Prince Edward Island

Prince Edward Island is Canada's smallest province by both land area and population, an island in the Gulf of St. Lawrence whose capital and largest city is Charlottetown. The island formed part of the Mi'kmaw homeland of Mi'kma'ki, known in the district name Epekwitk. In 1604 it was colonized by the French as part of the colony of Acadia and became known as Isle St-Jean — St. John's Island. Ceded to the British at the conclusion of the Seven Years' War in 1763, it was attached to the colony of Nova Scotia; in 1769 St. John's Island became its own British colony, the founding of the entity shown on the map, and its name was changed to Prince Edward Island in 1798. The colonial economy rested on agriculture, settled under the island's famous lot system of lands granted to proprietors, and the capital grew as the seat of government. In 1864 Charlottetown hosted the conference to discuss a union of the Maritime provinces which became the first in the series of meetings leading to Canadian Confederation; the island joined the new dominion in 1873, giving it the nickname 'Birthplace of Confederation'.