Sir Henri Charles Wilfrid Laurier (November 20, 1841 – February 17, 1919) was the seventh prime minister of Canada from 1896 to 1911. The first French Canadian prime minister, his 15-year tenure remains the longest uninterrupted term of office among Canadian prime ministers and his nearly 45 years of service in the House of Commons is a record for the House. Laurier is best known for his compromises between English and French Canada.
Laurier studied law at McGill University and practised as a lawyer before being elected to the Legislative Assembly of Quebec in 1871. He was then elected as a member of Parliament (MP) in the 1874 federal election. As an MP, Laurier gained a large personal following among French Canadians and the Québécois. After serving as minister of inland revenue under Prime Minister Alexander Mackenzie from 1877 to 1878, Laurier became leader of the Liberal Party in 1887. He lost the 1891 federal election to Prime Minister John A. Macdonald's Conservative Party. However, controversy surrounding the Conservative government's handling of the Manitoba Schools Question gave Laurier's Liberal Party a victory in the 1896 federal election. He led the Liberals to three more majority governments in 1900, 1904, and 1908.
As prime minister, Laurier resolved the Manitoba Schools Question by persuading the Manitoba government to permit Catholic students to receive a Catholic education on a school-by-school basis. While this compromise drew criticism from some French Canadians, it earned him the nickname "the Great Conciliator" for balancing the interests of French and English Canada. Laurier also sharply increased immigration levels, oversaw the creation of the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan in 1905, and initiated the Grand Trunk Pacific and National Transcontinental railway projects. In foreign policy, Laurier promoted Canada's autonomy within the British Empire. His government dispatched a volunteer force to fight in the Second Boer War after Britain requested Canadian troops, established the Department of External Affairs, and enacted the Naval Service Act to create Canada's own navy.
Laurier's proposed reciprocity agreement with the United States to lower tariffs became a main issue in the 1911 federal election. The Liberals were defeated by the Conservatives led by Robert Borden. Despite his defeat, Laurier stayed on as Liberal leader. During World War I and the Conscription Crisis of 1917, Laurier faced divisions within the Liberal Party as pro-conscription Liberals joined Borden's Unionist government. The anti-conscription faction of the Liberal Party, led by Laurier, became the Laurier Liberals, though the group was heavily defeated by Borden's Unionists in the 1917 federal election. Laurier remained Opposition leader until his death in 1919. Laurier is ranked among the top three of Canadian prime ministers. At 31 years and 8 months, Laurier is the longest-serving leader of a major Canadian political party. He is the fourth-longest serving prime minister of Canada, behind Pierre Trudeau, John A. Macdonald, and William Lyon Mackenzie King.
Early life (1841–1871)
Childhood The second child of Carolus Laurier and Marcelle Martineau, Henri Charles Wilfrid Laurier was born in Saint-Lin, Canada East (modern-day Saint-Lin-Laurentides, Quebec), on November 20, 1841. He was a sixth-generation French Canadian, with partial Acadian ancestry through his mother. His ancestor François Cottineau, dit Champlaurier, came to Canada from Saint-Claud, France. Laurier grew up in a family where politics was a staple of talk and debate. His father, an educated man having liberal ideas, enjoyed a certain degree of prestige about town. In addition to being a farmer and surveyor, he also occupied such sought-after positions as mayor, justice of the peace, militia lieutenant and school board member. At the age of 11, Wilfrid left home to study in New Glasgow, a neighbouring village largely inhabited by immigrants from Scotland. Over the next two years, he familiarized himself with the mentality, language and culture of English Canada, in addition to learning English. In 1854, Laurier attended the Collège de L'Assomption, an institution that staunchly followed Roman Catholicism. There, he started to develop an interest in politics, and began to endorse the ideology of liberalism, despite the school being heavily conservative.
Political beginnings
In September 1861, Laurier began studying law at McGill University. There, he met Zoé Lafontaine, who later became his wife. Laurier also discovered that he had chronic bronchitis, an illness that stuck with him for the rest of his life. At McGill, Laurier joined the , or Red Party, which was a centre-left political party that contested elections in Canada East. In 1864, Laurier graduated from McGill. Laurier continued being active within the , and from May 1864 to fall 1866, was vice president of the , a literary society with ties to the Rouge. In August 1864, Laurier joined the Liberals of Lower Canada, an anti-Confederation group composed of both moderates and radicals. The group argued that Confederation would give too much power to the central, or federal government, and the group believed that Confederation would lead to discrimination towards French Canadians.
Laurier then practised law in Montreal, though he initially struggled as a lawyer. He opened his first practice on October 27, 1864, but closed it within a month. He established his second office, but that closed within three months, due to a lack of clients. In March 1865, nearly bankrupt, Laurier established his third law firm, partnering with Médéric Lanctot, a lawyer and journalist who staunchly opposed Confederation. The two experienced some success, but in late 1866, Laurier was invited by fellow Rouge Antoine-Aimé Dorion to replace his recently deceased brother to become editor and run a newspaper, .
