The Hudson’s Bay Company Royal Charter (MANITOBA MUSEUM PHOTO)
The Hudson’s Bay Company Royal Charter has been purchased for $18 million and will be donated to a consortium of public institutions, with two of the four co-custodians based in Manitoba.
The Manitoba Museum and the Archives of Manitoba will share stewardship of the 1670 Charter alongside the Canadian Museum of History and the Royal Ontario Museum. The group will oversee a national consultation on the document’s future preservation, interpretation, and public access.
The Royal Charter, one of the most significant documents in Canada’s colonial history, with issued by King Charles II to grant the Hudson’s Bay Company control over the entire Hudson Bay watershed.
“Placing the HBC Charter in the hands of Canadians marks a monumental step toward Truth and Reconciliation,” said Dorota Blumczynska, CEO of the Manitoba Museum.
“The Manitoba Museum is profoundly honoured to serve as a public custodian, recognizing both the privilege and the immense responsibility this role carries”
The museum recently created the Manitoba Museum HBC Collection Endowment Fund at The Winnipeg Foundation to ensure ongoing conservation, exhibitions, and community engagement tied to the collection.
Museum officials say the acquisition and donation, made by the Weston family and David Thomson, will deepen understanding of Canada’s origins while placing Manitoba at the centre of national conversations about colonial history and reconciliation.
A national consultation led in part by Manitoba experts will begin in the coming months to determine how the Charter will be conserved and shared with Canadians.
