The Unionist Party was a centre to centre-right political party in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
, composed primarily of former members of the
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 ...
party with some individual
Liberal members of Parliament. It was formed in 1917 by MPs who supported the "
Union government
The Government of India (ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of 36 states and union territor ...
" formed by
Sir Robert Borden
Sir Robert Laird Borden (June 26, 1854 – June 10, 1937) was a Canadian lawyer and Conservative politician who served as the eighth prime minister of Canada from 1911 to 1920. He is best known for his leadership of Canada during World ...
during the
First World War
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 ...
, who formed the government through the final years of the war, and was a proponent of
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 ...
. It was opposed by the remaining Liberal MPs, who sat as the official opposition.
The Unionist Party continued to exist until 1922, at which time the Conservative elements re-formed the Conservative party.
Formation
In May 1917, Conservative
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 ...
Borden proposed the formation of a
national unity government
A national unity government, government of national unity (GNU), or national union government is a broad coalition government consisting of all parties (or all major parties) in the legislature, usually formed during a time of war or other na ...
or
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 ...
to Liberal leader
Sir Wilfrid Laurier
Sir Henri Charles Wilfrid Laurier (November 20, 1841 – February 17, 1919) was a Canadian lawyer, statesman, and Liberal politician who served as the seventh prime minister of Canada from 1896 to 1911. The first French Canadian prime min ...
in order to enact conscription and to govern for the remainder of the war. Laurier rejected this proposal because of the opposition of his
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, ...
MPs and fears that Quebec nationalist leader
Henri Bourassa
Joseph-Napoléon-Henri Bourassa (; September 1, 1868 – August 31, 1952) was a French Canadian political leader and publisher. In 1899, Bourassa was outspoken against the Government of the United Kingdom, British government's request for Cana ...
would be able to exploit the situation. Public opinion in Quebec was heavily against conscription, influencing the Liberal opposition to it due to the large number of Liberal MPs from Quebec.
As an alternative to a coalition with Laurier, on October 12, 1917, Borden formed the Union government with a
Cabinet of twelve Conservatives, nine Liberals and Independents, and one "Labour" member. To represent "labour" and the
working class
The working class is a subset of employees who are compensated with wage or salary-based contracts, whose exact membership varies from definition to definition. Members of the working class rely primarily upon earnings from wage labour. Most c ...
, Borden was appointed to the Cabinet Conservative
Senator
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...
Gideon Decker Robertson
Gideon Decker Robertson, (August 26, 1874 – August 25, 1933) was a Canadian Senator and Canadian Cabinet minister.
Robertson was a telegrapher by profession and had links with conservatives in the labour movement. In January 1917, he was appo ...
who had been appointed to the Senate in January and had links with the conservative wing of the
labour movement
The labour movement is the collective organisation of working people to further their shared political and economic interests. It consists of the trade union or labour union movement, as well as political parties of labour. It can be considere ...
through his profession as a telegrapher. Robertson, however, was a Tory and not a member of any
Labour or socialist party.
Borden then called an
election for December 1917 on the issue of conscription (see also
Conscription Crisis of 1917
The Conscription Crisis of 1917 () was a political and military crisis in Canada during World War I. It was mainly caused by disagreement on whether men should be conscripted to fight in the war, but also brought out many issues regarding relatio ...
), running as head of the "Unionist Party" composed of Borden's Conservatives, independent MPs, and members of the Liberals who left Laurier's caucus to support conscription.
Supporters of the Borden government ran for
parliament
In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
as "Unionists", while some of the Liberals running as government supporters preferred to call themselves "
Liberal-Unionist". Prime Minister Borden pledged himself during the 1917 campaign to equal suffrage for women. He introduced a bill in 1918 for extending the franchise to women; it passed without division.
This tactic split the Liberal Party: those who did not join the Unionist Party ran as
Laurier Liberals
Prior to the 1917 Canadian federal election, 1917 federal election in Canada, the Liberal Party of Canada split into two factions. To differentiate the groups, historians tend to use two retrospective names:
* The Laurier Liberals, who opposed ...
. The election resulted in a landslide election victory for Borden.
