Robert James Manion (19 November 1881 – 2 July 1943) was a

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politician who led the

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from 1938 to 1940. Prior to his leadership of the party, he served in

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 ...

Arthur Meighen and R. B. Bennett's cabinets. A Liberal prior to

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 ...

, Manion was elected to the

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in 1917 as a member of the pro-

conscription Conscription, also known as the draft in the United States and Israel, is the practice in which the compulsory enlistment in a national service, mainly a military service, is enforced by law. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it conti ...

Unionist Party led by Prime Minister Robert Borden. After the war, he served as a Conservative Member of Parliament until his defeat in

1935 Events January * January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims. * January 12 – Amelia Earhart ...

. In

1938 Events January * January 1 – state-owned enterprise, State-owned railway networks are created by merger, in France (SNCF) and the Netherlands (Nederlandse Spoorwegen – NS). * January 20 – King Farouk of Egypt marries Saf ...

, Manion was elected leader of the Conservatives, which was shortly relabeled as National Government. Despite his pro-conscription stance in World War I, Manion campaigned against conscription in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in the 1940 federal election. Manion also ran on a platform of forming a wartime

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. In the election, the National Government lost in a landslide, keeping their seat count exactly the same as in the 1935 federal election. Manion also lost his seat of

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, and subsequently resigned as leader. Shortly after, Manion was appointed director of Civilian Air Raid Defence. He died in 1943 in

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Early life

Manion was born in Pembroke, Ontario, of Irish Catholic descent, the son of Mary Ann (O'Brien) and Patrick James Manion. He studied medicine at

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, Ontario, and at the

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before settling in his hometown of Fort William,

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, where his parents had lived since 1888. In 1915, he enrolled in the Canadian Army Medical Corps. Attached to the 21st Canadian Battalion, he was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level until 1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) Other ranks (UK), other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth of ...

for heroism at the battle of Vimy Ridge.

Political career

Manion was elected to the

during the

election of 1917 as a Unionist Member of Parliament (MP) for Fort William, Ontario. A member of the

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before the war, he supported Conservative Prime Minister Robert Borden's pro-conscription Union government that was formed as a result of the Conscription Crisis of 1917. Manion remained with the Conservative Party after the war. The new prime minister, Arthur Meighen, appointed him Minister of Soldiers' Civil Re-establishment in 1921. He spent most of the 1920s on the opposition benches, except for a few months in 1926 when he served as a minister in the second Meighen administration, including the position of Postmaster-General. Following the federal election of 1930, the new Conservative Prime minister R. B. Bennett appointed Manion Minister of Railways and Canals. However, the economic crisis of the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

destroyed the Bennett government, and Manion, with many others, lost his seat in the 1935 election. According to historian Roy Piovesana, Manion's loss was partly attributable to his failure to cultivate his Fort William riding.

Conservative Party leader

Despite not having a seat, Manion won the Conservative leadership convention with backing of an "improbable coalition"Plamaondon, Bob, "A Compassionate Conservative", National Post, 8 April 2009. of Orange Order delegates from Ontario and delegates from Quebec. Conservative Party members hoped that his

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and marriage to a French-Canadian, Yvonne Desaulniers, would help the party in

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, ...

where the perception of the Tories as being anti-French and anti-Catholic Orangemen had hurt their prospects. Manion entered the House of Commons through a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

in 1938 in

. Following his by-election win, Manion subsequently campaigned against

despite the fact that he had joined the Unionists in 1917 because he favoured the draft. Manion moved the Conservatives to the left and was criticized as a socialist due to his call for action against unemployment and his desire to, in his words, "bring a greater measure of social justice to all our citizens." He hoped to come to power due to the criticism the King government was facing after the brokerage of an agreement with the Union Nationale Premier of Quebec, Maurice Duplessis in which he promised federal funds for unemployment relief in Quebec in exchange for the Union Nationale's support for the Conservatives in the federal election. The onset of

and the re-emergence of conscription as an issue in Canada stymied Manion's hopes. In the 1939 Quebec election the federal Liberals warned that the Duplessis government's support for Manion would lead to conscription, despite Manion's claims that he opposed mandatory military enlistment. The defeat of the government of Maurice Duplessis in

dashed Manion's hopes of building an electoral alliance with the conservative

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. As well, his stand against conscription turned much of the Tory base in Ontario against the leader.

1940 federal election

King had promised Manion that he would not call an election due to the war but reversed his pledge and called a March 1940 general election taking Manion's Tories by surprise and unprepared. They campaigned under the name " National Government" with the platform of forming a wartime

coalition government A coalition government, or coalition cabinet, is a government by political parties that enter into a power-sharing arrangement of the executive. Coalition governments usually occur when no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an ...

. King and his Liberal Party were quite popular, especially after his government helped Canada recover from the depression. Therefore, the Liberals won a second consecutive landslide

majority government A majority government is a government by one or more governing parties that hold an absolute majority of seats in a legislature. Such a government can consist of one party that holds a majority on its own, or be a coalition government of multi ...

, the renamed Tories were unable to make any gains from their 1935 result, and Manion failed to win his seat, leading to his resignation as party leader two months later.

Later life

After his election loss, Manion was appointed director of Civilian Air Raid Defence. He died in 1943 in

Bibliography

Manion, Robert James. A surgeon in arms. Toronto: McClelland, Goodchild & Stewart, 1918.
*Manion, R.J. Life is an adventure. Toronto : Ryerson Press, 1936. *Naugler, Harold Adelbert. R.J. Manion and the Conservative Party 1938-1940. M.A. thesis 1966, Queen's University, Kingston, Ont. *Piovesana, Roy H. Robert J. Manion member of Parliament for Fort William 1917-1935. Thunder Bay : Thunder Bay Historical Museum Society, 1990.

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Manion, Robert James 1881 births 1943 deaths Canadian recipients of the Military Cross Ministers of railways and canals of Canada Canadian military doctors Canadian people of Irish descent Canadian Roman Catholics Leaders of the opposition (Canada) Leaders of the Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942) Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada People from Pembroke, Ontario Postmasters general of Canada Unionist Party (Canada) MPs Liberal-Unionist MPs in Canada Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Politicians from Thunder Bay 20th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada