When was william lyon mackenzie king prime minister

Back to Exhibitions. Politics and Government. The War Economy and Controls. His maternal spiritual inheritance was of some significance to King and may help to explain his lifelong ambivalence between his urge to be a reformer and his craving for social respectability.

King graduated from the University of Toronto in , undertook postgraduate studies at Chicago, and secured a doctorate in political economy from Harvard. In Chicago he was associated with Jane Addams's work at Hull House, an experience which strengthened his interest in social reform.

In King joined the Canadian civil service as deputy minister of labor, and in , when he entered politics and won the riding of Waterloo North for the Liberals, the prime minister, Sir Wilfrid Laurier, appointed him Canada's first full-time minister of labor.

In the prewar years he achieved considerable prominence in Canada as a labor conciliator and was chiefly responsible for drafting and presenting to Parliament the Industrial Disputes Investigation Act and the Combines Investigation Act These measures revealed King's tenaciously held faith that exposure of the facts of any situation to public scrutiny would create a public opinion strong enough to ensure the resolution of social problems.

During World War I King worked for the Rockefeller Foundation on labor research and served as an industrial counselor to the Rockefeller interests. His views on industrial relations were expounded vaguely and verbosely in Industry and Humanity Following Laurier's death a Liberal party convention in chose King as party leader, and he reentered the House of Commons as leader of the opposition.

He became prime minister in as the result of an election which brought an end to the two-party system in federal politics. A large part of his support then and later lay in a solid block of conservative French-Canadian members of Parliament. Remember me. I forgot my password. Why sign up? Create Account. Suggest an Edit. Enter your suggested edit s to this article in the form field below.

Accessed 12 November In The Canadian Encyclopedia. Historica Canada. Article published October 15, ; Last Edited February 04, Blair, "William Lyon Mackenzie King".

The Canadian Encyclopedia , s. Thank you for your submission Our team will be reviewing your submission and get back to you with any further questions. Thanks for contributing to The Canadian Encyclopedia. Article by H. Leader of the Liberal Party , and prime minister for almost 22 of those years, King was the dominant political figure in an era of major changes.

King during the election campaign of Yousuf Karsh. Library and Archives Canada, C US President F. Roosevelt, Canadian PM W. Further Reading J. Granatstein, W. Mackenzie King Blair Neatby, W. Mackenzie King —32 and W. Mackenzie King —39 J. Esberey, Knight of the Holy Spirit Stacey, A Very Double Life But the demand for military personnel increases as war goes on. In , conscription is introduced for territorial defence, but not for overseas service.

In , King asks Canadians to release the government from its promise and to allow conscription for active duty, if circumstances call for it. Despite the positive answer provided by the 27 April referendum, King will wait until the end of , following the high number of casualties in Normandy, before allowing that men who were not volunteers be sent to the front. All along, King prepares the post-war period and sets in place measures to avoid an economic relapse.

Unemployment insurance is introduced in The national debt is brought under control, a national child benefits plan is created, as well as mechanisms for the reintegration of veterans into civilian life. Once the war is over though, King restricts the role of government both on the local and international scene. Prime Minister W.