Who was the military commander sent to Red River to maintain peace, but had ulterior motives to capture Riel?

The military commander sent to Red River to maintain peace while also having ulterior motives to capture Louis Riel was Colonel Garnet Wolseley. Wolseley was tasked with restoring order in the Red River area during a tumultuous period following the Red River Resistance, during which Riel had emerged as a key figure advocating for the rights of the Métis people.

Wolseley’s mission included not only the maintenance of peace but also involved strategic concerns from the Canadian government's perspective, which was seeking to assert control over the region and address the political situation resulting from Riel's leadership. His approach and orders were influenced by the need to reinstate Canadian governance and stability following the resistance, which gives insight into his motivations that went beyond mere peacekeeping.

Understanding this context reveals how military presence during the time often had dual objectives: to address immediate unrest while also pursuing the larger agenda of Canadian unification and control over Western territories. This nuanced role of Wolseley illustrates the complexities of the historical interactions between the Canadian government and the Métis during the process of Confederation.