Andrew Thorburn Thompson (May 27, 1870 – April 20, 1939) was a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

military officer, editor, lawyer and a third generation political figure of Canada. Thompson was born in Seneca Township and raised at Ruthven Park Estate, now designated as Ruthven Park National Historic Site; located just north of Cayuga, Ontario. His father, David Thompson was a businessman and political figure who sat in the

Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada The Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada was the lower house of the Parliament of the Province of Canada. The Province of Canada consisted of the former province of Lower Canada, then known as Canada East (now Quebec), and Upper Canada ...

and then the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada () is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of Ca ...

. His grandfather, also named David, had sat in the

1st First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

and 2nd Legislative Assemblies for the

United Province of Canada The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in British North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Re ...

representing

Haldimand County Haldimand County is a rural city-status single-tier municipality on the Niagara Peninsula in Southern Ontario, Canada, on the north shore of Lake Erie, and on the Grand River. Despite its name, it is no longer a county by definition, as all mu ...

. A lawyer and editor, he was elected to the House of Commons as the Liberal Member of Parliament for

Haldimand and Monck Haldimand and Monck was a federal electoral district represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1892 to 1904. It was located in the province of Ontario. It was created in 1892 from parts of Haldimand and Monck ridings. It consisted ...

in the 1900 federal election defeating former

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

cabinet minister Walter Humphries Montague by less than 150 votes. Due to redistribution, Thompson's riding was abolished and in the 1904 federal election, he ran for re-election in the redrawn district of Haldimand but was defeated by his Conservative opponent by less than 300 votes. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Thompson was lieutenant colonel of the 114th Regiment composed of white and

First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...

soldiers from Thompson's home region of the Haldimand County area. In 1923, he was chosen by the deputy superintendent general of the

Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; , GRC) is the Law enforcement in Canada, national police service of Canada. The RCMP is an agency of the Government of Canada; it also provides police services under contract to 11 Provinces and terri ...

to lead a one-man inquiry into the disturbances on a Six Nations reserve and the demands by Cayuga nation hereditary chief Deskaheh for recognition of the rights of his people after he threatened to take his complaints to the

League of Nations The League of Nations (LN or LoN; , SdN) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace ...

along with demands for an independent state under Article 17 of the League's Covenant. As Thompson had commanded

Iroquois The Iroquois ( ), also known as the Five Nations, and later as the Six Nations from 1722 onwards; alternatively referred to by the Endonym and exonym, endonym Haudenosaunee ( ; ) are an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Ind ...

soldiers during World War I he was seen as a mediator who could be trusted by both sides. However, Thompson'
Commission to Investigate and Report upon the Affairs of the Six Nations Indians issued a report
that recommended that the hereditary council that governed the reserve be replaced by an elected council thus depriving Deskaheh of his right to speak for the Six Nations. The new council was elected in October 1924.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Andrew Thorburn 1870 births 1939 deaths Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Liberal Party of Canada MPs Canadian Expeditionary Force officers Lawyers in Ontario People from Haldimand County 20th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada