Rodolphe Lemieux | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 16thSpeaker of the House of Commons of Canada | |
| In office March 8, 1922 – June 2, 1930 | |
| Preceded by | Edgar Nelson Rhodes |
| Succeeded by | George Black |
| Senator forRougemont, Quebec | |
| In office June 3, 1930 – September 28, 1937 | |
| Appointed by | William Lyon Mackenzie King |
| Preceded by | Georges-Casimir Dessaulles |
| Succeeded by | Elie Beauregard |
| Member of theCanadian Parliament forGaspé | |
| In office 1896–1911 | |
| Preceded by | Louis-Zéphirin Joncas |
| Succeeded by | Louis-Philippe Gauthier |
| In office 1917–1930 | |
| Preceded by | Louis-Philippe Gauthier |
| Succeeded by | Maurice Brasset |
| Member of theCanadian Parliament forMaisonneuve1 | |
| In office 1917–1921 | |
| Preceded by | Alphonse Verville |
| Succeeded by | Clément Robitaille |
| Member of theCanadian Parliament forRouville | |
| In office 1911–1917 | |
| Preceded by | Louis-Philippe Brodeur |
| Succeeded by | The electoral district was abolished in 1914. |
| Member of theCanadian Parliament forNicolet2 | |
| In office 1904–1906 | |
| Preceded by | Georges Ball |
| Succeeded by | Charles Ramsay Devlin |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1866-11-01)November 1, 1866 |
| Died | September 28, 1937(1937-09-28) (aged 70) |
| Party | Liberal |
| Cabinet | Solicitor General of Canada (1904–1906) Postmaster General (1906–1911) Minister of Labour (1906–1909) Minister of the Naval Service (1911) Minister of Marine and Fisheries (1911) |
| Portfolio | Speaker of the House of Commons (1922–1930) |
| 1Elected for Gaspé and for Maisonneuve. Sat for both ridings. 2Resignation. Elected for Gaspé and for Nicolet. Chose to sit for Gaspé. | |
Rodolphe LemieuxPC FRSC (French pronunciation:[ʁɔdɔlfləmjø]; November 1, 1866 – September 28, 1937) was aCanadianparliamentarian and long timeSpeaker of the House of Commons of Canada (1922–1930).
He was born inMontreal as the son of a Customs officer. After a career as a journalist, lawyer and law professor he was elected to theHouse of Commons of Canada in the1896 election as aLiberal. He was a loyal follower of SirWilfrid Laurier and, in 1904 becameSolicitor General of Canada in Laurier'sCabinet. He subsequently served asPostmaster General of Canada,Minister of Labour and Minister of Marine and Fisheries. His Deputy Minister in the Department of Labour was futurePrime Minister of Canada,William Lyon Mackenzie King.
As Minister of Labour he started a system in which nostrike or lockout in apublic utility ormine could be legal until the differences had been referred to a three-man board of conciliation representing the employer, the employees and the public.
In 1907, Laurier sent Lemieux toJapan to defendCanadian immigration policies which were discriminatory against the Japanese. He succeeded in obtaining an agreement from Japan to curtail emigration of its citizens to Canada.
He also continued in his academic pursuits, becoming a fellow of theRoyal Society of Canada in 1908 and President of the Society in 1918.
In the1911 election, Lemieux engaged in a series of public debates before audiences of several thousands with nationalist leaderHenri Bourassa who was threatening the Liberal's base in Quebec. The Liberals retained a majority of seats in the province but lost government because of its loss of seats in Ontario.
Lemieux was a sharp critic of theConservative government ofRobert Borden accusing it of putting the interests of theBritish Empire ahead of those of Canada.
DuringWorld War I, Lemieux opposedconscription and supported Laurier during theConscription Crisis of 1917.
When Mackenzie King led the Liberals back to power in the1921 election, he choseErnest Lapointe as hisQuebec lieutenant rather than Lemieux. Instead, he nominated Lemieux as Speaker of the House of Commons. Lemieux presided over the House during severalminority governments.
He was Speaker during theKing-Byng Affair of 1926. He remained Speaker whenGovernor GeneralByng appointedArthur Meighen as Prime Minister rather than call an election.
He attempted to rule in a neutral manner despite the highly charged atmosphere, and all but one of his rulings were sustained by the House. Instead Lord Byng invited the Conservatives to form a government. In spite of assurances of support from theProgressive Party, the Conservatives were unable to maintain control of the House. Lemieux had to make several crucial rulings. Five were appealed and one was overturned.
Lemieux presided over three successive Parliaments and was the longest serving Speaker untilLucien Lamoureux broke the record in 1974.
On June 30, 1930, King appointed Lemieux to theSenate of Canada, where he served until his death in 1937. He was entombed at theNotre Dame des Neiges Cemetery in Montreal.[1]
| 1904 Canadian federal election:Nicolet | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | ||||||
| Liberal | Rodolphe Lemieux | 2,698 | ||||||
| Conservative | Georges Ball | 2,356 | ||||||
There is a Rodolphe Lemieuxfonds atLibrary and Archives Canada.[2]
| 1911 Canadian federal election:Rouville | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | ||||||
| Liberal | Rodolphe Lemieux | 1,467 | ||||||
| Conservative | Hormidas Dubreuil | 1,189 | ||||||
| Professional and academic associations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | President of the Royal Society of Canada 1918–1919 | Succeeded by |
