George Etienne Cartier
Father of Confederation
General Information
Cartier was a French-Canadian statesman and Father of Confederation. He was leader of Parti Bleu and dominant political figure in Canada East. He supported Confederation, mostly due to fear of American expansion. Cartier was born on September 6th 1814 in Quebec. His religion is Roman Catholic.
George Etienne Cartier
Statue of George Etienne Cartier
Flag of Canada
Political Career/Confederation
His political career was inspired by Louis-Joseph Papineau and joined the Son's of Liberty. His profession was law practice and politics. From 1857 to 1862, he served as a co-premier of the united province of Canada. He played a large role in the Coalition government along with George Brown and John. A. Macdonald. The Great Coalition ended political deadlock. This was one of the biggest steps towards Confederation. He was present at all three Confederation Conferences; Charlottetown, Quebec, and London Conference. He was largely responsible for gaining French-Canadian support for Confederation. Cartier had a role in abolishing the Seignurial System.
Life after Canadian Union
After Canada was formed, John.A.Macdonald became Prime Minister and Cartier became the minister of Defense and Militia. Cartier ran in the provincial election for premier in the 1867 election. He was elected as a Conservative supporter. As a result, he was a part of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec and Parliament of Canada. He is responsible for the purchase of Rupert's Land and the North-Western Territories.
Illness and Death
In 1871, Cartier started experiencing Bright's disease, which is a common disease in the liver. He traveled to London to find a cure but did not succeed. Therefore, sadly, Cartier died in London on May 20th, 1873 at the age of 58.
Sir George-Étienne Cartier
Learn More about Confederation
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