Charles Constantine
Encyclopedia
Charles Constantine was a Canadian North-West Mounted Police officer and superintendent, from Bradford
, Yorkshire
.
Following his service in the Canadian militia during the Red River Rebellion
(1870) and the Northwest Rebellion (1885), he was commissioned as an inspector in the North-West Mounted Police in 1886. After serving in Banff
and Regina
, he was sent to examine conditions in the Yukon
district in 1894 as the government was concerned about the influx of American miners and the liquor trade. He forecast that a gold rush was imminent and reported that there was an urgent need for a police force. In the following year, he went back to the Yukon with a force of 20 men who were in place when the Klondike Gold Rush
started in 1897. Constantine's efforts ensured that law was maintained during the gold rush, that Canadian sovereignty was assured and helped create the Mounties' international reputation.
He left the Yukon in 1898, replaced by Sam Steele
and returned to the prairies after being promoted to Superintendent. In 1902, he returned to the north to establish forts at Fort McPherson, Northwest Territories
and Herschel Island
off the Yukon Arctic Ocean
coast. This was the first foray by the NWMP north of the Arctic circle
.
After returning to the Athabasca District in 1905, Constantine was responsible for building a trail from Fort St. John, British Columbia
to Teslin Lake
in the Yukon, although work on the trail was abandoned in 1908. He died in 1912 in California following an operation.
, became the XI Commandant at RMC, Kingston.
Bradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
, Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
.
Following his service in the Canadian militia during the Red River Rebellion
Red River Rebellion
The Red River Rebellion or Red River Resistance was the sequence of events related to the 1869 establishment of a provisional government by the Métis leader Louis Riel and his followers at the Red River Settlement, in what is now the Canadian province of Manitoba.The Rebellion was the first crisis...
(1870) and the Northwest Rebellion (1885), he was commissioned as an inspector in the North-West Mounted Police in 1886. After serving in Banff
Banff, Alberta
Banff is a town within Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. It is located in Alberta's Rockies along the Trans-Canada Highway, approximately west of Calgary and east of Lake Louise....
and Regina
Regina, Saskatchewan
Regina is the capital city of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province and a cultural and commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. It is governed by Regina City Council. Regina is the cathedral city of the Roman Catholic and Romanian Orthodox...
, he was sent to examine conditions in the Yukon
Yukon
Yukon is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three federal territories. It was named after the Yukon River. The word Yukon means "Great River" in Gwich’in....
district in 1894 as the government was concerned about the influx of American miners and the liquor trade. He forecast that a gold rush was imminent and reported that there was an urgent need for a police force. In the following year, he went back to the Yukon with a force of 20 men who were in place when the Klondike Gold Rush
Klondike Gold Rush
The Klondike Gold Rush, also called the Yukon Gold Rush, the Alaska Gold Rush and the Last Great Gold Rush, was an attempt by an estimated 100,000 people to travel to the Klondike region the Yukon in north-western Canada between 1897 and 1899 in the hope of successfully prospecting for gold...
started in 1897. Constantine's efforts ensured that law was maintained during the gold rush, that Canadian sovereignty was assured and helped create the Mounties' international reputation.
He left the Yukon in 1898, replaced by Sam Steele
Sam Steele
Major General Sir Samuel Benfield Steele, CB, KCMG, MVO was a distinguished Canadian soldier and police official...
and returned to the prairies after being promoted to Superintendent. In 1902, he returned to the north to establish forts at Fort McPherson, Northwest Territories
Fort McPherson, Northwest Territories
Fort McPherson is a hamlet located in the Inuvik Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It is located on the east bank of the Peel River and is south of Inuvik on the Dempster Highway....
and Herschel Island
Herschel Island
Herschel Island is an island in the Beaufort Sea , which lies off the coast of the Yukon Territories in Canada, of which it is administratively a part...
off the Yukon Arctic Ocean
Arctic Ocean
The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region, is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceanic divisions...
coast. This was the first foray by the NWMP north of the Arctic circle
Arctic Circle
The Arctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. For Epoch 2011, it is the parallel of latitude that runs north of the Equator....
.
After returning to the Athabasca District in 1905, Constantine was responsible for building a trail from Fort St. John, British Columbia
Fort St. John, British Columbia
The City of Fort St. John is a city in northeastern British Columbia, Canada. A member municipality of the Peace River Regional District, the city covers an area of about 22 km² with 22,000 residents . Located at Mile 47, it is one of the largest cities along the Alaska Highway. Originally...
to Teslin Lake
Teslin Lake
Teslin Lake is a large lake spanning the border between British Columbia and Yukon in Canada. It is one of a group of large lakes in the region of far northwestern BC, east of the upper Alaska Panhandle, which are the southern extremity of the basin of the Yukon River, and which are known in the...
in the Yukon, although work on the trail was abandoned in 1908. He died in 1912 in California following an operation.
Family
One of his sons, Charles Francis ConstantineCharles Francis Constantine
-Education:Major-General Charles Francis Constantine, CB, DSO, was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1883. His father, Charles Constantine, was the superintendent of the Royal North West Mounted Police. He was educated at Upper Canada College, in Toronto, Ontario . He studied at the Royal Military...
, became the XI Commandant at RMC, Kingston.