place_of_death james cockburn 
Canadian Confederation was the process by which the British colonies of ___MASK19___ , Nova Scotia , and New Brunswick were united into one Dominion of ___MASK19___ on July 1 , 1867 . Upon confederation , the old province of ___MASK19___ was divided into Ontario and ___MASK82___ ; along with Nova Scotia and New Brunswick , the new federal state was thus composed of four provinces . Over the years since Confederation , ___MASK19___ has seen numerous territorial changes and expansions , resulting in the current configuration of ten provinces and three territories . James W . Cockburn , QC ( February 13 , 1819 -- August 14 , 1883 ) was a Canadian Conservative politician , and a father of Canadian Confederation . He was born in Berwick - Upon - Tweed on the English - Scottish border and immigrated to ___MASK19___ with his father , James Cockburn Snr . ( 1787 - 1832 ) , mother , Sarah Turnbull ( 1797 - 1867 ) and brother , Adam ( 1820 - 1861 ) , at the age of 13 . After attending Upper ___MASK19___ College and Osgoode Hall , he established a law practice in Cobourg , Ontario . In the 1850s , Cockburn was elected to the town council . In 1861 , he was elected to the Province of ___MASK19___ ' s legislative assembly as a Reformer representing Northumberland West . Despite elected as an opponent of the Macdonald - Cartier administration , Cockburn switched allegiances and became a supporter of Macdonald ' s Liberal - Conservative Party . Cockburn attended the ___MASK82___ Conference of 1864 as a supporter of Confederation . After Confederation , he was elected to the new Canadian House of Commons in the country ' s first election . He was nominated by Sir John A . Macdonald to be ___MASK19___ ' s first Speaker of the House of Commons , a position in which he served from 1867 to 1874 . His performance as Speaker was hindered by the fact that he spoke no French in a chamber in which both English and French were official languages . He did however understand French . In 1872 , Cockburn was nominated for a second term as Speaker despite reservations by the Opposition that he had been too favourable to the government in his rulings . Cockburn lost his seat in the 1874 election that had been precipitated by the Pacific Scandal and that brought down the Macdonald government . Cockburn won back his former seat in the 1878 election but did not take an active role in Parliament . He resigned in 1881 when he was appointed to collect and classify Canadian statutes . He was still working on this assignment when his death occurred on August 14 , 1883 . His cause of death is unknown . He married Isabella Susan Patterson ( 1838 - 1862 ) in 1854 and they had three children : Sarah Isabella Cockburn ( 1857 - 1911 ) , Francis Cockburn ( 1858 - ? ) and May Cockburn ( 1859 - ? ) . He is buried in St . James Cemetery , in Toronto . A confederation ( also known as a confederacy or league ) is a ___MASK36___ of sovereign states , united for purposes of common action often in relation to other states . Usually created by a treaty , confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issues , such as defence , foreign relations , internal trade or currency , with the general government being required to provide support for all its members . Confederalism represents a main form of inter - governmentalism , this being defined as  any form of interaction between states which takes place on the basis of sovereign ___MASK93___ . Dominions were semi - independent polities under the British Crown , constituting the British Empire , beginning with Canadian Confederation in 1867 . They included ___MASK19___ , Australia , ___MASK29___ , ___MASK26___ , South Africa , and the Irish Free State , and then from the late 1940s also India , Pakistan , and Ceylon ( now Sri Lanka ). The Balfour Declaration of 1926 recognised the Dominions as " autonomous Communities within the British Empire ", and the 1931 Statute of ___MASK2___ granted them full legislative independence . ___MASK82___ ( pronounced or ) is the second - most populous province of Canada and the only one to have a predominantly French - speaking population , with French as the sole provincial official language . ___MASK17___ ( Latin for " New ___MASK59___ "; French : " Nouvelle - Écosse ") is one of Canada ' s three Maritime provinces , and one of the four provinces which form Atlantic Canada . Its provincial capital is Halifax . ___MASK17___ is Canada ' s second - smallest province , with an area of , including Cape Breton and another 3 , 800 coastal islands . As of 2011 , the population was 921 , 727 , making ___MASK17___ the second most - densely populated province in Canada with almost . ___MASK19___ ( French : ) is a country in the northern half of North America . Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic to the Pacific and northward into the Arctic ___MASK60___ , covering , making it the world ' s second - largest country by total area and the fourth - largest country by land area . ___MASK19___ ' s border with the United States is the world ' s longest land border . The majority of the country has a cold or severely cold winter climate , but southerly areas are warm in summer . ___MASK19___ is sparsely populated , the majority of its land territory being dominated by forest and tundra and the Rocky Mountains . About four - fifths of the country ' s population of 36 million people is urbanized and live near the southern border . Its capital is ___MASK61___ , its largest city is Toronto ; other major urban areas include Montreal , Vancouver , Calgary , Edmonton , Quebec City , Winnipeg and Hamilton . New ___MASK84___ is one of ___MASK19___ ' s three Maritime provinces ( together with Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia ) and is the only constitutionally bilingual ( English  French ) province . Fredericton is the capital , ___MASK23___ is the largest metropolitan ( CMA ) area and ___MASK88___ is the most populous city . In the 2011 nationwide census , Statistics ___MASK19___ estimated the provincial population to have been 751 , 171 , being on an area of almost 73 , 000 km . The majority of the population is English - speaking , but there is also a large Francophone minority ( 33 %), chiefly of Acadian origin . The current premier of the province is Brian Gallant . It was created as a result of the partitioning of the British colony of Nova Scotia in 1784 . The provincial flag features a ship superimposed on a yellow background with a yellow " lion passant guardant " on red pennon above it . ___MASK81___ , one of the 13 provinces and territories of ___MASK19___ , is located in east - central ___MASK19___ . It is ___MASK19___ ' s most populous province by a large margin , accounting for nearly 40 percent of all Canadians , and is the second - largest province in total area . ___MASK81___ is fourth - largest in total area when the territories of the ___MASK74___ and Nunavut are included . It is ___MASK10___ to the nation ' s capital city , ___MASK61___ , and the nation ' s most populous city , Toronto . A federation ( also known as a federal state ) is a political entity characterized by a ___MASK36___ of partially self - governing states or regions under a central ( federal ) government . In a federation , the self - governing status of the component states , as well as the division of power between them and the central government , is typically constitutionally entrenched and may not be altered by a unilateral decision of either party , the states or the federal political body . Alternatively , federation is a form of government in which sovereign power is formally divided between a central authority and a number of constituent regions so that each region retains some degree of control over its internal affairs .