United Empire Loyalists

United Empire Loyalists (or "Loyalists") is an honorific given in 1789 by Lord Dorchester, the governor of Quebec and Governor-general of British North America, to American Loyalists who resettled in British North America during or after the American Revolution. They settled in what was initially Quebec (including the Eastern Townships) and modern-day Ontario, where they received land grants of 200 acres (81 ha) per person, and in Nova Scotia (including present-day New Brunswick). Their arrival marked the beginning of a predominantly English-speaking population in the future Canada west and east of the modern Quebec border.

Following the end of the Revolution and the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1783, both Loyalist soldiers and civilians were evacuated from New York City, most heading for Canada.

Land in Canada was sometimes allotted according to which Loyalist regiment a man had fought in. Nova Scotia (including modern-day New Brunswick) received about 33,000 Loyalist refugees;Prince Edward Island 2,000; and Quebec (including the Eastern Townships and modern-day Ontario) received some 10,000 refugees. An unknown but substantial number were unable to establish themselves in British North America and eventually returned to the United States. Many in Canada continued to maintain close ties with relatives in the United States, and conducted commerce across the border without much regard to British trade laws.

The arrival of the Loyalists after the Revolutionary War led to the division of Canada into the provinces of Upper Canada (what is now southern Ontario) and Lower Canada (today's southern Quebec). They arrived and settled in groups by ethnicity and religion.

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