In the conferences and negotiations that brought about Confederation, the Fathers of Confederation wanted to call the new country (which then consisted of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec and Ontario) the “Kingdom of Canada.” But the British government feared that this imperial-sounding name would offend the Americans. After the stresses of the American Civil War, Britain was anxious not to antagonize the United States and insisted on a different title. New Brunswick’s Sir Leonard Tilley suggested “Dominion of Canada.” Tilley was reportedly inspired by the passage in the Bible from Psalm 72:8, referring to God’s dominion: “He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth.” The term Dominion was accepted.