Gabriel Dumont was a leader of the Métis

Métis people (Canada)

The Métis are one of the Aboriginal peoples in Canada who trace their descent to mixed First Nations parentage. The term was historically a catch-all describing the offspring of any such union, but within generations the culture syncretised into what is today a distinct aboriginal group, with...

 people of what is now western Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. In 1873 Dumont was elected to the presidency of the short-lived republic of St. Laurent

St. Laurent de Grandin, Saskatchewan

St. Laurent de Grandin is an area of Métis settlement along the South Saskatchewan River. It is just east of Duck Lake, Saskatchewan, and at present is the site of the St. Laurent Ferry, as well as the Roman Catholic Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes...

; afterward he continued to play a leading role among the Métis of the South Saskatchewan River

South Saskatchewan River

The South Saskatchewan River is a major river in Canada that flows through the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan....

. He played a critical role in bringing Louis Riel

Louis Riel

Louis David Riel was a Canadian politician, a founder of the province of Manitoba, and a political and spiritual leader of the Métis people of the Canadian prairies. He led two resistance movements against the Canadian government and its first post-Confederation Prime Minister, Sir John A....

 back to Canada, in order to pressure the Canadian authorities to pay attention to the troubles of the Métis people. He was adjutant general in the provisional Métis government declared in the District of Saskatchewan

District of Saskatchewan

The District of Saskatchewan was a regional administrative district of Canada's Northwest Territories. Much of the area was incorporated into the province of Saskatchewan. The western part became part of Alberta, and the eastern part is now part of Manitoba. Its capital was Prince Albert...

 in 1885, and commanded the Métis forces in the North-West Rebellion

North-West Rebellion

The North-West Rebellion of 1885 was a brief and unsuccessful uprising by the Métis people of the District of Saskatchewan under Louis Riel against the Dominion of Canada...

 or North West Resistance of 1885.