Léo Alphonse Joseph Cadieux ( , ; May 28, 1908 – May 11, 2005) 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 ...

politician. A newspaper journalist and publisher who was born in Saint-Jérôme, Quebec, Cadieux was first elected to 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 ...

as the Liberal Member of Parliament for Terrebonne,

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

in the 1962 election. In 1965, he was appointed to the Cabinet by

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Lester Pearson Lester Bowles Pearson (23 April 1897 – 27 December 1972) was a Canadian politician, diplomat, statesman, and scholar who served as the 14th prime minister of Canada from 1963 to 1968. He also served as Leader of the Liberal Party of C ...

as Associate Minister of National Defence. In 1967, he was promoted to Minister of National Defence (and the first Francophone to hold the post), and remained in that position under Pearson and then

Pierre Trudeau Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau (October 18, 1919 – September 28, 2000) was a Canadian politician, statesman, and lawyer who served as the 15th prime minister of Canada from 1968 to 1979 and from 1980 to 1984. Between his no ...

until he retired from politics in 1970. On his retirement from Parliament, he was appointed Canada's

Ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. He remained Canada's envoy until 1975. During Cadieux's tenure as Defence Minister, Canada cut its troop commitment to

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

from 10,000 to 5,000 troops and ended Canada's commitment to send re-enforcements to the

North Atlantic Treaty Organization The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental transnational military alliance of 32 member states—30 European and 2 North American. Established in the aftermat ...

's Central Front following a review of Canadian defence priorities. In Cabinet debates on Canada's attitude towards

nuclear deterrence Deterrence theory refers to the scholarship and practice of how threats of using force by one party can convince another party to refrain from initiating some other course of action. The topic gained increased prominence as a military strategy d ...

, Cadieux argued in support of the doctrine. He also oversaw the reorganization of the Canadian Emergency Measures Organization, Canada's

civil defence Civil defense or civil protection is an effort to protect the citizens of a state (generally non-combatants) from human-made and natural disasters. It uses the principles of emergency management: prevention, mitigation, preparation, response, ...

agency. In 1974, he was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

Electoral record

External links

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Order of Canada Citation

Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada Complete List of Posts
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cadieux, Leo 1908 births 2005 deaths Ambassadors of Canada to France Liberal Party of Canada MPs Ministers of national defence of Canada Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Quebec Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Officers of the Order of Canada People from Saint-Jérôme Politicians from Laurentides 20th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada