriginal population supported Middleton's idea. Within hours of receiving Middleton's telegram he issued a notice that all loyal Indians must remain on their reserves.

The House of Commons Committee on Post-war Reconstruction and Reestablishment met to discuss Indian Affairs for two days, May 18 and 24. The economic circumstances of Aboriginal people were at the forefront of the meetings. Proceedings began with a discussion of fur trade economies and the move to First Nations home industries in the face of the fur trade’s failure.

With the introduction of horses to the Plains and an increasing number of traders moving into the the Canadian interior, the middleman role in the fur trade became an extremely profitable position. Cree and Dene groups entered into a wide-spread conflict over control of this middleman position in the fur trade.

After the establishment of the provisional government in March the Métis attempted to bolster their fighting force by appealing to First Nations peoples for support. This process manifested itself in using the threat of violence to force the community of the Whitecap First Nations to travel to Batoche and support the Métis cause. Some Dakota were enlisted to aid the Métis response, for example being employed as scouts. They asserted that they were forced to help the Métis against their will.

In the aftermath of the Frog Lake Massacre, a Cree party moved towards Fort Pitt. The meager defenses of the location led HBC factor W.J. McLean to negotiate a surrender of the Fort in exchange for the safe release of the police. An agreement was reached, after which the police boarded a boat and retreated down the North Saskatchewan River. The Cree captors held other inhabitants of the fort as captives.