Cape Breton

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The island was captured and occupied by the French and became a refuge for French settlers expelled following the Treaty of Utrecht. It was finally returned to Britain in 1763 as part of the Treaty of Paris following French defeat at the Plains of Abraham.

In 1775, Michael Mor MacDonald started the first Scots community in Cape Breton, and by the 1880s nearly 50,000 Scots had settled on the island. Most had been displaced by the Highland Clearances and were seeking a new life overseas.

By 1901, more than 75,000 Gaelic speakers were living on Cape Breton Island.

Cape Breton has a rich Gaelic culture: music, song, storytelling and step dancing traditions thrive in the community and have even travelled back across the Atlantic Ocean to Scotland.

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  Cape Breton Ceilidh
  Virtual Museum Canada presents a virtual ceilidh experience celebrating Cape Breton Gaelic culture. Explore the language, song, storytelling, music and dance traditions of Cape Breton Gaels.
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  Cape Breton Island - the Celtic Heart of North America
  Cape Breton Island - the Celtic Heart of North America celebrates, shares and preserves the living Celtic culture of Cape Breton. Find out about festivals, events and places including the Celtic Colours International Festival, the Celtic Music Interpretive Centre and Féis an Eilein.