Laurier moved to Victoriaville and began writing and controlling the newspaper from January 1, 1867. Laurier saw this as an opportunity to express his strong anti-Confederation views; in one instance he wrote, "Confederation is the second stage on the road to 'anglification' mapped out by Lord Durham...We are being handed over to the English majority...[We must] use whatever influence we have left to demand and obtain a free and separate government." On March 21, was forced to shut down, as a result of financial issues and opposition from the local clergy. On July 1, Confederation was officially proclaimed and recognized, a defeat for Laurier.
Laurier decided to remain in Victoriaville. He slowly became well known across the town with a population of 730, and was even elected mayor not so long after he settled. In addition, he established a law practice which spanned for three decades and had four different partners. He made some money, but not enough to consider himself wealthy. During his period in Victoriaville, Laurier opted to accept Confederation and identify himself as a moderate liberal, as opposed to a radical liberal.
In 1869, while living in Victoriaville, Laurier was appointed an ensign in the Arthabaskaville Infantry Company. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1870, and from May to June was on active service at Saint-Hyacinthe during the second Fenian Raid. He continued to serve in the company until 1878, and in 1899 he was awarded the Canada General Service Medal for his service in 1870.
Early political career (1871–1887)
Member of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec (1871–1874)
A member of the Quebec Liberal Party, Laurier was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Drummond-Arthabaska in the 1871 Quebec general election, though the Liberal Party altogether suffered a landslide defeat. To win the provincial riding, Laurier campaigned on increasing funding for education, agriculture, and colonization. His career as a provincial politician was not noteworthy, and very few times did he make speeches in the legislature.
Member of Parliament (1874–1887)
Laurier resigned from the provincial legislature to enter federal politics as a Liberal. He was elected to the House of Commons in the January 22, 1874 election, representing the riding of Drummond—Arthabaska. In this election, the Liberals led by Alexander Mackenzie heavily triumphed, as a result of the Pacific Scandal that was initiated by the Conservative Party and the Conservative prime minister, John A. Macdonald. Laurier ran a simple campaign, denouncing Conservative corruption.
As a member of Parliament (MP), Laurier's first mission was to build prominence by giving speeches in the House of Commons. He gained considerable attention when he delivered a speech on political liberalism on June 26, 1877, in front of about 2,000 people. He stated, "Liberal Catholicism is not political liberalism" and that the Liberal Party is not "a party composed of men holding perverse doctrines, with a dangerous tendency, and knowingly and deliberately progressing towards revolution." He also stated, "The policy of the Liberal party is to protect [our] institutions, to defend them and spread them, and, under the sway of those institutions, to develop the country’s latent resources. That is the policy of the Liberal party and it has no other." The speech helped Laurier become a leader of the Quebec wing of the Liberal Party.
From October 1877 to October 1878, Laurier served briefly in the Cabinet of Prime Minister Mackenzie as minister of inland revenue. However, his appointment triggered an October 27, 1877 ministerial by-election. In the by-election, he lost his seat in Drummond—Arthabaska. On November 11, he ran for the seat of Quebec East, which he narrowly won. From November 11, 1877, to his death on February 17, 1919, Laurier's seat was Quebec East. Laurier won reelection for Quebec East in the 1878 federal election, though the Liberals suffered a landslide defeat as a result of their mishandling of the Panic of 1873. Macdonald returned as prime minister.
Laurier called on Mackenzie to resign as leader, not least because of his handling of the economy. Mackenzie resigned as Liberal leader in 1880 and was succeeded by Edward Blake. Laurier, along with others, founded the Quebec newspaper, L’Électeur, to promote the Liberal Party. The Liberals were in opposition once again, and Laurier made use of that status, expressing his support for laissez-faire economics and provincial rights. The Liberals suffered a second consecutive defeat in 1882, with Macdonald winning his fourth term. Laurier continued to make speeches opposing the Conservative government's policies, though nothing notable came until 1885, when he spoke out against the execution of Métis leader Louis Riel, to whom the Macdonald government refused to grant clemency after he led the North-West Rebellion.
Leader of the Official Opposition (1887–1896)
Edward Blake resigned as Liberal leader after leading them to back-to-back defeats in 1882 and 1887. Blake urged Laurier to run for leadership of the party. At first, Laurier refused as he was not keen to take such a powerful position, but later on accepted. After 13 and a half years, Laurier had already established his reputation. He was now a prominent politician who was known for leading the Quebec branch of the Liberal Party, known for defending French Canadian rights, and known for being a great orator who was a fierce parliamentary speaker. Over the next nine years, Laurier gradually built up his party's strength through his personal following both in Quebec and elsewhere in Canada.