Mackenzie Bowell

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The Hon. Sir Mackenzie Bowell
5th Prime Minister of Canada
In office December 21, 1894 – April 27, 1896
Preceded by	Sir John Thompson
Succeeded by	Sir Charles Tupper
Born	December 27, 1823 Rickinghall, England
Died	December 10 1917 (aged 93) Belleville, Ontario
Political party	Conservative
Religion	Presbyterian

Sir Mackenzie Bowell, PC , KCMG (December 27, 1823 – December 10, 1917) was the fifth Prime Minister of Canada from December 21, 1894 to April 27, 1896.

Bowell was born in Rickinghall, Suffolk, England to John Bowell and Elizabeth Marshall. His family emigrated from there to Belleville, Ontario, where he apprenticed on the local newspaper. He became a successful printer and publisher and a prominent figure in the Orange Order, which made him Canadian grandmaster in 1870. In 1847 he married Harriet Moore (1829–1884) and with her had four sons and five daughters.

Elected to the Canadian House of Commons in 1867, Bowell joined the Conservative Party cabinet in 1878 as Minister of Trade and Customs. A competent, hardworking administrator, Bowell remained in cabinet as Minister of Trade and Customs and Minister of Militia and Defence when he became a senator in 1892. He became Leader of the Government in the Senate on October 31, 1893 and then, in 1894, as the most senior minister, Bowell succeeded to the prime ministership when Sir John Thompson died suddenly. He was one of just two Canadian Prime Ministers, the other being John Abbott, to have held the office while serving in the Senate rather than the House of Commons. His visit to Australia in 1893 led to the first conference of British colonies and territories, held in Ottawa in 1894. As Prime Minister of Canada, Bowell faced dissent in his party over the controversial Manitoba Schools Question. In 1890 Manitoba had abolished its Catholic school boards, contrary to the provisions made for Catholics in the Manitoba Act of 1870. Bowell and his predecessors had struggled to find a solution to the problem. When he decided to create a new Catholic school board for the province in 1896, seven cabinet ministers deserted him, and Bowell denounced them as "a nest of traitors." They soon returned, but with elections looming, Bowell agreed to retire. Charles Tupper, Canadian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, was recalled to replace him.

Sir Mackenzie Bowell was 93 years old and still a senator when he died in Belleville. He is buried in the Belleville Cemetery, Belleville, Ontario. No elected current or former members of the government came to his funeral, though a full complement of the Orange Order was in attendance.

[edit] Supreme Court appointments

Bowell recommended to the Governor General that the following be appointed as Justice to the Supreme Court of Canada:

• Justice Désiré Girouard (September 28, 1895 - March 22, 1911) to the Supreme Court of Canada.

[edit] Trivia

• Bowell was a Freemason [1].
• The Bowell family which are generations forward than Bowell now live in England in Hertforshire

[edit] External links

• Biography at the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online
• Political Biography from the Library of Parliament

Political offices
Preceded by John A. Macdonald	Minister of Railways and Canals (acting) 1891 – 1892	Succeeded by John Graham Haggart
Preceded by Joseph-Philippe-René-Adolphe Caron	Minister of Militia and Defence 1892	Succeeded by James Colebrooke Patterson
Preceded by Sir John Thompson	Prime Minister of Canada 1894 – 1896	Succeeded by Sir Charles Tupper
	Conservative Leader 1894 – 1896
Preceded by Sir George Foster	Minister of Finance (acting) 1896	Succeeded by Sir George Foster
Preceded by Arthur Rupert Dickey	Minister of Militia and Defence (acting) 1896	Succeeded by Alphonse Desjardins
Government offices
Preceded by Sir John Abbott	Leader of the Government in the Senate of Canada 1893 – 1896	Succeeded by Sir Oliver Mowat
Preceded by Sir Richard W. Scott	Leader of the Opposition in the Senate of Canada 1896 – 1906	Succeeded by Sir James A. Lougheed
Parliament of Canada
Preceded by None	Member of Parliament from Hastings North 1867 – 1892	Succeeded by Alexander A.W. Carscallen

Prime Ministers of Canada
Macdonald | Mackenzie | Abbott | Thompson | Bowell | Tupper | Laurier | Borden | Meighen | King | Bennett | St. Laurent | Diefenbaker | Pearson | Trudeau | Clark | Turner | Mulroney | Campbell | Chrétien | Martin | Harper

Leaders of the Conservative Party of Canada and its antecedents

Liberal-Conservative/Conservative/Unionist/N.L.C./National Government/Progressive Conservative (1867-2003): Macdonald | Abbott | Thompson | Bowell | Tupper | Borden | Meighen | Bennett | Manion | Meighen | Bracken | Drew | Diefenbaker | Stanfield | Clark | Mulroney | Campbell | Charest | Clark | MacKay Reform (1987-2000)/Canadian Alliance (2000-2003): Manning | Day | Harper Conservative (new) (2003-present): Harper

Persondata
NAME	Bowell, Mackenzie
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION	5th Prime Minister of Canada (1894-1896)
DATE OF BIRTH	December 27, 1823
PLACE OF BIRTH	Rickinghall, Suffolk, England
DATE OF DEATH	April 27, 1896
PLACE OF DEATH	Belleville, Ontario