Borden attempted to continue the Unionist Party after the war and when
Arthur Meighen
Arthur Meighen ( ; June 16, 1874 – August 5, 1960) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the ninth prime minister of Canada from 1920 to 1921 and from June to September 1926. He led the Conservative Party from 1920 to 1926 and ...
succeeded him in 1920, he renamed it the "
National Liberal and Conservative Party The National Liberal and Conservative Party was the name adopted by the Conservative Party of Canada in 1920 after the end of the Unionist government of Robert Borden.
The Conservatives, led by Arthur Meighen, adopted the name in the hope of makin ...
" in the hope of making the coalition permanent. The Unionists had never been officially a single party, and therefore lacked the structure of an official party and Meighen hoped to change this.
In the
1921 general election, most of the Liberal-Unionist MPs did not join this party and ran as Liberals under the leadership of its new leader,
William Lyon Mackenzie King
William Lyon Mackenzie King (December 17, 1874 – July 22, 1950) was a Canadian statesman and politician who was the tenth prime minister of Canada for three non-consecutive terms from 1921 to 1926, 1926 to 1930, and 1935 to 1948. A Liberal ...
. Only a handful ran again as Liberal-Unionists or joined Meighen's renamed party. Prominent Liberal-Unionists who stayed with the Conservatives include
Hugh Guthrie
Hugh Guthrie (13 August 1866 – 3 November 1939) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as a minister in the governments of Sir Robert Borden, Arthur Meighen and R. B. Bennett.
Biography
He was born in Guelph, Canada West, ...
and
Robert Manion
Robert James Manion (19 November 1881 – 2 July 1943) was a Canadian politician who led the Conservative Party of Canada from 1938 to 1940. Prior to his leadership of the party, he served in Prime Minister Arthur Meighen and R. B. Benne ...
.
Following the defeat of Meighen's government, the "National Liberal and Conservative Party" changed its name to the "Liberal-Conservative Party of Canada", although it was commonly known as the "Conservative Party".
During
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 ...
, the Conservatives opposed the Liberal government of
William Lyon Mackenzie King
William Lyon Mackenzie King (December 17, 1874 – July 22, 1950) was a Canadian statesman and politician who was the tenth prime minister of Canada for three non-consecutive terms from 1921 to 1926, 1926 to 1930, and 1935 to 1948. A Liberal ...
in the
1940 election by campaigning for a "national government" along the lines of the previous war's Unionist government. Accordingly, Conservatives ran as
National Government candidates. However, King's
Liberals won a
landslide victory
A landslide victory is an election result in which the winning Candidate#Candidates in elections, candidate or political party, party achieves a decisive victory by an overwhelming margin, securing a very large majority of votes or seats far beyo ...
and continued to rule as an ordinary majority government throughout the war.
Election results
See also
*
Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942)
The Conservative Party of Canada () was a major federal political party in Canada that existed under that name from 1867 before being renamed the Progressive Conservative Party in 1942. The party adhered to traditionalist conservatism and ...
*
Laurier Liberals
Prior to the 1917 Canadian federal election, 1917 federal election in Canada, the Liberal Party of Canada split into two factions. To differentiate the groups, historians tend to use two retrospective names:
* The Laurier Liberals, who opposed ...
*
List of political parties in Canada
This article lists political party, political parties in Canada.
Federal parties
In contrast with the political party systems of many nations, Canadian parties at the federal level are often only loosely connected with parties at the provincial ...
*
Lloyd George ministry
Liberal David Lloyd George formed a coalition government in the United Kingdom in December 1916, and was appointed Prime Minister of the United Kingdom by King George V. It replaced the earlier wartime coalition under H. H. Asquith, which had ...
, contemporary UK government supported by most Conservative and Liberal MPs except the
Independent Liberals
External links
Union Governmentat
The Canadian Encyclopedia
''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' (TCE; ) is the national encyclopedia of Canada, published online by the Toronto-based historical organization Historica Canada, with financial support by the federal Department of Canadian Heritage and Society of Com ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Unionist Party
Defunct political parties in Canada
History of political parties in Canada
Politics of World War I
1917 Canadian federal election
1917 establishments in Canada
Political parties established in 1917
1922 disestablishments in Canada
Political parties disestablished in 1922