“Let us be English or let us be French . . . and above all let us be Canadians.” Born on January 11, 1815, in Glascow, Scotland, Sir John A. Macdonald became the first prime minister of Canada and one of the most transcendent that Canada has ever seen. He immigrated to Canada in 1820, at the age of five, where his family, including his mother, father and two siblings, settled in Kingston, Ontario. He spent his childhood studying at the Midland District Grammar School, where he developed his passion for the English language and at the same time, realizing his new dream of becoming a lawyer. He was unable to attend university as a result of the financial problems within his family; however, that did not stop him from achieving his goal. At the age of fifteen, Sir John A. Macdonald entered a law office as a junior and as a result of his perseverance and dexterous personality, he was called to the bar in 1836. He then began his law practice with extensive success as a commercial lawyer in Toronto and Kingston. His commendable efforts as a lawyer were well recognized by many and he became extensively popular and was regarded as a positive leader that could make a difference. By 1844, he was elected to represent Kingston in the Legislative Assembly of Canada. In 1854, he helped create the Conservative party and on July 1, 1867, the day of Confederation, he became Canada’s first prime minister. Sir John A. Macdonald contributed to Canadian history in a significant way as his actions had a positive impact on Canada, which helped it develop and prosper. Firstly, by building the world’s first transcontinental railway, Sir John A. Macdonald contributed to the economy and efficiency of Canada. One of the major arguments of British C... ... middle of paper ... ...ommunications.com/bygeorge/?p=961> Government of Canada. Legacy of Sir John A Macdonald. 29 Apr. 2005. Library and Archives Canada. 29 May 2011 James-white, Don. Opinions of Legacies of Sir John A Macdonald. 03 Mar. 2005. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 29 May 2011 Hughes, Jimmy. The Right Honourable Sir John A Macdonald. 29 Jan. 2001. First Among Equals. 29 May 2011 James-white, Don. Opinions of Legacies of Sir John A Macdonald. 03 Mar. 2005. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 29 May 2011 Sanderson, Curtis. Famous Canadian Quotes to Remember. 26 Sept. 2010. Quotes for Canadian Life Co. 29 May 2011
"I didn't know at first that there were two languages in Canada. I just thought that there was one way to speak to my father and another to speak to my mother." -- Louis Stephen St. Laurent. As the second French Canadian prime minister of Canada, Louis St. Laurent had a very influential role to Canada. St-Laurent became prime minister in 1948, after a selection authorized by a Liberal Convention. He was a well-respected prime minister and was given the name "Uncle Louis" for reshaping and improving Canada as an international well-known country. Actions and policies, including the Trans-Canada Highway Act, the joining of Newfoundland and the St. Lawrence Seaway, were introduced by St-Laurent to impact Canada into a more developed country with a better and more advanced economy and establishment.
Neatby, H. B. (2005). KING, WILLIAM LYON MACKENZIE. Retrieved February 15, 2014, from Biographi: http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/king_william_lyon_mackenzie_17E.html
William Lyon Mackenzie King, Canada’s longest serving prime minister, is known for both the great contributions he brought to Canada and for the scandals he was involved in. The one event that makes him most famous to Canadians is the King-Byng Affair of 1926. During this event, Mackenzie King asked Lord Byng to dissolve parliament in order to force a new election as he had lost with a minority. Because King’s intentions were to regain a majority government, Byng refused out of distrust for King’s plans and King was replaced in power by the Conservatives. While William Lyon Mackenzie King’s actions were in accordance with all the laws regarding his power as Prime Minister, he acted for selfish reasons thus putting him in the wrong. Mackenzie King’s and Lord Byng’s histories will be quickly analyzed to understand their actions in the affair. Right after, King’s options and reasons for dissolving parliament will be analyzed. Thirdly, Byng’s options and reasons for refusing King’s request will be researched. Once enough evidence has been collected, the end results of this affair will be discussed and the conclusion as to whether or not King was right to go against responsible government will be made.
Pierre Elliot Trudeau was arguably one of the most vivacious and charismatic Prime Ministers Canada has ever seen. He wore capes, dated celebrities and always wore a red rose boutonniere. He looked like a superhero, and often acted like one too. Some of the landmark occurrences in Canadian history all happened during the Trudeau era, such as patriating the constitution, creating the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the 1980 Quebec Referendum. However, it is Trudeau’s 1969 “white paper” and the Calder legal challenge which many consider to be one of his most influential contributions to Canadian history.
