Accompanied by religious leaders and the RCMP, the stolen Bell of Batoche is returned to its home in Batoche, Saskatchewan. Robert Doucette, president of the Métis Nation of Saskatchewan, said that on hearing the bell, he had tears in his eyes.
BATOCHE, SK—The longstanding mystery surrounding the whereabouts of a bell stolen 128 years ago, was explained on July 20, when the man who stole it came forward.
According to the Canadian Press, Billyjo Delaronde, Métis, from Manitoba, told his story as he gave the Bell of Batoche back to the Catholic Diocese of Prince Albert.
The Bell of Batoche was seized from Batoche’s church as a trophy of war by federal troops who put down the Northwest Rebellion of 1885, crushing the dream of Métis leader Louis Riel to build an independent Métis state. It was brought east and eventually ended up in a Royal Canadian Legion Hall in Millbrook, Ontario.
The 20-pound silver bell stands only 30 centimetres tall but its importance and value among the Métis is far greater than its size.
In 1991, the bell was stolen from the Legion by unknown conspirators and wasn’t seen publicly until July 20.
CP reports that Delaronde said he and four Métis accomplices travelled to Millbrook on a “gentleman’s dare,” determined to get the relic back.
“It was Métis Mission Impossible,” Delaronde stated.
In 1967, the federal government asked the Millbrook Legion to return the bell to Batoche, but the Legion turned down the request.
“I believe I repatriated the bell,” Delaronde said. “There was no intention of ever stealing the bell from them, because it was ours.” Delaronde told the CP that he never feared prosecution for stealing the bell, but still feels a great weight has been lifted from his shoulders.
During a mass held at Batoche, Delaronde told his story before handing the bell—wrapped in buffalo skins and a Métis flag—to the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Prince Albert.
Robert Doucette, president of the Métis Nation of Saskatchewan, said that on hearing the bell, which is also known amongst Métis as Marie Antoinette, he had tears in his eyes.
“For the first time I really felt a lot of the unity that has been missing was there today,” he said. “The nation has turned a corner.”
“The bell belongs to all of us.”
