As leader of the Métis in the Red River Rebellion of 1869-1870 and the North-West Uprising of 1884-1885, Louis Riel played a pivotal role in the history of western Canada. Heralded as the father of the province of Manitoba, he nevertheless remains one of Canada's most controversial historical figures. Although his political and religious activities have been well documented, it is only recently that his talents as a poet have become more widely known. With the exception of a small booklet of eight poems published by his family a few months after his execution, his verse long remained largely in obscurity.

In 1966 the Public Archives of Manitoba acquired several boxes of documents that had been stored in the Riel family home at St. Vital. In the boxes were many of Riel's unpublished poetry manuscripts, including a notebook filled with poems that he had written during his...