TORONTO — Hudson’s Bay Company has announced plans to return to its original strategy of auctioning its 1670 royal charter following increased interest from potential buyers committed to donating the historic document to Canadian institutions.
Court filings reveal that the retailer, currently under creditor protection, will seek Ontario Superior Court approval to proceed with an open auction for the charter — a document signed by King Charles II that granted Hudson’s Bay control over an expansive territory across much of Canada and rights over trade and relations with Indigenous peoples for decades.
Earlier this month, the court had been scheduled to hear a motion approving the $12.5 million sale of the charter to the Weston family’s Wittington Investments Ltd., with the intention of donating it to the Canadian Museum of History. The motion was adjourned after DKRT Family Corp, controlled by David Thomson, objected and expressed readiness to bid at least $15 million to donate the charter to the Archives of Manitoba.
The new filings do not specify a date for the auction but confirm that preparations are underway with Heffel Gallery to manage the sale.
In addition to the charter, Hudson’s Bay intends to auction approximately 1,700 pieces of art and 2,700 artifacts, with a separate online auction proposed for November 12, followed by an in-person auction on November 19 at Heffel’s Toronto location. Twenty-four artifacts believed to hold Indigenous cultural or heritage significance will be excluded from the sale and returned or donated to appropriate communities and institutions.
The filing also addressed the fate of four war memorials located in Bay stores and two in storage, with the company actively working with Canadian institutions and veterans’ associations to ensure they are preserved and displayed publicly in their respective cities.
The 1670 charter has been a defining piece of Canadian history, symbolizing the origins of what was once the country’s oldest company and the beginning of organized European commerce in the fur trade.