The Metis of the Red River Settlement led the resistance to the transfer to Canada. Used to wielding considerable political power, they became frustrated with a Canadian government who ignored the established land tenure of the Red River settlers. The Canadian government, led by Sir John A. Macdonald, sent out the Dawson-Hind exploration expedition in 1857, a pre-sale study of the land. The expedition recommended that the Canadian government acquire the arable part of the Hudson's Bay Company land. Many more settlers were moving in from Ontario and Fort Garry had become an important commercial center. The people in the settlement (the Metis in particular) were very concerned for their way of life. The newcomers would English-speaking Protestants, and the Metis were French-speaking Catholics. As well the Metis would lose their land as the English deemed them squatters and settlers without title. The Metis were afraid of losing their homes and their method of dividing the land (long narrow river edge lots had been established and in existence for many years prior to 1869), a much more democratic allotment of the riverfront, allowing many more plots of land to run from the water. The task given to the surveyors was to survey land according to the township system (large squares of land), which is still in use today. During the summer of 1869, the Canadian government sent John Stoughton Dennis to Red River to survey the land. He was so badly received by the Metis that he started surveying at Oak Point rather than Fort Garry.

The new system cut across properties already in existence. Moreover, surveying had begun before the land had been officially transferred to Canada. When Dennis arrived in Fort Garry, opposition broke out. On October 11, 1869, proclaiming that the Canadian government had no right to act without permission, sixteen Metis led by Louis Riel stopped a crew of surveyors on the property of Louis cousin, Andre Nault. This was a very important incident, first of all, because it was the first act of resistance to the transfer of the Settlement to Canada and secondly, because it established Louis Riel as the champion of the Metis. The young Louis Riel Jr., was following the example of resistance set by his father.

In October, William McDougall, who had been appointed Lieutenant Governor of Rupert's Land, set out for Red River to take possession of the Northwest Territory for Canada, accompanied by a ready-made government and armed with 300 rifles. When news of this reached the Metis, they decided to organize their resistance. On October 16, Riel was elected secretary of the Metis "National Committee" and John Bruce was elected president. Five days later, the Committee sent a warning to McDougall advising him not to enter the country without special permission from the Committee. To strengthen their position, the Metis erected a barricade where the trail from Pembina crossed the La Salle River, a place McDougall had to pass. On October 30, McDougall, Cameron and Joseph-Alfred Norbert Provencher, the nephew of Bishop Provencher, arrived in Pembina where they read the Committee's note. However, they refused to heed this warning and the next day, Cameron and Provencher proceeded to St. Norbert where they were stopped and conducted back to the American border escorted by 30 Metis. On November 2, McDougall met with the same fate. Riel and the Metis thus succeeded in cutting McDougall off from the group in Winnipeg which favoured Canadian annexation. That same day, the Metis took possession of Fort Garry, thereby establishing their control over the surrounding area.

Under international law, a provisional government could legally be established in the absence of a permanent government. On November 2nd, 1869 seized Fort Garry. On November 23, Riel proposed the formation of a provisional government to replace the Council of Assiniboia naming John Bruce as President. This surprised the English-speaking half-breeds who asked for a few days adjournment for consultation, not believing that their mandate empowered them to make such a decision. The official transfer of the land to Canada had been set for December 1, 1869. During this period, Sir John A. Macdonald had postponed payment to the Hudson's Bay Company because of the disturbances in the Settlement. On December 1, Governor McDougall, not notified of the delay, read the proclamation announcing the transfer of the Northwest Territories to Canada. This hasty gesture was later to cause problems. From that moment, Riel's Provisional Government became legitimate, for the Company lost all authority as of December 1st and Canada acquired none since it had not paid anything.

On December 10, Riel's Provisional Government's flag flew on the flag pole at Fort Garry. On December 27, following John Bruce's resignation, Louis Riel became President of the Provisional Government. The government had a newspaper of its own "The New Nation". The Canadian government had been unaware of all the problems at Red River. John A. Macdonald now sent a special commissioner to explain his government's position to the Metis. On December 27, Donald Smith, the Hudson's Bay Company's representative in Canada and a government agent, arrived in the Settlement. A meeting which began on January 19, 1870 attracted upwards of 1,000 people. During the meetings on January 19 and 20, Smith made it known that his government had fundamentally good intentions with respect to the people of the Red River Settlement. In order to find a way of negotiating their rights with Ottawa, Riel proposed that a convention of 20 French-speaking and 20 English-speaking representatives be called to draw up a new list of rights.

The people in Manitoba now had their own nation. Go on to read of the events that occurred in trying to protect their autonomy.