The Battle of the Hatpins

Regulation 17, passed in Ontario in 1912, effectively restricted French-language education across the province. Widely considered to be the result of anti-French sentiment, the regulation denied francophones the right to be educated in their chosen language. However, two sisters in Ottawa, Beatrice and Diane Desloges, decided resist, and continued teaching in French despite the government ban. When education officials and the police came to shutdown the school, they were met by 70 angry mothers, armed with hatpins and other household items, determined to protect the school and safeguard French education.

Learn how the Desloges sisters were able to continue teaching in French with the help of the local community.