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Canada’s parliamentary system is designed to preclude the formation of absolute power. Critics and followers of Canadian politics argue that the Prime Minister of Canada stands alone from the rest of the government. The powers vested in the prime minister, along with the persistent media attention given to the position, reinforce the Prime Minister of Canada’s superior role both in the House of Commons and in the public. The result has led to concerns regarding the power of the prime minister. Hugh Mellon argues that the prime minister of Canada is indeed too powerful. Mellon refers to the prime minister’s control over Canada a prime-ministerial government, where the prime minister encounters few constraints on the usage of his powers. Contrary to Mellon’s view, Paul Barker disagrees with the idea of a prime-ministerial government in Canada. Both perspectives bring up solid points, but the idea of a prime-ministerial government leading to too much power in the hands of the prime minister is an exaggeration. Canada is a country that is too large and complex to be dominated by a single individual. The reality is, the Prime Minister of Canada has limitations from several venues. The Canadian Prime Minister is restricted internally by his other ministers, externally by the other levels of government, the media and globalization.
Firstly, he constructing the base of canadian culture. One thing he did was that he set the foundation of bringing bilingualism into being. The Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism was established by Pearson. This commission was one of the most important things that happened in Canada because if led to many changes and other cultural-changing events such as the Official Language Acts. This was significant to Canadian Identity because it created new Canadian culture. Due to the fact that Canada is not an old country, it does not have much background on history and culture. This commission created a starting place to commence Canada’s culture. He also introduced multiculturalism to Canada. He did that by creating the race free immigration points system. Because of the points system, more immigrants from around the world were able to live in Canada which creates more culture for Canada since it’s combining multiple cultures together; hence how he made Canada multicultural.This is also significant because of the fact that he’s giving Canada a culture which impacts everyone that lives in the country from all the way back then until now. It also impacts Canada’s reputation tremendously since it was one of the first multicultural coun...
Sir John A. Macdonald was born in Glasgow, Scotland, on January 10, 1815. His fathers name was Hugh Macdonald and his mothers name was Helen Shaw. His father had migrated to Glasgow from the town of Dornach. His father was a very pleasant and easy going guy and he alwasys wanted to make everyhting better but he usually made things worst. He was a man that had lots of friends, he would talk a lot and drink too. His mother came from Spey Vally. His mother was a very smart girl, she was like the opposite of his father. His mother and father got married on 1811, and after 8 years they had 5 children, the eldest child died and after John was the eldest. In Glasgow his fathers business wansn't doing that good and he thought that if they would move to upper Canada they would have a better life there. So finally in 1820 they sailed to upper Canada. They arrived at Kingston in mid July, and John was only five years old. When he arrived his thought about Scotland just disapeard. The Macdonald family decided to stay in Kingston. Sir John A. only went to school untill 1829, when he was only 15. His parents couldn't afford to send him to University. He says that if had went to University he wouldn't have went into politics. When he turned 15 Sir John A. articled to a Kingston lawyer, George Mackenzie, so he was learining Law. In 1832 Mackenzie opened a branch office where he put Macdonald in charge of it. Later on he had taken over another law practice i...
John.A.Macdonald was born on January 11, 1815, in Glasgow,Scotland. Early in his life, he became a lawyer's apprentice later on he became a lawyer himself. Soon he became a business owner and then he thought that since he knew so much about business and law making a transition to politics is a good idea.he started politics in 1843 as the representative for Kingston.he took part in making the liberal and conservative party.in 1844 he became a part of the conservative party. In
..., & News, C. (n.d.). CBC News Indepth: The 39th Parliament - Harper at the helm. CBC.ca - Canadian News Sports Entertainment Kids Docs Radio TV. Retrieved June 8, 2012, from http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/parliament39/quebecnation-history.html
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Any person, place or event that has held the honour of being commemorated in Canada has been recognized of an extreme importance to the country. It is impossible to research commemoration in Canada without reading about world war one and two; The great wars are arguably the most commemorated events in History let alone Canada. Understanding this they are not the only events that receive attention from Canada, the government recognizes many other occurrences as, well, anything from Sir John A. Macdonald day on the 11th of January to the anniversary of the statute of Westminster on the 11th of December. I do not believe that any one event can be placed above or below another, and that they all hold a value in whatever way that may be. This Essay
Filewood, Alan. “National Battles: Canadian Monumental Drama and the Investiture of History.” In Modern Drama. 38. (Spring 1995) 71-86
CBC (2014). A history of residential schools in Canada - Canada - CBC News. Retrieved from http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/a-history-of-residential-schools-in-canada-1.702280