The actions of Louis Riel and the Metis were acts of resistance, not rebellion, because everything they did was legal in the eyes of the Canadian government. When Riel organized and created the National Metis Committee, an organization with the purpose to negotiate with the Canadian government, this was an act of resistance because it was not violent nor was it defying the Canadian government because at the time their “government” was the Hudson’s Bay Company. When McDougall came to the Red River settlement before he was officially in charge this angered the Red River settlers and because he left the settlement, this left no one in charge so legally anyone could set up a temporary government. Louis Riel established a provisional government nonviolently and not in direct defiance of the Canadian government, so this was an act of resistance. Louis Riel and his provisional government were now legally in charge with all the powers of a regular government. They arrested John Christian Schultz along with 48 other Canadian Party members because of their rumoured threats against the provisional government and their racist mentalities. The legality of these arrests can be questioned, but because this was not an act of defiance against the Canadian government it was not rebellion. A few of the prisoners escaped and were plotting to release the other prisoners, which is an act of treason. When Louis Riel’s government re-arrested them not only were they charger with escaping from jail but Thomas Scott was charged and found guilty of treason, the arrests and trial were all legal and not rebellion because they were not defying the Canadian government. The punishment for treason is automatically death. Thomas Scott was executed by firing squad, this was legal. When the Canadian government sent Colonel Wolseley and militia to maintain order in the Red River settlement the provisional government stepped down, had they not this would’ve been an act of rebellion but they did. The acts of Louis Riel and the Metis were acts of resistance and not rebellion because all of their actions were legal and not defying the Canadian government.